Midnight Bayou

In Nora Roberts's realm, human frailties like fear and jealousy are always conquered, and wild, commitment-phobic lovers are miraculously domesticated. It's that magic that makes every one of her more than 60 bestselling novels so enchanting to read. Midnight Bayou, set deep in the Louisiana bayou and on the steamy streets of New Orleans, is no exception.

There are ghosts in Manet Hall. The aging plantation mansion long ago lost its luster and has been sold and resold as owners flee the souls that still inhabit its rooms, playing out a long-ago tragedy. But former Boston lawyer Declan Fitzgerald is drawn to the house after seeing it on a visit to the city. He ditches his big-time law career and fancy fiancée, packs his bags, and relocates to Louisiana, where he plans to restore the mansion's former glory.

Upon his arrival, he meets the lovely Angelina Simone, a barkeep raised on the bayou, who like him has her own set of emotional baggage. And slowly it becomes clear that Angelina has a strange and mysterious connection to the past events replaying themselves in Declan's new home. Not even thumps in the day and night, his unsettling visions and episodes of sleepwalking, or Angelina's rebuffs make Declan give up his mission of uncovering that connection. He single-mindedly pursues his goal amid the slamming doors and flying cups and saucers, and - through an amusing role reversal - his relationship with Angelina blossoms.

Although you have to suspend all sense of reality to accept the supernatural happenings as everyday fact at Manet Hall, Midnight Bayou is a fast and entertaining read. Nora Roberts's legions of fans will eat it up.