First published 1999
Landon Carter thinks back to 1958, his senior year at Beaufort High School in North Carolina. The wind carries scents of ocean and lilacs each April, triggering memories of that transformative time. Landon was a typical rebel who had dated around and thought he knew love. Jamie Sullivan was the quiet, ethereal daughter of the town's Baptist minister. She seemed like the last girl Landon would ever notice, much less fall for. But Jamie possessed something different. She carried herself with unusual grace in a world where women still wore dresses and men tipped their hats. As their unlikely relationship develops, Jamie opens Landon's eyes to depths of feeling he never imagined possible. She teaches him about the human heart and what it truly means to live fully. Their connection becomes a star-crossed romance that Chicago Sun-Times called "young but everlasting love." This story explores the joy and pain that come with genuine love and the strength two people can find in each other.
Genres: american-fiction, 20th-century, coming-of-age, love-story, contemporary-romance, young-adult-romance
Vibes: bittersweet, emotional, intimate, lyrical, nostalgic, thought-provoking
Tropes: friends-to-lovers, personal-growth, star-crossed-lovers, unlikely-romance
Setting: Beaufort, North Carolina
Period: 1958
240 pages · Paperback · Grand Central Publishing