"Dating: No Guts, No Glory" Book Review

Title: Dating: No Guts, No Glory: A Novel
Author: Joni Hilton
Series: N/A
Number in Series: N/A
Copyright: 1989; Covenant Communications, Inc.
Genre: LDS Fiction: Romance / Self-help/ YA
Pages:154
ISBN: 9781555033279
My Rating: 0.5 / 5
Content Rating: G

Yes, I rated this book 0.5 (a half) star.  No, I am not joking.  Seeing as relationships are an area of interest of mine (*cough*mymajor*cough*), I thought this book might be enjoyable for a quick read.  Boy, am I glad I only paid $1 for it!

There are very few books I strongly dislike; most are a result of too much swearing/vulgar language or sexuality.  However, this book had neither of those (it being an LDS novel and all), but there was one HUGE issue I had...

It lacked any kind of a story-arc whatsoever.

Where was the build-up?  When did the climax occur?  What about the conflict?  Are you kidding me?

This book revolves around the main character experiencing different relationships--none of which add anything to her character, nor do they have any significant impact on the story (in other words: the scenes existence was useless). I felt like every relationship she had could have been it's own story so-to-speak (with build-up, conflict, climax, resolution, etc.).  Instead, the author skims over them, as they are trivial to the "over all story."  Hate to break it to you, but if you want the story and characters to be remembered, make the interactions with their self and the environment meaningful.  Personally, I only recall a handful of other characters--most of which being the family members that are continuously around. 

Now, I should probably stop and tell you that Hilton often "pauses" the "story" to directly address the reader  in lecture-like format.  This really bothered me.  I felt like I was reading a nonfiction book on dating with a few fictional stories thrown in as examples of the concept being addressed.

The other huge issue I saw with this, is because it is a "novel," whenever the characters within the story quote someone (such as a general authority), there is absolutely no reference.  Isn't that plagiarism?  Now, granted this book was first published back in 1989 and rules have become stricter since then, but still!  A reference to a talk would have been nice.

I don't mean to rant on this book, but if you call something a novel, it should serve at least one basic purpose:

To tell an engaging story.