BUNNY MODERN

A near-future romantic fantasy in which electricity has vanished and most couples are infertile—creating the need for gun- toting warrior-nannies to protect the few infants still being born: a second novel no less wacky and wired than its predecessor (Let the Dog Drive, 1993). In Manhattan's Washington Square Park, a chance encounter brings narrator Dylan across the path of nanny Clare just as she foils a babynapping with a neat trick shot that blows away the wife of the childless couple attempting the abduction. It is, of course, love at first sight. Dylan uses his mysterious powers to read Clare's mind and learns that their fates are to be entwined through her next assignment: a job in Jersey with a singing and dancing elderly couple and their six-month-old son, Soda. Though Clare, like all nannies, is addicted to Vengeance, a drug that makes her trigger-happy while deadening her bonding instincts, she still falls for Soda, who proves to be most unusual. Dylan inserts himself in Clare's life at this point, since he has an interest in Soda's parents as well, and the two begin working as a team. They break into the headquarters of the nanny service in search of information, learning the full story—that Soda has been the same age for 40 years—and in the process making themselves likely candidates for assassination. But, wonder of wonders, electricity returns in the nick of time, bringing chaos but allowing Clare and Dylan to escape. After making certain that the unique Soda is safe, the two go back to Clare's place in the bright, shining city to make sparks of their own—until a knock at her door heralds yet another change in plans. Being out on the edge, as this one is, has its appeal, but with the tale's wild windings comes a large dose of gimmickry and calculation, rendering the whole hard to follow and harder to swallow. (Author tour)