It’s a Love Story showcases why I always read Annabel Monaghan. Not only does it deliver the swoons and anticipation, it does so with witty dialogue, so many heartfelt moments, and an authenticity in the relationships that make Monaghan’s stories so memorable. Another five star romance!

Annabel Monaghan knows how to tell a love story. I’ve adored each one since Nora, and this was no exception. Jane and Dan have that perfect enemies to lovers banter and the chemistry is undeniable. Annabel Monaghan also knows how to write women on a journey of self-discovery and self-love that wraps around your heart, and Jane was no exception. Lastly, Annabel Monaghan knows how to write swoony MMCs that’ll stay with you for far too long, and Dan is no exception. This is another superb beach read by Monaghan.

I absolutely love Annabel Monaghan’s books! I got her debut book from Netgalley and every year she has a new book I can’t wait to request it. This book didn’t disappoint! I loved it!
I love the mix of celebrity status mixed in with a rom com! It makes celebrities more human even though this is a book of fiction .
Jane Jackson was a child star. She was the funny quirky kid that didn’t get credit for everything she did. When her show ended she found her career ending. She then got into the producer world reading scripts trying to make them into movies. Jane finds the script she is dying to make. The only problem is the script isn’t A list enough and her boss wants her to lock in someone famous to collaborate with the movie. Jane makes a rash move and promises a singer to collaborate a song for the movie when she had a brief encounter at 14. She has to go to Long Island to a festival to try and track him down. The cinematologist is her enemy, but he has the connection in Long Island since his family lives there and can house them for the week. She doesn’t know how she is going to spend a week with a man she can barely stand. Can she save this movie?

3.5 stars ☆

this book was a quick and easy read.
i found myself enjoying it in chunks unfortunately, im not too sure why but i’d be really into it in some parts and then in others i’d start to lose interest.

i only really have two issues with this story:

1) it felt like traveling to confront jack about making a song for the movie was just a scapegoat to get jane & dan to be close together and eventually fall in love like plot wise it didn’t matter if they went or not cause a) we knew jack didn’t want to do the movie b) i don’t see how stalking him is supposed to make him say yes.

2) i just hate big blow out miscommunication third act break up scenes. i love a good third act drama but idk an unnecessary breakup just always gives me the ick. like i understand why she was emotionally drained and a bit stressed out but taking it out on dan made no sense to me especially with how well they were doing.

i did really like everything else, i loved the big crazy family members and all the coastal living. this book is extremely atmospheric and definitely puts you in a good mood so i will say that.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book!

4.5 ⭐️

This is my second book by Annabel Monaghan, and it didn’t disappoint!

I will say I felt this book was a little slow to start, but it did a good job developing characters during that time. By halfway I was beyond hooked and confident this would be a high rated book!

It does have the third act miscommunication trope, and there is a little spice, but it’s mostly closed door.

I will definitely be recommending this to all my book reading friends!

Former child-star Jane Jackson (known as "Janey Jakes") does her best to make a name for herself with writing a new script called "True Story". However, her script isn't received the way she had expected it to be. Hoping to change their mind, Jane makes the promise that she will get her former fellow co-star, now superstar, Jack Quinlan to write a song for the movie. The only issue is it's been 20 years since their last encounter.

WIth the help of Dan Finnegan, some random cinematographer she briefly encountered and sort-of had a crush on, Jane embarks on this journey to hopefully meet Jack again and convince him to write this song. As they journey to Long Island for Jack's performance, Jane and Dan get to know each other and Jane realizes that Dan isn't so repulsive after all.

This book was so cute and I loved that the spice level was mild. Jane was getting to know herself and trying to make a name for herself that isn't just "Janey Jakes". She was so used to being the weird one, never being the center of attention unless it was in a negative way. In a world where Jane always fell short, I loved how Dan made her feel like she was first place. It was so heartwarming how Dan's family just took Jane in like she was one of them. I loved the small-town vibes as well.

If it weren't for the weird third-act break up, I think I would've rated this book higher. But overall, it was still really enjoyable! I will always love an Annabel Monaghan book!

I'm now a fan of Annabel Monaghan! This was the perfect beach read.
I loved the work enemies to lovers storyline and how their perception of when they met was different.

5⭐️😭 this book was absolutely beautiful!!! i have sooo many highlights of things i loved, thought were funny, sad, and of course when Dan stole my heart the most. i don’t even know what to say about this book. it captivated me and sucked me into the world of Janey Jakes turned Jane, the girl who knew how to play the perfect part so everyone would see the exact right thing, and (fake) man-bun Dan, the boy who taught her to play the part of Jane, just as herself. i cannot wait for everyone to read this!! amazing!! thank you Netgalley for the ARC!!

Jane Jackson grew up on television. As an adolescent actress she played Janey Jakes on a hit tv show that paid the bills and made her famous. All grown up now Jane works behind the scenes for a Hollywood studio with her eye on the prize - getting a script she discovers the green light. Frustrated at thirty that is hasn’t happened yet, she finally found the one. True Story is a romance she is sure will be a hit! Now Jane must convince her boss Nathan to take a chance. Without the explosions and flash appeal of the action flicks he favors, Jane reaches for her one secret move. Jane is intent on convincing Jack Quinlin, a huge singer/songwriter (she knew back in the day) to write a theme song for the movie. Jane is paired with a cinematographer and her nemesis Dan to make this deal happen. Jane and Dan, who can barely stand each other, head to the east coast for a music festival to beg Jack to help them out. They spend the week nearby at Dan’s family home that is filled with siblings, babies and laughter, revealing a completely different Dan. As the pair search for Jack and finally lower their guards, their chemistry becomes undeniable. Fast paced laugh-out-loud, adorable romance - this beach read is the absolute perfect pick for a day at the beach! Releases May 27, 2025.

It’s a love story, indeed. This book was great! I loved Monaghan’s last book, and this one was a great follow up. If I had the time to sit down and read it in one day, I would have devoured it. Despite my busy schedule, I found myself looking forward to diving back into Jane and Dan’s story as soon as I could. This book feels like the perfect vacation read, and made the gloomy grey skies of early spring feel like rays of sunshine. I would absolutely recommend this book for those looking for a cute rom com with a story of forgiveness, self-love, and compassion.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Another from this author I discovered through netgalley! I have loved all her books. She writes top tier women's fiction with the perfect dash of romance. I will read everything she writes! full review to come!

This is my third Annabel Monaghan book. I’ve loved one and didn’t like another. This one ended up being in the middle. I enjoyed the two main characters and felt they had good chemistry together. I enjoy a good slow burn romance but this novel’s pacing felt way too slow for me. I think if a little more plot happened throughout the book, things wouldn’t have felt so slow. I loved the male main character’s family and how the book felt like a fun summer beach read. Overall, I didn’t enjoy the plot choices for the last part of the book but thought how she wrapped things up in the end was nice. Overall, I think if you enjoy her other books and are more of a women’s fiction reader than a romance reader, this one would be a great read. This one comes out May 27th! Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy!

Nothing hits quite like a romance in the spring and summer months and this was such a fun, yet emotionally engaging read. I loved the banter and the emotional moments between the characters and I felt that the mmc and fmc had great chemistry. I wasn't the biggest fan of the main conflict at the end of the story but it was still a satisfying ending so I didn't mind too much. Overall, would definitely recommend to anyone looking for a light summer romance read!

This was my first book by the author and it was fine. Not great, not bad, just fine. I will say I’m kinda disappointed because I had much higher hopes due to the reviews and hype. It’s a classic miscommunication, forced proximity love story. With some unexpected Daddy issues that are discussed until way late. The MMC’a family is great.

Tropes:
Forced proximity
One bed
Enemies to lovers
Summer romance

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the eArc

This book was so beautiful. I love watching Jane’s story develop and her grow and find beauty within herself. Annabel’s description of love was so beautiful, but her description of legacy is what hit me the hardest.

I loved Dan. He was such a wonderful man, proving men can be sensitive and strong. He deserved everything he worked for. Jane. Jane was just not for me. She was so stuck in this loop of pretending and not knowing who she was. It felt so exhausting to read and I can’t imagine how exhausting it would be to live that way. With that said though, I just found her unlikeable. I absolutely loved all of the Finnegan’s.

The book was really up and down for me. The entire middle when they were in Long Island was so perfect. It felt like magic. Truly the rest of the book was kind of a mess for me. Her role at her company was never really clear and the way she would sit under her desk or hide in the closet, just didn’t work. I really wanted more from the beginning and the end. The last 20% felt so rushed and gave me whiplash. The third act break up was just so abrupt and immature.

Overall this is a 3 star read for me because I loved the Finnegan’s, the love story, and the setting.

super excited to have gotten an ARC of this book!! I love Annabel’s writing, and she always brings a great balance of romance with deeper themes that hit you in the feels. I really liked dan’s character as well as his family. jane’s growth as a character was awesome, and seeing how dan played into that (and her in his) was really sweet. I will say this isn’t my fave book my this author ( i LOVED summer romance!), and I think a big factor was that I didn’t totally vibe with the FMC. that being said, this book was well written and I loved the beach vibes, the family aspects, and how the romance piece came together! 3.75 🌟

“This feels like wealth, I think. This is the thing you save up for. You live your whole life so that you can be surrounded by too many people in too small of a room and tell the story of how it all happened.”

Loved this read!! It was a bit of a slow start but once this took off I was obsessed! Such fantastic characters. The family dynamic made me so happy. By the end of the book I truly had all the feels.

4.5/5 Stars

Loved the Finnegan family and Clem. Didn’t love the third act break up. I felt bad for Dan; Jane was BRUTAL to him after talking to Jack. But when they were together, I loved every second.

I’ll read anything Annabel Monaghan writes!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️

Thank you NetGalley, Penguin Group, and Annabel for the eARC! Per usual, my review and opinions are 100% my own.

This book was the cozy romcom I didn’t know I needed. There was some sort of magic in here that gave it the perfect balance of relatable, emotional, sweet, chaos, and adventure.

I’ve read romance novels in the past where the FMC is portrayed as the doesn’t have her life together, I’m a mess, my life is breaking apart, but somehow trying to be relatable character and most times I actually find those FMC’s annoying. Jane Jackson is not that. Is her life a bit of a mess? Yes. Is her life (love and career) kind of falling apart? Also yes. Is she as a result, pathetic and annoying? Absolutely not. She was lovable in the best ways and really was flawed to just the right level.

And Dan oh Dan. My heart goes out for him. The introverted, creative, supportive MMC we all deserve. I think I almost related to him more than Jane. The black sheep of the family, from a family that is the best definition of organized chaos overflowing with love. There was one part where his parents are describing love to Jane and my heart shattered it was so PERFECT. “Romance happens over dinner” “Love happens over breakfast” 🤎🤎🤎🤎