Susan Elizabeth Phillips: This Heart of Mine

This Heart of Mine: D
Chicago Stars #5

Molly Somerville & Kevin Tucker

Ever since she was a teenager, children's book author Molly Somerville has been infatuated with handsome Kevin Tucker, quarterback for her sister's Chicago Stars football team. Unfortunately, Kevin doesn't know she's alive until one fateful weekend when they're marooned together at the family vacation cabin. When Molly gets carried away by her creative imagination and compromises Kevin, the results are disastrous and before the dust settles, Kevin's in trouble with his boss, Molly's in deep trouble with her emotions, and both of them are in danger of losing their hearts… (amazon)

Ms. Phillips. I swear, sometimes you’re a freaking genius and at other times, you’re a complete loony! This book was horrid. Absolutely horrible. It’s a good thing I’d read Match Me If You Can (which is wonderful, comedic, and completely lovable) before reading this and Dream A Little Dream, or else I would have stopped reading your stories.

Let me start off my complete bash by saying that I loved Kevin Tucker. What a dreamboat. However, I didn’t love Molly. In fact, I thought she was a complete loser and not good enough for Kevin in the least .

Even thinking back on the book now (I must have read it a good five months ago), I still don’t understand as to how Kevin “fell in love” with Molly. If this is what happens in real life, I ought to be able to snag Leonardo Di Caprio or Tom Brady in a snap.

Molly has been in lurve with Kevin since forever. The only problem is… Kevin doesn’t know she exists because he’s a gorgeous, athletic, charming, and completely dreamy sounding hunk. Molly is a kind-of-weird, strangely compulsive woman who is antsy with her life. She is quiet and bookish (and there’s nothing wrong with that), but she’s made to sound so unattractive.

So when Molly has the chance to be with Kevin, she takes the ball and runs with it. Literally.

I really can’t explain my disgust with Molly without a few minor spoilers. (highlight with mouse for spoiler)

*spoiler*

Let me tell you that I personally believe that sex has to be consensual – all the freaking time. And what Molly does is pretty idiotic and stupid and retarded and dumb and stupid. ...Have I said stupid?

She, in her idiocy, does really stupid things, and then cannot man up to face problems that life throws at her. She whines, gets depressed, mopes, and is all-around stupid. Please. For someone so smart, you’re really not.

*end spoiler*

Magically, Kevin turns out to be a really understanding guy because if Molly did to me what she did to him, I would have punched her… really hard.

Molly is stressed with life and can’t handle her problems, so Kevin takes it upon himself to go to the campground (?) that his parents used to own. It’s at the camp that Kevin has a concussion and realizes that Molly is the woman for him.

After reading all of the Stars books (this was my last), I see how Phillips has taken ideas from books and recycled them. Nothing in the book surprised me (although it would have been later books that I would have been un-surprised at if I had read in order), the ‘romance’ between the characters were laughable.

However, Phillips does a great job with secondary characters, and their stories. I cannot remember the characters’ names, but the older couple had a really strong connection, and I loved reading their story. It’s probably what got me through this book.

In all, don’t read this unless you want to see a really pitiable heroine and a flawed, incomprehensible relationship. It is, by far, the weakest of the Chicago Star books. Sorry Kevin, even you couldn’t make this book make sense.