PULSE.

Byline: - Diana McKeon Charkalis

Close to the heart

HEAT IT UP: Does your relationship need a romance booster shot just in time for Valentine's Day?

``How to Be a Dominant Diva'' (Avalon Press; $24.95) may be just what the love doctor ordered.

Written by best friends and L.A. residents Georgia Payne and Julie Taylor, this interactive book is full of creative games to help couples enhance their love and lust life.

Inside, Payne and Taylor offer a series of step-by-step, easy-to-follow instructions accompanied by sexy photos, goddess tips and lists of ``passion props'' to further enhance each experience. There's even a special section for men, with games he can initiate.

The book, which is explicit in parts, also offers some tamer scenarios, such as: Sex Cells, which features enticing tips for sending each other racy photos via e-mail; Ear Candy, which details how to download sexy songs and stories into his iPod; and Den of Sin, which explains how to transform your bedroom into a boudoir.

If the spark has faded since you became parents, the book aims to reignite the passion, says Taylor, a leading relationship writer for magazines such as Glamour, Redbook and Cosmopolitan. She should know - she's a mom herself with two kids under the age of 5.

Available in bookstores, or at www.dominantdiva.com.

PAMPER YOUR BODY: Get centered this Valentine's Day with last-minute spa gifts from fill-r-up.com. They include the Yoga Zone Basket ($102), which comes with a power yoga DVD, yoga candle and headband. For apres-workout, the set also includes ginger body lotion and power scrub. Follow it all up with peppermint eye gel discs, moisture socks for tired toes and soft spa slippers.

For those less physically inclined, the site also offers other types of treats including a Lovesick gift basket that includes shampoo and conditioner ($30), and a chocolate-filled ``Anti-Valentines'' kit ($55.25). They offer overnight delivery, too.

A WORKOUT YOU'LL LOVE: Valentine's Day can be less than scintillating for singles. If you're on your own and need a fitness pick-me-up right about now, Barry's Boot Camp in Sherman Oaks and West Hollywood is offering half-price workouts from 3 to 7 p.m. today and Tuesday.

The notorious workout, billed as the ``originator of urban boot camp,'' combines cardio and strength training with doses or humor and tough love, all in a one-hour class.

It's guaranteed to raise your heart rate and just might improve your love life as well, says owner Rachel Mumford. She says the boot camp has been the catalyst for at least two marriages and numerous couplings.

For more information about the sessions, call [phone] or [phone], or visit www.BarrysBootcamp.com.

BREAST CANCER RESOURCE: Women facing the specter of breast cancer may find much-needed support in ``Breast Cancer: Real Questions, Real Answers'' (Marlowe & Company; $14.95). Written by practicing oncologist David Chan in response to the urging of breast cancer support groups, the book is dense with information but easily read. True to its title, ``Breast Cancer'' offers sober, compassionate answers to a comprehensive array of questions that any woman diagnosed with the disease might ask. Topics range from emotional to strictly medical and include tackling big questions such as ``How did I get breast cancer?'' and ``What are my options for treatment?'' The resource is interspersed with illustrations as well as brief case studies of Chan's own patients. A glossary at the end keeps the jargon from getting too overwhelming, and an index makes it easier to navigate by specific topics.

- Andy Wang

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Photo: (1) no caption (book: ``How to Be a Dominant Diva'')

(2) no caption (Yoga Zone Basket)