Blind Ambitions

For those unable to visualize life without a cellular phone, this fast-moving fantasy about three 30-something black women doing business in Hollywood will punch the right buttons. Glamorous actress Desi, hip producer Sharon and sexy aspiring writer Bettina all have energy and talent to spare. But only Sharon, an industry mover and shaker, is where she wants to be professionally. Desi, Sharon's best friend, is about to abandon her flagging acting career and take a job as a personal shopper at Neiman Marcus. Bettina maintains her lifestyle by sleeping with wealthy men. Sharon, tormented by memories of her Bronx adolescence, can't settle down with her adoring boyfriend, attorney Glen. Then Randall and Steve, two hotshot young writers about to start their own production company, quickly unsettle all three women's lives. Desi is offered the leading role in their first major project, a prime-time TV drama series called Ambitions; Bettina, the receptionist at Randall and Steve's old firm, is hired as a writer on the show; and Sharon is in line for a management position. With so much business to be done, romance comes as something of an afterthought, but Files neatly pairs her characters up, sending them out on dates at Hollywood's hottest watering holes and choreographing steamy bedroom scenes. Before anyone can rest easy, though, a succession of disasters involving power-hungry executives, ex-lovers and past-life traumas must be averted. If the writing lacks finesse and the characters lack dimension, this novel does have a vitality and energy that makes it hard to put down. Files (Scenes from a Sistah; Getting to the Good Part) packs her flashy and irreverent tale with Hollywood shop talk and doesn't skimp on Technicolor local detail. Black Expressions Book Club main selection; Doubleday Book Club alternate. (Sept.)