Bare Down There: Shaved Pink And Big Breasts by Allison Reims.

Beth and Jack have been dating for a couple of months. Jack wants Beth to shave her pubic hair but she does not want to until one day when she wants to give him a surprise.

What follows is a poorly written short story of vanilla sex. I got the impression it was written by a teenager who wrongly thought she was ticking all the boxes. There is no characterization and her short story reads like a report of a football match. Touch, touch, stroke, stroke, push, push and Goal! Don't be mislead by the title, it is not about the joys of shaved pubic hair and how it brings a brightness and freshness to your daily life.  Nor does it describe the sensation of shaving, the razor cuts and the tautness of your skin.

Bare Down There is very poor soft porn. It is not an erotic tale and you will have more fun watching dogs in the park. This is not a unique tale, it is so ordinary and boring. Nothing is unusual and her writing syle is cheap. As a coffee time read you should concentrate on your coffee as this short story will leave you cold. This is one to AVOID so I will only vote it 1 tiny star.

Bare Down There is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook and was written in 2014.

Pagan Eyes: Revelation by Rayna Noire.

Nora is a rape victim and she is also a witch. This is an unusual novel set in the present day and it is cross-genre. It is a mixture of rape crisis, present day social commentary, religious intolerance, harrassment, romance and old fashioned magic.

Pagan Eyes is a good read that draws the reader into Nora's world. The characterization of Nora is full on and I quickly dropped my dislike for childish magical nonsense and developed an empathy for her. Because of the high quality of Rayna's writing, adults can ignore the fantasy/magical elements of this novel and simply enjoy those bits as a dream.

Pagan Eyes is an enjoyable every day read and I became grabbed into this other world lived by Nora. It has a quirky mix of present day urban reality and a supernatural world. I particularly enjoyed the chapters when Nora is working as a short order cook in a diner. The workplace dynamics seemed very real, so much so that I had a dream one night that I had given up my job as a coach driver for National Express and became a short order cook myself!

Special praise should given to how rape victims cope with their trauma and try to move on with their lives. Nora tries to make herself less attractive to men and develops various ways to keep out of men's way. Her tale is told in a matter of fact way and not like those sickly, sympathy seeking, hard luck stories told on television talent shows like the X Factor.

Pagan Eyes works on many levels to become a good read that I will happily vote 4 stars. This story has a happy ending and Nora finds her soul mate.

Pagan Eyes is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook and was written in 2014.

Outro by Michael J. Vaughn.

Outro is a term used in karaoke when the words stop and the music plays on giving the singer the option of walking off stage or waiting by the mike. This novel is about 2 people who meet at a karaoke bar. The central character is Channy, the karaoke jock and she is supported by Ruby who comes along to sing. There are other people involved in this story along the way, which has a happy ending.

Outro is an unusual novel as it does NOT fit into a genre. Michael has written a lovely story that is simply a joy to read. When you go away on holiday, you often befriend strangers, who over time you get to know rather well. Outro is very much like making friends on holiday. Michael is very good at characterization and gradually the people open up to you with their back stories. It is all about people drifting through the karaoke bar and their life experiences.

As the characters give each other more trust you learn about their troubles and how they try to move on. What makes this so enjoyable is the freshness of Michael's writing. You get the impression that you are meeting these people for the first time and are enjoying a holiday with them. Empathy grows strongly and this novel shows the good side to human nature and the value of friendship.

Michael's narrative is very good, so much so that you feel as though you are living with his characters. Outro is a refreshing read that appeals because of it's realism and use of ordinary, non glamourous characters. This girl-next-door style gives this book a credibility that makes it a good read that I will vote 4 stars.

The Innocent by Harlan Coben.

Matt Hunter got into a fight and ended up serving 4 years in jail. But his bad luck does not end there as this thriller reveals.

I really enjoyed reading The Innocent which is all about people trying to recover from bad luck. They try to move on from the bad things that have happened but it is a struggle. Harlan gives you the full story with lots of atmosphere and social commentary. His characterization is spot on and you very quickly develop an empahty for Matt. You learn about all the characters aspirations and the highs and lows of living in New Jersey.

The plot is very involved and there is a high level of important detail. The writing quality is top notch and this novel covers a lot of ground. It is an entertaining read with no dull sections. It is great how everything fits together and leaves you with a BUZZ! at the end. I can find nothing wrong with this book, it was simply a pleasure to read, so I will vote it the top score of 5 stars.

In my day job driving a coach for National Express, I often get passengers trying to board at the last second. I know these passengers show up just as the coach is leaving because they have a dodgy ticket and think I will just accept it in the rush to get away! But I see beyond this scam and am very cautious with the presented ticket. Matt Hunter tries this trick on page 365...

... He remembered something Bernie had sent him by e-mail several years ago. It said:

Here's a fun test. Read this sentence:

FINISHED FILES ARE THE RESULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIFIC STUDY COMBINED WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS.

Now count the F's in that sentence.
He had done it and ended up with four. The real answer was six. You don't see every letter. That's not how we're built. He was counting on something like that here. Hunter, Huntler. Would someone really catch the difference?

The Innocent has 439 pages and was written in 2005.

Saffina Desforges Presents... The Kindle Coffee-Break Collection Vol. 2.

This eBook is the second collection of short stories selected by Saffina. They are a diverse range of nine stories that could be ideal for a refreshing coffee time read. Sadly this is NOT the case and this collection disappoints. These aspiring, new and independent authors do not have the knack of telling a good short story. They do not have the sharpness or focus required for a good coffee time read.

I read story after story and became quite bored until the last. After eight VERY POOR short stories I read The Agent by Mark Williams. This was a refreshing change and I rather enjoyed the dead-pan humour employed by Mark. The irony is that Mark is Saffina's partner, so it is no surprise that his writing is GOOD. But even a brilliant end from Mark does not save this collection which I can only vote 1 star and I suggest you AVOID.

No Second Chance by Harlan Coben.

Marc Seidman wakes up in ICU to find his wife has been murdered and his baby daughter, Tara, has vanished.

This story is NOT hot off the press as Harlan wrote this novel in 2003. Does this 391 page crime thriller seem out of date, reading it 11 years after it was first published? NO! this book is a stonking good read and it DOES NOT show it's age. What you get is a first class read that fully entertains you from start to finish. No Second Chance is a FULL story will loads of detail and lots of twists and turns. It is all about secrets in peoples' past that raise their ugly heads to cause problems that are a big challenge to work around. Follow Marc as his secrets are slowly reveiled to the reader but he is not the only one with a murky past. This is not just a regular crime thriller but a look into how people deal with life's challenges in a way that they think is right, at the time.

No Second Chance is a big story with a huge list of little details that all fit together. The planning of the plot lines are the work of genius. The pleasure I got from reading such a complicated plot was tremendous. Harlan is an author at the top of his game. I can find nothing wrong with this book at all. If you want to give a book away to someone to get them interested in reading books as a hobby, this fits the bill! Harlan is an author who does not let the reader down with poor, follow on novels. There is only one vote I can give No Second Chance, the top score of 5 stars.