From Publishers Weekly
For all its hip talk and flaunting of high-tech accessories, Goldsmith's (The First Wives Club) cream-puff new read is an old-fashioned tale of love and friendship. In the new SeattleDa town suddenly stinking rich, "famous for its bad boys, good coffee, and Micro Millionaires"DTracie Higgins is a young reporter for the Seattle Times. Though she has a musician-poet-lout boyfriend, every Sunday Tracie meets platonic chum Jonathan Delano for brunch. Jonathan is a techno-wizard for Micro/Con; he is responsible, dedicated, environmentally correct; good to his mother and stepmothers; and alas, an ugly duckling dweeb who hasn't had sex in a year. Tracie agrees to give him a "make over": the clothes, the moves, the haircut, the linesDin short, attitude. "Women don't want nice guys," she says. She should know. In fact, every man in the book (except Jon) is a selfish leech, abusive or indifferent. Every woman seems clueless. But the dialogue is crisp and funny, and though the characters are shallow, they're lively, comradely and comic. The makeover itself is wonderfully funny, especially as poor Jon remains pretty hapless on the pickup. Soon, however, his spiffy clothes, spiked hair, stale lines and casual cruelty turn his love life around. Has the loyal friend, the true lover, the decent, smart, stock-optioned man vanished into chic-ether? Read on. (Jan.) Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Tracie and Jonny are just buddies complaining to each other about their lousy love lives until Tracie decides to remake Jonny as a red-hot loverAand then falls for him. Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
Goldsmith delivers another pleasurable read. This time she uses the standard Pygmalion story line, but this isn't your usual My Fair Lady. A woman, Tracie Higgins, is the teacher, while the pupil is her best male friend, Jon Della. Jon's problem is that he is too nice, too sweet, and too much of a "computer geek," making his romantic life nonexistent. Wanting to change his kindly ways, he enlists Tracie to transform him into the type of guy that women fall head over heels for--a "bad boy." Tracie can't help but fall for bad boys herself--her current boyfriend, Phil, is consistently unavailable and commitment-shy. Goldsmith's timing is right on: as Jon progresses from nerdy to knockout, the story becomes clever and more engaging. Although the plotline is familiar--the dynamics of the platonic teacher-student relationship change as the tutor, unprepared for the pupil's successful evolution, becomes jealous--Goldsmith fashions a fresh and amusing story. Tracie must change as well; the bad boys are beginning to bore her, and she's tired of picking up the bill. Readers who do not think of light romantic comedy as "their cup of tea" should take a sip, relax, and enjoy--realistic yet entertaining characters and witty dialogue are Goldsmith's top priority. Michelle Kaske
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

FROM OUR EDITORS

The bestselling author of such mischievous novels as The First Wives Club and Young Wives is back and up to her old tricks. Dot-com geek Jon Delano is sick of just being "friends" with the women in his life and enlists pal Tracie Higgins to give him a Johnny Depp-esque makeover. But the makeover's made "Jonny" a heartthrob, and Tracie discovers -- too little too late -- that she just might be falling in love with him.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Tracie's got a weakness for classic bad boys who seem too good to be true...and usually are.

Jon, on the other hand, loves Tracie-and not "just as a friend." But Jon is no bad boy. In fact, he's about as good as they come.

But when he convinces a skeptical Tracie to teach him some tricks of the trade, she turns him into a heartbreakingly hot bad boy-and soon it seems half Seattle's women want Jon to themselves. Including Tracie.

FROM THE CRITICS

Olivia Goldsmith at her best.

Nelson DeMille

Olivia Goldsmith at her best.

Sue Grafton

Witty and wonderful.

Entertainment Weekly

A guilty pleasure.

People Magazine

Gulity pleasures don't come mich tastier than this latest bon-bon from Goldsmith....Read all 9 "From The Critics" >

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

...a delight, a confection of out-loud laughs and romance, by a novelist who deserves to be treasured.... — Scott Turow

Bad Boy is Olivia Goldsmith at her best-funny, hip, and very clever. — Nelson Demille