A young woman with a past comes to Southport, North Carolina where she bonds with a widower. Based on the book by Nicholas Sparks. Starring Julianne Hough, Irene Ziegler, Jon Kohler, Josh Duhamel, Cobie Smulders.

Although I have always been a fan of Nicholas Sparks, I haven’t had the chance to read this book yet. Perhaps that is the reason why this movie is my least favorite of his book adaptations. I really struggled with all of the twists in this film. In all of Sparks’ stories, there is tragedy, and this film is no different, but I just couldn’t connect into the characters with this one. I didn’t appreciate how Alex’s (the widower) wife was portrayed, and Katie’s (played by Hough) escape from domestic violence felt forced. I know the point was to bring Alex and Katie together, but these sideline stories detracted from the romance in an unfortunate way. This film is a pass.