Review: Started off well, but...
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 02 9, 2014
This story started off well, but didn't live up to its promise.  I gave it a 2 at first, but changed it to a 3 because the writing was good and I liked the main characters, Riley and Asher, quite a bit.  It also had some good plot twists and turns, which were enjoyable.  I could not shake a dislike for the producer and producer's assistant part of the story arc.  I think the author was trying to set the producer up as a "guardian angel" type of character watching over the love interests, but it just ended up being a little creepy and really annoying.  The premise of a reality show was interesting and new, but the author missed the chance to use the best part of a reality show setting - introducing us to the cast of characters and grabbing our interest with an array of quirky personalities among whom Riley competes.  Riley enters into a house with 18 other men and there is absolutely no description of them, no analysis of his field of play.  And Riley kept referencing his strategy - but how do you have a strategy without analyzing your competitors?  The fact that there was absolutely no look at the cast of characters on the show was something I just couldn't get past.  Instead, we learned all about the producer and her assistant.  Then there were smaller stylistic things that kept adding up - grown men "giggling," long soliloquies from various characters that came off as very preachy.  A variety of things just missed the mark for me, which was disappointing, but this premise and the main characters had so much promise.