Match Me If You Can (Chicago Stars, #6) by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Jun 17, 2011 Dina rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Dina by: Tammy

Shelves: contemporary-romance, to-blog

Let me start by saying this: I admit I'm a "sexist" and I read romance novels mostly for the hero. As long as the hero is worth it and the heroine isn't a pain in the a$$, I'm happy.

That said, I have to state that the best thing about Match Me If You Can was Annabelle and not Heath. She was just adorable in her quirkiness, the kind of friend I cherish in RL. She loved Heath, so I wanted her to have him. Not because he was to-die-for, but because he was "the one" for her. Seriously, I spent a lar...more Let me start by saying this: I admit I'm a "sexist" and I read romance novels mostly for the hero. As long as the hero is worth it and the heroine isn't a pain in the a$$, I'm happy.

That said, I have to state that the best thing about Match Me If You Can was Annabelle and not Heath. She was just adorable in her quirkiness, the kind of friend I cherish in RL. She loved Heath, so I wanted her to have him. Not because he was to-die-for, but because he was "the one" for her. Seriously, I spent a large portion of the book frustrated with his "blindness" and wanting to shake some sense into him. In the end, I was thrilled to see him voicing my feelings brilliantly:

"I'm sorry it took me so long to get my head straight, but, as you've been quick to point out, I'm an idiot (...)"

Yes, you were, Heath! Obviously, that simple statement wasn't enough to win Annabelle right back. She ~~needed~~ deserved the whole package and not the scraps Heath was willing to give at 1st, so kudos to her for sticking to her principles until he finally proved to be worthy of her.

This was only my 2nd book by SEP, but I've been told she likes to make her heroes do some serious groveling before conquering their heroines back. Groveling scenes are complicated to me, because they usually come after some ugly and almost unforgiveable behavior by the hero, so I was happy to see that Heath's actions weren't that damaging and unforgiveable. The usually ruthless and goal-oriented man was just clueless when it came to wooing Annabelle, which only showed how much she was important to him.

I loved the cast of secondary characters - all of them, but especially little Pippy and her fascination with cell phones - as they added an interesting layer to the story and helped me understand Heath and Annabelle's personalities better. Their scenes were great at "showing, not telling" what made Heath and Annabelle tick, and there was some great writing there, IMHO.

All in all, this was a very enjoyable read, light, funny and downright hilarious at times. A straight contemporary novel with neither sudden plot twists nor emotionally-draining angst, a lovely heroine, a nice (but emotional slow) hero and a bunch of secondary characters that didn't feel like fillers. I can't say SEP has become one of my favorite authors yet, but she's on my radar and I'll definitely give her another try.
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Jun 07, 2010 Mahlet rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romance, audio, favorites

What a totally unexpected treat!! I really loved this one. It was my first Susan Elizabeth Phillips book, but I’m already looking for more of her work. The premise was so adorable. Annabelle Granger comes from a family of successful doctors, accountants and the like, but every business she becomes involved with ends up failing. She studied theatre in college, but that didn’t amount to much. Her ex-fiancé is now a cross dresser, and she hasn’t been with a man since their broken engagement 2 years...more What a totally unexpected treat!! I really loved this one. It was my first Susan Elizabeth Phillips book, but I’m already looking for more of her work. The premise was so adorable. Annabelle Granger comes from a family of successful doctors, accountants and the like, but every business she becomes involved with ends up failing. She studied theatre in college, but that didn’t amount to much. Her ex-fiancé is now a cross dresser, and she hasn’t been with a man since their broken engagement 2 years ago. But things are turning around for Annabelle. When she inherits her grandmother’s matchmaking business, Matches by Myrna, she changes the name to “Perfect For You”, and through one of her contacts, she lands Chicago’s ultimate bachelor - aggressive, talented, and devilishly handsome sports agent Heath Champion – aka The Python – as a Perfect For You client. Heath is already working with another matchmaker, Portia Powers, but Annabelle’s tenacious and determined enough that he gives her a shot. The book jumps right in, with Annabelle running late to her first meeting with Heath.

Heath already works too hard as a sports agent, and he doesn’t want to work too hard at finding his dream wife. So, after seeing how well Annabelle is at making the initial introductions, Heath forces Annabelle to attend all the initial dates. Each set up lasts 20 minutes, and Annabelle’s job is to help get the conversation going, apologize and keep them busy – you know, in case Heath is running late or needs to take a call! :) Then, Annabelle is to advise Heath on whether he should pursue a 2nd date, one on one. If Annabelle can match Heath, the success of her matchmaking business would be insured. So in spite of his crazy demands, Annabelle is game. Heath’s dream wife can’t be too career oriented – she needs to fly across the country with him at moments notice, like sports, look like a model, have wit, not much older than 30 since Heath wants kids but not right away, polished upbringing….the list goes on. Heath sounds like a total ass, and he was initially, but I still fell for him.

The dates don’t seem to work out because it’s actually fun, unconventional redhead Annabelle that Heath has the most chemistry with. The banter and delicious tension can only go on for so long; Heath and Annabelle struggle to keep it professional, and fail miserably :) Annabelle is so conflicted as she’s trying to protect her business and her heart. She even has a sham relationship with a star athlete Heath is dying to sign to keep up the appearance that Heath is only a friend and client. Annabelle is so torn as she has to set up dates for the man she’s falling in love with! Heath is also conflicted as Annabelle doesn’t meet this ideal fantasy wife he’s concocted in his head. When Heath puts Annabelle under the gun, she produces this fantasy candidate…but is that what Heath still wants?

I just loved Annabelle! Usually, it’s the guy I swoon over the most in romances, but I totally fell for Annabelle. The dialogue was snappy, all the side characters were entertaining, and the unexpected romance between rival matchmaker Portia & Bodie (Heath’s associate/kinda bodyguard) was fun & hot, too. I can’t recall all the times I laughed at the outrageous things that came out of Heath’s mouth! Everything was great about this – glad I found it.

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Oct 14, 2011 Tammy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary-romance, sep, keepers, sports-romance, 2011, 2009-reads, 2008-reads

I've read Match Me If You Can four times now - without a doubt my favorite SEP book in the Chicago Stars series! - so I couldn't help picking up the audio version after reading several rave reviews about it. Anna Fields was very talented and her voice was most definitely a perfect match for the scatterbrained Annabelle Granger. (Sort of reminds me of actress Zooey Deschanel.) It saddens me to hear that Anna Fields passed away. I will be snatching up as many of her audio books as possible before...more

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Sep 19, 2011 Nisha rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: those who love SEP books

Shelves: chick-lit, sports-romance, contemporary-romance, favorites, alpha-heros, frenemies, my-personal-collection, opposites-attract, ugly-duckling

I've read this 3 times now and I can still say its one of the most memorable SEP books EVER. I don't need to rewrite the 2009 review, but I just wanted to point out that this has high re-read value. I really need to get myself a permanent paperback copy.

June 17, 2009 Review----------------------------------
2nd Time through (and a year later), I feel like I was crazy when I first read this. I actually like Annabelle (and her faults - she reminds me of myself) and Heath has become a lot more sexy....more I've read this 3 times now and I can still say its one of the most memorable SEP books EVER. I don't need to rewrite the 2009 review, but I just wanted to point out that this has high re-read value. I really need to get myself a permanent paperback copy.

June 17, 2009 Review----------------------------------
2nd Time through (and a year later), I feel like I was crazy when I first read this. I actually like Annabelle (and her faults - she reminds me of myself) and Heath has become a lot more sexy.

Annabelle is reinventing her grandmother's matchmaking business and her first big client is going to be Heath Champion, aka The Python - if she can convince him and keep an upper hand. Easier said than done, Heath is a workaholic, control-freak, with the work ethic of a computer (ok, he has a very sexy rugged side too), who grew up on the wrong side of the tracks and is now making it big. All he needs to show for his success now is the perfect society wife. With the help of 2 matchmakers, and the constant guidance of one of them (he makes Annabelle sit through all his meetings to weed out the bad ones - yet another way he makes his life efficient and manageable), he might find his perfect woman.

I actually love Annabelle. She's nice and is really trying her best to be successful and beating off the pressure from her very successful family (they do love her, but they're a little overprotective and overbearing). Its funny how she ends up falling for the very person who would fit right in with them. Heath cracks me up, because he is very scary efficient and somewhat inhuman, but with Annabelle, he acts quite unpredictably. They both fall into sync without knowing how good they are with each other.

Bodie, Heath's self-proclaimed bodyguard, is strange and heartwarming. I liked him and his weird relationship that basically saved everybody, directly and indirectly. The other matchmaking clients were also very interesting as they found their own matches.

My all-time favorite scene is when all the football players end up in Annabelle's place and she ends up managing them. He pseudo love affair with Dean Robillard was a nice touch, because that boy is hilarious and does wonders when it comes to igniting Heath's jealousy.

Overall, I love SEP books, and I most say this is another winner. It had great characters, great plot, great humor, and sexy footballers - need I say more. (less)

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Feb 05, 2012 Carrie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audio, contemporary, humorous, read-2010, sports-related, manipulative-friends-family, read-2012, re-read

2/5/12 I enjoyed this book as much the second time around. This book has so much heart. Great story. Great narrator.

12/10/10
This might end up being one of my favorite SEP book. Phillips out-does herself with great characters and snappy dialog. I only had a few nits to pick. As often happens in an SEP book, the heroine's stubbornness goes on too long toward the end of the book. The only other cons were family members that bully (this is a pet peeve of mine) and flowery prose for the sex scenes. T...more

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Aug 04, 2011 Anzu The Great Destroyer rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: my bffs

Recommended to Anzu by: Aly (Mircea) Basarab

Shelves: second-best, zomg-i-must-have-him, reviewed-2011, lit-for-the-chicks, romance-contemp

Another amazing story brought to us by the lovely Susan Elizabeth Phillips who, as far as my reading status, doesn’t disappoint.

This was such a great book for me because I fell in love with the characters since page one. The main and secondary ones were really well built, their relationships weren’t the best ones and this made the ending even more splendid. Annabelle was a cutie, I just loved her. The way she evolved throughout the book impressed me and I felt happy when things got settled betwe...more

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Jun 27, 2007 Jess rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Any Romance Fan

This book made me laugh, so hard. Annabelle was a quirky, upbeat, but shrewd main lead. Her client Heath was tough-as-nails, former college football player, Harvard educated agent that would intimidate most people, but not Annabelle. There's interesting chemistry between them, and her attitude with Dean and his younger friends are hilarious. She's not scared of Phoebe, and the other girls protect her when life seems to go south.

Heath can't seem to get on Phoebe's good side, no matter what he doe...more

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Oct 20, 2010 Lady Valee rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: cont-romance, favorites

Another amazing installment in this wonderful series. How can it be that I keep giving 5 stars to the books in this series? I have not been giving so may 5's in a row since... well, I can't even remember since when.

I loved the hero and the heroine so much. Heath was so hot! I loved him so much, specially at the end when he got to understood himself better. It was so sweet how much he craved for love and family, I just wanted to tell him I could volunteer to feel that role most of the book. And A...more

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Nov 24, 2012 Rikki Chadwig rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favourite

Books by Susan Elizabeth Phillips are not just usual stories with a light action. Exactly is to be read quickly, but it is filled with lots of strong feelings.You can imagine yourself in the place of the main character and understand him/her completely.The characters are always personalities with lives that are at the center of attention, but not typical (not meet the prejudice sometimes have a celebrity) tells us that not everyone is the same and that there are known to have the same problems,...more

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Mar 19, 2011 Tracy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Fans of light sports romances; Kate Angell fans.

Shelves: light-comedic-romance, sports-romance

She may be the black sheep of her uber-successful family, but Annabelle Granger marches to the beat of her own drum. She's taken over her grandmother's matchmaking business, renamed it Perfect for You, and is determined to make it successful. As part of the quest to do so, she's gotten one of her best friends to set up a meeting with one of the most eligible bachelors in town, rich, gorgeous sports agent, Heath Champion. Annabelle may not have the first clue why Heath would need to go to a match...more

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Jan 11, 2009 Bridget rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was a fun one. I really liked the characters and the flirtiness.

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Mar 15, 2009 Janice (Janicu) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Annabelle Granger is a vivacious redhead who is starting off in the matchmaking business in Chicago. The business used to be her late grandmother's but Annabelle is modernizing it and changing the name to Perfect For You. She just needs a big name client to help spread some buzz - that's where super sports agent Heath (The Python) Champion comes in. Through Heath's searching for the perfect wife, and Annabelle's connections to some famous footballers and their wives, gives her an in to speak to...more

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Apr 01, 2013 Marie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: shameless-romance-books

First off, I'd like to say I wrote a lovely review and my cat jumping on the keyboard made in disappear. So here's take two:
I've been slowly working my way through Susan Elizabeth Phillips' books as of late when I need a break and just want something silly and cute.
This one has some unique characters, and plenty of snarky banter.
One of my issues here is that all of her books have a proposal and wham bam, they're married and popping out babies. I know, it's a standby happy ending for romance book...more First off, I'd like to say I wrote a lovely review and my cat jumping on the keyboard made in disappear. So here's take two:
I've been slowly working my way through Susan Elizabeth Phillips' books as of late when I need a break and just want something silly and cute.
This one has some unique characters, and plenty of snarky banter.
One of my issues here is that all of her books have a proposal and wham bam, they're married and popping out babies. I know, it's a standby happy ending for romance books, but once the characters both agree to get married, it all ends the same and the characters become interchangeable. Would it kill us just once to have characters whose happily-ever-after is a little different?
I was also rather put off by the character of Portia. From her very first scene, I don't like her and yet there's this sub plot around her. Excuse me? she is horrible! And mean and very cruel to these people working beneath her. Besides the fact, that I'm pretty sure making her employees weigh themselves in front of you and everyone else at work on a weekly basis would be cause for a lawsuit. It was humiliation and bullying and so no, I don't care about her happily ever after. GO AWAY!
Also, Annabelle's family pissed me off, as did Heath's attitude towards them. Do you really want to force your wife to spend time with her family that used HER BIRTHDAY PARTY as an excuse to belittle her and talk about how much of a screw up she is? Yeah, no he was like "ONCE WE HAVE KIDS WE GOTTA VISIT THEM ONCE A MONTH AT LEAST" because, apparently, you want to expose your children to this same attitude of 'your dreams aren't good enough, live out mine instead' attitude? Not once in this book did Annabelle talk to her family without them ganging up on her how useless she was and how much her existence stressed out their lives and how she should change it to be more like theirs. It makes me angry that this whole thing was just shrugged off like OH BUT THAT'S JUST FAMILY~

I actually have the urge to knock off another star because of that, but to be realistic the family bit is only a small portion of the novel. Still, out of all the books by this author I've read I'm going to say this was most disappointing (less)

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Aug 04, 2012 Jane rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romance

Annabelle's endured dead-end jobs, a broken engagement . . . even her hair's a mess! But that's going to change now that she's taken over her late grandmother's matchmaking business. All Annabelle has to do is land the Windy City's hottest bachelor as her client, and she'll be the most sought-after matchmaker in town.

Why does the wealthy, driven, and gorgeous sports agent Heath Champion need a matchmaker, especially a red-haired screw-up like Annabelle Granger? True, she's entertaining, and she...more

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Feb 28, 2012 Cristina rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"Let's put it this way," he retorted. "My future wife's idea of a good time is sitting in Soldier Field in January with the wind blowing in off the lake at thirty knots. Se can feed half a dozen college athletes a spaghetti dinner with no warning and play eighteen holes of golf from the men's tees without embarassing herself. She's sexy as hell, knows how to dress, and thinks fart jokes are funny. Anything else?"
"It's just so darned hard to find women who've had lobotomies this days. Still if th...more

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Feb 12, 2012 Teresa Medeiros rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Susan Elizabeth Phillips is a dangerous woman. I learned that way back in 1989 when I stumbled across her novel FANCY PANTS. In that richly textured, mainstream glitter and glitz women's fiction novel that still managed to be one of the most extraordinary romances I'd ever read, she first did the impossible. She made golf interesting. That's right. Her hero, Dallie Beaudine was the sexiest golfer to ever pull on (or off) a pair of...well...golf pants.

Since then, I've been forced to govern my SEP...more Susan Elizabeth Phillips is a dangerous woman. I learned that way back in 1989 when I stumbled across her novel FANCY PANTS. In that richly textured, mainstream glitter and glitz women's fiction novel that still managed to be one of the most extraordinary romances I'd ever read, she first did the impossible. She made golf interesting. That's right. Her hero, Dallie Beaudine was the sexiest golfer to ever pull on (or off) a pair of...well...golf pants.

Since then, I've been forced to govern my SEP reading with a very strict set of rules. Because she's on a very short list of writers who can make me care more about what I'm reading than about what I'm writing, I'm only allowed to read her books on vacation, on long car or plane trips, or when I've just finished writing one of my own books.

Fortunately for me, a car trip to Florida coincided with the release of her brand spanking new Chicago Stars book, MATCH ME IF YOU CAN. Not since I first read ROOTS in the car when I was 13 have I enjoyed a road trip so much! From the very first page, SEP evokes empathy for her characters. We first meet modern day matchmaker Annabelle Granger trying to lure a drunk man out from under the wheels of her car because she's late for a very special appointment with high-profile sports agent Heath Champion, aka The Python. How can you not fall in love with a woman who smears lipstick on her lovely yellow shirt when she's trying to sniff her armpits for B.O. while driving? That's the beauty of SEP's female characters. They're not just the friends we'd long to have. They're already us!

She also excels in choosing the right details. The very fact that the heroine owns a Hello Kitty cookie jar tells you everything you need to know about her. As a writer, I found myself utterly seduced by sentences like, "Her sister-in-law used perfume like bug repellant." And Heath Champion has to be one of the most luscious, three-dimensional contemporary heroes I've ever read. SEP knows men! She knows how they think and how they talk and she loves them anyway, which only makes us love them more.

I also love the fact that the characters from the previous Chicago Stars novels weren't just marched onstage for a "Very Special Appearance" but were actually used to further the plot and facilitate the romance between Annabelle and Heath. I loved seeing Phoebe and Dan from IT HAD TO BE YOU with a few more wrinkles and a couple of teenagers of their own.
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Aug 25, 2011 Iris Blobel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Being still on sick leave I wanted to read something familiar and something I knew I would like. And SEP delivered!!!

This book is a feast for Chicago Stars fans! Not only do we get served the wonderful story between Annabelle and Heath, but we can also reacquaint ourselves with friends like Molly and Kevin, Phoebe and Dan as well as the Tucker campground.

In short, the plot is Annabelle Granger inherited a matchmaking business from her grandmother and with the help of her friend Molly she lands...more

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Mar 14, 2011 Twiggy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary-romance, humour

Wonderful return to form!

I loved annabelle and the whole premise of the book.

From the outset there was Wonderful chemistry between her and Heath.

There were also some great funny moments which made me laugh.

It was particularly interesting to have the hero as an agent, rather than a footballer, and this gave a new slant to the series.

The story line: Heath decides it's time he got married; he has such a hectic lifestyle with the demands of all his clients that he hires a high class professional...more

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Feb 16, 2011 Sarah Eiseman rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Just put down this book by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. All I can say is wow! This book was fabulous! It was funny, the characters were interesting and well-developed, the plot stretched a little, but it ended well.

The story is about Annabelle Granger, who runs a just-about-dying matchmaking firm that she inherited from her grandmother. She finally lands a decent client through a friend of hers, and he happens to be a very successful sports agent named Heath Champion (you find out later what his re...more

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Dec 30, 2010 Bronwyn Rykiert rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romance, audiobook

nnabelle Granger is tired of being the lone failure in a family of overachievers. She's endured dead-end jobs and a broken engagement (her ex wanted to be a woman). But that's going to change now that she's taken over her late grandmother's matchmaking business. All Annabelle has to do is land the Windy City's hottest bachelor as her client, and she'll be the most sought-after matchmaker in town. Nothing is going to stand in her way, even the fact that she doesn’t really have the right client (s...more

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Dec 13, 2010 Christine rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romance

Ah, finally found a contemporary romance worth reading. This was witty, even laugh out loud funny at times, with decent characters and a quick pace.

Basically: The match maker is going to fall for the guy she's trying to set up. You've probably run into this plotline before, but as with many things, it's the execution that makes it work. In this case, I can't even honestly say, as I so often do, that the two were idiots and should have realized from the start that they belonged together. Their r...more

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Aug 26, 2010 Kaarin rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I’ve been dreading reviewing this book. The topic has always been so black and white for me. Chick-lit bad. Everything else good. It is with a heavy heart that I admit I liked this book. In much of the chick-lit out there the characters just seem silly and meaningless. More often than not they seem to offend me with their ridiculous actions. Well, they are silly and meaningless in this book to, they are just more likeable at the same time. I read another review where the person pointed out that...more

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Jul 29, 2010 Mom rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-during-2010

Great - I really liked it!!!

You met star quarterback Kevin Tucker in This Heart of Mine. Now get ready to meet his shark of an agent, Heath Champion, and Annabelle Granger, the girl least likely to succeed.

Annabelle's endured dead-end jobs, a broken engagement . . . even her hair's a mess! But that's going to change now that she's taken over her late grandmother's matchmaking business. All Annabelle has to do is land the Windy City's hottest bachelor as her client, and she'll be the most sought...more

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Mar 16, 2010 Sabrina rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: readadvisoryreading09-10

What a totally unexpected treat!! I really loved this one. It was my first Susan Elizabeth Phillips book, but I’m already looking for more of her work. The premise was so adorable. Annabelle Granger comes from a family of successful doctors, accountants and the like, but every business she becomes involved with ends up failing. She studied theatre in college, but that didn’t amount to much. Her ex-fiancé is now a cross dresser, and she hasn’t been with a man since their broken engagement 2 years...more What a totally unexpected treat!! I really loved this one. It was my first Susan Elizabeth Phillips book, but I’m already looking for more of her work. The premise was so adorable. Annabelle Granger comes from a family of successful doctors, accountants and the like, but every business she becomes involved with ends up failing. She studied theatre in college, but that didn’t amount to much. Her ex-fiancé is now a cross dresser, and she hasn’t been with a man since their broken engagement 2 years ago. But things are turning around for Annabelle. When she inherits her grandmother’s matchmaking business, Matches by Myrna, she changes the name to “Perfect For You”, and through one of her contacts, she lands Chicago’s ultimate bachelor - aggressive, talented, and devilishly handsome sports agent Heath Champion – aka The Python – as a Perfect For You client. Heath is already working with another matchmaker, Portia Powers, but Annabelle’s tenacious and determined enough that he gives her a shot. The book jumps right in, with Annabelle running late to her first meeting with Heath.

Heath already works too hard as a sports agent, and he doesn’t want to work too hard at finding his dream wife. So, after seeing how well Annabelle is at making the initial introductions, Heath forces Annabelle to attend all the initial dates. Each set up lasts 20 minutes, and Annabelle’s job is to help get the conversation going, apologize and keep them busy – you know, in case Heath is running late or needs to take a call! :) Then, Annabelle is to advise Heath on whether he should pursue a 2nd date, one on one. If Annabelle can match Heath, the success of her matchmaking business would be insured. So in spite of his crazy demands, Annabelle is game. Heath’s dream wife can’t be too career oriented – she needs to fly across the country with him at moments notice, like sports, look like a model, have wit, not much older than 30 since Heath wants kids but not right away, polished upbringing….the list goes on. Heath sounds like a total ass, and he was initially, but I still fell for him.

The dates don’t seem to work out because it’s actually fun, unconventional redhead Annabelle that Heath has the most chemistry with. The banter and delicious tension can only go on for so long; Heath and Annabelle struggle to keep it professional, and fail miserably :) Annabelle is so conflicted as she’s trying to protect her business and her heart. She even has a sham relationship with a star athlete Heath is dying to sign to keep up the appearance that Heath is only a friend and client. Annabelle is so torn as she has to set up dates for the man she’s falling in love with! Heath is also conflicted as Annabelle doesn’t meet this ideal fantasy wife he’s concocted in his head. When Heath puts Annabelle under the gun, she produces this fantasy candidate…but is that what Heath still wants?

I just loved Annabelle! Usually, it’s the guy I swoon over the most in romances, but I totally fell for Annabelle. The dialogue was snappy, all the side characters were entertaining, and the unexpected romance between rival matchmaker Portia & Bodie (Heath’s associate/kinda bodyguard) was fun & hot, too. I can’t recall all the times I laughed at the outrageous things that came out of Heath’s mouth! Everything was great about this – glad I found it(less)

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May 10, 2012 Dianne Socci-Tetro rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

4.5 stars ---- Match Me If You Can –Susan Elizabeth Phillips

If I don't read an author constantly, I often forget just how good they write and this happened to me with Ms Phillips. However, the other day I decided to re-read this novel and it suddenly comes back to me just what a pleasure reading her books are.

You may wonder if you need to read some of these books in a certain order; especially since they do feature secondary and tertiary characters from past novels – I don’t believe you do. Ms P...more 4.5 stars ---- Match Me If You Can –Susan Elizabeth Phillips

If I don't read an author constantly, I often forget just how good they write and this happened to me with Ms Phillips. However, the other day I decided to re-read this novel and it suddenly comes back to me just what a pleasure reading her books are.

You may wonder if you need to read some of these books in a certain order; especially since they do feature secondary and tertiary characters from past novels – I don’t believe you do. Ms Phillips doesn’t add anything confusing or too personal from the older books when she brings in the other characters for their cameo appearances. I DO strongly suggest that you do go and try some of the earlier books though, since they are all really wonderful.

With humor, sometimes it's subtle and sometimes overt, romance and wonderful characters, her books and especially this one will give you hours of pleasure. This book has very realistic and believable characters, ones that you know you would just love if they were in your real life. The main characters of Annabelle and Heath are wonderful in that they are so opposite and are always sparring, but by the end we can appreciate that oft times opposites attract and the relationship is all that much sweeter for it.

Annabelle has taken over a matchmaking service that her grandmother had started, and one of her first possible clients is Heath "The Python" Champion who also has a contract with one of Annabelle competitors. Annabelle is good for Heath since she is friends with someone whom he needs to get in good with, so he starts out pretty much using her. Moreover, if I may add, he really, really can be a snake! Sometimes he is so domineering that I wondered just how it could be that I liked him, but like him, I did.

I don’t think I really need to sum up the story because this is a romance and we know it will follow the prescribed pattern…they don’t like each other, they do like each other, they get hot for each other, the guy does something stupid but they end up with their ‘happily ever after’ despite the odds. Ms Phillips just happens to make the ride that is following the rules fun and fresh.

There is a secondary story that follows Annabelle’s competitor Portia, and Heaths best friend and assistant Bodie which, while it is sexy to the extreme, was a little ‘out there’ for Ms Phillips usual style.

This was a fun, light, humorous, sexy piece of fiction that is sure to be a hit with both old-time fans and new ones too.
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Jun 03, 2012 Christine M rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Entertaining read with several laugh out loud moments. Hardly any sex scenes, so definitely chick-lit not erotica.

Flaws? A bit too much on how pretty the men are. There's one scene that made me cringe, where all the women stare at their goregous men and salivate. The author makes fun of how men objectify women, and how women go out of their way to lose weight and fit the image they believe men want. But, at the same time, the men are objectified as well. It's realistic that the women, including...more

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Aug 27, 2011 L. rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: chick-lit-challenge, romance

Some readers would consider this a contemporary romance. I call it chick-lit, because I'm doing a chick-lit challenge and I don't feel like digging up another book. Besides, Match Me If You Can conforms to all the chick-lit rules. There's a ne'er-do-well heroine who can't do anything right (work, love, relationships, etc.); the hero is rich and handsome (and nothing more); there are some sidekicks who are supportive and/or quirky; and there's endless, endless, endless descriptions of what these...more Some readers would consider this a contemporary romance. I call it chick-lit, because I'm doing a chick-lit challenge and I don't feel like digging up another book. Besides, Match Me If You Can conforms to all the chick-lit rules. There's a ne'er-do-well heroine who can't do anything right (work, love, relationships, etc.); the hero is rich and handsome (and nothing more); there are some sidekicks who are supportive and/or quirky; and there's endless, endless, endless descriptions of what these characters are wearing and brand name products they use. Because, you know, chicks care about these details. But I don't. OMG, what's wrong with me?!? Why am I not materialistic enough for chick-lit??

But I digress.

Annabelle Granger, jack of all trades - master of none, has inherited her late grandmother's matchmaking service. To pull the struggling business into the black, Annabelle needs to land a big name client. That big name is sports agent Heath Champion. He's a self-made millionaire, Harvard graduate, Olympian god incarnate, so of course he's having trouble finding a wife. Fighting against Annabelle is rival matchmaker Portia Powers. She's able to throw beautiful, intelligent, successful women at Heath, because they also have problems finding men and need a matchmaker. (I never realized how hard it is to be rich and beautiful. I'm beginning to feel sorry for them.) Portia and another side character, Bodie, have their own relationship problems, but they're not really in the book enough for me to come to care about them and their hill of beans. Frankly, I didn't care about Annabelle and Heath, and they're the stars of this story.

Negatives: There was no real connection between the h/h. Except for getting into his bank account and bed, I saw no reason for Annabelle to be attracted to Heath.

The blurbs on the back of the book say this is supposed to be a funny novel. I'm still waiting. Maybe the publisher mails you the jokes after you're done reading.

Positives: Ummmmmmm.... I didn't hate it enough not to finish reading it.(less)

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Jun 03, 2011 Mandy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: reading-challenges

I grabbed this book off the shelf at the library, because someone had recommended the author to me. I didn’t bother to read the dust jacket at all. I really shouldn’t have liked this as much as I did. First, I read a book out of order. Seriously out of order. This is book six! Second, it’s contemporary romance. Um, not my thing. Third, this book has both sports and a lawyer in it. That, right there, is enough for me to hate it. But, I didn’t.

The story was so cute. The characters were fun and I l...more

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May 16, 2011 Alyssa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I picked up this book quite a few times from February-May to start it but could never really get into it. Then this past Memorial Day weekend, I sat down to start and finish this book.

A quick review in my words, Annabelle is the family screw up and trying to start a matchmaking business. She scores a high profile client who is already signed with Annabelle's biggest competition. The book goes through all the mishaps, close calls and, of course, the love in the process. I must say it is pretty pr...more

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Dec 24, 2011 Tracey rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2011

You met star quarterback Kevin Tucker in This Heart of Mine. Now get ready to meet his shark of an agent, Heath Champion, and Annabelle Granger, the girl least likely to succeed.

Annabelle's endured dead-end jobs, a broken engagement . . . even her hair's a mess! But that's going to change now that she's taken over her late grandmother's matchmaking business. All Annabelle has to do is land the Windy City's hottest bachelor as her client, and she'll be the most sought-after matchmaker in town.

Why...more

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Match Me If You Can (Chicago Stars #6)

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