Ratings2
Average rating4.8
From the acclaimed author of The Longest Ride and The Notebook comes an emotional, powerful novel about wondering if we can change—or even make our peace with—the path we’ve taken.
Tanner Hughes was raised by his grandparents, following in his grandfather’s military footsteps to become an Army Ranger. His whole life has been spent abroad, and he is the proverbial rolling stone: happiest when off on his next adventure, zero desire to settle down. But when his grandmother passes away, her last words to him are find where you belong. She also drops a bombshell, telling him the name of the father he never knew—and where to find him.
Tanner is due at his next posting soon, but his curiosity is piqued, and he sets out for Asheboro, North Carolina, to ask around. He’s been in town less than twenty-four hours when he meets Kaitlyn Cooper, a doctor and single mom. They both feel an immediate connection; Tanner knows Kaitlyn has a story to tell, and he wants to hear it. To Kaitlyn, Tanner is mysterious, exciting—and possibly leaving in just a few weeks.
Meanwhile, nearby, eighty-three-year-old Jasper lives alone in a cabin bordering a national forest. With only his old dog, Arlo, for company, he lives quietly, haunted by a tragic accident that took place decades before. When he hears rumors that a white deer has been spotted in the forest—a creature of legend that inspired his father and grandfather—he becomes obsessed with protecting the deer from poachers.
As these characters’ fates orbit closer together, none of them is expecting a miracle . . . but that may be exactly what is about to alter their futures forever.
Reviews with the most likes.
I just finished Counting Miracles by one of my favorite autobuy authors.... The Nicholas Sparks and I will stop fangirling long enough to tell you what I thought!
Tanner loves his nomadic life... Army ranger, spending all his time abroad... Until his grandmother gets sick and he comes home... She drops the mother of all bombshells on him then passes away.
Going to find his dad becomes the latest adventure but the real adventure starts when teenager Casey hits his car and he then lays on her mother Kaitlyn.. His wandering heart suddenly feels like his nomadic heart has stilled just a little bit....
Jasper, an old man who lives in a cabin, feels a powerful pull to the white deer that has been spotted in the forest and has a need to protect it...
There is something about the way a Nicholas Sparks book hits you in all the right places. He doesn't make things look bright and shiny and there is something super profound about that. Tanner has no family left or so he thinks and I don't think he much cared about finding his dad but what his grandmother said hit him somewhere deep inside.
Kaitlyn is a single mother and she wasn't looking for someone but meeting Tanner.... It clicks but it's never that easy. You will need some kleenex... Jasper's story is beyond tragic and I had a hard time seeing the kindle through my tears.
Nicholas Sparks always weaves his characters together in such a classic way and you will feel like you are right in the pages watching the magic unfold. You won't find a classic romance read here but you will find a book that will touch the depths of your soul.
5 stars.
Thank you to @penguinrandomhouseca for my gifted copy and you can get your copy now!