The Lucky One

U.S. Marine Logan Thibault carries a picture of a woman he’s never met because it brings him good luck. But when he sets out to find the woman, he is met with unexpected circumstances surrounding his new love and his shrouded past. Though not Sparks’s most original tale, the story flows well and narrator John Bedford Lloyd delivers a solid performance. Lloyd’s deep bass tone is perfectly suited for Thibault, a manly man if ever there was one. Lloyd’s supporting characters are rich and interesting in their own right, some speaking in comical Southern drawls, others with a raw reality. The final result is quite touching without much over-the-top sentimentality on Lloyd’s part. A Grand Central hardcover. (Sept.)