Really enjoyed this anthology but I’m not sure which story was my favourite. Probably would have liked the last story to be a little longer. ( )

Four Weddings and a Sixpence - Julia Quinn et al
Audio performance by Mary Jane Wells
3 stars

This was kind of fun. There were four linked short stories, written cooperatively by several authors. A ‘lucky’ sixpence found at boarding school connects a quartet of best friends as they seek love and husbands in the adult world. I enjoyed supportive friendships that connected the group. The husband hunting is filled with banter and humorous predicaments. The episodic nature of the stories made them perfect listening for errand-running trips in the car. ( )

I found this troubling for a couple of reasons:

First: the prologue sets up an enjoyable premise, but very clearly states that the first person must wed before her 25th birthday. Twenty FIVE. And they talk about how she's fourteen now and there's ages of time. Then when the story goes over to the next author, it's 10 years later, but she must marry before she's 21. And they go on and on about it. Do you have a copy editor? Because this is disappointing.

Second: annoyed how story 1 goes from a kiss (which caused consternation) to full on sex at the next meeting and everyone's totally casual about it. It's a short story, I understand that you want some action in it, but it just didn't seem emotionally consistent with anything else in the story.

On the whole, while the rest of the stories were stronger and were entertaining, it just wasn't a great read. ( )

The premise to the short story collection was cute. The stories were a total mixed bag.

Stefanie Sloane’s "Something New" was enjoyable but fairly forgettable. I hadn't read any of Sloane's work before but would consider doing so now. 3 stars.

Elizabeth Boyle's "Something Borrowed" seems popular in other reviews I read, but I found it to be ridiculous nonsense that became almost painfully awful by the end. Every other page or so would prompt a scoff or eye roll, and that's not at all usual for me. I've read science fiction that was more plausible though. And comic strips with characters who are more dimensional! 1 star.

Laura Lee Guhrke’s "Something Blue" was written decently, but I found the hero off-putting which sort of defeats the purpose of a romance for me. He seemed sketchy, selfish, egotistical, and lacking in human empathy He really can't grasp, at all, how she wouldn't want her father hanged?!? And even as they're in the midst of planning their life together he makes sure to reiterate, once again, that he'll still hunt him down. Seriously? You can't pass that task to someone else at this point?? Or at least not talk about it *with his daughter*? It's like he has no concept for loyalty or human attachment. I've read this 'woman has criminal relative, man is with the law' trope a few times, and always the man tasked with bringing him to justice at least *considers* letting him go out of love for the woman... Well not here! Which only compounds- . And to top it all off, I wasn't convinced, *even by the very end of the story*, that he actually did in fact love the heroine! Usually that, at least, helps redeem a male lead! Very disappointing hero. Two stars.

Julia Quinn's "And a Sixpence in Her Shoe" was nice. You can only go so 'in depth' with a short story and timelines can seem a bit rushed, but Quinn did a good job with this one. I felt like I knew the characters, I liked them, and they suited each other. Four stars. ( )

Five stars for Julia Quinn’s story, although I enjoyed the others, too. I liked the way they all linked together. The ending left me misty-eyed, but in a happy way :). ( )