Three years ago, Meg fell in love with Josh, a man who was utterly obsessed with his work. Shortly after, she got pregnant… and he left. Now she and her daughter have returned home to the family that’s always judged her for being too wild, too reckless, too free-spirited. But Meg is determined to show them that she’s changed, that for her daughter’s sake, she’s had to grow up a little. As if dealing with her family wasn’t enough, now Josh wants to be a part of her life again. Wants to be a father to their daughter. Says he’s changed. But can anybody – Josh, or even Meg, for that matter – really change who they are?
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of this book? It’s just incredibly unrealistic. Sure, I can suspend my disbelief for some things. I guess it’s possible that Meg’s elderly grandmother could be the best sharpshooter in town. Sure, I guess that she could shoot Josh without any repercussions as long as he didn’t press charges. But seriously, some of the stuff that happens in this book is beyond belief. Giving your business to someone you barely know? Just being handed a child without any proof that you’ll provide a stable home or loving environment? And don’t even get me started on the family trees within this book. Absolutely ridiculous.
In addition to that, both Meg and Josh are actually very problematic characters.
For one, Meg seems terrified of Josh at the beginning of the book. He’s been stalking her. LITERALLY. Actually following her around with some CIA-grade tracking device. Pestering her about wanting to be part of her life again. Not taking no for an answer. And then Meg just gets over it, mostly because she’s horny. I mean… really??? He was literally tracking you, like prey, twenty pages ago.
And then we have Meg, who complains that Josh isn’t involved in her life anymore while simultaneously telling Josh to stay away. But come back. But stay away. It’s so frustrating! She’s all over the place! And I couldn’t help but be extremely offended by the way she referred to her supposedly “best friend” – constantly putting down her clothing choices and the amount of men she’s dated. Her attitude on a lot of things was just… gross.
It Had to Be Him fell flat for me in a lot of ways. It took too long to get into, wrapped up way too conveniently with a neat and tidy marriage proposal (because forget everything else, there’s a ring involved!), and I absolutely hated the fact that all the children in the book were just used as plot devices. I’m glad I got this for free, because I’d have been upset if I actually spent money on it. Unfortunately, it seems like Kindle First is really going downhill.
I received a free copy of this book from Amazon’s Kindle First program.
Final rating: ★★☆☆☆
The Bibliophagist 