And the Crowd Went Wild
A Chicago Stars Novel
Published on 26. March 2026
Book
Hardback
352 pages
978-0-06-324862-5 (ISBN)
Description
"The queen of the football romance is not Taylor Swift. It's Susan Elizabeth Phillips."-Wall Street Journal
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Elizabeth Phillips, a romance between a star quarterback and one of the country's most beautiful-and misunderstood-actresses.
After a mortifying-and very public-humiliation, Dancy Flynn is desperate to find sanctuary far from the crowd. But where can a washed-up sex symbol hide? How about making an unannounced appearance at the secluded lake house of the sweet, sensitive high school boyfriend she hasn't seen in almost twenty years?
But Chicago Stars quarterback Clint Garrett is no longer the kid Dancy remembers. Now he's a gridiron superhero, still holding a massive grudge against her for breaking his teenage heart. With no room in his life for either complexity or distractions, he banishes Dancy to a refurbished old railroad caboose tucked away in the woods...and out of his sight.
Except Dancy's not good at staying invisible. Her efforts to rebuild her career clash with Clint's desperation to regain his focus, all made more challenging by a rescue dog, a local woman in trouble, a meddling mother, an ex with an agenda...and the sizzle of rekindled emotions.
As Dancy attempts to get her life on track and Clint tries to get his groove back, can these two one-time lovers navigate their rocky pasts and complicated present to find themselves...and each other?
Tropes include:
second-chance romance
enemies to lovers
forced proximity
childhood sweethearts
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Elizabeth Phillips, a romance between a star quarterback and one of the country's most beautiful-and misunderstood-actresses.
After a mortifying-and very public-humiliation, Dancy Flynn is desperate to find sanctuary far from the crowd. But where can a washed-up sex symbol hide? How about making an unannounced appearance at the secluded lake house of the sweet, sensitive high school boyfriend she hasn't seen in almost twenty years?
But Chicago Stars quarterback Clint Garrett is no longer the kid Dancy remembers. Now he's a gridiron superhero, still holding a massive grudge against her for breaking his teenage heart. With no room in his life for either complexity or distractions, he banishes Dancy to a refurbished old railroad caboose tucked away in the woods...and out of his sight.
Except Dancy's not good at staying invisible. Her efforts to rebuild her career clash with Clint's desperation to regain his focus, all made more challenging by a rescue dog, a local woman in trouble, a meddling mother, an ex with an agenda...and the sizzle of rekindled emotions.
As Dancy attempts to get her life on track and Clint tries to get his groove back, can these two one-time lovers navigate their rocky pasts and complicated present to find themselves...and each other?
Tropes include:
second-chance romance
enemies to lovers
forced proximity
childhood sweethearts
Reviews / Votes
"The queen of the football romance is not Taylor Swift. It's Susan Elizabeth Phillips." - Wall Street Journal"From the insightful characterization to the wit-infused dialogue to the smoking-hot chemistry between the book's marvelously original protagonists, everything in Phillip's latest addition to her Chicago Stars series is done with a seemingly effortless ease that belies the true literary skill needed to produce this swoon-worthy masterpiece. Add to this a cleverly constructed plot that empathetically explores topics, such as maternal grief, self-worth, and creative reinvention, while paying homage to Gertrude Chandler Warner's Boxcar Children, and you have a resplendent romance that will have readers wild with joy." - Booklist, starred review
"Re-entering the world of the Chicago Stars is like a beloved friend come to call." - #1 New York Times bestselling author Robyn Carr
"Susan is the absolute queen of contemporary romance." - #1 New York Times bestselling author Kristin Hannah
"Fall into the addictive voice of Susan Elizabeth Phillips-compulsively readable and deeply satisfying!" - #1 New York Times bestselling author Robyn Carr
"Readers will want to savor every delectable word in the sublimely talented Phillips' latest Chicago Stars novel, just as one would enjoy the luscious artisanal bonbons crafted by the book's heroine. Infused with addictively acerbic wit and graced with a perfectly matched pair of protagonists whose sexual chemistry is hot enough to melt chocolate, this is Phillips at her dazzling best." - Booklist (starred review) on Simply the Best
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Publishing group
HarperCollins Publishers Inc
Dimensions
Height: 233 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 31 mm
Weight
468 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-06-324862-5 (9780063248625)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
02/2026
HarperCollins
€2.99
Available for download
Person
Susan Elizabeth Phillips is a #1 New York Times bestselling author whose books have been published in over thirty languages. Guided by the motto, "Life is better with happily-ever-afters," she loves writing about love in all its forms. Among her accomplishments, Susan created the sports romance with her novel Fancy Pants. She is best known for her Chicago Stars and Wynette, Texas series, as well as multiple stand-alone books. Visit Susan's website at www.susanelizabethphillips.com.