Starstruck Romance and Other Hollywood Tails

As her Second Acts Dating Service truly takes off, Cynthia Amas discovers that in the heady world of high-end Hollywood romance, with success comes complexity. In this wildly seductive romp through the lush canyons and lavish neighborhoods of Los Angeles, the line between business and pleasure quickly blurs in a dizzying rush of sex and celebrity. Just as our heroine s uncanny genius for matching up her growing roster of exclusive love seekers continues to deepen, her own love life reaches a fever pitch. Things get complicated. And funny. And excruciatingly sensual. Cynthia s high-maintenance lovelorn mother, her maddeningly hot ex-fling Max, a long-lost high school crush, and of course her best friend, the libidinous, star-crazed Lolita and her mysterious pack of telepathic canines, are all along for the ride. Not to mention one very rich, very famous film producer. On top of everything else, her newest, most important client is literally the biggest movie star in the world. In more ways than one. When it comes to extra curriculars, he is the hardest-working stud in show business. Try as Cynthia may to hook him up with any number of gorgeous ladies in waiting, his notoriously one-track mind is set on her. She s determined to steer the dating service to the next level, but it s hard to focus, let alone keep your hands on the wheel, when you re hot, bothered, and nearly driven to distraction along the steamy highways and byways of love and lust. What a way to make a living."

Julia Dumont

The Not-So-Authorized Bio of Julia Dumont

Julia Dumont is not my real name. I have a secret life, which is why I have to keep my true identity hidden. My fellow university professors would never understand why a very serious literary professor such as myself would ever confess her addiction to reading romance novels, much less to her passion for writing them. And, because I find my heroine, Cynthia Amas, constantly talking in my head, and myself relating to her in ways I don’t know how to explain, I can’t stop myself from writing her crazy story. Maybe I am possessed, but I don’t care!

I have spent more than 20 years worshipping my literary heroes - Jane Austin, D.H. Lawrence, Thomas Hardy, Emily Bronte, William Faulkner and F. Scott Fitzgerald to name only a few - but if I am going to be honest with you (at least to a point), I have to confess that one of my favorite guilty pleasures is to steal away and lose myself in the deliciously naughty novels of Nora Roberts, Danielle Steel, and Janet Evanovich. Their stories make me dream, fantasize, love, laugh and cry. And they always leave me wanting more, hungry for their next books. Somewhere along the way, I found myself wishing that I could write books like theirs that women would lust after.

Maybe it’s a midlife crisis -- I have just turned 43 -- but Cynthia’s story has really spiced up my life (and my husband Dilbert’s). Much to my surprise, Dilbert (not his real name either) has been so supportive that he doesn’t even complain when I am burning the midnight oil writing the next chapter in Cynthia’s rollercoaster of a life story. Although we have no children, we do have three canine companions who we dote on: Popeye, our regal standard poodle who keeps us well-mannered, Lucy, our Aussie who is constantly guarding against intruders, and Milo our half collie/half German shepherd mix who has the soul of a Zen master.

Our happy human and canine family lives in Southern California and we can’t figure out which one of us loves more our Sunday morning tradition of a long, exhilarating walk on one of those famous California beaches. Popeye prefers to keep his paws dry and strut in the sand, but Lucy loves to chase the beach birds endlessly, while we think Milo believes he can actually fly!