MISSING: Mr Right

What do El Dorado, Atlantis and the perfect man have in common? Here's a short story that might give you a clue.

A dear friend of mine has been a widow for some years and the poor lady feels quite lonely, in particular now that her children have grown up and left home. At sixty one years of age, she is despairing of ever finding love again.

So it was to everyone's surprise when she announced that she had found somebody. They met at a Halloween party and at first sight he made quite an impression. Fifty four years old, so she was delighted that he was a bit younger; six foot tall; slim and in very good shape; not only hadn't he lost any hair, but it was thick and blonde, with no sign of grey; he even had all his teeth, which were kept in good order.

However, beauty is of course, skin deep, so she interrogated him to find out what he was really made of. Working as a lawyer for a big, multinational company certainly scored big points in her book.

The very next night he invited her to dinner at one of the best restaurants in town. After a magical evening she suggested a moonlit stroll, admittedly with an ulterior motive - it would also give her the chance to take the dogs for a walk.

"Dogs?" he inquired.

"Yes, I've got two of them."

"Ah, it's just that I've never taken a dog for a walk before."

"Never? Come on, you're pulling my leg."

"No, seriously. It's just that I don't like dogs."

She closed the door on him, literally and figuratively. A blossoming relationship that wilted and died in little more than twenty four hours.

What do El Dorado, Atlantis and the perfect man have in common then? They are all myths - they've never been found.

For a romcom about judging books by their covers and discovering that you have to dig much deeper than first impressions to find Mr Right, check out the book, Loosely Translated. Maria is a Spanish translator who is so disgusted at the stupid book that she has to translate that she makes some "improvements". The problems start when the Spanish version becomes a bestseller and she meets her enemy, the English author, who might not be as bad as she thought. The story has love, laughs, a look at Spain and its culture that goes beyond bullfighting and flamenco, and of course, a couple of dogs. It will also appeal to anyone who has ever dreamed of writing a book.

If that sounds like your cup of tea, buy me a couple of beers - that's about how much the book costs, and you'll get that warm, fuzzy feeling of helping out an indie author. Cheers!

Loosely Translated on Amazon