cover image Mommies Behaving Badly

Mommies Behaving Badly

Roz Bailey. Kensington Publishing Corporation, $12.95 (377pp) ISBN 978-0-7582-0927-6

Ruby Dixon's real life is a far cry from her romance writer persona. Cheerleading for her successful businessman husband Jack, caring for three children under the age of eight and trying to maintain her busy writing career leaves the 36-year-old Queens resident little time for the Cosmo-fueled nightlife she writes about. And after her husband's big promotion takes them to Portland, Ore., she feels like a total fraud. While relishing the smashing success of one recently published book, Ruby's struggling to finish another, adjusting to West Coast culture and dealing with a suddenly rocky marriage. Is husband Jack jealous of her newfound career high? Or have his many recent business trips been more bedroom- than boardroom-oriented? Oddly, though, there is little, if any, bad mommy behavior going on. The writing is snappy enough, but readers looking for the raucous romp promised by the title will be disappointed.