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Verdict: A sweet, emotional romance with a matter-of-fact wheelchair-user lead: Reese, a programmer who has hidden in her virtual world since losing the use of her legs as a child, meets ex-punk rocker Sarah, who shows her that her world is not limited to five feet or less. Readers praise the realistic portrayal and emotional punch; critics found the prose simplistic and the pacing uneven.
Best for: Readers who want a heartfelt, quick romance with a wheelchair user at its centre.
Heat level: Heat not rated
Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.6/5 — a 4.09 Goodreads average across 459 ratings and 4.6 stars across 196 Amazon ratings)
Tropes: Shut-in meets free spirit, slow build, hurt/comfort, found family, disability representation.
Five Feet or Less is Erik Schubach’s self-published 2013 contemporary lesbian romance, book six in his Music of the Soul series. Reese is a programmer and tech geek who has used a wheelchair since a young age and has locked herself away from the outside world.
It holds a 4.09 average across 459 Goodreads ratings, with 74% of them four or five stars, and 4.6 stars across 196 Amazon ratings.
What Is Five Feet or Less About?
Reese lost her parents and the use of her legs young, grew up in foster care, and now lives mostly online, shy, angry and lonely. A chance meeting with Sarah, an ex-punk rocker, changes that.
Sarah slowly brings Reese out into the wider world and teaches her that the possibilities are endless, while Reese’s friend Gwen watches from the sidelines.
What Works in This Book
- Realistic portrayal: Several readers praise how matter-of-factly Reese’s daily life and social fears are shown, without infantilising her.
- Emotion: One reader was choking back tears several times, and others call it beautiful and touching.
- A slow, sweet romance: The early dating, including a horse date, charms readers.
- Gwen: One reader calls Reese’s friend the most important character in the book.
Book Synopsis
A programmer who lives her life through a screen. A punk rocker who refuses to let her.
The world is bigger than five feet or less.
My Review
This is one of the more grounded books in the Music of the Soul series. Readers who found other entries juvenile or formulaic say this one surprised them, with flawed, relatable characters and a relationship that takes time. The heavy themes, loss, foster care and the consequences of drunk driving, hit hard, and one reader who knew someone with a similar loss found it deeply affecting.
Style is the stumbling block. Readers describe prose that can feel almost childish, a rushed or uneven story that moves between superficial and very dark, typos, and characters across the series who start to sound alike. One reader gave it a single star over the disability portrayal, a strong minority view worth noting.
My honest note: One of Schubach’s strongest, if you can accept his style.
| Element | In Five Feet or Less |
|---|---|
| Central relationship | Reese (programmer, wheelchair user) & Sarah (ex-punk rocker) |
| Core tropes | Shut-in meets free spirit, hurt/comfort, found family |
| Setting | Contemporary, Reese’s city |
| Heat level | Heat not rated |
| Length | 298 pages (ebook) |
| Series | Music of the Soul #6 (standalone) |
| Content notes | Death of parents, drunk driving, foster care, isolation |
How Spicy Is Five Feet or Less?
We could not find enough reader detail to rate the heat; one listener mentions some more mature content.
Readers mention the loss of Reese’s parents, drunk driving and a childhood in foster care.
Who Should Read This Book?
You’ll likely love it if: you want an emotional romance with a wheelchair-user lead. It is on our disabled sapphic romance list.
You may want to skip it if: simple prose and typos bother you.
In short: Small world, big heart.
What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)
On Goodreads the split is 43% five stars, 31% four, 20% three, 4% two and 2% one.
Why readers love it (according to the discourse): Realistic portrayal first. Second, emotion. Third, the sweet slow start. Fourth, Gwen.
What readers argue about and complain about: Simplistic prose, above everything. Second, rushed pacing. Third, the disability portrayal (for one reader).
The comparison worth making first: Music of the Soul, the first book in the same series.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Five Feet or Less part of a series?
Yes. It is book six of Erik Schubach’s Music of the Soul series, but each book stands alone, and earlier characters make brief appearances.
How is Reese’s disability portrayed?
Most reviewers praise a realistic, matter-of-fact portrayal of daily life as a wheelchair user, including personal space and social fear. One reader strongly disagreed and found the portrayal problematic.
Why does Reese use a wheelchair?
She lost her parents and the use of her legs at a young age, and grew up in foster care. Readers mention drunk driving as part of her story.
Is it YA?
Not officially, but one listener felt it had a YA feel with some more mature content.
Is Five Feet or Less on Kindle Unlimited?
Not when we checked; the Kindle edition was listed at $3.99. The audiobook is narrated by Hollie Jackson.
If You Loved Five Feet or Less, Read These Next
Try Music of the Soul, Locked Inside or Just Physical. Browse our disabled sapphic romance list or the full Book Reviews archive.
The Bottom Line
Five Feet or Less sets out to show a disabled woman’s world opening up through love, and its emotion and everyday realism deliver. What holds it back is simple, uneven prose. A heartfelt, quick read. Check Five Feet or Less on Amazon →
The Eikna Overall Ranking
On the Eikna scale, Five Feet or Less ranks as a fair-to-good disability-rep pick — heartfelt, simple.
The Evidence Scorecard
Overall ★★★★☆ 3.6/5
- ✓ 4.09 average across 459 Goodreads ratings
- ✓ 74% of Goodreads ratings are four or five stars
- ✓ Not checked on StoryGraph
- ✓ 4.6 stars across 196 Amazon ratings
Romance ★★★★☆ 3.6/5
- ✓ Slow start
- ✓ Sweet
- ✓ Horse date
- ✓ Rushed later
Characters ★★★★☆ 3.6/5
- ✓ Reese
- ✓ Sarah
- ✓ Gwen
- ✓ Similar voices across series
Writing ★★★☆☆ 2.9/5
- ✓ Simple prose
- ✓ Typos
- ✓ Uneven
- ✓ Matter-of-fact
Emotional Impact ★★★★☆ 4/5
- ✓ Loss
- ✓ Isolation
- ✓ Tears
- ✓ Hope
Heat Level ★★☆☆☆ 2/5
- ✓ Not rated
- ✓ Some mature content
- ✓ Adult
- ✓ Romantic
Ending ★★★★☆ 3.5/5
- ✓ Hopeful
- ✓ Series continues
- ✓ Warm
- ✓ Standalone
Re-read Value ★★★☆☆ 3.4/5
- ✓ $3.99 Kindle price
- ✓ Hollie Jackson audiobook
- ✓ 298 pages
- ✓ Quick read
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