Pas de Death

In this sequel to Final Dictation , the author's well-received fiction debut, Vincent demonstrates an authoritative and drolly comic style. But the story, part mannered light romance and, belatedly, part mystery, suffers from its uncertain identity. Townsend Reeves, who gave up the promise of a basketball career for medicine, has a radiology practice in Kansas City, Mo. He and his wife Leslie, who dances with a New York City company, have split, come back together and are now someplace in between and clearly still in love. Leslie is in K.C. for a major dance festival, a gathering of feuding companies and oversized artistic egos. Watching a rehearsal, Townsend thinks he sees someone with a gun in the shadow. Later, after a temperamental dancer nearly dies from an apparent drug overdose, Townsend pitches in to help and becomes suspicious of the symptoms. A seductive ballerina makes an unsubtle move on Townsend who, in a separate development, finds himself in an ethical quandary at a fertility clinic. The author, a doctor married to a dancer, mines these dual backgrounds relentlessly and, particularly in the medical sections, grinds his narrative almost to a halt. Vincent delivers many a well-turned phrase, but scants the mystery component of his tale; readers will look forward to the book in which the assured author's content catches up with his style. (Mar.)