It's like that on my setup also.
When I don't want the large paragraph spacing, I replace the closing </p> and opening <p> tag of the next sentence with a <br/>
eg
PHP Code:
<p>Clayton Shepard is 249 miles above Earth when the lights go out.<br/>
He has no communication, limited power, and an unbreakable will to survive.<br/>
...<br/>
...</p>
side note. Book looks interesting. Have you read it? Is it a good read?