Reel Time by Julia Willis

Laney Turner can't say no to women. When her therapist, Roxanne, asks her out, she reluctantly agrees, and when Roxanne deserts her for another woman, Laney lets her strange new housemates send her on a series of disastrous blind dates--one of which ends abruptly when her date is led away in handcuffs by the police. But no one will introduce her to the woman she really wants to meet: the redheaded, dangerous-looking femme fatale who sings for the band Girl Group. Everyone, it seems, has a hidden past with lovely Ena. Will Laney get her girl? And if she does, will the mystery woman prove to be another disappointment? Julia Willis's comedy gets off to a slow start but picks up speed midway, when Laney and her flame-haired paramour begin to strike sparks off each other. Reel Time is a well-written first novel, with an unusually rich background of friends and events. --Regina Marler