The Balance Thing

In her chick lit debut (following two murder mysteries), Dumas, a Bay Area software exec, struggles admirably to create a heroine who's lovable but empowered. Becks Mansfield is a tough software marketer walking a fine line in San Francisco's tenuous postboom economy. After yet another company's restructuring leaves her without a job (and, by her estimation, a life), "date-lazy" Becks finally takes the advice of her trio of fashion-forward friends—sunny surfer girl Vida, obsessive-compulsive bride-to-be Connie and dermatologist/theater queen Max (he's a guy)—and applies her ambitions to the romantic realm. The fab foursome launch on a journey of designer cocktails and spa treatments, as dates and Connie's dreaded "destination wedding" in London loom. Becks also juggles a job search with what she considers to be well-paid hackwork: recording the voice of Vladima, a goth cult hero of the animated undead. The dialogue is breezy and believable, but Becks dissects her work life in tedious detail as she gets more involved in Vladima—and her creator, Josh. When forced to decide between the job opportunity of a lifetime and her commitment to Vladima (and, natch, to Josh), Becks must stop and ask herself a pressing question: "Was marketing cool?" (Sept.)