“Paranormal romance” is a whole new fiction genre, and Constance O’Day-Flannery’s Best Laid Plans is a tasty and intriguing tale that combines loss, love and metaphysical enlightenment in one good beach read.
The story begins when Cristine discovers her boyfriend has been untrue, and suddenly her whole life is upside down. With the help of her dear friends, the Yellow Brick Road Gang, she opens her breaking heart up just enough to consider the possibility of new love. Lo and behold, he comes to her in the form of a way-too-perfect man named Daniel. As Cristine finds her self-esteem growing along with her desire for this new man, she begins to understand that Daniel is not quite as he seems.
Perfect? Yes. Human, well…And as their relationship blossoms, it becomes less about physical passion and more about some mind-blowing spiritual truths as Cristine discovers there is more to union with a man than just having sex (although that is great, too!).
Best Laid Plans is chick-lit with a wild twist, combining elements of Ya-Ya Sisterhood and Red Hat Society friendship with the paranormal (and even a bit of quantum physics), and the author succeeds at telling an engaging tale. This isn’t brilliant literature, just a really fun novel to read and think about,. Many women will swoon at the idea of that perfect lover from “another” dimension even as they ask themselves about their own beliefs of what is possible when the heart, and the mind, is open wide.