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Book Review of Small Town Girl

Small Town Girl
Small Town Girl
Author: LaVyrle Spencer
Genre: Romance
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
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Helpful Score: 2


Country Music Superstar Tess McPhail is upset at being ordered home by her two older sisters to care for her mother after a hip replacement operation. Didn't they know she had a career that kept her busy night and day? Assuming she is going to be bored staying in her hometown, Tess isn't prepared when she is insulted by her sister, driven crazy by her mother, and ignored by her neighbor Kenny Kronek. Tess and Kenny went to high school together where he had a crush on her and she called him a geek. Now he acts like she is invisible!

Good grief. Tess was nothing but a B1TCH in the first half of the story. She acted like a child when Kenny would mow her mother's lawn but wouldn't stop to talk to her. Hey honey, you didn't say anything to him either. Of course, when they finally start talking to each other, Tess decides he isn't such a bad guy. And he's a good father. His teenage daughter is a big fan of Tess's music. She has a great voice and wants to be a singer. Tess thinks she could be a star someday.

I started out liking Kenny, but I turned on him when he kept seeing Tess on the side while not telling his current girlfriend that he wanted out of their relationship. I guess he was keeping her around in case it didn't work out with Tess.

I thought this story would never end. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Emily Sutton-Smith. She sometimes sounded like an AI voice narration (robotic). When she voiced Tess's mother, she sounded like Granny who took care of Tweety Bird. But I can't blame the narrator for the too wordy descriptions of the heroine's feelings. That came straight from the author and nearly put me to sleep. It was painful. My rating: 1.5 Stars.