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1,747 Public Reviews Given
1,900 Total Reviews Given
Review Style
I would characterise my reviews as honest and polite. I try to approach each item as a writer and a reader. I keep writingML to a minimum as it is distracting to me. I am starting to experiment with templates, having never really used one before now -- please bear with me while I try to find one that suits my review style! I always try to be constructive, positive and encouraging in my reviews.
I'm good at...
Reviewing poetry, focusing on emotion, flow and imagery. I have a particular passion for short poetry.
Favorite Genres
Dark, Emotional, Experience, Nature, Personal, Psychology
Least Favorite Genres
Erotica (unless it's tasteful and non-clichéd!), Fanfiction, Religious, Sci-fi, Supernatural, Young Adult
Favorite Item Types
I prefer, and am most confident, reviewing poetry. But I do sometimes review short stories, essays and articles etc.
I will not review...
Erotica (unless it's tasteful and non-clichéd!), Fanfiction, Young Adult fiction, novels or novel chapters (unless I know you very well!), horror items rated above 18+ (though I am happy to review other genres with higher ratings), anything featuring vampires, anything written in "text speak" or any non-static or non-book items (except in special circumstances).
Public Reviews
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Review of A Simple Seed  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with The Rockin' Reviewers  
Rated: E | (5.0)
Hello Liam ,

I am one of the judges of the "Invalid Item" . Thank you for your entry.

I found this to be a thought-provoking, philosophical poem about the role of man on Earth. I think, in the first three stanzas, you have done a great job of depicting the power man has, and the arrogance too. I particularly enjoyed the second stanza--I think the writing is exceptional here. I really like how you've contrasted the image of the free-flying dove, who contributes to the world ecologically, with the image of humans selfishly and greedily taking without giving anything in return. The closing couplet adds another dimension to the poem, and offers a new thought.

I think you have done an excellent job with the form. The iambic pentameter is very good. You clearly know what you're doing and I don't think the trochaic and pyrrhic substitutions were accidental! These variations, along with the flawless rhyme scheme, really help to give the poem a strong sound. It was fun to read out loud! No word is wasted in this piece, and no part of it feels forced.

I can't see any way to improve this! I really enjoyed your poem. Thank you for sharing it.

~Jess.

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152
Review of Temptation  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with The Rockin' Reviewers  
Rated: E | (5.0)
Hello oscines ,

I am one of the judges of the "Invalid Item" . Thank you for your entry for week 3.

I really enjoyed this poem and I think you have done an excellent job with the week 3 requirements. I could definitely "hear" the separate voices of this internal dialogue. I could relate to it too!

I love the descriptions and imagery in this piece, especially in the second and third stanzas. I think you have made great use of alliteration too--'cavernous caverties" is particularly effective, in my opinion. I really enjoyed the descriptions of the different types of chocolate. The "almond terrain" image is wonderfully creative.

Overall I think this is a fantastic piece of writing. I can't see anyway to improve it. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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153
Review of Nagging Voices  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with The Rockin' Reviewers  
Rated: E | (3.5)
Hello Liam ,

I am one of the judges of the "Invalid Item" . Thank you for your entry.

I found this to be a very polished poem, in terms of structure--the rhyme scheme is flawless and the rhythm is pretty strong. The poem sounds great when read out loud.

I'm afraid I found this piece quite hard to follow. Until the last stanza I wasn't entirely sure what you were trying to convey and I'm still not sure I fully understand the previous stanzas. For that reason I couldn't really detect the separate or distinct voices required for the week 3 lesson.

I also felt the message of this poem was a little muddled though that might just be because I've misunderstood it. I wasn't sure if this was about patience, or standing up for something you believe in or not letting anything get in the way of reaching your goal.

Some of the lines felt a little awkward to me, for example the last line of stanza two. In my opinion this line doesn't follow on easily from the previous line and it doesn't feel like a complete sentence. I think changing the word 'who' to 'will' might help this to read more smoothly.

Overall I think this poem has potential though I feel the message needs clarifying in places. You are clearly very adept at writing in a specific structure and I enjoyed reading this piece. Thank you for sharing it. I hope you have found this review helpful.

~Jess.

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154
Review of Summer Song  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with The Rockin' Reviewers  
Rated: E | (5.0)
Hello Liam ,

I am one of the judges for the "Invalid Item" . Thank you for your entry.

I think you did a great job with the Haiku form! Your poem has the correct syllable count and includes an element of nature, and also, not a word is wasted. I love the originality of the poem and the clever word choices--I particularly enjoyed the second line.

I like the light tone and also think the poem flows wonderfully. The lines fit together very nicely and each one is pulling its weight. I love how the poem goes in a different direction to what is expected after that opening line!

Overall I think this is a wonderful piece of writing. I can't see any way to improve it! Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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155
155
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with The Talent Pond  
Rated: E | (3.5)
Hello Koyel~writing again ,

I am one of the judges for "Invalid Item" . Thank you for entering! Please do not edit your poem until the judging has finished.

I think this is a good attempt at a challenging prompt but unfortunately you didn't quite meet all of the form requirements. In the Dorsimbra, the very first line of the poem should serve as the last line too, whereas you repeated the first line of the third stanza instead. Also, the iambic pentameter was a little off in places, for example, the word 'to' in the third line has to be stressed unnaturally in order to fit the rhythm. Also, the third line of the last stanza doesn't sound quite right, with the words 'I', 'to' and 'in' all having to be stressed unnaturally.

One other thing, I found this poem quite hard to follow and it took me a while to figure out what you are trying to convey. I think this is because the poem is a bit wordy and the language too complex in places, for example the fourth line. I'm afraid I can't figure out what you mean by this line.

Once I had worked out the message of your poem, I liked it and I think you have done a great job of capturing the spirit of the picture prompt.

Thank you for sharing your work. I hope you have found this review helpful.

~Jess.

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156
Review of Autumnal Spirits  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with The Talent Pond  
Rated: E | (4.5)
Hello Dave ,

I am one of the judges for "Invalid Item" . Thank you for your entry! Please do not edit your poem until the judging is over.

I found this to be a very positive and heart-warming fantasy poem about pixies and spirits. I think you have done a really good job of capturing the mood of the picture prompt -- it does look like some kind of ritualistic dance. The form is quite a complex one but you have made it seem easy. Although the form requires a change of rhythm and rhyme in each section, the three sections of your poem still tie in nicely to each other.

There are a few small slips with the iambic metre and places where it feels a little forced to me. The words 'of the' in the third line, for example, do not strictly create an iamb and an unnatural emphasis needs to be placed on the word 'of'. I'm often quite adept at spotting things like this but only because it is something I do in my own writing all the time! *Blush* I think it would be very hard to write in metre without cheating occasionally!

My favourite part was the free verse section. I enjoyed your use of alliteration here and I liked the 'exuberance explodes' part. I also really like the attention-grabbing first line which also works so well as the last line.

Overall I think you have done a great job with a couple of quite dificult prompts. Your poem is fun and full of life and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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157
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with The Rockin' Reviewers  
Rated: 13+ | (5.0)
Hello 30DBC Creator/Founder ,

This is a great idea for a contest which will hopefully inspire and encourage people to write every day for thirty days. The contest page looks good—all the necessary information is there and the page doesn’t look too cluttered. The rules of the challenge are clear and easy to understand. The banner is very eye-catching. I also like how you have listed all the blogs of the participants so they are easy to find. If my request to join the challenge is accepted, I look forward to some interesting reading!

Thank you,
Jess.

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Review of My Only Twin  
Review by Ghostranch
Rated: E | (3.5)
Hello Jaluna Rolik ,

I am reviewing your story as a judge for "What a Character! : Official WDC Contest" . Thanks for entering!

This is a sad story that seems to be about a family torn apart by a very traumatic event.

I enjoyed the emotion of this story, and I think you have used the prompt quite well, but I wanted more details. I wanted to know what exactly had happened to the parents. I wanted to understand why the twins had been separated for so long. This wasn't clear to me and yet I felt it was an important part of the story. This might be an area to focus on if you decided to work on this piece some more.

I just have a couple of other suggestions to make. Firstly, I'd suggest being wary of word repetitions. For example, in the first part, the word 'road' is repeated a lot and it becomes jarring. The characters' names are repeated a lot too. This leads on to the second thing I noticed -- I found it a little odd that Linear kept speaking about Kana as if she wasn't there, and yet she was speaking too her. Is there any reason she kept speaking to Kana like this? I found these parts confusing.

Overall I think you have made a good start and that this story has potential but I think it has room for some improvements. Thank you for sharing your work. I hope you have found this review helpful.

~Jess.
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Review of Disease  
Review by Ghostranch
Rated: E | (4.0)
Hello QX ~ Brenton-> ,

I am reviewing your story as a judge for "What a Character! : Official WDC Contest" . Thanks for entering!

This is a very creative story. It starts off quite dark and chilling but the twist at the end gives a new perspective. I like how you have used the contest prompt to come up with a unique character. The problem with having such a unique character though is that the reader can't really get to know "him" throughout the story as this would give the game away and lessen the impact of the ending. I do, however, think you have done well to give a non-sentient thing a voice and character.

I would suggest watching out for clichés as they can make the writing feel a little jaded. I also think you need to be careful with your tenses. You occasionally seem to switch tense where it isn't grammatically correct, for instance this part:

'The clouds grow dark overhead, the sun diminished behind the blackened wall.'

I noticed a few other errors too, so I think this piece would benefit from a careful edit.

Overall I think this is an intriguing, clever story and I enjoyed reading it. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.
160
160
Review by Ghostranch
Rated: E | (4.0)
Hello Marcia~I'm Home :) ,

I am reviewing your story as a judge for "What a Character! : Official WDC Contest" . Thanks for entering!

I found this to be a charming and heart-warming story about the birth of a child. I don't know if this is a true story and if the narrator is you, but if so, congratulations on being a grandmother!

When considering the contest prompt, I'm not really sure which character you are introducing to the reader. The narrator, Andrew and Brandy all seem to be in an uncomfortable situation that they need to overcome.

I also felt like there were some details lacking from this story. It wasn't clear to me why Brandy rushed away from Andrew at the shower but then decided to speak to him later. I would have liked to have known a little bit more about the couple.

Overall I think this is a nice story and I enjoyed reading it. Thank you for sharing it.

~Jess.
161
161
Review by Ghostranch
Rated: 18+ | (4.5)
Hello A Temporary Beijinger ,

I am reviewing your story as a judge for "What a Character! : Official WDC Contest" . Thanks for entering!

I very much enjoyed this story. It has a dark intensity about it, which I found compelling, and I was very intrigued by your main character. I think you have used the contest prompt very well to introduce your character.

I like how the story twists and turns and I think you have done a good job of gradually letting the reader in on just who Professor Appleby is. The ending took me by surprise and confused me a little. I think I get what happened but it wasn't clear to me. I do, however, like that it has got me thinking. Professor Appleby is clearly a complex person with a dark past and I think you have done well to show how that past has influenced who he is today. I found him to be a very fascinating character.

Thank you for a great read.

~Jess.
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Review of Natural Order  
Review by Ghostranch
Rated: 13+ | (5.0)
Hello Wenston ,

I am reviewing your story as a judge for "What a Character! : Official WDC Contest" . Thanks for entering!

Wow, this is amazing! I very much enjoyed this story. You have used the contest prompt in an incredibly original way to come up with a fascinating character and put him in an extraordinary situation. I love the idea of this story and the voice of the character. The opening drew me in and my attention was held throughout the piece. The situation is complex and thought-provoking, and the ending is wonderfully frustrating!

I can see no way to improve this. I think it is fantastic as it is and I think this story will stay with me for a while yet. Thank you for a great read.

~Jess.
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Review by Ghostranch
Rated: ASR | (4.5)
Hello Jeff ,

I am reviewing your story as a judge for "What a Character! : Official WDC Contest" . Thanks for entering!

I found this to be a nice, heart-warming story about a charatcer finally finding the strength to be true to himself. I really like your take on the prompt and found it refreshing--I like that you put your character in a tough and uncomfortable situation, but not an extreme one. I found Charlie to be a likeable character and a realistic one. I enjoyed the ending and thought you did a good job of making it positive without making it cheesy.

My only small suggestion really is to be wary of too much repetition of the character's name. I felt it was overused a little. However, I do understand that this can be hard to avoid sometimes.

Overall I think this is a great story and I really enjoyed reading it. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.
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164
Review of Getting By  
Review by Ghostranch
Rated: 18+ | (5.0)
Hello Mara ♣ McBain ,

I am reviewing your story as a judge for "What a Character! : Official WDC Contest" . Thanks for entering!

I enjoyed this story a lot and I think you have followed the contest prompt really well. I like how even though the main character is facing a tough situation there are still potential positives on the horizon that would make things better for her.

I think you have done a great job of showing the reader what kind of person your character is through her actions and reactions. Her love for her daughter, tough determination and fierce independence make her realistic and likeable and I was really rooting for a happy ending for her.

Overall I think this is a very strong story. Thank you for a great read.

~Jess.
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165
Review of Mist  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with The Talent Pond  
Rated: E | (4.5)
Hello London Rush ,

I am one of the judges for "Invalid Item" . Thank you for entering!

Im my opinion this is a great attempt at a very difficult form. I really enjoyed the atmosphere you created in this poem. The imagery is quite eerie and I think the 'Dare to venture' line actually made my pulse quicken! I'm not sure that I'd dare! I enjoyed many of your language choices and phrases and particularly liked the 'creaking in rhythm' description. I like the quirkiness of it!

I think this poem flows nicely, which I imagine was very hard to achieve with such a restricted form. The only part I had trouble with was the middle point of the poem: 'A forgotten world…' I personally think removing the 'A' would help to smooth the transition from the first part of the poem to the second part.

But that's just a minor thing and overall I think this is a great poem and I enjoyed reading it. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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166
Review of WDC  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with Poetic Exploration  
Rated: E | (5.0)
Hello JACE ,

Wow! This is amazing! I found the Shape poem really difficult and picked the easiest thing I could think of. This looks pretty complex and I have no idea how you did it!

I think there is a danger with shape poetry that the form will eclipse the content, but that hasn't happened here. I really like the poem and enjoyed the sentiments of it.

Overall I think you did a great job with a difficult form. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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Review of Carbon Copied?  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with The Talent Pond  
Rated: ASR | (4.5)
Hello JACE ,

I am one of the judges for "Invalid Item" . Thanks for entering!

I really like your interpretation of the picture prompt and I think you've done a great job with the Senryu form. I found this to be a thought-provoking piece of writing and I enjoyed the philosophical tone.

The only thing I wasn't so sure of was the use of the words 'once' and 'hitherto' -- to me they make the first two lines too similar in meaning. However, I really like the last line and I like the overall message.

Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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168
Review by Ghostranch
Rated: 13+ | (5.0)
Hello 🌕 HuntersMoon ,

I am reviewing your essay as a judge for "Quotation Inspiration: Official Contest" . Thanks for entering!

I really enjoyed this essay. It's entertaining and amusing, but also it has heart, which makes it a great read. I can clearly see how the prompt quote inspired you and I really like your interpretation of it. Not only is this essay an interesting personal account, it is also a funny and truthful social commentary.

I feel this essay is beautifully written and I especially love the phrase "experience lines". I enjoyed the gentle humour, particularly the joke about introductions. I also really like how you set this essay out. It is clear and well organised.

Overall I think this is an excellent piece of writing and I really enjoyed reading it.

~Jess.
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Review of A Penny Saved ...  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with SIMPLY POSITIVE GROUP  
Rated: E | (5.0)
Hello 🌕 HuntersMoon ,

I have to say, I love this poem. It really appeals to my dark and twisted sense of humour! I enjoyed the clever wordplay throughout and I think the last couple of lines in particular are absolutely genius! The whole poem is dark yet very comical and I enjoyed the silliness of it.

I like the structure of this poem -- you have a good, strong rhyme scheme and the rhythm is pretty good, making this a fun piece to read out loud.

Basically I think this is a fantastic piece of writing and I don’t have any suggestions to make. Please don't change a thing and thank you for the laugh!

~Jess.

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My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Go Noticed" .
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170
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with Poetic Exploration  
Rated: E | (5.0)
Hello SWPoet ,

This is a beautiful example of a Cinquain poem. I love poems like this which have so much impact with such simplicity and brevity. I love the language choices in this piece and the images you have created. I particularly liked the third line which I feel is very creative. The poem has a sad, reflective tone and I enjoyed the use of metaphor. It has a lovely, gentle flow too.

My one and only picky suggestion is to choose a word other than ‘so’ in the second line. The word ‘so’ is a filler word and adds nothing to the poem. There are many more interesting words.

That is such a minor thing though and didn’t spoil my enjoyment of the poem at all which is why I’m rating five stars. Thank you for a great read.

~Jess.

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My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Go Noticed" .
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Review of Morning Brew  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with Poetic Exploration  
Rated: E | (4.5)
Hello ~WhoMe???~ ,

This is a very mouth-watering piece of writing! It almost makes me wish I drank coffee! I’ve never heard of coffee with white chocolate before but it sounds delicious! I really like how you have presented this poem too. You have done a great job with the Cinquain form. The only picky thing to mention really is that the word ‘chocolate’ could be a two-syllable or three-syllable word. I suppose it is open to debate.

The only other thing I can think to mention really is that the word ‘starting’ seems very boring in comparison to your other word choices and it takes up a whole two syllables in this short syllabic form.

Other than that though, I think this is a great, light-hearted poem and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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Review of Arlene  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with SIMPLY POSITIVE GROUP  
Rated: E | (4.5)
Hello Jeff ,

I really like both poems though, like you, I think I prefer your first version even if it isn’t quite a true Rondel. It just seems to flow better, and I like the impact of the last line. In the second version, the last line feels a little like it has been tagged on. It doesn’t seem connected to the previous line and doesn’t flow easily on from it, in my opinion.

I love the descriptions and imagery in both poems. The writing is very bright and colourful and I think I would be able to picture the scene even if you hadn’t included the image. I also liked the tone and romantic atmosphere you created.

I wasn’t sure about the use of the word ‘quickly’ in both versions. The word ‘Rushing’ implies a quickness of movement anyway, so I think you could probably find a more interesting word. I also wasn’t sure about the word ‘toward’ being used twice in the same stanza. I found it a little jarring. You could maybe change one to something like ‘seeking’?

But overall I think these are both nice poems and I enjoyed reading them. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Go Noticed" .
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173
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with SIMPLY POSITIVE GROUP  
Rated: E | (4.5)
Hello Yellow Rose ,

This is a beautiful, romantic poem with a gentle tone. It is filled with emotion, making it a poignant read. I really like the descriptions in this poem, particularly in the first stanza. The ‘glistening roads’ image is a particularly striking one.

I just have one suggestion to make really. It might be a good idea to remove the words ‘His’ and ‘With’ from the beginning of various lines to gain some consistency, for example, start the first line with the word ‘Hands’ and the second line with ‘Eyes’. I personally think this would work better.

But overall I think this is a lovely piece of writing and I enjoyed reading it. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Go Noticed" .
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Review of Final moments  
Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with SIMPLY POSITIVE NEWBIE REVIEWE...  
Rated: E | (4.0)
Hello Paul F Clayton ,

This is an emotional and poignant poem about a man’s last moments as his family stand around his deathbed. I enjoyed the descriptions in this piece and I think you have done a good job of setting the scene. You’ve made good use of the senses to transport the reader into the moment.

I just have a few suggestions that you can, of course, use or ignore as you wish. Firstly, you seem to have used a mixture of past and present tense which isn’t always grammatically correct, for example in the first stanza. If this should be in the present tense then I think the word ‘clutched’ should be ‘clutches’. If, however, it is supposed to be in the past tense then the word ‘knows’ should be ‘knew’. There are a few other places where you mix tenses so I think you need to watch out for that.

Mostly I thought the flow of this poem was fine but the rhythm seems to slip in the sixth stanza. The longer lines here make this part a little awkward and there are several unnecessary words, for example ‘’somehow’ and ‘upstairs’. I just think the writing could be tightened here.

Overall this is a moving piece of writing which I think has a lot of potential. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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Review by Ghostranch
In affiliation with SIMPLY POSITIVE NEWBIE REVIEWE...  
Rated: E | (4.5)
Hello Aaron M. Peska ,

This is a beautiful poem about writer’s block that I’m sure most members on this site can probably relate to. I know I can! I love the descriptions in this piece—particularly the part about writing being an architecture of English. I thought that part was very effective and original.

I felt the rhythm of this poem was brilliant for most of the poem but began to slip towards the end. I think maybe some of the lines are a bit too wordy here and also I’m not sure some of the line breaks are as well thought-out as earlier on in the poem. Maybe, if you haven’t done this already, reading the poem aloud could help you to identify any places where the rhythm isn’t entirely smooth.

There are just a couple of other things that stood out to me. Firstly, I don’t know if this is just a cultural thing but I didn’t understand the line about ‘gym shoe beats’. Also this line felt awkward to me:

‘That blows away from the littlest of breezes.’

Perhaps something like this could work better:

‘That’s blown away by the littlest breeze’.

Or something like that!

Overall I think this is a great piece of writing and I really enjoyed reading it. Thank you for sharing your work.

~Jess.

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My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Go Noticed" .
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