‘The Cure’ by Jodi Payne

At the insistence of a friend and against his better judgment, Jeremy agrees to go on a blind date with Ben.   Not even halfway through the date, Jeremy made up his mind that Ben wasn’t his type and he was not interested in seeing him again but events later in the date quickly change his opinion of Ben. 

‘The Cure’ is an ok story, although it could have used a much more thorough editing job.  Jeremy is turned off by Ben’s arrogance and alpha male attitude on their date, but when his macho attitude is displayed in a different way Jeremy starts to see it as a turn on.  I don’t feel the chemistry between these two will build to anything long lasting but it’s definitely a happy for now story.

‘Dinner and a Movie’ by Alex Marcus-Jacobs

Mark is set up on a blind date with a co-worker’s cousin.  Expecting a female cousin Mark is surprised when Sam turns out to be a he and not a she.  Taking the joke in stride Sam and Mark continue with their date and Mark seizes the opportunity to explore his sexual curiosity.

‘Dinner and a Movie’ was difficult for me to relate to in terms of the date itself. I couldn’t get past the fact that the first date and a blind date was so intimate.  No matter what gender the couple is, I would never expect a first date to be at the home of a person you don’t know, especially if you have never spoken to the person and know absolutely nothing about them.  Aside from that I liked Mark and Sam, I thought it was pretty big of them to take the practical joke played against them in stride.

‘Catching Out’ by Lee Benoit

Ab is ready to settle down, so he recruits his friends and family to help him find someone by setting him up on blind dates.  So far he’s met no one of interest, at least not until he stumbles upon Mole. 

‘Catching Out’ is a lot different from the other stories in this anthology, the biggest difference is Mole and Ab didn’t meet on a blind date.  Mole and Ab’s story elapses over a period of time instead of just one evening as with the other stories but I never felt a connection between them.  The vast differences between Mole and Ab made their story interesting but not very believable.