Indiscretions

In this flighty sendup of the L.A. social scene, Doumani (Untitled, Nude; Chinese Checkers) offers archetypal characters whose posturing and sexual maneuvering reflect the politics of Hollywood fame, money and power. Enid and Sam Carrouthers enjoy a happy marriage of 12 years, rare in their social set. But when Enid tries to engage her Pacific Palisades neighbor, actor Patrick Drake, for a charity event, she finds herself drawn to the idea of a dalliance with the Hollywood star ""famous for his romantic flings."" Patrick, at 47 an aging, fading celebrity, makes a tryst with Enid to bolster his own ego and also because he discovers an opportunity to take advantage of her husband's movie industry connections. While things heat up for Patrick and Enid, Sam faces his own adulterous temptation in the form of Carmen Leventhal, a voluptuous muckraking financial reporter for the L.A. Times. Predatory Carmen sees Sam as a potential sugar daddy who will provide her with the necessary luxuries and stimulations of a fabulous lifestyle. She plans to hook him by revealing a shady business deal that one of his law partners is plotting. Glib intrigue and light humor carry the plot as Sam's and Enid's infidelities develop simultaneously toward their guilt-ridden conclusions, with everyone getting exactly what he or she deserves. Things stay mainly on the level of the designer labels affixed to everything in this superficial but entertaining narrative, which may please readers with preconceptions about the L.A. social scene. Author tour. (Apr.)