Review: Too perfect to be real?
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 07 11, 2013
While a lot of readers have loved this novella, I found it surprisingly disappointing and have been working to put a finger on the reason.  The plot is strong:  two characters with real-life issues that keep them from intimacy with others.  I loved the personal ad meeting device, and it was refreshing to read about a man who needs to care for others.So what was lacking?  It was the dialogue that, for me, got in the way of the emotional chemistry.  Too often, Brian and Carrie didn't sound like real people - they sounded like flat characters who were mouthing romantic lines from a soap opera (for example, "I told you I would wait, that I would be here....I want this.  I want you").  Both Brian and Carrie said everything exactly as it should be said; and while that sounds like it would be a good thing, it removed the human element from the story.  A bit more humor and a bit less heart-felt declarations of love (show me, don't tell me), would have improved the novella, in my opinion.Rivers' other novella that explores a similar theme ("Iris Doesn't Walk") does so much more effectively, but because the plot of "The Story Guy" is strong, I'll continue to look forward to other titles from this author.