cover image FALLING FOR YOU

FALLING FOR YOU

Julie Ortolon, . . St. Martin's, $6.50 (336pp) ISBN 978-0-312-97872-3

Oliver Chancellor is a blue-blooded banker whose perfectly orchestrated life plan includes a comfortable career and a socially prominent (if not very exciting) future wife. Then sexy Aurora St. Claire enlists him to help her obtain financing for her dream: turning a mysterious Galveston mansion, which is part of her colorful family heritage, into a bed and breakfast. Passion ignites over the loan application, but Chance can't see impetuous, earthy and iconoclastic Rory fitting into his orderly existence. Meanwhile, Rory discovers that she's fallen in love with Chance and become pregnant, neither of which she's ready to admit to this unavailable man. Only when Chance becomes a partner in the inn and begins to see the emptiness of his glittering future can the couple come together in a happy ending that arrives after just the right amount of drama. A legend of a long-ago love and haunting runs throughout the book, adding a nice touch of melancholy to a tale as sunny as its Texas setting. With its well-balanced blend of comic exaggeration and genuine heart, Ortolon's story is a light but thoroughly satisfying romantic confection. (Apr.)

Forecast:A relative newcomer to the genre, Ortolon is just beginning to gain a foothold in the market, but the cartoon-like cover won't help this book's sales any. Her latest may find its niche, however, if it's displayed with similar works, like Rachel Gibson's Lola Carlyle Reveals All or Susan Andersen's Head over Heels.