It Had to Be You

I really liked this book - it was fresh, funny and sweet - just how I like my chick lit novels. It's set in Ireland and features 3 great women characters and tells you all about each of their lives - friends, family and love lives too. Very enjoyable.

In Burnaby, Ireland, Molly Harper manages Happily Ever After bookshop that caters mostly to readers of romance. However, she is stunned when owner Anita Vickers informs her she sold the store to Milo Devine. Molly is unhappy as Milo reminds her of a used car salesman who will make radical changes for the bottom line's sake and not the customer. To her chagrin Molly feels an intense attraction to his son Sam. Close friend Kate Bowan is so busy selling designer shoes and running Dublin Dummy Dates matchmaking service that she has no time for herself though she feels lonely. Her current matchmaking client Angus Cawley is driving her crazy as she is attracted to him, but refuses to act on her feelings. Molly's other close friend; Burnaby County Councilor Paige Brady is happily married with two children, Alfie and Callum. However she has problems as the Little Orchard that watches her rugrats is closing for the month, her opponent on the proposed Crescent Refuge Center Connie Calloway attacks her on a personal level, and she is pregnant. The story line rotates as each of the three amigas rotates front and center for a chapter at a time. However, though incidents cross the subplots, the audience actually have a trio of novellas that focus on each of the fully developed females; ergo the rotational perspective format comes at the cost of momentum. Sarah Webb provides a wonderful contemporary look at Ireland through the eyes of modern day women. Harriet Klausner