How to Make Anyone Fall in Love with You

Hard to believe anything other than luck and maybe fate, never mind a book, can make someone fall in love with you, but oddly enough, Leil Lowndes seems to offer the advice that can do just that in How to Make Anyone Fall in Love with You. The sensation of falling in love comes from a chemical secreted by the nervous system, phenylethylamine (or PEA, as Lowndes calls it, as in "Scientists tell us only PEA-brained people fall in Love"), and the trick is to trigger the manufacture of PEA in your potential love partner, giving him or her the sensation of being in love. Lowndes offers 85 techniques for "Hunters and Huntresses" to capture their "Quarry." Much of what the book offers is common sense--the power of eye contact and compliments--but it's presented in a new way and with such detail that it seems that it can't help but work.

Following some of her advice will have you treading that fine line between nice and obsequious, and at times, this book may sound offensive to some, advising the reader to play what may sound like games. Lowndes is aware of this, and she offers some caveats, but still it is hard to get past advice such as, "Show him you're smart, but remember--not too smart" or "Watch your Quarry's reactions to outside stimuli, then show the same emotions." In all fairness, Lowndes doesn't play favorites: her advice to men and women can be equally appalling. Yet, the relaxed style of this book, presenting solid wisdom with a bit of scientific support, makes this book appealing, and, who knows, maybe it will make you more appealing, too! --Jenny Brown