*I received a copy of this book in eBook format via NetGalley in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity.
Title: It Has To Be You
Author: Dani McLean
Genre: Romance Novella
Rating: ★★★★
It Has To Be You is the latest fun and flirty instalment of
Dani McLean’s ‘Movie Magic Novella’ series. It’s a slow burn friends to lovers
romance which would be the perfect short and sweet read if you are a fan of
magical realism or just want a contemporary romance packed full of charm, heart
and a bit of spice.
After reading and reviewing the third book in the series ‘A
Missing Connection’ earlier in the year (click here to read my full review), I
was eagerly awaiting the opportunity to venture back into the world of Chance
City and It Has To Be You certainly didn’t disappoint. Although it is part of a
wider series, all of the novellas can be read as standalone stories in any
order and each feature a magical or supernatural element, such as telepathy or
in this case the idea of fate and soulmates.
The heartfelt narrative is very well-paced and well-developed
despite only being a novella. It’s a book which is very easy to absolutely
devour in a single sitting which would make it perfect for breaking you out of
a reading slump.
I’m a sucker for a slow burn romance novel and especially
when the payout is as strong as it is here as we get a fantastically written
spicy scene which was definitely worth waiting most of the book for. Whilst conscious
of avoiding spoilers, the mirror scene was absolutely everything and I was
thinking about it for literally DAYS afterwards.
As usual, Dani McLean writes fantastic characters with such
depth to them, despite a limited wordcount. Indy is a fantastic strong female
lead character who was endearing and so relatable. I loved that she was an
author and the focus on her finding it difficult to write an authentic happily
ever after love story when she hadn’t experienced one for herself. Ethan
probably takes top spot as my fictional book boyfriend of the year so far
(which is no mean feat as there have been some very strong contenders) as he has
such as good heart, brilliant banter and was cutely nerdy whilst still being a
totally swoonworthy motorcycle rider. He also definitely got bonus points for
being such a passionate elementary school teacher!
I didn’t necessarily find the focus on soulmates as
compelling as the telepathy plotline from A Missing Connection and the twist
was quite predictable but it is such a well written story that this didn’t impact
on my ultimate enjoyment of the novella.
Overall, It Has To Be You is a fantastic contemporary romance
novella which is humorous and packed full of charm and loveable characters. I
have already downloaded the rest of the series (as side note – they are all available
on Kindle Unlimited) and can’t wait to see what it has to offer.
