A short, sweet novella perfect for anyone that believes in fate and happy ever afters.

Indy is the type of person you can relate to, especially her belief in finding The One and the anxiety that comes with wondering if you're good enough for someone else. She did have a lot of excuses and pushed Ethan away too much though, to the point where I was getting frustrated with her for not seeing how fate had basically thrown Ethan right at her feet and she was the only one that didn't see it.

Ethan is everything you could ever want in a man. Sweet, patient, and protective; in short, the perfect partner. The way he instantly knew he wanted her but never pushed her boundaries...They don't make them like Ethan in the real world, but they should!

Their first meeting was funny, kinda cute, and definitely left an impression on both of them. The interactions between them following their second encounter were great, and made their relationship flow naturally towards the ending we all wanted.

I should mention though, I was confused about the sports talk until they mentioned that it was basketball teams they were rooting for. Since I don't watch or follow any sports, it didn't click in my head that that's what they were talking about until the word basketball was mentioned.

If you like reading about fate, perfect men, and happily ever afters, then this might be the perfect book for you.

What a perfectly magical and delicious love story!! Ethan has become one of my favorite romantic interest, like every single thing he did made me swoon. For a short novella, I found the characters to be really well developed and loveable. The novel is well written, funny and captivating, and the slow burn was just perfect! I finished It Has To Be You in one sitting, and I’ve just become a fan of McLean’s sweet and fun writing style and I will be devouring all of her other works!

First a thank you to Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for granting me access to such a lovely novella!

This novella follows Indy, who is a huge believer in fate and destiny. When fate grants her an opportunity at a second chance of her one true love from 15 years ago. She may write about romance and adventure but she’s quite the opposite! When on her journey she comes across an obstacle, Ethan. He’s a non-believer of her quest and on the hunt for her true love too, but with a bone to pick with him. With all roads leading back to Ethan, he’s just not her soulmate.

I did enjoy this premise but it almost hit the nail on the head too many times with fate and destiny. Indy kind of made crazy with how blind and dumb she was being with her journey to find Nick. A man who she find out is in a relationship but that does literally nothing to stop her cause some lady 15 years ago said something vague. *Insert eye twitch* I would have loved Ethan’s POV sprinkled in there. I don’t know if it was just me, but when she talked about her love for the Rebels team, it didn’t mention what sport until 40% into the book. No hints on verbiage to give an idea of the sport. With that said, I did enjoy the realness of her self doubt when looking at potential with someone. Also having a MMC being open and honest with his feelings and them not beat around the bush at it? HUGE BONUS. Overall a cute rom-com novella from the authors Movie Magic Novellas and you can catch this book on May 16th!

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Dani McLean’s Movie Magic novella series truly is magical. I love how there’s practically no rules only that it must end in a happily ever after. I love how every couple falls head over heels within weeks and it’s acceptable! As long as you’re in Chance, anything is possible! In this novella, fate was one of the characters. Personally, I love the idea of fate and how it plays into our lives. That’s why I love how Indy is such a big believer in fate but also knows that you shouldn’t let yourself to be lead by fate, you must make your own fate. Like how fate will show you the directions but it must be you to navigate it. It took Indy a while to realize her actual fate in regards of her love life, but Ethan was patient. He was patient, kind, and quite literally the perfect book boyfriend. They’re so perfect for each other.

I’m not usually a romance reader but the cover of the this book intrigued me. It’s a short story with a very basic cute plot, where two adults meet in an unconventional way and they learn about each other going through major points. A feel good little rom commy book.

I love Ethan and Indy! 💕 This novella is the palette cleanser you need after reading a long series, or if you're in a reading slump. I loved that Indy's quest to find her high school ex and return a bracelet he gave her helped her meet Ethan and serve as inspiration to write her book. Also, can we talk about Ethan? He is literally the perfect book boyfriend! Some of their interactions had me actually laughing out loud, and I was very happy with the ending.

📚 He Falls First
📚 Strangers to Friends to Lovers
📚 Slowburn Romance
📚 Destiny/Fate

Thank you NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-Op for early access to this book! This is my first Novella and book by Dani McLean and I cannot wait to read more. I though Indy and Ethan were the perfect match for each other. Ethan was so sweet to her 🥹 of course this book was fast paced because it was a novella but I felt there was still plenty of details about them and their relationship.

Indy believes in fate and believes it is her destiny to be reunited with her ex-boyfriend. Along the way of trying to reunite with him, she meets Ethan who is Nick’s cousin. Is Nick really her destiny or is fate leading her elsewhere?

This was such a cute read and I highly recommend this book. There’s also a little bit of spice so keep that in mind as well. 🌶️

My review is now available on my Goodreads account!

This was a great, quick read! I felt like it had really great mental health representation and was a fun story- I always love a bookish story. I really liked Indy and Ethan's love story and honestly wish the book had been a full length book instead of a novella. I'm excited to pick up the other novellas in this series and learn more!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy!

It Has To Be You is a sweet little novella set in Chance City, a place where anything can happen, and in this fourth instalment, fate is what’s on the table.

Indy believes in fate; she believes in ‘The One’, and when a psychic tells her that her bracelet, a gift from her teenage boyfriend, Nick, will lead to her soul mate, Indy is relieved that she’s already found her ‘One’.
The book then jumps to fifteen years later, where Indy is single, having been broken up with by her Nick when he moved from chance, only she’s just found the bracelet he gifted her, and suddenly she knows she needs to see him again, that this is her second chance to find her soul mate. She doesn’t account for Ethan, Nick’s cousin, to pop up at every turn.

Ethan is the embodiment of a cinnamon roll, the perfect soother to the anxiety that pounds through Indy daily, and sparks fly from the second these two meet, but Indy is determined to encounter Nick. Will she continue to pursue her old flame, or will she see the new one destiny has dropped in front of her?

It Has To Be You is a quick, easy romance that’s sweet and a little dirty, has a happy ending and will leave you feeling content.

3.5 stars

Indy O’Neall believes in fate…plain and simple. It started with her great-grandparents, then her grandparents and her parents and now it’s her turn. They all met by chance and fell in love and lived happily ever after. She thought that she lost her chance at love when her supposed soulmate Nick broke up with her in high school. Now she has decided to try for a second chance at love with her soulmate. There’s just one thing in her way….Ethan.

Enjoy this lovely rom-com novella with all the feels and a very gratifying happy ending!

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for sharing this ARC with me in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed reading this book it was such a cute a fun romance.I Thought that the two main characters were so cute together and their story was great.I would definitely sat idlf this is something you interested in give it a go.

Thanks to Netgalley and the author for this book in exchange for an honest review.

This novella was adorable! I loved the characters and the humor! I think its the perfect "i want to read something fun and cute between books" option. I will 100% be recommending this book to friends! I am an author and an elementary school nurse so i felt like related so well to both main characters

I loved the summary of this book so I was dying to jump in. I didn’t know it was a novella when I started and I would have loved this flushed out into a full novel length because Ethan was delicious. I *wished* this was dual POV because I wanted his perspective, too.

The target audience for this was me. Hi! It was me. The fixation on the hands. The way I- the reader- swooned over the glasses. The line “take me home” took me out at my knees.

There is a scene in the middle (no spoilers) where they’re doing a project and the conflict gets really muddled. It took me out of the story because I lost sight of what was even happening. I put it down and had to come back because it was obvious and irritated me that it seemed made up. I don’t know how else to describe it.

The epilogue (HEART EYES) was perfection.

Thanks for the copy NetGalley!

A cozy fuzzy feeling sweet rom novella - I’ve read a few of the books by the same author and I can see the growth. Characters are more developed, plot is deeper, all whikst keeping the story short

Indy still believing the first guy was her destiny after constantly being shown how terrible of a person he was kind of dulled my enjoyment of this novella. I loved Ethan though.

Thank-you to Net Galley, Victory Editing, and the author for an ARC of this.

Indy believes her destiny is in finding Nick, her childhood sweetheart. Set out on a quest to find him-whom she finds is Ethan instead. Sparks fly when these two meet. They meet again and again. Forging a friendship to find Nick, the two fall into a friendship. Once they find Nick, you’ll have to read to find out. There is a particular spicy scene that I throughly enjoyed.

If you like grumpy sunshine and the man falls first trope-this is the novella for you! I found this to be a quick read. I didn’t want the story to end.

I must say I loathed the character of Nick and was disappointed in him. (He had no redeeming qualities-in my eyes).

This was my first Dani McLean book, and it won’t be my last. I NEED to read the rest of the Movie Magic novella series! For a short novella, I found the characters to be really well developed and loveable. The novel is well written, funny and captivating, and the slow burn to the grand finale sexy scene was just perfect! I usually prefer long novels, but Ethan and Indy’s story was the perfect contemporary romance, and the little touches of magic, destiny and fate just made the story even more unique and interesting.

I finished It Has To Be You in one sitting, so a big thank you to NetGalley, Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op and Dani McLean for granting me an eArc in exchange of an honest review. I’ve just become a fan of McLean’s sweet and fun writing style and I will be devouring all of her other works!

I thought this book was really cute. It was a quick and happy read, and would be a great palette cleanser between series or large books. The romance was really sweet, and I loved watching their relationship grow. The problem that I usually have with novellas, is that they don't give you the story. They don't give you the why behind whatever is happening because it's focused more on the relationship. In this book, you get both, which I really enjoyed.

Over all I really enjoyed the story, the little bit of spice at the end was really nice, and I will be picking up the others in the series.

This was my first time reading Dani McLean’s work – I am now on a mission to read every single word she has written.

Indy’s family were all destined to find their soulmates, and she’s convinced her boyfriend from high school – the one that got away – is hers. After hitting some writer’s block for her romance novel, she’s on a mission to help fate find her by finding her long lost true love. However, everywhere she turns, she just barely misses her ex but seems to keep finding his cousin, Ethan. Since he also is on the lookout for his cousin, they decide to buddy up and find them together. In the process, they evolve from enemies to genuine friends, with chemistry that cannot be denied.

Just the mere existence (even in fiction) of Ethan should be illegal. He’s truly the perfect cinnamon roll hero – tall, chiseled, *wears glasses*, teaches elementary school, is cutely nerdy but also rides a motorcycle. I love seeing Indy not only get outside of her comfort zone but also stand up for her needs and boundaries when she needs them. The payoff of this slow burn was *chef’s kiss*. I’m obsessed and cannot wait to go back and read the rest of these standalone novellas.

Thank you NetGalley & Victory for the eARC.

This book turned out to be a true gem that left me pleasantly surprised and absolutely hooked from the start. The slow-burn element added a layer of depth to the narrative that made it all the more satisfying to read.
Indy, the drama queen, struggles with her emotions so that readers can sympathize with.
Ethan, instead, is the epitome of what we all want in a partner.
This novel is an enchanting and delightful read, full of genuine emotion, hilarious moments, and top-tier spice. It's not just a love story, but a story about taking control of one's own relationship and actively choosing to fight for and love someone every day.
So, if you're in need of a good book, look no further - this is it!
Thanks to NetGalley & Dani McLean for the eARC copy.