The Net

Nastase (Break Point proves again that his world-class tennis background is fertile soil for popular fiction. Hungarian-born tennis star Istvan Horwat finds his increasingly younger court opponents more and more of a strain. The swinging bachelor life is becoming a bore, and he suffers from a recurrent nightmare of drowning. When his best friends die in a plane crash, leaving their 12-year-old daughter Natty orphaned, Istvan adopts the girl. Most of the book revolves around Natty's growing-up and Istvan's steady slippage in the seedings. In Natty's late teens, she emerges as a top tennis contender and, after some struggle, as a contender for Istvan's love. Following a short period of bliss, however, Istvan renounces herwhether gallantly or nervously, readers must decide. The rich, high-flying life of sports stars is interesting if a bit shallow, but Nastase knows this scene inside-out. He also knows how to keep readers turning pages, though the book would have benefited from a more credible ending. (September 15)