House of cards /

Reminiscent of Erich Segal at his post-Love Story drippiest: a belabored soap-opera about a well-meaning bigamist--padded out with some very dull business wranglings. In 1981 Bryan, handsome and 40-ish, is the reasonably content husband of Errin, father of pre-teener Cathy, and executive at N.Y.'s ChemCalCo. Then, suddenly, English prof Errin announces that she wants a separation. Why? Implausibly, because Bryan has sold out. (""The man I loved was a brilliant young inorganic chemist,"" Errin shrills--in one of many unintentional laugh lines.) Devastated, Bryan slowly and reluctantly accepts the separation and Errin's subsequent moves toward divorce. On a business trip to California, he falls hard for young Judith, daughter of ailing tycoon Henry Press; she reciprocates. (""We've only got four days left to fuck our brains out."") Thus, haying given up on Errin, Bryan is all ready for marriage to Judith and a big position in Press' company Nova Two, ""the fastest-growing synthetic materials lab in the country"". . . just when Errin changes her mind. Yes, his almost-ex wants him back! (""I was completely wrong. Deluded or something."" Moreover, pubescent Cathy--with potential drugs/sex problems--needs a father.) And what will Bryan do? Well, since he loves both women, and both need him, he'll go ahead and marry Judith. Jump, then, to 1983: Bryan's double-life is going along fine; he explains his constant bicoastal back-and-forth with business reasons. But then Bryan's enemies at Nova learn his secret--and start harassing Errin and Cathy with teasing bits of dirt about the Bryan/Judith relationship; later, Judith gets the same, vice-versa treatment. So: which woman will Bryan wind up with after the struggle for Nova control is over? The one who reacts with sorrow rather than anger to the bigamy news. Picano, author of such gay-theme novels as Late in the Season and The Lure, is particularly weak in depicting (even on a Segal-esque level) heterosexual relationships. The result is a shallow, soupy contrivance--the sort of thing likely to turn up (with more credibility) as a TV-movie. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.