When Colette (Coco) Barrington was growing up, she was surrounded by the Hollywood lifestyle, with her father in the movie business and her mother a mega bestselling author. It is no surprise that her older sister Jane also grows up to join the movie game as a top producer.
But Coco wants nothing to do with that life. After graduating from Princeton, she begins law school at Stanford, but drops out and creates a dog walking business. A way to enjoy life on her terms. Unfortunately, her family disapproves, and even though her father is now dead, her mother and sister miss no opportunity to show how much they cannot understand her choices.
Jane is also a bit of a bully, treating Coco like a recalcitrant child, whom she somehow wrangles into house-sitting when she and her partner Liz go to New York. Their home in San Francisco is gorgeous, and should be a treat. But Coco is still frustrated by how her sister always manages to get her way, and is then stunned to meet an unexpected houseguest; someone she recognizes from the movies. Movie star Leslie Baxter is even more handsome in person, and before she knows it, Coco and he are involved in a passionate love affair.
From this point on, the story can conceivably only go in one direction. The two will meet obstacles along the way, have a few disagreements about the lifestyle, and may even part for a bit. But there will definitely be some kind of happy ending, since this is a romance novel. Even knowing this, I did enjoy the story, with the descriptions of beautiful settings, scenes, clothing, and jewels. The glitz and glamor that Steel can present to the readers is as predictable as the plot. Because I did like the lighter fare for a change, I'm giving "One Day at a Time: A Novel" 3.5 stars.