Lucie Yi Is Not a Romantic

A pragmatic woman takes a shortcut to motherhood in this lopsided romance from Ho (Last Tang Standing). Career-driven New Yorker Lucie Yi has given up on love, but a breakdown in a children’s boutique has her realizing she still longs to be a mother. She signs up for a website that connects individuals interested in platonic co-parenting arrangements and hits it off with charming software engineer Collin Read. After “parent-dating,” they agree to try for a kid. Though Lucie is determined to keep things platonic, deeming Collin “Mr. Right Enough,” she can’t deny the spark between them, especially after their passionate attempt at conceiving is successful. The introduction and execution of this premise feel rushed and thrown together, but things take a turn for the better when Collin moves with Lucie back to Singapore, where Lucie is reunited with her old flame, Mark Thum. Torn between the man from her past and the man who could be her future, Lucie must decide what she’s willing to risk for the life she wants. Ho hits her stride in this second act, introducing a larger cast and a meatier plot and peeling back her characters’ layers. Readers will have to stick with this to get to the goods. Agent: Katelyn Detweiler, Jill Grinberg Literary. (June)