"fine Dante contemporary romance"
After a boring blind date set up byher hero cousin, NY
Blades hockey star Michael Dante, Golden Bough bookstore
owner Gemma Dante wonders if she will find true love. Her
best friend Francis Hoffman encourages Gemma, a practicing
witch, to cast a love spell. Gemma decides it cannot do
any harm so she does. The next day computer coder Uther Abramowitz enters the
store carrying a brochure in which Gemma offers lessons on
reading the Tarot. That night firefighter Sean Kennealy
and two of his peers visit Gemma in her Manhattan
apartment pretending they are on duty so that they can
persuade her to stop burning the incense that stinks up
the building. Gemma wonders whether the customer or the
Blue Eyes firefighter is her true love. One will prove to
be her beloved though he is embarrassed by her religion;
the other will turn out to be false and dangerous. The latest Dante contemporary romance stars an interesting
female protagonist whose mother scorns her and one of her
potential lovers does likewise. The fine story line also
includes the return of stars from Deidre Martin's previous
Manhattan tales (see FAIR PLAY) though hockey plays less
of a role this time around even with the catalyst of a
charity game between the firefighters and the Blades.
Fans of opposites attract novels will enjoy this solid
story though the late suspense seems more like two minutes
in the penalty box for high sticking after the game is won. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted February 22, 2005
SummaryFOUR ALARM PASSION
Free spirit Gemma Dante might be the black sheep of her big
Italian family, but when it comes to business, her New Age
boutique is the best in the Big Apple. Longing for a love
life that's just as successful, Gemma casts a spell to bring
her Mr. Right. But when the cosmic wires get crossed, not
one but TWO men enter her life. One's a little too far
"off" for even Gemma's tastes. The other's a clean-cut
firefighter who's anything but her type...
But the more she gets to know firefighter Sean Kennealy, the
more he grows on Gemma. And for his part, Sean doesn't know
quite what to make of his pretty neighbor who burns incense
and sometimes wears Birkenstocks. He only knows that being
near her sparks a fire in him that even the guys at Ladder
29, Engine 31 can't put out...
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