What a fantastic book! I read this in two days and stayed up until 1 in the morning to finish. That has happened in forever! Nora Goes Off Script is so readable. The writing sucked me in right from the start and I had a hard time putting it down.

The book follows single mom and romance movie writer, Nora, as she welcomes a Hollywood movie crew into her home to film the movie she wrote about her failed marriage. After the movie wraps, the leading man decides he’d like to stay and experience normal life again and hopefully find the meaning to this own life. What transpires is a whirlwind romance, but ultimately he has to leave.

This book is full of funny banter and endearing family moments. It also felt like a plot I hadn’t read before. Nora’s response to her failed marriage felt very empowering and raised important questions about marriage and the type of relationship we want for ourself and what that relationship adds to our life.

If there’s any criticism, it’s a small one, and it’s the character’s name, Nora. I’ve read three books in the last few months with a bookish theme, set in New York, with a main character named Nora. Overall though, I’m just sad I waited so long to read this because I loved it!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an advanced copy of Nora Goes Off Script. I adored this sweet book. I breezed through it and it left me feeling satisfied. The main character Nora felt extremely realistic and the whole plot felt fresh. I will be recommending it to everyone who is looking for the perfect capsule romcom. I can't wait to read Monaghan's other works.

You guys (ten crying emojis)! This closed-door romance absolutely stole my heart. It was funny and cheesy and heartwarming. It also was not a super typical romance in a lot of ways, but I don’t want to spoil it for anyone in my review.

Nora is a single mom and her kids are a big part of the story, which is loooooved. I wanted to jump in front of trains for them. I just really, really adored it.

Thank you net galley for the advanced copy!

Nora GoeS Off Script is a small town closed door second chance celebrity romance. I loved the single parent aspect and I adored the children in the book. They were so cute and really added to the story. While I’m not usually a fan of celebrity romances, I really enjoyed this feel good rom com. The plot was unique (well not super realistic) and I liked the “Hallmark” like movie aspect. It was a light and quick read. The only con was that the pacing seemed off at times.

I have to say I picked some good romance for my summer reading list! I loved this book, I laughed, cried and swooned for both Leo and Nora.

I love the fact that Nora was like "Whatever, hot actor staying at my house, I got Mom duties and have to get my life together." She is so down to earth; I love that she has routine every day. I thought she was so cute; I want to be her best friend. Leo, well what's not to love, moving out of his actor bubble, he is just a normal lovable guy.

Nora's husband leaves her she decides she needs money quick and as romance writer she decides to switch it up and write about the end of her marriage. To her surprise this story becomes a hit, and the famous Leo Vance plays her ex-husband. They shoot part of the movie at her house and after the shooting he asks Nora if he can stay for two weeks. She agrees, mostly because he offered to pay rent and what's the worst that could happen, maybe her heart??

I loved that she is a writer for the romance channel and that was the moment I fell in love with Leo is when he admits he secretly loves the cheezie movies. I have two sisters and around Christmas we watch the holiday one's, they are cheezie, but it is the best time with my sisters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam for gifting me this book for my honest review

I really enjoyed this story of a woman starting over with her kids. You see she always put her kids first before herself then she finally let herself enjoy life and love again. this was an easy and fast read one I would recommend over and over again.

4 out of 5 stars


Nora is a single, middle-aged mother. After her douchebag husband walked out on her and her kids, she’s left to raise them all in her own. But things look like they might just work out after all. As a romance movie writer, Nora never expected one of her movies to make it to the big screen. And yet, her latest movie script based off her failed marriage does exactly that.

Now, some of the biggest stars are filming in her backyard. And that includes one of the biggest male actors in Hollywood: Leo Vance.

When the filming raps up, and Nora finds Leo still on her porch, she begins to wonder what he’s really doing here. According to Leo, he just wants a break from the Hollywood life. Striking up a deal, Nora agrees to let Leo stay in the “Tea House” our back. In exchange, Leo will keep out of the way and pay for his week’s stay. After all, the extra money could definitely come in handy. Seems perfect, yes?

Who knows what could happen?!

~~

I loved this book. *spoiler* it’s a romance. Ok, so that’s not really a spoiler, but what can I say? This book reminds me of a Hallmark style movie. After all, Nora basically writes Hallmark movies for a living!

I really enjoyed that our main character was a woman in her 40s who has two younger kids. You don’t always see that very often in romance books, so I really appreciated it. I loved Nora’s character. She’s such a strong woman who is an amazing parent to her kids. While she’s not always perfect, who is? That makes her so likeable to me.

I also really liked Leo and the kids. Their interactions were so sweet, and I found myself really invested in this family’s life.

Of course, it’s a bit unrealistic and sometimes cheesy, BUT that’s the best part. I love that Nora writes these Hallmark movies, and her and Leo discuss them. I loved how the two point out to each other how predictable these movies are, and yet their own storyline kind of falls into one of those “unrealistic love” storylines. After all, each one of us romantics truly love a happy ending.

This book made me smile from ear to ear. I laughed during some of Leo’s shopping trips, and I felt sad for Nora when she talked of her marriage to her ex-husband. Overall, it was just a really really cute story. I would definitely recommend this join to anyone that loves a good ole’ romance with a happily ever after.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoyed it.

Nora Goes Off Script is an entertaining and charming story about a screenwriter/mother and famous actor who fall in love after a chance encounter and week spent together.

Nora is a recently divorced mother who has been single handedly taking care of her children. She is very relatable, independent, and likeable. She writes a screenplay which is filmed partly at her picturesque tea house. Leo stars in the movie and swiftly makes himself at home. Leo is an incredibly endearing character and I loved Nora's two children.

The story relies on the miscommunication trope, which could sometimes be frustrating, but I really enjoyed the characters and wanted them to have their HEA. (happily ever after) I listened to the audiobook which was well-narrated by Hillary Huber who perfectly captured Nora's snark. This would make a perfect beach read!

Thank you Putnam and NetGalley for providing this ARC. All thoughts are my own.

This story was lovely, funny, a touch sad, and a lot romantic. Nora is such a fantastic character: self aware, focused, and knows exactly what she wants and doesn’t want. The kids were fantastic. And Leo is just swoony. Additionally, Nora’s farmhouse is it’s own well developed character! Small town NY life is the best (said with bias) and I loved seeing it portrayed as such.

I have been loving stories with “middle aged” characters and this is an instant new favorite!

When I read the description for NORA GOES OFF SCRIPT right away it sounded right up my alley and I knew I wanted to be sure to read it.

For the most part, I liked it. I liked Nora and the kids. I liked Leo. The idea of a movie star coming to a small town, falling in love with the local gal, skewed a little Hallmarky to me, but if that's your jam, great!!

Since I know the publishing world and some of the tv/film world, some of the details felt unrealistic to me (the quick timeline of everything in particular), but I did try my best not to focus too much on those. If you aren't familiar with those worlds, I think this will be a non-issue for you.

The thing that kept Leo and Nora apart... I get it. But I also wished one of them would've acted like the adults they are and just asked the other point blank for answers. That would've saved these two a lot of heartache and me a lot of time. It felt like a lot of their time apart was just filler pages and didn't actually add much to the story.

Nora Goes Off Script is a fantastic summer book.

Nora writes scripts for movies and is allowing a film company to use her home and Tea House to film a movie by Nora. Naturally chaos ensues because Nora is a single mother of two young children, and recently divorced from her useless exhusband.

While the filming takes place, the actor and star of the movie decides he's going to stay with Nora during the filming. He's handsome and charming but doesn't really fit in with a family and kids.

One of his quirks is to sit on Nora's porch, drinking coffee from her kitchen, at sunrise every day! Nora eventually joins him in this little ritual.

This is a stranger to friend, then lover story that will soften your heart in every way.

Laugh, cry and laugh again, but don't miss it!

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for this galley.

Nora Goes Off Script is a sweet romance with beautiful family dynamics, a lovely setting revolving around a sunrise, and a few twists and turns which end in the classic Happily Ever After.

While I loved various elements such as Nora's love of routine, especially when it comes to the tea house in her back yard, Leo's childlike glee regarding grocery shopping, and the immeasurable importance of Nora's children in her day-to-day decisions, I found the ending a little rushed after the characters' dark moment stretching for so long.

I also struggled with two smaller elements of the story which pushed my five star down to a four. The first is the inclusion of a certain well known author's books. Normally I don't mind this, but given how controversial this author has become, I was surprised to see her name in a new romance. The author may not be aware of the controversy, so I tried to let that one go. The other aspect was her treatment of the romance genre. Nora writes screenplays for The Romance Channel (her fictional Hallmark), and while a few characters seem to enjoy them, there seems to be a lot of back and forth about the main character's appreciation of the genre. Several times, it felt like she thought the genre trivial or not worthwhile compared to "more serious" genres. Given that this is a romance, this feels like biting the hand that feeds you, and as a romance reader, this made it harder for me to empathize with Nora.

Overall though, the story is a solid arc of love, friendship, and family, and many people will love it, as evidenced by its many five star reviews.

I love when writers write about writers! This one was definitely great and I will definitely be reading more of Monaghan in the future!

For a while, there were a lot of literary-themed romcoms in the marketplace. Ironically, I've been reading a lot of books involving fictional celebrities lately and this was no exception. It's a fun "trope" and gives the story a unique take on everyday situations. I like that - a mix of relatable situations and the unknown.

Nora has such a cool career as a writer for made-for-tv romance movies. She maybe doesn't see it that way and neither did her ex husband but I would have liked to explore how she got into that career a bit more and why she does it (other than "she's good at it").

I'm big on character development and overall felt that it was done well for Nora's character. Leo, however, left me wanting to know more. I get it: he's the "sexiest man alive" and Hollywood's golden boy. But other than a few hints that he has dropped about his family and relationship tendencies, I really wanted that to come full circle a bit more.

In summary: I really enjoyed Nora Goes Off Script. I'd recommend it to fans of Emily Henry, Josie Silver and Sophie Kinsella!

This was such a delight to read! I loved the setting, really enjoyed the characters, and appreciated the story. A great summer read!

Nora é uma roteirista de romances e finais felizes. Ela sabe toda a fórmula de cabeça. Dê a ela os elementos e seu casal feliz terá uma linda história de amor. O problema acontece quando ela própria passa por uma separação. Com um divórcio e dois filhos, ela produz um roteiro inesperado baseado em sua própria vida e que é escolhido para uma super produção, estrelada por ninguém menos que Leo Vance.
Com parte das filmagens em sua própria casa, Nora conhece o famoso ator. E, assim que toda a produção vai embora, ela é abordada por Leo para poder permanecer por ali por mais uma semana em troca de 7 mil em dinheiro. Apesar da sua intimidade invadida, Nora não vai se abster dessa oportunidade. A dificuldade real acontece quando ela percebe Leo enraizando pouco a pouco em sua rotina, sua casa, sua vida e seus filhos.
De início achei que não seria tão arrebatada pelo livro, porém, a medida que Nora e Leo vão se conhecendo e envolvendo, fui fisgada por esse romance inesperado. Com certeza as melhores cenas foram com as crianças. Leo ensinando Arthur atuar foi maravilhoso. Mas, assim como Nora, eu sentia o medo de envolver e confiar num ator tão famoso que, de repente, quer permanecer numa cidade pequena e longe da loucura da fama. Crise de identidade? Surto de gente famosa?
Nora já passou por um relacionamento bem ruim e conseguiu sair por cima disso tudo, mas, por mais que tenha seus receios, é muito fácil cair de paixão por Leo Vance.
A autora, Annabel Monaghan, consegue passar todos os receios e amores em sua escrita e quando Nora quebra, não é surpresa alguma que eu pude refletir todos os seus sentimentos.
Não vou dar spoiler, mas queria dizer o quanto a autora me surpreendeu com o plot da história. Eu tentei pensar mil coisas na minha cabeça, mas jamais o que ela escreveu.
Eu fico muito feliz por ter tido a oportunidade de conhecer a mulher forte que Nora é. E, apesar dela pensar que talvez nem seja ou que ela mesmo se colocou diante de várias situações, só por ela tropeçar e sempre erguer a cabeça e sacudir a poeira, já nos deixa um eterno aprendizado. No final das contas, fico muito feliz de conhecer não só a sua história de vida, mas sua história de amor, e concluí o livro com o coração cheio de carinho e suspiros em relação a Nora Goes Off Script.

A sweet rom-com that is like reading one the romance channel movies Nora writes.. A great summer beach read.

This is the perfect beach read! It’s a light-hearted,romantic comedy that is easy and enjoyable to read. The main character, Nora, could be annoying at times to the point that she got on my nerves but overall, I enjoyed this book.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced readers copy of this book.

When I heard this book compared to Evie Drake Starts Over, I was ALL IN, and it did not disappoint!!!!

I adored Nora Goes Off Script by @annabelmonaghan !! I read it in one sitting on my flight to Spain, and my cheeks literally hurt from smiling so much by the time I landed. (Fair warning: I also cried real legit tears on a public airplane.) It is delightfully quirky and romantic - the perfect summer escape read (especially for those of us that aren’t 25 anymore)!

I LOVED Nora - a rom-com TV movie writer who’s husband walked out unexpectedly leaving her with two kids and an old farm house to manage - and I loved Leo - Hollywood’s “George Clooney” who has been cast to play Nora’s ex in the memoir-ish novel turned movie that’s being filmed on her property. Gosh, this book was just a win all around for me… Save the Date now for its June 7th release date — it was made for your pool/beach bag!!! (Swipe to see the actual cover. It’s adorable!) ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Thanks @netgalley for the arc! #netgalley #samandscoutreads #bookstagram #beachreads #noragoesoffscript

This was such a fun and cute rom-com! The storyline was great I felt very connected to the characters and I love them and I like how children were involved in the story. You don’t really see that a lot in Romance novels where children are included so I like that Annabel was able to do this I loved reading the story such a page turner.