The Winner Takes It All

In the second Something New contemporary (after Take a Chance on Me), Dawson draws a clear picture of a high-powered romance. Cecilia Riley works for her father, a senator, as a PR adviser, while planning to run for a congressional seat of her own. She’ll announce her run after her brother’s wedding, but until then she’s stuck for two weeks at the family farmhouse with the wedding party, including the bride’s brother, powerful businessman Shane Donovan. The lust that sparks between them at the engagement party soon becomes romantic yearning. Cecilia’s icy composure slips when she’s around Shane, but his distress when he learns what she’s willing to do to win her office keeps them apart. The titillating sex scenes feel like lost souls coming together. There’s just enough series material to satisfy current fans while drawing in new readers with laugh-out-loud humor and natural dialogue. Agent: Courtney Miller-Callihan, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. (Dec.)