Бебето е мое

Chicago Stars #3

by Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Сюзън Елизабет Филипс

Гениалната физичка д-р Джейн Дарлингтън отчаяно копнее за бебе. Но да се намери подходящ баща не е толкова лесно. Суперинтелигентността на Джейн винаги я е карала да се чувства самотна и по-различна от околните и затова тя е твърдо решена да спести подобна участ на бъдещото си дете. Което означава, че трябва да нaмери някой много специален за баща на своето бебе. Някой много, много... глупав.

Кал Бонър, легендарният куотърбек на „Чикаго Старс“ изглежда е перфектният избор. Но красивата му външност и недодяланото му държане са измамни. Д-р Джейн твърде късно разбира, че всъщност той е много по-умен, отколкото показва. Както и че съвсем не е съгласен да бъде използван и захвърлен...

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Sports, Sports Romance, Chick Lit, Fiction

336 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1997

About the author

SUSAN ELIZABETH PHILLIPS

Susan Elizabeth Phillips has been called the “Queen of Romantic Comedy and is the creator of the sports romance, beginning with her 1989 bestseller, FANCY PANTS. An internationally acclaimed author, her books have been published in over 30 languages. She’s the only four-time recipient of the Romance Writers of America’s prestigious Favorite Book of the Year Award, and a recipient of their Lifetime Achievement Award.

Susan's newest book, SIMPLY THE BEST, is coming in hardcover, ebook and audiobook in February 2024. SIMPLY THE BEST is book #10 in the highly acclaimed CHICAGO STARS football series. Susan is also known for the Wynette, Texas book series and many stand-alone women's fiction/romance novels.

In addition to being a New York Times, Publisher’s Weekly, and USA Today bestseller, she is a hiker, lazy gardener, horrible singer, passable cook, passionate reader, wife, mother of two grown sons, and grandmother.

You can visit Susan on Facebook, Instagram or on her website.

https://www.facebook.com/SusanElizabe...

https://www.instagram.com/SEPauthor/

http://susanelizabethphillips.com/

Reviews

[A.]

5 Stars

Absolutely amazing!

Why didn’t somebody tell me sooner how freaking awesome this book was??

You HAVE TO read this book if you like:

* hot football players,
* cold, brooding a**holes who redeem themselves by the end of the book (my favorite)



* strong and above average smart heroines,
* love-hate or enemies-to-lovers relationships,
* quirky families in small town settings,
* non-cliché storylines,
*complex, multi-layered characters,
* exceptional writing, witty banter and super hilarious dialogue,
*a big, stupid smile on your face when you finish a book.



QUICK REVIEW:

Enjoyment:: 5/5
Writing style: 5/5
Storyline: 5/5
Hero: 5/5
Heroine: 5/5
Secondary characters: 5/5
Hotness/chemistry: 5/5
Romance: 5/5
Angst: 3.5/5
Darkness level: 1/5
Humor: 5/5
Depth of the book: 5/5
POV: multiple, 3rd person
Triggers: None.

[Mimi Smith]

1 star

Warning...RANTING AHEAD! Spoilers, too!

First, apologies to all SEP fans and people who liked this book. Usually I don't do reviews of books I don't like but this one annoyed me so much I had to say SOMETHING. And that something probably won't be that coherent, but oh, well.

I read some other books by her and liked them, although I noticed a slightly disturbing pattern-Hero's emotionally immature-heroine falls in love with a hero-hero can't admit he loves her-heroine runs off-hero has an epiphany-hero grovels-heroine takes him back. But I can deal with it because she can, in fact, make it work.

OK, back to this book. It starts when the heroine(who has an IQ of 180)despairs how she's alone and wants a baby, but she doesn't want the baby's father to be smart because then the baby will be cursed by being actually, you know, smart. Then a solution appears, she sees a football player on TV and because he's a professional athlete and speaks with an accent he must be REALLY stupid, right? So, she manages to trick him into getting her pregnant and fully plans not even to tell him(cause he's stupid and a jock, why on Earth should she tell him). He finds out and marries her for the child. She's condescending, insulting him and assuming he doesn't understand any word longer than 2 syllables. Than she finds out he has a degree and feels betrayed because he's not stupid, but they still fall in love and in the end she ends up being the victim and his own family ends up protecting her from him and ARGH!!! To be fair he had his problems too, always going out with 21 year olds and there were some good dialogues and funny scenes, but I just couldn't bring myself to enjoy the book.

The only reason I kept reading the book was because someone recommended Dream a Little Dream, but I just couldn't bring myself to read it, or any other book by SEP and I don't see that changing in the foreseeable future.

Again, apologies to SEP fans, hope you don't hold this against me. No hard feelings, right, I mean uh, you know uh, don't throw those books, please AHHHHH *DUCKING*

[♥Sharon♥]

Listening to this one was perfection! Y'all know that I adore SEP and this series and I know I am repeating myself (who cares??) but listening to these stories makes me love them even more.

Anna Fields is an amazing narrator and she did a wonderful job at bringing this story to life.

Cal, can he be any more pigheaded? Probably not but I loved him.

Janie, as smart as she was the plan that she put in place at the beginning had some major flaws but thank the heavens above that love always wins out!

Annie, I'd love to have her as my grandma! She is a spitfire. :)

And finally, Lynn and Jim's side story just warmed my heart. ❤ It was abundantly clear where Cal gets his pigheadedness. LOL


************************************************************
I want to add 2 more ★'s to my rating!



Doing a re-read is fantastic. You don't have to read every single page to get the oh so wonderful feeling. And boy did I get that "oh so wonderful feeling" while re-reading this one. I adore SEP. She is truly an icon among her fellow authors of romance. I simply love her writing style, her characters, her plots.

She will forever be on my favorite authors pedestal. :)


*****************

I am having such a great time reading this series. My first SEP book was Fancy Pants which I really enjoyed but the Chicago Stars Series is quickly becoming my favorite of her books thus far. What I am finding that I enjoy the most is the humor. And I don’t mean just a giggle here and there; I mean laugh out loud humor.

Along with the humor you get a great story line, a sexy and brooding hero and a sweet and beautiful heroine with a backbone. All of the books in this series can be read as a standalone which is also fantastic but I have decided to read them in order. Some of the characters from the preceding books have a cameo so for me it was helpful to know what their story was about.

I think Nobody’s Baby But Mine is my favorite. There was something a little more fragile about this heroine than the others and the hero was a little more relentless in his own particular quest.

Janie ~ she was a little quirky. I guess that couldn’t be helped since she was a physicist. But she was also funny, beautiful and awkwardly flirty. Janie thought she had the perfect plan when she decided on the man to father her child. She knew she didn’t want a man that matched her IQ. She needed one that was lacking in that area. She had her reasons and she knew setting her eyes on Cal Bonner was the answer to her expiring biological clock.



Cal ~ loved this guy. Being the quarterback for the Chicago Stars is his life. He is mans man too. Loves the niceties that he can afford and has a certain reputation to live up to. He is also very charming, handsome and amusing. When Janie presents herself to him he was a bit leery. He’d have his fun with her of course but the result of it wasn’t anything he’d ever expect.



When everything backfires on Janie she finds herself in a bit of a mess. One that could not easily be fixed. Cal is beyond livid with her and decides the only way to deal with the “situation” was to bring Jane back to his hometown to wait things out.



Here she meets Cal’s Gran Annie, his mom and dad Jim and Amber Lynn and his brother Ethan. Each one of these people brought about moments that made me cry (a little), laugh (a lot) and warmed my heart. Of course my favorite moments are with Janie and Cal though. The banter between them was endless and the anticipation of her reveal (read the book and you will know) drove me batty in the most wonderful way possible.



Jane and Cal fall into a comfortable relationship and both are a bit surprised with how far they have come. But they struggle to turn that next corner and Cal finds himself on the wrong side of the fence. He never thought it would be so hard to convince someone that he loved them.



This was such a fantastic book and I am thankful that my friend Karen continued to nudge me to start this series. ❤ I highly recommend this to all my friends!

[Mo]

Phillips unites a beautiful, brainy scientist desperate to be a mom with a brawny, smoking hot jock who, though handsome enough to father her child, is nowhere near as stupid as she wants her baby’s daddy to be.

The lovely Karen is reading this series and her updates and reviews have whetted my appetite to do a re-read. Was it as good second time around? Definitely. I loved it.


I loved Janie. I loved Cal. I loved Annie, the adorable Granny.

“Don't mess with me, Calvin. You'll only get hurt.”

Jim and Amber Lynn. So, so sweet. I loved you too.

“You’re the most important thing in the world to me. I know you don’t believe it, but I’m going to prove it to you.”

“Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't rightly see how somebody who claims to have had -What'd you say? One partner?-can be welled trained."

He had a point. Her brain clicked away. "I was referring to the instructional videotapes my agency has all its new employees watch."

"They train you by watching videos?" His eyes narrowed reminding her of a hunter looking down a gun sight,"Now, ain't that interesting."

She felt a little surge of pleasure as her child lost another few points on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills. Even a computer couldn't have picked a more perfect match.”

[EmBibliophile]

3.5 stars

If you read this while keeping in mind that it’s the same as watching those old classic rom com movies that are so fun and entertaining even tho they’re so problematic at times, you’d enjoy this one otherwise you might not like it much.

Jane is a freakin genius. She just turned 34 and she desperately wants a baby. The problem is that she’s looking for someone “stupid” to balance her genius genes as she had a tough childhood because of how smart she was. So she pretends to be a hooker to trick that “dump” football player into impregnating her.

This is bad! This is just so wrong and bad and problematic as hell. I was angry for so long and I thought I just could never forgive her for what she did! However, if you looked at it from a different POV, you might see it for what it is as a pure fun and entertaining read. The book has a huge cast that I really loved specially the old grandmother. She’s such a fantastic person.

I appreciate how it felt like their is a balance in power when these two fight. Like yes, Jane did a terrible thing but she still refuses to be a pushover. Jane did an unforgivable thing and of course Cal is angry and he’d react. That would make me feel like yeah I feel you, you had the right to be angry. Then I would be like no don’t be angry she’s sorry, then I would remember what she did. And I just felt so dizzy with how conflicted I felt, so I decided to let go of my anger over their situation and just enjoy their fights and banter!

[Carol [Goodreads Addict]]

Nobody’s Baby But Mine is book three in the Chicago Stars series by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. This is an enemies to lovers romance with lots of humor thrown in. I experienced every emotion there is while reading this. I was heartbroken for what the heroine experienced throughout her life, I felt a LOT of anger towards the hero which I’ll explain and also I smiled a LOT, even laughed out loud. I struggled with how to rate this book even though I admit that the author definitely did her job well by how much I felt for these characters!



I guess I’ll start with the hardest one, Cal Bonner, thirty six years old and star quarterback of the Chicago Stars. Cal knows his body is wearing down. His injuries are more frequent and harder to recover from but he’s not willing to accept it yet. He loves playing football, it’s all he knows. Cal only dates very young women. It’s his own desperate way of hanging on to his own youth. In not accepting that he’s past his football prime. Cal is actually highly intelligent, but he loves to use his dumb jock persona when he’s being interviewed. Which is how this whole story got started.

Dr. Jane Darlington is thirty four years old and is a genius physicist. She went to college while still in her teens. Jane was always looked at by her peers as odd. She never fit in at school and her own father never showed her any love. This was the part that broke my heart. Jane has never really known love. Now all Jane wants is a baby. Someone to love and who will love her back unconditionally. So Jane decides that the father of her future baby can not be smart in any way. She will not put her future child through what she went through. That’s when she saw Cal on TV during an interview and she saw the perfect man to father her child.



Jane may have used an underhanded way to get pregnant. It might not have been fair to Cal. But she never intended for him to know. That didn’t work out the way she wanted it to. And once he finds out, he is most definitely angry. Here’s where my issues started. I don’t do well with this level of anger. The way Cal treated Jane was awful. In my mind, I wasn’t sure if he would ever be able to redeem himself. My heart broke for Jane all over again.

Don’t get me wrong, as I said before, there are plenty of smiles involved. This is also a story of found family. Of Jane finally finding acceptance with people that truly cared for her. I just wish it didn’t take almost three quarters of the book to get to this point. And it’s the story of Cal accepting his own future, a future that won’t always involve football, a future that can include a wife and child if he is willing to open his heart to them. Cal’s back up quarterback, Kevin Tucker, is also introduced in this book and I fell in love with him. His own book comes later on in the series.

SEP did it again by drawing me in with this book and holding my heart hostage. I just didn’t do as well as some will with the level of animosity Cal felt. I almost forgot to add that there is also a side story here, Cal’s parents, with struggles of their own. It helped me to understand Cal because his father is just as stubborn as he is. The next book in the series is Dream a Little Dream which is Cal’s brother, Gabe’s book. I can’t wait to read it and hope we’ll get some glimpses of Cal and Jane at the same time.

For more about this book and so many others, come and visit me at Carol's Crazy Bookish World.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Carol...

[Val ⚓️ Shameless Handmaiden ⚓️]

I read this book many years ago and have reread it many times since. I love SEP and this series. Just some of the best nostalgic 90’s romance.

[Karen]

5 STARS


I am going to start sounding like a broken record when it comes to Susan Elizabeth Phillips. And here I go again…. I fucking LOVED this book!!!!!!! What a shocker right? Seriously, I canNOT get enough of these fantastic books. Nobody's Baby But Mine is the third book in The Chicago Stars series. Although the books are written so that they can be read as stand alone, I personally recommend reading them in order.

You are not going to want to miss one single moment of any of these books. READ THEM ALL, in order, out of order, over and over if you wish… which you will. Just read them, and love them all.



Dr. Jane Darlington is a physicist. A genius. And that is not an exaggeration. She grew up feeling like a freak. Flying through school so quickly, she was working on her PhD, while her peers were just starting high school. So while other kids her age were experiencing their first kiss, she was studying sub-atomic particles. Not a boost to her social life, that’s for sure.



Now Jane is thirty-four, she is unmarried, and her biological clock is a ticking time-bomb. But finding a father for her most coveted baby-to-be, is proving to be even more complicated than she had anticipated. Because she refuses to put her baby through the same freakish childhood she experienced. So, she’s going to need to find someone to balance the genetic pool back into the normal zone. In other words… someone dumb.



Cal Bonner may be just the man to fit the bill. He is the current NFL quarterback for the Chicago Stars football team. He is gorgeous. He is unmarried. And his down-home southern boy ways make him appear to be just the kind of man she needs. But Jane may find out a little too late, that appearances can be deceiving.



On television she’d seen a country hick with a good body and bad grammar, but the man staring at her from the other side of the room had nothing of the hick about him. She had chosen a warrior.



She will also find out that getting herself into his bed may be a challenge that she is completely unprepared for.



There are so many things about this book that I loved. It was hilariously funny at times, painfully awkward at others. It was heartwarming and sad as well. Truthfully there was NEVER a dull moment. These two characters go head to head like the War of the Roses leaving you completely exhausted, and you will love every minute of it.



”I’m sorry, I must have misunderstood. I assumed you were able to handle a grown woman. Would you like me to call the office and have them send out ‘Punkin’? If she has her homework done, she should be available.”

And they say opposites attract… maybe not always. Jane is a bit shy and sweet, but she is also no doormat. When challenged, she is feisty as hell, and brilliant to boot. Whereas, Cal is a bit of as ass most of the time. He is surly and sarcastic, with the temper of a Tasmanian Devil. And he is not about to be taken advantage of, especially by an arrogant genius, baby-mad schemer of a woman.

”Everything about you is too big for me - not just your body, but your personality, your bank account, your temper, and definitely your ego.”



I absolutely LOVED this book!!! Just writing my review has me wanting to read it all over again. The supporting cast is superb. Cal’s parents become a bit of a side story that is just as interesting as the main characters. And Annie Glide, Cal’s 90 year-old grandmother is just fabulous!



” I married a damn cereal killer!”



“She glared at him. "You're doing it again."
"What?"
"That thing that irritates me."
"Smiling?"
"Yes. That.”



“You’re the most important thing in the world to me. I know you don’t believe it, but I’m going to prove it to you.”

I just cannot say enough about Susan Elizabeth Phillips. I love her books. I love her writing style. And I lament the day when I run out of her books to read. But something tells me I’ll be reading these over and over for years to come. I highly recommend!!!!!!

[Angela (Reading Frenzy Book Blog)]

5 stars

Nobody—and I do mean no body—crafts a comedic enemies-to-lovers story as well as Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Period. Oh, and arrogant jerks. Somehow she creates these arrogant and bull-headed alphas who are so sweet at heart that they easily win you over. And her heroines? I always adore her gutsy heroines. Basically, I’m a huge SEP fan in case you can’t tell. Nobody’s Baby But Mine is the third book in the Chicago Stars series, and it’s every bit as enjoyable as the previous books.

I fell in love with Jane Darlington. She’s attractive, but not gorgeous. Her body is far from flawless, she dresses conservatively, and she doesn’t have a seductive bone in her body. She’s flawed, funny, determined, and loveable. It’s great when the ordinary girl gets the hunk.



Cal Bonner is a stubborn, aging NFL quarterback. Jane comes along when he’s at a crossroads in his life. The two are like oil and water, and I enjoyed every minute of their hilarious bickering. He’s downright mean at times, but I had a huge soft spot in my heart for him.



The mountains of North Carolina make a beautiful setting for the unfolding story.



SEP has created a bevy of interesting characters, and she takes her time in developing all the relationships. There isn’t a single character I didn’t enjoy. Cal’s protective mother Lynn and his stoic father Jim have their own absorbing side story. One of my favorite characters is Kevin, the young, cocky, and talented backup quarterback. I absolutely adored Cal’s spunky, quirky, and wise grandma Annie.



This book was written in 1997 so you’ll notice some outdated references like VCRs and VH1 music videos (Remember them?), but the story stands the test of time in every other regard. Some aspects are over the top in typical SEP fashion, but I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face.

Nobody’s Baby But Mine is a simply delightful, entertaining, and hilarious romance. #winning

[peachygirl]

So I have been binge reading SEP's novels to fill the void in my heart left by LH and been having a spectacular time. Until this one.
The heroine Jane is a world renowned physicist with 180 IQ points and a miserably lonely life. Her solution is to have a baby with an idiot to tone down her baby's intelligence and ensure a normal childhood which she never had. Her pick is Cal Bonner, legendary quarterback and an obvious dumb jock. So she poses as a hooker, screws Cal with a sabotaged condom and gets her wish fulfilled. If you have reached this point without wanting to throw up or club Jane in the head, I applaud you. Because what follows is worse.
Cal finds out about Jane's master plan through an indiscreet neighbor and is rightfully pissed. But he's apparently more pissed at the face that she's 32 and not barely out of her teens like his usual girlfriends. Anyway, he marries her to make his unborn child legitimate and brings her to his hometown. In spite of his attraction to her, he cannot get over that initial deceit and treats her like shit. He even goes as far to isolate her from his family and the entire town to make her seem like an uppity bitch. During the last 30 percent, he realises he's an ageist, sexist piece of shit and accepts his "love" for Jane, who by that point, is already head over heels in love with this guy, even if he's not the dumb jock she thought he was. The moment she threw a fit when she realized Cal had a degree with honours and not a dumbass like she had imagined, I wanted to throw this book in a fire. But SEP's writing gave me some much needed patience.
I had so much issues with this one, I don't know where to begin. I wanted to sympathize with Cal, because no matter what anyone says, he was the victim. But he made it so hard for me to feel bad for him. His immaturity, callous attitude and arrogance was just a tip of the iceberg. So I guess, these two were shitty enough to be perfect for each other.
So this sucked donkey balls. Why didn't I hate it then? SEP is a fucking queen, that's why. No matter how crappy the plot was, the narration and banter between the leads were too good to ignore. Also, some of the secondary characters were so damn entertaining. I was squealing with excitement every time Kevin Tucker made an appearance. Cal's younger brother was also a snack. And their grandma was a freaking delight.
Almost one tenth of the book covers the marital woes of Cal's mum and dad. I'd give my right arm for an entire book on them. Amber Lynn Bonner was one amazing woman. I'm still gonna read more of SEP but I'm going to make sure to avoid clusterfucks like this.

[Clio Reads]

The "Cereal Killer" bit was funny, and that's the only reason I'm giving this two stars instead of one.

I first read this about 10-15 years ago, when I was first starting to read romance. I remembered it fondly, and it's stayed on my "keeper" shelf through more moves than I can count. Rereading it now, though, it's abundantly clear that I'm a much more discriminating reader, and much more in tune with sexual politics than I used to be, because I really didn't like it this time around.

My major issue with it is the premise. Dr. Jane Darlington is a wicked smart physicist with an IQ in the stratosphere. She's determined to have a baby, but she wants to find a stupid father because she doesn't want her kid to be freakishly smart like she was. (This isn't the way genetics work, and a genius scientist like Jane ought to know that.) She doesn't want to use a sperm bank because she thinks all sperm donors are medical students, so they'd be too smart. (I used a sperm bank to conceive my sons, and donors, like people, come in all sorts of varieties.) Her solution? She poses as a prostitute, sabotages a condom, and sleeps with Cal Bonner, the quarterback of the Chicago Stars. (She heard him on the news, and assumed--based on his downhome southern drawl and his profession--that he must be a moron.)

Taking away a person's reproductive autonomy is morally reprehensible. It's a violation akin to rape. In SEP's lexicon, it's "bunny boiler" crazy and wrong. In my professional life as a domestic violence prosecutor, I see cases where abusive men sabotage condoms or hide contraceptive pills in order to impregnate their girlfriends, the goal being to keep them tied to the abuser and financially dependant upon him, though in books and movies, it's always women who get pregnant on purpose, usually to "trap" a man into marriage. It doesn't matter whether women or men do it more often (it's appalling either way), but the perception that women do it contributes to the widespread rape-culture belief that women are untrustworthy in sexual matters like, whether we're using contraceptives when we say we are, whether we're faithful in relationships when we say we are, whether our lovers can trust us when we tell them they're the father of our babies, and whether (and these are the big ones) we really mean it when we say no and whether we're truthful when we claim we've been raped.

Anyway, it takes two tries (where Jane's lies are increasingly desperate and the sex is bad in a way that SEP intends to be comic but isn't) for her to succeed in getting pregnant. Jane knows her behavior is reprehensible, but she somehow rationalizes that it's okay as long as she doesn't let herself enjoy the sex. ("If she permitted herself to derive even a moment's pleasure from his caress, she would be no better than the prostitute she was impersonating. This had to be a sacrifice, or she could never live with herself." p. 50.)

As an aside, given that Jane is a genius scientist, I might have been more okay with the secret-baby premise if SEP had written her as truly lacking in social skills, perhaps on the autism spectrum, a la Jennifer Ashley's The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie. It wouldn't have made it right, but if Jane had some sort of clinical lack of empathy, I might have been able to write off her behavior as misguided rather than bunny-boiler evil.

Needless to say, when Cal finds out about the pregnancy, he is righteously furious and bent on revenge. He hates Jane, but he's determined to preserve his rights with regard to the baby, so he marries her with the intention of divorcing her as soon as the baby is born. (I would have demanded proof of the pregnancy from a doctor before marrying such a crazy liar, but that's just me.) When the press breaks the story (because he's a hotshot sports God), he forces Jane to move with him to Salvation, North Carolina, his hometown.

For a few months, they live together in a state of open warfare that reminded me of The War of the Roses, a movie I hated. Jane gets Cal's goat with a prank involving Lucky Charms which is, frankly, inspired, but it's about the only bright spot -- otherwise, their conduct is meanspirited and bloodthirsty. Nevertheless, Cal's moral code requires him to be faithful even in the bonds of a fake marriage, and Jane is a weak woman, so they have plenty of sex even as they snarl and humiliate each other.

Apart from the cereal prank, the only other thing I enjoyed about this novel was the subplot involving the conflict in Cal's parents' marriage. They've been together 37 years but are reeling from a family tragedy, and their history is rich and compelling and about a million times more interesting than the games Cal and Jane are playing.

Jane and Cal obviously have a lot of issues to work through before they can have a happy ending (and to tell the truth, I'm just as skeptical and as squicked out by the very notion of a HEA in these circumstances as I am by those Old School romances where the heroine falls in love with the hero after he rapes her), and I won't spoil the plot by going into detail except to say that, in the end, Cal is the one who does The Grovel, which sucks because Jane's transgression is so much more offensive and unforgiveable.

Funny how a reader's feelings about a book can change so drastically over time, isn't it?

[NMmomof4]

3.75 Stars

Overall Opinion: This was cute. I was hoping to like it more because everyone seemed to love this -- and those darn expectations hit again, but I still enjoyed it. It's definitely dated with talk of technology (VHS tapes and such) or even the music references (Rod Stewart), but I didn't mind all that much since I knew going in that this is an older book. I liked their banter and arguments, and I appreciated how the h was smart and didn't hide it. I did struggle with the H. I found a lot of his opinions/actions harsh and it was hard for him to redeem himself in my mind afterwards. I did, however, think that his declaration action for loving her was cute even if the h didn't understand it. I had a few laugh out loud moments in this too. The ending left me wanting, but it was enough for me to still call it a HEA ending. All in all it was a good read but I had too many issues to give it a full 4 stars -- but I did like it more than 3.5, so that's my reasoning for the weird 3.75 Stars.

Brief Summary of the Storyline: This is Jane and Cal's story. Jane just turned 34, is alone, and gets an idea, with the help of her NFL groupie neighbor, to use Cal as a unknowing sperm donor to get her pregnant after seeing him on tv. He acts like a hillbilly on tv, so she is convinced that she needs him because her IQ is so high she needs someone to dumb down her potential child. This all backfires when he finds out she's pregnant and forces her to marry him and go back home to his North Carolina small town during his NFL off season. They get themselves deeper and deeper in their lies to other people while developing feelings for one another and having some sexy times and some family drama...and they get a HEA ending.

POV: This alternated between focusing mainly on Jane and Cal in 3rd person narrative (with a few parts focused on side characters).

Overall Pace of Story: Good for the most part. The ending felt abrupt, but I never skimmed and I thought it flowed well otherwise.

Instalove: No, they have a hate-to-love type dynamic at first.

H rating: 3 stars. Cal. He was hard to like at times, but then he would do something to win me over...so I'm just going with a middle of the road 3 stars for him.

h rating: 3.5 stars. Jane. She was kind of a mess! She had some weird ideas about things/people and stuck with them, but for the most part she was likable.

Sadness level: Low/moderate. I did tear up a few times, but it was mostly about the H's parents story and not the mcs -- but not enough I needed tissues.

Push/Pull: Yes They both push away and pursue the relationship at times.

Heat level: Good. They have some good tension, chemistry, and scenes -- but not so much it takes away from the story.

Descriptive sex: Yes

OW/OM drama: No

Sex scene with OW or OM: No

Cheating: No

Separation: Yes They are separated (for at least a couple weeks but maybe as long as a month?), but there was no mention or suggestion of other partners during this time.

Possible Triggers: Yes The h tricks the H into getting her pregnant (on page)

Closure: I would've loved a jump ahead epilogue for this one! It ended in a good place and I would still call it a HEA, but it felt abrupt.

Safety: This one should be Safe for most safety gang readers

- Does Not have cheating
- Does Not have a descriptive sex scene with OW/OM
- Does have both the h and H pushing away
- Does have a short separation between the h and H
- Does Not have abuse
- Does have a HEA ending

[Wendy'sThoughts]

5 Plus All the Smarts Stars
* * * * * Spoiler Free
Years ago I discovered Romance novels and was able to binge read Susan Elizabeth Phillips. I was going through a health challenge and it was SEP who got me through it with a smile on my face and many facepalms. I will forever be indebted to her.

It Had to Be You (Chicago Stars, #1)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Heaven, Texas (Chicago Stars, #2)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Nobody's Baby But Mine (Chicago Stars, #3)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Dream a Little Dream (Chicago Stars, #4)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
This Heart of Mine (Chicago Stars, #5)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Match Me If You Can (Chicago Stars, #6)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Natural Born Charmer (Chicago Stars, #7)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
First Star I See Tonight (Chicago Stars, #8)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
When Stars Collide: A Chicago Stars Novel
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

For more Reviews, Free E-books and Giveaways

[Karla]

4 stars!

It's been a while since I read a SEP book and I'm so glad I decided to read this book.
In a way it was like reading her for the first time I was again amazed at what a wonderful storyteller she is. This is my third book in the Chicago stars series and it's the story of cal and Jane.



"Nobody's baby but mine" was so entertaining right from the first chapter, the way Jane is obsessed about having a baby minus a husband. How everything becomes one huge mess that involves Cal, since his was used as a sperm donor. But he decides to make everything right whisking Jane to the wonderful town of "salvation."



Cal and Jane were an explosive couple to say the least but oh but so hilarious. At times I was a bit frustrated I kinda wanted to slap some sense into both of them since neither of them would back down. I loved Cal's family especially his parents, how their background love story was intertwined with Cal and Jane's. We also meet Cal's brother Ethan and there's the mention of his older brother Gabe. I'm nervous to read Gabe's book since I know he went through a devastating tragedy, I think his book will have a more serious tone.



This was definitely a fantastic book that had a bit of everything, it was hilarious, sweet, emotional, and yes even frustrating at times. But wonderfully written full of heart and love with an amazing ending. <3

[Simone Elkeles]

This is probably my favorite book of Susan's and I've definitely read it multiple times. The premise is actually ridiculous (smart woman wants dumb baby because she was ostracized as a kid for being brilliant so she chooses a "dumb" football player to have sex with/get pregnant). This book is hilariously funny and witty and you just fall in love with the characters. A definite go-to book whenever you want to read one of the best romances of all time.

[Ingie]

Written March 31, 2015

4.7 Stars - Another great favorite in the best kind of fun and cozy romance novel by an always delivering "champion writer" in this genre

Another great and entertaining Susan Elizabeth Phillips book. An 11 hours audiobook edition from 1997 and once again narrated by a favorite female narrator, Anna Fields. Recommended by Crystal over a year ago. It was at last time.



Happy dancing mood...
One of the best so far in this series. Sooooo much fun. As my, right now kind of SEP bewitched friend, Karen said: “...cannot write a bad book… either that or she has most definitely found the key to my heart.”

***********************************************************

Nobody's Baby But Mine is a hilarious fun story from the Chicago Stars fotball 'world'. Book #3 but the fifth book (not read in order - standalone's) for me. (Reviews in my reading order:

I read by myself as oaperbacks and loved:
#2 - Heaven, Texas (5 stars)
#1 - It Had to Be You (4.5 stars).

I listened to audiobooks, faultlessly narrated by Anna Fields:
#7 - Natural Born Charmer (4.1 stars)
#5 - This Heart of Mine (4 stars)

~ All four hilarious fun and touching romantic contemporary romances. Higly recommended as audiobooks as well. )

Chicago, Illinios but mostly in Salvation, North Carolina

Our heroine this time is a lonely single brainy physicist. Our hero is the fotball star-player in the team who can't accept that he is getting older. No woman older than just over 20 is touched by him. Sigh, an age anxiety "redneck" fool?!? ~ Yes, that's what we think anyway

‘He wanted to shake her until every one of her chattering teeth hit the ground. "What the hell are you trying to say?
Why did she choose me?"
Jodie eyed him warily. "Because she thinks you're stupid.”

At 34 years is Jane Darlington determined to have a baby, even if she has to pretend to be a (bow wearing) hooker as a "birthday present" for the 36' celebrating fotball star Calvin 'Cal' Bonner. He seems to be perfect as an uninformed "sperm donor". Good looks and physique, healthy, strong and not too intelligent. Just the mix Jane's baby need. Those not wanted intelligent nimble brain cells has she way too many of herself.

But nothing happens as planned and a wonderful and heart-warming love story begins.

“She glared at him. "You're doing it again."
"What?"
"That thing that irritates me."
"Smiling?"
"Yes. That.”

Another top class cast of characters..
I always like SEP's cozy human characters but this time she has certainly succeeded with the hero. Cal Bonner is and will remain a firm favorite in my 'Chicago Stars' heart. Sulky, difficult to win, male heroes are simply numbing stunning.

As always, is this crazy fun drama also filled with amazing second characters. Granny Annie, Cal's parents Jim & Amber Lynn, etc etc and I liked, and laughed with, the whole gang. The favor to always get that extra little piece of cake with romance between an older couple (the hero's parents this time) makes these books perfect for me. ~ I love dessert goodies as much as the main meal.

***********************************************************

Were there any baby?
That's the exiting journey. Climb on this hilarious joyful Chicago Stars train to get to know more.

I LIKE - chuckling fun stories

[Sarah MacLean]

This is one of my very very favorite books...one of the ones that is dogeared and spine-cracked for all the readings and rereadings I've done of it.

SEP is the best there is. Which makes Nobody's Baby But Mine quite possibly the best of the best.

[Spencer]

What a disappointment. Honestly, I don't even know where to begin. Well, first let me start by saying that I despised the underlying plot of a pretentious physicist using a football player without his knowledge to get pregnant.

I honestly despised Jane (the pretentious physicist). What she did was dirty and unforgivable, in my opinion, and yet somehow everyone in the book decides to quickly overlook her wrongdoing. Hardly is there a time while reading a romance book that I actually loathe the woman and sympathize so deeply with the man. This was a first. I didn't blame Calvin (the football player) one bit for getting so upset and wanting to seek revenge when he found out Jane was pregnant (and lied!).

In addition to my repulse for Jane, the first few sexual encounters between the two of them felt as if I was witnessing a rape, but one that Jane sadistically forces Calvin to complete. Seriously?! At one point he even said that she made him feel as if he was raping her, but she made him continue. Clearly this woman has issues.

Of course the two begin to develop feelings for each other, but just when you decide to cut Jane some slack because she finally starts acting normal, she says something so hypocritical or illogical that the irony is almost laughable since she claims to be "the smart one," when in fact, she continually does things that are incredibly stupid.

The couple got off on yelling and arguing at each other, and while it's common for many romances to have tension between the main characters, Jane's and Calvin's constant disputes bordered on unhealthy.

I will say, though, that there was an entertaining scene involving Lucky Charms marshmallows, but aside from that, there was little that made me want to like this book. I guess a lot of it had to do the basis for their relationship, which, as I said, made me sick. White lies in formulaic romances are to be expected, but conning a man into unknowingly impregnating you? That's one scheme that I personally find unforgivable.

[Danielle The Book Huntress]

I found the hero Cal a little too harsh for my tastes. He represented what I don't like about pro sports players and that whole macho vibe that they can give off. It was wrong what Jane did to him,however he was in the habit of using women, so in some ways it was his karma coming back on him, in my opinion. My issue is that didn't treat her very well after the fact. I can understand him being angry but I feel he should have treated the woman who was pregnant with his child better than he did. That bothered me.

[Paige Bookdragon]

If it weren't for the fact that the heroine is NOT acting like a doormat to the sexist hero, then I would have abandoned this book pronto. But thank goodness the heroine does not allow bullshit in her life and it was nice to know that sexist men can learn how to appreciate women and have a HEA. ♥

[Carole Bell]

This one has been bothering me for a long time. Nobody's Baby But Mine is the second novel that I’ve read by contemporary romance legend Susan Elizabeth Phillips, and I’m finding it even harder to tolerate than the last. The first book in the series was frustrating because it was twisted and unrealistic in how it depicted/distorted sexism in the workplace. This book is worse. It portrays offenses against bodily autonomy and consent in a flippant ways— as though it's bad form but nothing one should hold a real grudge over. It enrages me not because it's “politically incorrect,” which appears to be Susan Elizabeth’s brand—she even uses the term in the text, and the story centers on a baby-hungry career woman who manipulates a celebrity athlete into impregnating her (how edgy). That’s bad enough, but the real issue is that she heaps abuse on this man. Making her a heroine after that manages to be aggressively anti-feminist (a woman wanting to have a baby on her own is portrayed as crazy, misguided and selfish).

Jane, the putative heroine of sorts, is a socially awkward physicist and former child scientific prodigy with a ticking biological clock, Cal the hero/victim an aging NFL quarterback. She decides to have a baby with him by any means necessary, consent be damned. The central premise, a woman chooses a man to father her child based on his perceived lack of intelligence is ridiculously condescending. Jane, condescends to her lover. The book condescends to its readers and women who've apparently lost their way in the modern world.

The way Jane goes about it also makes the sexual acts themselves into abuse. Jane coerces Cal while he repeatedly rebuffs her advances. And when he tries to engage her in the act so that it’s more mutual and enjoyable, she rebuffs him, making the sex humiliating for him. Even though that’s not her aim, that is clearly the effect. It doesn’t matter that she is just protecting herself. She’s using him as a tool and that is the definition of exploitation. This could be a negative case study in moral philosophy.

This made me think about a moral reasoning class I took as an undergraduate. What stood out most was Kant's concept of the categorical imperative.

Kant's formulation of humanity, the second section of the Categorical Imperative, states that as an end in itself humans are required never to treat others merely as a means to an end, but always, additionally, as ends in themselves.[2]

This entire premise is that Jane uses Cal Bonner as a means to an end, which is bad enough, but even as she is doing that she does nothing to minimize the harm she inflicts on him. That’s why this drives me crazy. She says she’s driven to do this by wanting a baby so badly, and the fact that the baby needs to have genes that run counter to her own for its own good, so that the child won’t suffer the outsider status and social isolation she did. No matter how faulty that logic is at least it’s genuine. But she could still have tried to find someone to participate in this of their own free will.

Making matters far worse, it wouldn’t cost her anything but her own neuroses to treat Cal as a full human being during the process. And that, the sexual humiliation and insult she heaps on Cal during their two initial encounters plus the harm she does him by making him feel he’s potentially doing harm to her during the acts, that’s gratuitous. This is not a trivial harm. And yet somehow she’s still ultimately painted as a cute and quirky heroine.

This is not cute. Forced reproduction isn't funny. In another novel, this would be the act that first defines the villain (see Long Shot for one example).

The fact that I really haven't seen any critique of the forced procreation and sexual humiliation in this book compounds my disturbance with this book. As a feminist (and as a human being), concern about someone being denied bodily autonomy is foundational. It's not something I take on and throw off at will depending on the identity of the victim.

The bottom line? Nobody’s Baby But Mine makes Jane into a heroine, abuser and the object of scorn at the same time. Why take a social phenomenon— career woman wants to have a baby on her own— and distort is this far from reality in this ugly a way? Is it just because that makes for good conflict and conflict means drama, equals compelling storytelling? Or is there an attempt to discredit the social phenomenon? Or do they just not see it that way? Does women doing grotesque things to men really not seem grotesque to Phillips and her fans?

Other issue: Casual racism. Not a fan!
When she learns Cal isn't the dim bulb she assumed he was just because he's an athlete, Jane worried their child will be freakishly smart and not fit in like she did growing up. Her solution: She’s going to move to a "primitive" part of Africa to keep her child away from people. Seriously:

She couldn’t let that happen. She’d die before she’d permit her child to suffer as she’d suffered. She’d move away! She’d take the baby to Africa, some remote and primitive part of the continent. She’d educate the child herself so that her precious little one would never know the cruelty of other children.

Because of course there are no people who count in "remote and primitive" Africa. That's it. I'm done here.

[Lady Gabriella of Awesomeness (SLOW)]

♥ ♥♥ Heart warming..and heart-breaking love story. ♥ ♥ ♥

LOT of great one liners and hell loads of absolute fun..and of course since its is Miss Susan's after all, uve defiantly got a bit of angst snugged in there...Especially that cookie story,..HOLY SHIT cal's parent's initial relationship defiantly broke my heart
:( *snif*

[Geo Just Reading My Books]

Ce se întâmplă când primești cadou de ziua ta o femeie??? O serie de aventuri neașteptate care te țin în alertă, stârnesc hohote de plâns și te fac să visezi.
O poveste de dragoste frumoasă, despre dragostea adevărată și fericirea până la adânci bătrâneți.
Impresii despre serie:
https://justreadingmybooks.wordpress....

[Antonella]

comfort reread!!




One second I am rereading SEP and the next I am watching football...just in time for National Playoff

[Dee]

I absolutely loved this book - In theory I should have hated it and if this was real life I would as Cal was an ar*ehole a lot of the time, but this is fiction/romance and I loved Jane, her character, her backbone and the witty/funny dialogue between them......I love Susan Elizabeth Phillips! ☺

[Nisha]

2018
I didn't enjoy it as much...but it could be because I just read Match Me if You Can- my favorite SEP book.

------
February 26, 2014

3 years later, this book remains a classic. SEP's characters are still amazing and hilarious. I don't think I need to write another full review.
-----
February 18, 2011

Third times a charm. Maybe this time, I would write a suitable review.

Clearly, I love this book. After reading it every so often (I think, once every 6 months), it has a solid place in my 'Favorites' shelf. What first attracted me to this story? The heroine, Jane. She's one smart cookie, who does one dumb act to get what she always wanted, a baby of her own. Feeling like a freak growing up, Jane wants a dumb jock to father (donate sperm) her future child. She stumbles on Cal Boner, successful quarterback for the Chicago Stars. Cal, the football player is quite a character. Mostly because of his fear of growing old. At 36, he refuses to date any woman over the age of 21. Plus he eats Lucky Charms for breakfast. Other than that, the man is sexy as hell. Anyway, Jane neglects to pick up on his intelligence or his sense of honor, while Cal doesn't learn of her advanced age (34) until the middle of the book. By then, the child is already conceived and the angry, but very honorable Cal forces Jane into a marriage to keep the child legitimate. There is a secondary romance, between Cal's already married parents. They have some resentment to clear up before they fall in love again.

I loved Jane and Cal's interplay. For such smart people, they are awfully immature. Still, they finally stumble into love together. The scene with the picking wallpaper, haha, adorable. You'll see. Jim and Lynn Boner's reigniting romance was both painful and beautiful to watch. Their past history makes things infinitely more complicated, but its finally so sweet. I wish there was a little more explicit, but that's an old complaint.

It would have been nice to find out what his teammates thought, but it wasn't all that important. Anyway, the premise of the story is a forced pregnancy that forces a marriage that eventually forces growing up and falling in love. Its great. And it was done well, so I recommend this to anyone.

[A_Ryan]

5+++ TOTALLY BLEW ME AWAY STARS!!!

Wow. I can't even. This book was sooo gooood in soooo many ways that it's going to take some time before I can gather my thoughts and write anything to do justice to this AWESOME MOTHER OF A BOOK!!

Loved the characters.
Loved the writing.
Loved the banter.
Loved the heartbreak.
Loved the romance.

I laughed my arse off.
I wept for Jim and Lynne... (and I NEVER weep reading books!!)
I danced with the women...
I seriously contemplated starting a vegetable garden near the Blue Mountains, hoping I'd eventually turn into a sun-kissed Amazonian goddess.
And I totally, completely, unquestionably, developed a slight girl-author-crush on Sarah Elizabeth Phillips. I mean, Ive always liked her books... but now I am determined to read everything she's ever written. Her style and attention to character is my new drug.

A FULL (and hopefully more coherent) REVIEW TO COME!!!

[Grecia Robles]

AMO A CAL … FIN

Esta serie ha ido de menos a más.
SEP tiene una manera de narrar las historias tan amena y envolvente que no puedes dejar de leer, tiene un sello tan distintivo que sabes que lo vas a disfrutar.
Sus libros son divertidos, románticos con un toque sexy y un poquitín de drama.

Este libro me ha gustado muchísimo, desde el principio ha estado bastante divertido.
Jane tiene 34 años es física y siente que necesita algo más en su vida, quiere ser madre pero sabe que no puede escoger a un hombre inteligente, no quiere que su hijo sufra lo que ella tuvo que padecer siendo súper inteligente y lo quiere compensar con un hombre que no la tenga

Entonces conoce a Cal Bonner el Quarterback de los Chicago Stars por la televisión dando una entrevista después de un partido cuando empieza hablar pronunciando palabras mal Jane deduce que es un tonto y que es el hombre adecuado para ser su donador de esperma.

Jane se hace pasar por una prostituta y es contratada por los compañeros de Cal para que sea su regalo de cumpleaños y ahí empieza su juego y engaño.
Cuando Cal lo descubre está furioso lo último que quiere es tener un hijo y algo que lo amarre pero tiene tanto honor que no quiere se hijo sea un bastardo que decide casarse con Jane pero no antes de hacerla pagar.

La verdad es que su historia de amor es tan SEP el todo hosco y temperamental aunque me gustó la actitud de ella que no se dejaba de él, se la llevan de discusión en discusión, él empezó odiándola y ella aunque con culpa pero tampoco le agradaba él, conforme comenzaron a convivir empezó a darse una relación que sin ellos darse cuenta nació el amor.

Lo que no me gustó tanto era la insistencia de Jane de que él la amara cuando ella quería sin darle la oportunidad a él de aclarar sus sentimientos pero de ahí en fuera me gustó mucho.

Una de las características de los libros de SEP es siempre incluir una historia secundaria de una pareja más adulta y en este caso es los padres de Cal, su historia me gustó mucho y me llegó al corazón como todo ese tiempo que estuvieron casados cometieron tantos errores que al final ya eran unos desconocidos pero su segunda oportunidad fue bien bonita.

Ahora voy por el siguiente libro.

[Lučka]

4.5*

If it weren't for my reading guru Anna, who recommended this book to me many times over the year, I probably wouldn't have read it. You see, SEP is an author that doesn't really work for me, but at the same time she does. Am I making any sense!?

The plot was completely ridiculous. The heroine who's a genius physics professor tricks the hero, a legendary quarterback, into impregnating her.


The crazy plot only spiraled from here. The hero finds out and the true enemies-lovers story starts. The "hate" between the MCs was so entertaining, backed up with the witty banter and great characterization. I'm always game for an awesome enemies-lovers story and this one was really well written.
There was also a part in this book that made me shed a tear or two.

But the most important thing about this silly book is that I laughed. Even to tears. I LOL'd like crazy.


Now tell me if that's not what reading is all about. Pure entertainment!

I loved both MCs. I never hated Jane for what she did or Cal for how badly he sometimes treated her. They had an amazing chemistry. They were both stubborn, smart and bad-tempered. No OM/OW drama whatsoever was just a cherry on top. No virgins either.

SEP's writing style is really unique and quirky, I'm quite digging this 90's vibe. No dripping tight pu**ies or huge c*cks, a very mild foul language and great dialogue sequence.

I'm rating it 4* so I can have at least one lower rating than my friend.


Thanks, babe! <3

[Pepa]

3.5
Sé que es cosa mía, pero esta mujer me parece un pelín machista, no lo puedo remediar...
Confundida con esta novela, no puedo decir que no me haya gustado, porque sería mentira, la he encontrado muy entretenida, aunque mi gran pero es que si todo hubiera sido al revés , seguro que estaríamos hablando de una novela muy ..., lo que me hace dudar de mi rasero diferente.
Porque ella se pasa tres pueblos, lo siento, pero me parece muy mal todo lo que hace y no si hubiera sido él me saldrían sapos y ranas por la boca.-... ¿curioso, verdad?
Entretenida pero con un argumento que no me ha gustado mucho, ese engaño, ese tratar a un hombre como una cosa y un donante... sin decírselo. De primeras y segundas, no puedo ponerle más nota justo por ese mensaje tan alejado de lo que me gusta leer.
Por otra parte y dejando de lado ese GRAN tema, ella me ha gustado, él me ha gustado (algunas veces le hubiera tapado la boca, la verdad), pero con la que más he disfrutado es con la abuela, para qué engañarnos
No soy muy fan de esta mujer, pero me entretiene... estas novelas son muy americanas y tienen muchos tópicos... seguramente seguiré con la serie, esta todita en la biblioteca... pero con espacio ya que, pese a las buenísimas opiniones que tienen, no son muy de mi estilo