When the Wind Chimes

Flat secondary characters bog down this sentimental romance from Ting (Genes). Kate Summers flies to the Hawaiian island of Kauai to spend Christmas with her sister, Abby, and nephew, Tyler, and help them through their first major holiday without Abby’s recently deceased husband. As Kate struggles to help them financially, find artistic fulfillment in her career as a graphic designer, and get over her cheating ex, a series of run-ins with the mysterious Leonardo Medici, a 28-year-old billionaire real estate mogul, alter the course of her vacation. They first meet when he pays for her cab ride from the airport. Later, he turns up at her sister’s gallery, coincidentally runs a charity event at her nephew’s day care, and finally hires Kate as a temporary nanny for his niece. In a supernatural twist, each of their meetings are presaged by the sound of wind chimes, which Leonardo’s niece claims is evidence of a visiting angel. Ting’s child characters suffer from being too cutesy and precocious to be believed, while Abby and the other islanders’ obsession with Kate and Leonardo’s relationship grows ridiculous. Leonardo himself is one-dimensional and the Hawaiian setting is disappointingly underdeveloped. Though this has the trappings of a frothy tropical escape, readers will long for more substance. Agent: Italia Gandolfo, Gandolfo Helin & Fountain Literary Management. (Nov.)