DEAR JOHN (Nicholas Sparks) - January 30/10

I was really digging this for about the first half, as Sparks does a superb job of setting up the two central characters' admittedly idealized romance. Both characters are vividly portrayed and I really found myself caught up in the slow-build of their relationship (although I was confused by Savannah's refusal to sleep with John again after that first night). It's only as the two separate after John goes to war, with those sections long and descriptive and comparatively boring, that my interest started to wane, and the completely unsatisfactory resolution was nothing short of ridiculous. I mean, really... Savannah breaks up with John and marries Tim? WTF. Sparks creates a romance with all the realism of a fairy tale and then doesn't afford Savannah and John a happy ending? It just doesn't work. Ugh. Frustrating as hell. **1/2 out of ****