Double Exposure

Well-drawn bit players steal focus from annoying, self-centered leads in this media-centered psychosexual thriller from film and TV (7th Heaven) actor Collins (Eye Contact). Neurotic media critic Joe McBride, a hunk of putty in the hands of attractive women, is easily snared by his new neighbor, psychotic beauty Amy Goode, on the same day that he is dumped by his fiancee (his ex-wife's former best friend). After several sessions of window-to-window voyeurism, they consummate their attraction at Amy's place, where Joe meets her spooky sister, Loree, and unwittingly comes into close contact with Amy's vengeful, nuttily religious boyfriend, Dean. Joe's life gets chaotic as his job (he's a host on an all-critics cable channel) goes bust and as he starts to doubt Amy's stories about herself. Fearing but still craving Amy, he dodges her by visiting his mother, then planning a sleepover for his preschool-age daughter, Mollie, which goes awry as she disappears on a trip to the park. The cops play minor roles as Joe and ex-wife Gayle take a major gamble on Mollie's life in a surprise finale that sets up a sequel. The reader figures out the major gimmick early on, and the unappealing leads defy empathy, but the story skims over the New York scenery with the slick flash of the local news. Cable mogul Brutus Clay, his intern-earnest staff, Joe's T&A co-host Sandy Moss and his mother all cry out for further development; had Collins done so, the book might have been far more interesting. Author tour. (May)