Unfaithful

Grice (No Strings Attached) launches into a commonplace tale of a woman whose libido and eager-to-please personality put her on a merry-go-round of unsatisfactory relationships. Melanie's decision to dance at the strip club owned by charming, manipulative Cecil Patrick destroys her relationship with her longtime boyfriend, Michael. Desperate to escape Cecil's clutches, Melanie shoots him. To her rescue comes debonair Myles Cochran, a police superintendent and serial womanizer. Melanie moves into Myles's home and his bed, moving out when his controlling ways overwhelm her. Reconnecting with Michael, Melanie is buoyed by learning that their camaraderie still exists with Michael, but he's now in a committed relationship with someone else, though readers will be unsurprised when this obstacle is conveniently removed. Melanie's recklessness and the lack of emotional intensity may put off some readers off, and the explicit sexual content can only do so much to help the reader through this predictable story. (Sept.)