December 1, 2008
Steel does not depart from her typical formula in this latest offering, which centers on the life of Coco Barrington, a young and beautiful daughter of privilege. Much to her domineering mothers shock, Coco not only drops out of law school but alsorejects her familys wealthy L.A. lifestyle. She chooses, instead, to pursue a semi-hippie existence in an artsy Northern California beach town. After her equally footloose boyfriend dies in a hang-gliding accident, she finds herself bereft but still choosing to live apart from her family, existing on her trust fund and the little she makes from her dog-walking business. One weekend, while house-sitting for her movie-producer sister, Jane, she strikes up a friendship with Janes houseguest, Leslie Baxter, an impossibly handsome and witty British actor, who is currently in hiding from a psycho ex-girlfriend. Not surprisingly, Leslie and Coco begin to fall in love, and after overcoming a series of difficulties, they appear to be headed for happily ever after. In addition, by the end, Coco has also begun to resolve her other familial difficulties, becoming closer to both her mother and sister. Fairly brief and lighthearted; nonetheless, Steels fans will enjoy.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)