Falling for Mr. Wrong

Why did Johnny de Soto leave Polly de Soto (nee Atwell)? It should have been the other way around. Even Polly's stepdaughter, Luana, calls her father a jerk for the move. Johnny is a ""megaloser,"" in the parlance of Polly's acid-tongued friend Joan Brock, a wannabe film producer, anything but the New Man that woman are supposed to want. Polly, the literary agent heroine, is vivid and lovably human--""galumphing"" big, weepy, good-hearted and lusty. Gorgeous film star Hector O'Neill, who toys with Joan and breaks Luana's heart, has the sense to love Polly, in so far as he's capable. Could it be that Johnny still wants Edith, Luana's nutty but gorgeous mother, who left him? In crisp, witty sentences, Upcher holds the reader's attention through much of this British import, in which character is both destiny and plot. Upcher draws on her experiences as a writer and her professional life in publishing and in film to provide convincing details about the making of a blockbuster movie and writing and agenting other people's books. The large intertwined cast are nicely nuanced in their speech, but some characters are introduced with intimations that never pay off. (Sept.)