Match Me if You Can

by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

rated 5 stars

pages

Back Cover:

Annabelle is tired of being the lone failure in a family of overachievers. She's endured dead-end jobs and 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. Nothing is going to stand in her way -- not the drunk lying comatose under her car, not her family's disapproval, and certainly not the lingering effects of a broken heart. With his money green eyes and calculated charm, Heath Champion is the best sports agent in the country. He's wealthy, driven, and gorgeous, so why does he need a matchmaker, especially a red-haired screw-up like Annabelle Granger? True, she's entertaining, and she does have a certain quirky appeal. But Heath is searching for the ultimate symbol of his success -- the perfect wife. And to make an extraordinary match, he needs an extraordinary matchmaker, right? Thin, rich, utterly fabulous Portia Powers has spent her career making matches for everyone but herself. Her take-no-prisoners attitude has built Power Matches into the top matchmaking agency in Chicago. So what if she has more enemies than friends and she's one breath away from a nervous breakdown? Neither an upstart like Annabelle Granger nor Heath Champion's menacing, but oddly intriguing, bodyguard, will keep her from getting what she wants -- a Power Match for Heath ... the city's very own Jerry Maguire. Soon everyone in Chicago has a stake in the outcome, right down to Annabelle's overprotective book club. When the matchmaker promises she'll do anything to keep her star client happy ... does she mean anything? If Annabelle isn't careful, she just might find herself going heart-to-heart with the toughest negotiator in town -- a man who's beginning to ask himself: Exactly how perfect does perfect have to be?

My thoughts:

I really enjoyed this book. I laughed out loud several times. I love that SEP's heroines however flawed and insecure they might be, also have a sharp wit and a smart mouth. Love That!! My favorite scene was the one where she had a house full of rival football players. Heath "comes to her rescue" and while she is fuming at him and giving him a piece of her mind, the fellas are trying to explain why they keep hanging at her place. They are talking over her and she is smacking them on the backs of their heads. They love it, cuz she doesn't take their crap and acts like their mother.

For some reason I didn't get into the back story romance. Portia and Bodie, for some reason just didn't do it for me!! It felt icky, and too.....domineering! I didn't like that their first time together he took her from behind and on the balcony, and never spoke a word to her or kissed. He walks in and leans her over the rail, then leaves without a word. Too something for me.

I liked that Heath "got" Annabelle's family but I wished that she'd finally seen them the way he did. She felt attacked by them emotionally, and he saw them as almost competing for her attention. She doesn't feel loved and respected by them.

Susan Elizabeth Phillips rocks!!