Review: THE LAW OF TALL GIRLS by Joanne MacGregor

If you really stand out, can you ever fit in?

Peyton is a tall girl and has always abided by the Law of Tall Girls, which indicates that no male over 6 ft. shall date a female under 5’8”. There are so few tall guys and they are wasted on short girls. So true! Why should short girls get the tall guys when they have a massive pool of average guys? Yeah!

“Once you go tall, you never go small.”

A $400 bet was that Peyton couldn’t get the hot, tall guy to kiss her. Well, mission accomplished. But then there’s a raise in the stakes. The bet was now $800 to get a tall guy (at least 6’3”) to go on 4 public dates with her with a final date at the prom. Sounds easy enough, if Peyton had any confidence and didn’t feel like a freak show so much.  

Being a tall girl, I related to Peyton, especially never finding clothes that fit unless they came from the men’s dept.

This was a pretty good story, but it was lagging at times with a bunch of high school crap. Still, it was interesting reading about Peyton’s quest to find a tall guy (it’s like trying to find a needle in a hay stack.)  At times, I thought Peyton focused too much on her tallness, and I couldn’t get into the Romeo & Juliet plot. Apparently, that was her chance to snag the hot, tall guy she’s wanted all along. The problem was that he was already snatched up by, yep, you guessed it. A short girl!

This was okay.

My rating: 3 stars

Review: PAR FOR CINDERELLA by Petie McCarty

A stalled yacht leads to an unexpected encounter. And it is at sea that sets this sappy Cinderella story. He is captivated by the alluring woman and she simply can't stop thinking about the elegant stranger. But how to find one another?

It had a slow start and had some lagging areas throughout. Although the yachts and the sea life were certainly romantic elements, I just failed to see any chemistry between the two characters. They struck me as nondescript and blasé. They're story was not very riveting. It wasn't what I expected.

My rating: 2 stars

Review: FORGETTING OPHELIA by Julie C. Gardner

At 35, Lia has wondered if it was too late to adopt. Not that she seriously wanted kids, because she was overall satisfied with her life with Jake. Until recently, she and Jake have always been in synch, but lately it just seems that she has been second in his life. He's not following The Plan. Then, like a punch in the guy, Jake announces that he's leaving her.

Story has a slow start, then it progresses with Lia's ponderings of her recent separation and her life amidst the company of pedestrian characters. Frankly, I wasn't too taken by any of this. Between her and Jake, all I got was a barrage of memories and endless musings.  I didn't feel like the story went anywhere.  I mean, what was the meaning of forgetting Ophelia? I honestly anticipated for Lia to take on more of an independent role―for her to take charge of her life. Although the story was well-written and contained a poetic feel, I just wasn't too impressed by the development.

My rating: 2 stars

Review: SEX IN THE CRAZY ZONE by Teri Riggs

This is a short novella about an old married couple wanting to reignite that sexual spark.

It had quirk with a dash of ridiculous scenarios, like sex on a trampoline or in a playhouse. I thought this would be a funny, little story. After all, the funny illustration is pretty eye-catching. However, it didn't do it justice. It was on ok read, but I thought it would’ve been funnier than it was.

My rating: 2 stars

Review: COMMITTED by Michael W. Griffith

Peter was working hard on his manuscript and wonders what could be if he did what he wanted instead of what was expected of him—working alongside his father at his multi-million dollar company. Could he give up his writing dream at 24?

“I spent 4 years getting a degree for a career I don’t want.”

The story follows the struggles of a writer wanting to venture into the world of publishing. He thought the world of writing would be so easy (he’d write the books, the publisher prints them, and the bookseller sells them.) Yeah, right. If it was that easy, then everyone would do it. Actually, a lot of people are doing this with the breakthrough of indie publishing.

“If you don’t read and read a bunch, how can you tell the difference between good writing and bad?”

“I have a thing for good stories no matter which shelf they’re on.”

But Peter must prove to his arrogant and controlling father that he could make a successful living as a writer. Will Peter be able to prove his bullheaded father wrong, or will he fail and end up working the grind for the rest of his life? You can’t wait to find out what happens.

I shared his love for writing. Writing is vividly candid and easy-going. Book is a crash course on indie publishing, which many authors would find helpful.  It combines a how-to manual format with a fictional story. A great read!

My rating: 5 stars