Planted in the print version of this month's Vanity Fair along with James Wolcott's broadside versus red states is mention of a Harlequin romance sub-series we had no idea existed, and yet instantly approve of. This series is "set against the backdrop of the thrill-a-minute world of NASCAR." Titles include On the Edge, Dangerous Curves, and (chuckle) In the Groove. Sadly lacking are Killed in a Flaming Ball of Wreckage and Swabbing the Black Crud Out of Your Nostrils After a Day at the Track. Anyway, VF takes aim at the latest title, A NASCAR Holiday:

... a Salinger-esque collection of short stories. In "Ladies, Start Your Engines," two young lovers (not same-sex, alas) discover that winning a race isn't nearly as important as winning each other's heart ("I'm not trying to make you fall in bed with me again, chief. I want you to fall in love with me.") And in the screwballish "Tis the Silly Season," driver Clay Slater courts a young lady because he needs an already complete family in order to impress a potential sponsor. Vroooom!

Get Your Heart Racing!!! [Harlequin]

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