Once Upon a Blind Date [Mass Market Paperback]

Maggie completes Dom's profile (as a `old fashioned' guy looking for an `old-fashioned' girl) on an online dating service, and then she starts contacting other singles. Charlie and Julie review the first batch of responses to the profile Charlie filled out for her. Poor Julie is a little put off by all the nuts that respond. Until she sees Dom's. Charlie convinces her to plan on the two of them meeting in a public place and they can each bring a friend. Dom wants to go with the guys to the Knicks game but Maggie schedules his date for that night. Julie (at Charlie's suggestion) sends over the tickets for where they are supposed to meet up...the Knick's game. Never mind that Julie doesn't know or care for Basketball; Charlie knows this is how she can score points with him. Dom and Maggie get the tickets while they are at work. Dom is excited since the seats are better than where his friend's were and Maggie is confused why an `old-fashioned' girl would plan a first meeting at a basketball game.

Needless to say once everyone meets up, it's obvious that two chaperones have more in common than Dom and Julie. The story flows from one fatal date to another as the matchmakers refuse to give up. Somewhere along the way, they start spending personal time together and boy do the sparks fly!!!! Maggie and Charlie ride a roller coaster on the way to end of the story. It's fun to take the ride with them. Not once did I think, "enough already or get to the good stuff." I felt like the whole story was the good stuff.

Wendy Markhan has a nice writing style that flips between the characters seamlessly. It's frustrating when an author tries to write from the various points of view with a bias towards one character. In _Once Upon..._ there wasn't any awkward transitions. None of the characters were dislikeable which is a breath of fresh air. Not every story needs a witch or jerk to make a character appreciate their "true" love. Sometime people just don't mesh.

I really enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading _The Nine Month Plan_, which is sitting on my bookcase.

In lower Manhattan, Charlie Kennely and Julie Purello are best buddies. As a relationship advice columnist Charlie believes that Julie's life is all work and no fun since an engagement ended. He informs his pal that she needs a spouse and decides to find her one.

Maggie and Charlie complete the questionnaire for their respective pals at Matchmocha asking for mates in Manhattan, the boroughs except for the dangerous Bronx and too far away Staten Island. The matchmaking company pairs Dominic and Julie. They are accompanied by their matchmaker when they meet at Madison Square Garden. This is love at first sight except not for Dominic or Julie. They have nothing in common including no spark. On the other hand, Maggie and Charlie, who respectively filled in the likes and dislikes for their pals, go at it from the first moment as enemy combatants falling in love.

Though her friend's acceptance of Maggie's insistent pushing of Julie on Dominic seems out of character for a person who easily would tell her to bug off, fans will enjoy this amusing matchmaking romance gone awry. The key to this Manhattan (and somewhat Queens) madness is that the four characters seem real with unique personalities. ONCE UPON A BLIND DATE is a fun tale with a humorous matchmaking twist.

Harriet Klausner