New Yorkers LOVE New York. They love it as the backdrop for stories about cheating spouses and subway disasters and restaurant tours. They love it as a place where actor-law assistants and artist-carpenters can live out their fantasies of being bohemians *and* family men. The plot device—going back and forth in time as these two men move inexorably toward some sort of disaster—keeps this novel chugging forward, allowing you to forget whether you even like any of these four characters or care about their fate. Maybe you care about the fate of New York.