ASK NICHOLAS Sparks how many novels he's written, and the prolific writer counts on his fingers, listing the titles under his breath.

One finger: "The Notebook." Two fingers: "Message in a Bottle." Three fingers: "A Walk to Remember." And so forth, until he starts over with the first hand to reach the latest, No.12: "The Choice" (Grand Central Publishing, $24.99).

It is, he says, in many ways like the other 11: set in eastern North Carolina, with likable characters in realistic situations. And it's likely to be similar in another way: So far, all the novels have been best sellers for Sparks, who has sold about 60 million books worldwide and had three novels made into movies. A fourth, "Nights in Rodanthe," is to be released next year.

In "The Choice," Travis Parker is a fun-loving veterinarian. Gabby Holland, a physician's assistant, moves next door, and their meeting puts Gabby at a crossroads.

The story line of "The Choice" comes from two thoughts: Sparks' desire to return to the structure of his first book, "The Notebook," in which characters face consequences later in life from events that happened earlier, and his time coaching track at New Bern High School the past two years......