Author: Nicholas Sparks
Publisher Hachette Australia
Genre: Fiction, Romance, Modern Romance
Year of release: 2020
Release date: 29th September 2020
Rating 
Synopsis
Trevor Benson never intended to move back to New Bern, North Carolina. But when a mortar blast outside the hospital where he worked as an orthopaedic surgeon sent him home from Afghanistan with devastating injuries, the dilapidated cabin he’d inherited from his grandfather seemed as good a place to regroup as any.
Tending to his grandfather’s beloved beehives while preparing for a second stint in medical school, Trevor isn’t prepared to fall in love with a local . . . yet, from their very first encounter, Trevor feels a connection with deputy sheriff Natalie Masterson that he can’t ignore. But even as she seems to reciprocate his feelings, she remains frustratingly distant, making Trevor wonder what she’s hiding.
Further complicating his stay in New Bern is the presence of a sullen teenage girl, Callie, who lives in the trailer park down the road. Claiming to be 17, she works at the local sundries store and keeps to herself. Discovering that she was once befriended by his grandfather, Trevor hopes Callie can shed light on the mysterious circumstances of his grandfather’s death, but she offers few clues – until a crisis triggers a race that will uncover the true nature of Callie’s past, one more intertwined with the elderly man’s passing than Trevor could have ever anticipated.
In his quest to unravel Natalie and Callie’s secrets, Trevor will learn the true meaning of love and forgiveness . . . and that in life, to move forward, we must often return to the place where it all began.
Review
Trever Benson an Orthopaedic Surgeon was serving in Afghanistan, where he gains some serious injuries which unfortunately require him to return to home soil; in order to figure out his next career move where better than New Bern, North Carolina, a place Trevor holds dear in his heart.
Trever inherits his beloved grandfathers’ cabin which Trevor sets about renovating. Whilst he sets about working on the cabin, he also tends to his grandfather’s beehives a passion the pair shared since Trevor was a child.
Shortly after arriving back in New Bern, Trevor meets Natalie Masterson, the local Deputy Sheriff and the two form an instant connection.
Shortly after Trevor meets a local, fiercely independent and sullen teenager named Callie. After some digging Trevor discovers Callie and Trevor’s grandfather were close, he set’s about trying to help her. Can Trevor make peace with his grandfather’s passing? Will he be able to support Natalie in her time of need? Will Callie accept Trevor’s help?
Sparks is one of the few Authors who only has to release a book and I’ll read it; The Rescue is no exception.
“Life endlessly offers us chances to set new directions and, in the process, we grow and change; when we look in the rear-view mirror, we catch a glimpse of former selves who sometimes seem unrecognizable.
[Trevor Benson]”
― Nicholas Sparks, The Return
As always Nicholas Sparks delivers, when I’m amongst the pages of a Sparks novel I feel a great sense of joy, his descriptions of the south; New Bern, North Carolina, East Coast America come alive in my mind. His ability to write a romance without making a reader who isn’t quite at home in the romance genre cringe makes him a leader in this genre in my opinion.
This reader has always seen Sparks as a leader not only in the Romance genre but a leader in writing a story that appears effortless when reading. I’ve never had to wonder what’s coming my way that’s going to keep me invested right from the opening line to the close of the book, I appreciate every page, every detail. Every detail shared in the story; the way he built the chapters left this reader satisfied.
Having really enjoyed my time with some of the characters in his earlier books such as A Walk to Remember and The Rescue, I was eager to add some new favourites to my list but that just wasn’t the case for me this time around. Don’t get me wrong Trevor makes for an enjoyable protagonist, it’s easy to see that his heart is in the right place, I found his willingness to impress Natalie romantically at their introduction felt a little over the top.
“Maybe the older people get, the more important the past becomes? Because there’s less future ahead?”
― Nicholas Sparks, The Return
I found Natalie somewhat cold at times because of this element I think I found it hard to form any sort of connection with her, looking back on it in the end I personally found not only did I not form a connection, but I also personally struggled to sympathise when it comes to discovering her reason’s for keeping her secrets, I found it somewhat selfish.
What made The Return a five-star read for me was the attention to detail surrounding the bees and just how much effort goes into making honey and the up-keep of the bees and the “must do’s” to have a productive hive and an efficient queen. I also appreciated the effort taken to shine a light on PTSD and the time and care taken to address physical disabilities albeit in a minor way.
Callie and Trevor form a bond overtime, I found this to be the other element of the story I wanted to return to most.
I highly recommend this read to any Sparks fan, anyone in the mood for a light read should look no further.