Piperton

by Carrie L. Carr

All of her life Janie Clarke has been told what to do. First by her father, then by the boyfriend her father picked out. Already disillusioned with life in the small town of Piperton, Janie feels trapped until a stranger arrives and gives her a reason to rebel. Sam Hendrickson's travels have taken her all over the Southwest. She's never stayed in one place long enough to call it home. Doing odd jobs to pay for her food and gas, she thinks her life is just fine. Until Fate intervenes. On her way to Dallas, her car breaks down in the run-down town of Piperton. Sam's never concerned herself over what other people think, but the small minds of a West Texas town may be more than she bargained for - especially when she meets Janie. Their uneasy friendship causes events to unfold that threaten to change everything, and Sam unwittingly becomes the catalyst to alter not only Janie's life, but the lives of others - including her own.

Genres: LGBT, Lesbian, Lesbian Fiction, Lesbian Romance

208 pages, Paperback

First published July 31, 2009

About the author

Carrie is a native Texan, born in the Lone Star State in the early sixties. Currently a resident of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, she lives with her partner of 25+ years, Jan, whom she legally married in Toronto in September 2003.

Carrie loves to geocache, as well as volunteer her time with a local animal shelter and rescue group. While she enjoys traveling, she likes to spend most of her time at home with her wife and dogs.

She has written ten books in the Somerville series, and has revised and rereleased them as an independent writer.

Carrie has also written four stand-alone romances and has several more planned.

Carrie’s website - www.CarrieCarr.com

Email - cbzeer@gmail.com

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/carrie.carr

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/carrielcarr...

Reviews

[Katia M. Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the classic 'lesbian turns up in a small town, falls in love, and has to fight prejudice' story. Parts of it were as cheesy as it sounds but I liked the main characters well enough although they were a little 2D. In fact a lot of the characters were 2D, but they had to be to fit the setting. By the end of the story, the message is basically that in order to be happy, anyone remotely different to the small minded townsfolk should pack up and leave and let the town to rot in its bigoted juices...because that's pretty much what happens, even if they had been there 30 or 40 years. I'm not sure 'run away' is the best of messages, but that's what I got from it. I suppose you could argue it is a 'go where you can be happy' story and who cares about any other poor sod who comes along and has to face the place. It didn't sit particularly well with me, but I've never lived in small town America. Perhaps the majority of people who live places like Piperton are incapable of change, which is sad. Read this if you fancy strangling people.

[This · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book confusing. But I suspect that is because it was published in 2009 and set in a small town in USA. They had cell phones but everything else - including the attitudes - was not so modern.
Just because I found it confusing doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it though. And I always like to read some of the earlier stuff as well as the latest releases.
Sam, a fairly androgynous / soft butch in her 20s limps into Piperton as her car breaks down. Will take a couple of weeks for the mechanic to look at her car so she finds some work playing piano and singing in a bar and sleeps in her car.
Janie, in her late 30s lives alone and works in the doctor's surgery. She has an awful boyfriend and a revolting father who tells her what to do - including who she should sleep with as he wants grand children.
It's quite a slow burn with plenty of hiccups and assaults on the way.
Eventually they leave town.

In a way it was quite an education. I would like to think it would be a lesson in how it was though.

[wren4777 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings on this one.

On one hand, the setting of Piperton was quite interesting, and I despite what some other reviewers have said, I think the depiction of a town so steeped in its bigotry that moving away is the better option was interesting and unique to read about. Janie and Sam were pretty likeable characters, and so were most of their friends.

However, I do think the pacing of the novel could have been improved. Janie and Sam spend so much time arguing over miscommunications and assumed meanings of simple sentences that we don't get much time to see their relationship grow. The conflict between Janie and her father and friends is also underdeveloped and not really resolved, which is a shame as it would have been interesting to explore.

Overall it could have been better, could have been worse.

[Michael Wells · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fear

Jane live a very simple life until Sam turns up. This is a very sweet romance between two women who are looking for life. The plot revolves around Jane’s fear of being a lesbian. She is torn between loving Sam and the first back class from her account about the sin of being gay. I found the characters very good and well written. I recommend this book for all romance readers.

[Katie Cotter]

Loved the characters.