Nearing 40 and still single, British novelist Thomas (Absent Fathers
) is assigned by a men's magazine to explore the world of Internet dating, and the result is a memoir that is most enjoyable when he's actually describing what it's like to discover the "bewildering array" of online dating services offering seemingly unlimited opportunities ("With Udate.com it seems I've got a choice equivalent to the population of Denmark"). Thomas's humorous takes on the limits of online love—such as "why are there so many ultra-pretty twenty-two-year-old blonde girls online?" (answer: Russian women looking for husbands)—are matched by equally funny chapters on each of the women he meets online and becomes involved with, such as Bongowoman ("She's too tall") and Chinalady5 ("I'm being stalked"). The problem comes when Thomas turns from journalism to autobiography, with at least half of each chapter used to describe various past love affairs in what are equal parts witty and self-congratulatory, such as the college girlfriend who loves bondage and rough sex and the schoolgirl who doesn't mind doing her homework topless for him. The overall result is too much Thomas and not enough Internet. (Apr.)
