Anything Considered

How's this for a fantasy job: British Bennett, the young, roguish hero of the latest novel by Peter Mayle (A Year in Provence), gets employed as a ''rich layabout'' in Monaco — complete with penthouse, expense accounts at the finest restaurants, a top-of-the-line Mercedes, and plenty of cash — all for masquerading as an unscrupulous millionaire for the latter's complicated tax-evading purposes. But Bennett's days of loafing expensively are cut short by a truffle caper, complete with a stolen serum for producing the precious fungus, various branches of the Mafia, an American mercenary (looks like Barbie, acts like G.I. Joe) with whom Bennett has a romance, and a risky opportunity for Bennett to get rich — for real, this time. Such breezy, rompish activity is, of course, just an excuse for Mayle to indulge in elegant descriptions of world-class dinners, wardrobes, and beautiful women. Anything Considered is a piece of fluff all right, the kind you might pick off an Armani suit. B-