Venus Envy

McKelden dispatches the goddess of love to meddle in the affairs of lovelorn 21st-century mortals in her charming if formulaic debut. As punishment for being unfaithful to her husband, Greek goddess Venus has been demoted to the role of "fairy godmother" by her irate father, Zeus. The latest recipient of Venus's "Extreme Love Life Makeover" is Rachel Greer, whose "Loser List" of cheating, lying ex-boyfriends has caused her to swear off dating. Venus resorts to brute force, blackmail and tips from Cosmo to tempt Rachel into falling for "gorgeous, hunky" firefighter Luke Stanton. Told from the alternating viewpoints of Venus and Rachel, the story puts a fresh spin on the classic fairy godmother story, and Venus—catty and generous with her barbed wit—is cut from different cloth than the standard well-behaved fairy. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the book's mere mortals, who fit nicely into chick lit archetypes (stubborn, wounded Rachel; sassy best friend Hannah; and unflaggingly and inexplicably devoted Luke). Though this detracts from the creative premise, McKelden's sharp sense of humor pulls plenty of weight. (Jan.)