Zelda's former boyfriend has had a glamorous wedding to a beauty, and aged twenty-six poor Zelda thinks she's on the scrapheap. In RAINY DAYS AND ROSES she's about to get a surprise that could make her change her mind - and regret not washing her hair.

Of all the guys who could knock on her door, Dan is the last one she expected. He was her first crush and was in England with his mother, has been since they were teens. She wasn't sure how he felt, but he never wrote. Now he's back, twice as handsome, and having heard that Zelda was going through a rough patch he's come to see if she's okay. But is Dan just being neighbourly? And is one look at the litter-strewn apartment and dirty pink slippers going to send him running back to England?

The start of the tale is tragi-comic, since we never knew the man who has disappointed Zelda. By now her ex is a successful lawyer from one of the most prominent African- American families in Denver, while she's a chef, from a mixed family, without a job to go to for the past few weeks of misery. Life can be tough in your twenties, and other people can sometimes walk all over you. I'd like to think Zelda would have realised by herself that there are other men and jobs out there, more deserving of her talents. The big tub of ice-cream seems like something of a caricature.

Dan comes across as a decent young man. He's known tragedy and he still thinks of Zelda as the cute little girl from class. He's about to have that vision rocked. And this is what makes him extend an invitation to Zelda to come for a vacation in England with him, renovating an old cottage, just as friends. This is a wonderful twist, adding interest and charm to the story. All does not go smoothly and Zelda's temper reasserts itself, providing more fun and games. Americans can't work in Britain, and Zelda's jobless state is just one reason some people look down on her.

For a really unusual adult romance, with characters so full of life they bounce, you couldn't do better than RAINY DAYS AND ROSES by Dawn Douglas. You'll definitely be laughing and you may even be shedding tears. This author is from England originally but now lives in Colorado, her stories making the best of both her worlds.