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Type of bind: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN num: 9780380776832
ISBN number: 0380776839
Label: Avon
Manufacturer: Avon
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 384
Printing Date: August 01, 1994
Publishing house: Avon
Release Date: August 01, 1994
Sale Popularity Level: 25624
Studio: Avon
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Product Description:
The Windy City isn't quite ready for Phoebe Somerville -- the outrageous, curvaceous New York knockout who has just inherited the Chicago Stars football team. And Phoebe is definitely not prepared for the Stars' head coach Dan Celebow, a sexist jock taskmaster with a one-track mind. Celebow is everything Phoebe abhors. And the sexy new boss is everything Dan despises -- a meddling bimbo who doesn't know a pigskin from a pitcher's mound.
So why is he drawn to the shameless sexpot like a heat-seeking missile? And why does the coach's good ol' boy charm leave cosmopolitan Phoebe feeling awkward, tongue-tied....and ready to fight?
The sexy, heartwarming, and hilarious 'prequel' to Susan Elizabeth Phillip's This Heart of Mine -- her sensational bestsellng blockbuster -- It Had To Be You is an enchanting story of two stubborn people who believe in playing for keeps.
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Rated by buyers 
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I read this book in just one night ending up just wanting more. If you're the typical sap for any type of love story this is perfect. You feel the main characters struggles and her excitement with every word written. I wouldn't change one part of this book.
Rated by buyers -
This was my very first SEP book. At the end of the very first chapter I caught myself laughing out loud. I'm a fan of the contemporary sports romance. I think I've read all of them out there, but this book is still in my top 5. Highly recommend...don't go in thinking you're getting a Tolstoy or anything, just a fun light-hearted book and you'll enjoy it too!
Rated by buyers -
With a few SEP novels up my sleeve, I decided to start from the beginning. IT HAD TO BE YOU is the very first book in the Chicago Star series and upon picking it up, (now knowing SEP like I feel I do) I knew I was in for a treat.
Estranged from her family for a few years, Phoebe Somerville is the sexy, voluptuous, Marilyn-Monroe-esque daughter of Chicago Stars owner Bert Somerville. Upon her father's death, Phoebe learns that in his will, he has left her ownership of the football team - but if and only if they win the championship.
Knowing nothing about the sport, Phoebe feels as though she is being taunted by her father even in his death, and has no clue how to carry herself in this new position. It was useless, she was being set up to fail. Its what's expected of her, so chin up, she decides to prove everyone wrong.
Befriending the General Manager, Ron McDermitt is the best thing that could've happened. The two become fast friends, as Ron helps her and teaches her everything she needs to know. The pressure is on for her and her newly inherited team and no matter what, she plans to make champions of them.
Things get a little hairy when Phoebe and Dan Calebow -- the Stars' coach -- cross paths. The two despise each other, and lean on the mindset that one is trying to make the other's job more difficult. Though polar opposites, the passion and chemistry between them is undeniable and soon, they come to realize that there is much more at risk, then the team.
Rated by buyers 
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Phillips' Chicago Stars series is very, very good, but it has some weak spots and there are several in this kickoff (as it were) book. Phoebe's character actuallly becomes far more interesting and believable than it is in this early effort, where she changes essential elements of herself far too quickly for credibility and there are too many "accessories", such as the poodle and the Hungarian lover mentioned in the very first line, that seem forced and add clutter instead of enhancement. Dan Calebow, too, is one-dimensional in comparison to some of Phillips' later heroes, but in a way this works out as his limitations echo Phoebe's. Plus, the ending is far too pat and stiff.
I read this book after being introduced to Phillips in "Nobody's Baby But Mine" and "This Heart of Mine", which are outstanding examples of a polished, confident writer at the top of her game, and in the latter of which the Calebows are presented much more fully, even as secondary characters. I probably wouldn't have noticed the flaws in "It Had To Be You" quite as much if I hadn't had my expectations set so highly. Overall, this is an enjoyable read, if not an entirely satisfying one.
Rated by buyers 
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Phoebe Somerville is what most men would call a bombshell. She has a killer body, a husky Katherine Turner-esque voice, and the attitude and candor to back it all up. What Phoebe also has is a painful sexual past that she uses her hot body and quick wit to cover up. So when she attends her father's funeral, a man who owned the Chicago Stars football team and was ruthless in his desire to make her a lady, Phoebe comes dressed to the nines with her poodle and gay boyfriend in tow. The results are hilarious, and after the funeral Phoebe learns that, while her father considers her his only failure, he's given her an opportunity to make it up to him. Phoebe has one season to lead the Stars to the AFC Championship or the team will go to her cousin.
Dan Calebow, the head coach of the Chicago Stars, wants nothing to do with Bert Somerville's vendetta against his useless, socialite daughter and he wants to keep his players out of it as well. Dan just wants to coach his players, for the team to win, and for him to find himself a nice, comfortable, baby makin' woman to settle down with. And he doesn't think that's too much to ask for. Which is why when Phoebe disappears after inheriting the team--leaving contracts unsigned and his players' futures in question--Dan decides to bring her back. He realizes that she's a vapid sexpot who cares more about what she's wearing than the future of his team, but he's determined to make her stand up and take notice. Because if his future and that of the Stars rests on the bombshell blonde's shoulders, he's going to make sure she doesn't squander them away.
Okay, so I'm on a kick right now where I'm reading all of the books from All About Romance's Top 100 Romance Books and this book is #14. I think that's a pretty fair ranking. It Had to Be You is contemporary chick lit with a lovably flawed heroine and a delightfully arrogant hero. Watching these two tussle is the stuff that romances are meant for and Susan Elizabeth Phillips does a great job of making the sparks fly between hero and heroine without ever going over the top. Phoebe is a force of nature with her bombshell body and smart mouth, but it's really all covering up a painful past. The fact that Dan can break down those walls and is the only heterosexual man she's been able to trust in more than a decade was endearing, and the fact that he both earned and deserved her trust was appealing. As for Dan, I love alpha male arrogant heroes. I can't help it. And Dan fits the bill. His team and his players come first. Always have. Only he's now got to make room in his life for his woman, and it's great to watch him navigate this transition.
I think three or four books from the Chicago Stars series actually made the AAR cut, and I'm more eager than ever to read them after enjoying this story so much. In fact, this is my very first book by Phillips, but I can guarantee it won't be my last. Next up, book 2 in the series Heaven, Texas.
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