Looking for Leo

Despite imaginatively drawn characters and wickedly witty scenarios, Nagy's ( A House in the Hamptons ) story of female bonding, and the irresistible blond stud who prompts it, never builds up enough tension to fully engage the reader. Childhood friends Lindy Lampi and Willa Snow have not spoken to each other in 10 years, since Willa's ex-husband Leo--by then Lindy's husband--ran off. However, when brassy Lindy learns that her and Leo's daughter has leukemia, and that Leo may be the ony suitable bone mar row donor, she swallows her pride and calls WASPY Willa to ask of Leo's whereabouts. Willa agrees to help find him. Together, the two begin an odyssey to locate the irresponsible, utterly masculine Leo. Their quest yields two more of Leo's ex-wives, news of his haunts in Hong Kong and a lush tropical island where his pregnant current girlfriend resides. Essentially, this is a book about lust, meaningful relationships and victims who lack nurturing, attentive mother figures. Leo's rugged charm and seductiveness are adroitly portrayed, as are the warm friendships that develop among his abandoned lovers. Still, an unclear sense of time's progression during the search and many improbable situations and characters--for example, a seldom-seen ex-wife of Leo's with convenient CIA connections in Washington, D.C., and a revenge-minded voodoo priestness out to destroy Leo for luring her with his je ne sais quoi --contribute to an unfulfilling plot. Author tour. (July)