Nicholas Sparks

• Why Nicholas Sparks novels don't make good life road maps — College Candy
• The new generation of leading men — Ask Men
• Who's the sex initiator in your relationship? — Betty Confidential
• Saudi Arabian women are fighting back against driving ban — The Frisky
• Lesbian love advice — The Hairpin
• Why do men contact their exes? — Em & Lo
• Five tips for moving in together — YourTango
• What do you think about "trading up"? — Glamour

Zac Efron's soulful turn in this week's Charlie St. Cloud definitely won't be his last foray into tearjerkers. Efron has just signed on to star in The Lucky One, from the romantic drama master himself, Nicholas Sparks. He'll play the central character, former soldier Logan Thibault, who seeks a woman in the photograph that became his lucky charm overseas.

But don't go thinking Efron is about to pigeonhole himself in sentimental flicks; he has also attached himself to edgy flick Die in a Gunfight as a young man who falls for the daughter of his father's nemesis. Factor that in with the other recent projects he's gotten involved with, including comedies and drug thriller Snabba Cash, and I might be able to see Efron following in the footsteps of some other iconic actors.

Yesterday I shared my chat with Miley Cyrus about her film The Last Song; now, I'd like to switch gears to show you what her costars had to say about working with the teen queen. Here, her boyfriend onscreen and off, Liam Hemsworth, gives us the scoop about their big kiss — and about taking his shirt off. Turns out, he may have a thing or two to learn from Taylor Lautner!

• BuzzSugar's not excited about Dear John, out today — BuzzSugar
• Kristen Stewart served on the jury in a prostitution trial — PopSugar
• Speaking of prostitutes, Eliot Spitzer is looking to get back in politics — Daily Beast
• Missionaries formally charged with kidnapping children in Haiti — Jezebel
• Howard Stern rumored to replace Simon Cowell on American Idol — Page Six
• The Pentagon stocks health facilities with morning after pill — Washington Post

Photos courtesy of Sony Pictures

Movies based on the work of writer Nicholas Sparks are very hit or miss. Though he consistently uses the same cliches in his tragic loves stories, the results aren't quite as consistent. On the one hand, the film versions can be romantic and endearing, like The Notebook, but other times, the formula produces a schlocky dud (sorry, Nights in Rodanthe).

The latest, Dear John, hangs somewhere in the balance. It's not a total miss but it's far from a home run — mainly due to the lack of chemistry between Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried. The two play John and Savannah, a mismatched army man and affluent college girl who share a Summer romance and then keep in touch through letters while John's deployed overseas. It's the kind of movie you have to be a Nicholas Sparks fan to appreciate, but even his biggest supporters won't be satisfied. I'll tell you why when you read more

Are you ready for your second Nicholas Sparks movie preview in as many months? (Last month's was the romance Dear John.) Here it is: The Last Song stars Miley Cyrus (cue The Soup's "It's Miley!" sound bite) as a girl who's dropped off at the home of her estranged father to spend the Summer. Obviously she doesn't want to be there, obviously she falls for a local boy, and obviously she and her father end up bonding.

You couldn't call me a Miley fan, but I do love Greg Kinnear, who plays her well-meaning father. From the trailer, the movie looks very sweet and very schlocky — which is exactly how Sparks usually does it. Interestingly, Sparks was commissioned to write both the screenplay and novel simultaneously, with Cyrus in mind. While I don't know that I'll be rushing to the theater for this one, it's probably something you'd find me secretly Netflixing later on; I'm kind of a sucker for the addictive cheesiness of a Sparks movie.

Check out the trailer for The Last Song when you read more