A Match Made on Madison
Davis, known for her romantic suspense novels, segues easily into chick lit, providing a glitzy read that's equal partsLifestyles of the Rich and Famousand "Page Six." For hotshot haute matchmaker Vanessa Carlson, marriage is "a binding contract that will yield dividends for both," and love, if it strikes, is a quaint bonus. On her own after apprenticing to matchmaking innovator Althea Sevalas, Vanessa charges a $15,000 retainer and a grand a month for her services. Althea is mostly supportive of her protégé (they are, after all, rivals), but after a multimartini night, the two make a wager: whoever marries off "downtown playboy" and property development mogul Mark Grayson will be crowned the queen of Manhattan glitterati matchmaking. High society hijinx ensue as the Cartier cupids vie for Grayson, and though the woman Grayson has his steely gray eyes on is glaringly obvious to the reader, the direction he's leaning somehow eludes Vanessa. Davis lays on thick the obligatory designer name-dropping, but it's her heroine's exalted venue-hopping that's the source of much fun. The ending isn't exactly a shocker, but it'll score big points for romance readers.(Apr.)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.