Rating: 
Summary: A Love Story, A Thriller, A Great Novel
Review: This is the first Nicholas Sparks book I've read, and I knew beforehand that it was different from the rest of his novels. The main character, Julie, has an interesting relationship with her dog, Singer. In the beginning of the book, Julie wakes up with Singer lying on top of her. A Great Dane, he is crushing poor Julie in his sleep. She chides him and forces him off. She converses with Singer, as she treats him like a human. The book starts out neutral, just a story about a young woman widowed for a few years and trying to dip her feet back into the world of dating.
Sparks introduces Mike, the best friend of Julie's late husband, who is in love with her. Living in a small town, everyone knows it, but he is too shy to ask out Julie. Like most of Sparks' novels, the setting is in North Carolina, a small town called Swansboro. The first conflict of the book is the love story. Julie and Mike are best friends, but Mike wants to be much more. To his dismay, Julie has found a man she really likes, Richard. They even go on dates to theaters and a hot air balloon ride.
Despite this, Mike and Julie are still attracted to each other. There is even a specific part in the book where Mike and Richard fight in a club, but the reason is much more than jealously. The real conflict comes when Richard, who is not as he seems, is left out in the dark when Julie's attention turns to Mike. Suddenly, Julie finds herself being stalked, and she's sure it's Richard. There's one part where twenty messages are left on her answering machine with no voices. Things get very exciting from there, all the way until the climax at a beach house, where Richard tries again for Julie's love, hurting others in the process. One of the other conflicts is who is Richard really. Soon, the police force of Swansboro is investigating him, and when they finally uncover his past, filled with murder and obsession, the mystery is solved. Only Richard is still on the loose, and after Julie. The conclusion comes after, a very powerful confrontation between Richard and Julie, and a surprise that comes at the last minute.
I recommend this book to readers of Sparks', as it is a great book, filled with twists and turns, obsession and love. The novel remains a love story, but has an added bonus of the thriller element, showing how a new couple would deal with the man left out, a man who doesn't give up on what he wants, and he wants the girl. Any readers who like a love story with thrills should read it. The Guardian is a very great book, and is about not only the people, but also the dog, Singer, who is Julie's guardian. This book can have a powerful impact on its readers.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Story
Review: After seeing James Garner & Gena Rowlands in the film version of "The Notebook," I eagerly picked up my first Sparks novel to read. "The Guardian" was enjoyable, if unremarkable. There are no weighty themes here that indicate this will still be eagerly read 100 years from now, but it was a good story.
My favorite character was Jennifer Romanello, the training police officer. She was talented, bright and had a knack for her job. I wondered at the problems an Italian New Yorker transplanted to a small North Carolina town might have. However, she didn't seem to have any & people here are more tolerant of "d*mn Yankees" as they call native northerners who now live in the South. Jennifer didn't appear to have any culture shock, which is common to transplants. One interesting inside North Carolina joke is when Jennifer calls the sister of Jessica Bonham, the sister's name is "Elaine Marshall," whose name also happens to be that of the Secretary of State for North Carolina, a small but inside joke apparently.
Singer, the Great Dane, is a wonderful animal character. Yes, Sparks hints that it could be dead husband Jim come back from the grave to protect her. But the dog has such a presence that he truly is as important as any other character. The main character Julie Barenson seemed to be intensely dense. It made me hard to really root for her as she withheld information from her new love interest, Mike Harris. At the end, she's being tracked by a serial killer, is on the beach with Mike and a police officer, and one by one she sends them off to telephone. If you were in an emergency, even people in North Carolina have cell phones. It came across a bit contrived. But yes, we're happy that she finds her true love with Mike.
I also really enjoyed the character of Andrea, the loose hairdresser with a penchant for the wrong kind of men. From her wild clothing & make-up style to her dates to the attitude she cops toward Julie, she was interesting. But again, she seemed more street smart than her reaction to Richard's collection of Julie pictures in the darkroom that leads to her hospitalization. It made the plot seem manipulated.
The supporting characters of Henry, Mike's brother who enjoys teasing him, Emma, Henry's wife and the best friend of most everyone, Mabel, Jim's aunt who hired Julie, and Pete, the egotistical dense police officer were all excellently drawn.
This leaves us of course with Robert Bonham, ergo Richard Franklin, who we learn in stages has a history of killing those who bother him. Sparks did an excellent job of creating a character who would fly off the handle at a moment's notice. I did, however, constantly wonder how he financed himself. Bonham seemed to have an endless supply of cash to travel and do whatever he wanted. This loose end bothered me because the usual line for a detective on the case is to follow the money.
"The Guardian" was a good read. It becomes a real page burner as we race to the end. Mike was a great character; and I hope some day he finds his place in the band. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Sparks Fanatic Love This
Review: I love Nicholas Sparks and have read everything he has had published. I really loved this book! This was entirely different than his other books but still great. I also had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Sparks when he came to a nearby town for a literacy celebration. I stood in line and got him to autograph my copy of this. I don't usually keep books, but this one I will.
Rating:
Summary: Loved it! Couldn't put it down!
Review: I love Sparks' books but after the last one I tried to read I took a break. I say tried because I couldn't get into it. It was dry and boring and left me wanting something else to read, anything else. But I saw this one on the shelf and decided to give it a try. I LOVED IT! I couldn't put it down and couldn't wait to finish it. It was fantastic! At one point during my read, I was in tears. :) I highly recommend it!
Rating:
Summary: A WINNER!
Review: I really really enjoyed this book. It was so good. You really got to know the characters and felt like you were right there with them. I thought it was a different style from the last two of his books that I read. (The Notebook & The Wedding) I would really recommend those two too! I liked his style in this one, just a gave a different feel to it. It was a little longer than the other two I have read but worth it!
Rating: 
Summary: Good Read... Sparks is great
Review: I'm a 23 year old male, engaged to be married and I've read his books since I was 18. He always writes comfortably and this is no exception. The book always had my attention and was very enjoyable. Found myself in Mike's shoes many times throughout the first half of the book. He did a good job, but no Dan Brown thriller. I think it's just another enjoyable book from Sparks. Thanks Nick, you're great.
Rating:
Summary: Another Great One
Review: Sparks has a way of writing that gets the reader to imagine themselves there with the characters of the book. This was a book filled with love, tragedy and unconditional companionship. Not knowing which man to begin a romance with Julie begins to fall for two men. Soon it becomes all to clear who she should choose. That is when all the action begins. She starts a wirlwind romance with one and the other becomes jealous. She knows she must decide between them. Should she go with the interesting stranger or maybe she should choose her dependable friend who is always there for her? Speaking of always there for her, I have to mention the lovable dog Singer that is always by her side, what a sweetie. Sparks had me hanging on every word and I didn't want to put the book down. I highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: Nicholas Sparks does it again!
Review: The Guardian is a fictional book, a mystery, but at the same time a love story. It takes place in present time in the United States. The theme of the book is love, danger, and dealing with the loss of a spouse. It is about a women, Julie, who has lost her husband at a young age. He leaves her with a puppy, named Singer to watch over her. She feels like she is ready to start dating again and when she starts looking she finds a man named Richard but there is also Mike Harris, her husband's best friend. Soon, when Julie finally thinks she's happy, strange things start happening to her and she realizes if she doesn't take action soon, she will pay the ultimate price- her life.I loved everything about this book. It was most definitely a page turner, especially toward the end. I usually read the most before I go to bed. One night, I started reading around ten, and I literally could not put it down! I read a little over 200 pages, and I didn't stop reading until 3 a.m. when my mom finally came in and told me I had to go to bed because I had to get up in another two hours. The book put me through a lot of emotions as it went on, I was excited, happy, mad, scared and sad. Even though "The Guardian" is a fictional book, it deals with real situations. It made me more aware of some dangerous things that could happen in real life, to real people. Most people think "this could never happen to me", but this book shows it can.
I think that this book targets many different types of people. Some people like action books, some like romance, but this books satisfies both wants and ties them together very well. The two elements in the story were perfectly balanced, and the way he paced the story, I never lost the slightest bit of interest. I enjoyed the novel and would definitely recommend it, I couldn't ask for more in a book.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't Seem to Put This One Down.....
Review: This book cuts a wide swath - there is romance, intrigue, mystery, an animal in a starring role, humor - and does it all with panache.
I hesitated to invest much time in this title because I had been a bit disappointed in Spark's other book, "A Bend in the Road."
What I did appreciate about "A Bend in the Road" was Spark's artistry as a writer - the first sentence in that title was amazing....
I started reading (my mother recommended it, as did another friend so I decided to give it 50 pages to hook me) and thought, "Ok, familiar territory - a youngish, attractive widow, a buddy-best-friend, a handsome mysterious stranger... ok, ok, ok..."
Enter Singer - a posthumous gift from Julie's deceased husband -and I was curious.
Mike, the buddy-best-friend-who-was-naturally-in-love-with-Julie, was likeable... funny, and I couldn't help rooting for him and then the mysterious handsome (and you knew he had to be bad news)character, Richard, was intriguingly three dimensional as well.
I even grew to care about Andrea, the stereotypical lower class co-worker of Julie.
I did something with this book I haven't done in eons - I cared enough about the characters to cry - which to me, says quite a bit about the quality of writing and character development.
I never once said, "Yeah, right" or "I wish this character wasn't ever created" or "I saw that coming from a bajillion miles."
Sparks did a fine job with this one - and now I know I will pick up other books of his... and perhaps give it more than 50 pages to hook me.
Rating: 
Summary: Poor work
Review: This book is very predictable and boring. I've never read a book that is so wordy. Instead of igniting imigination and provoking thought, the author drudges through mundane, descript dialogue.
Waste of reading time.
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