One Day at a Time-Danielle Steel

One Day at a Time
Danielle Steel
Delacorte, Feb 2009, $27.00
ISBN: 9780385340298

Her mother is Florence Flowers, a legendary author known for shallow best sellers. Her late father was Bernard “Buzz” Barrington, a legendary literary and dramatic agent. Her sister Jane is one of the top Hollywood producers of the past decade. With that DNA Coco Barrington wonders where she went wrong as she rusticates in Bolinas in Northern California as a dog walker far from “civilization” also called Los Angeles.

Jane and her significant other Lizzie are thinking of having a child. They ask Coco to dog and house sit for them; which she reluctantly agrees. However, she thought she only had to deal with the lord of the manor jack the dog; instead some guy named Leslie is hiding in her sister’s house from a psychotic former girlfriend. As she and Leslie become acquainted, both feel a deep attraction. However, she refuses anything Hollywood and he is renowned British actor Leslie Baxter; then again his favorite beautiful companion is his six years old daughter Chloe and her mom is dating a stud two plus decades younger than her.

This is an engaging contemporary fiction tale that at times the readers feels they ride a merry go round as Coco’s doubts vs. her love keep going round and round; Leslie is too nice a guy to have doubts especially if she loves him. The support cast is solid as her two female relatives who at first seem nasty, but actually are frustrated with her as they want Coco to come out of her self inflicted exile. Die hard fans of Ms. Steel will enjoy ONE DAY AT A TIME as Coco must learn to follow the title credo if she is to have any chance at happiness.

Harriet Klausner