Loved this story! It was exactly what I needed when I read it; it was like a palette cleanser and a much-needed lift for my spirits. It's such a lighthearted, fun, quirky yet real second chance romance story.
This is about Nora, who writes for a romance channel, until she writes a story that goes a different direction than her normal ones and is based on her own life, her own story with her ex-husband leaving her, going through the divorce and going on with life afterward. She's divorced, with two kids living on their own and figuring out how to live life and make ends meet and such. Her script that is based on her life gets picked up for a big movie deal and they come to her house to film it and the actor that plays her ex-husband in the movie is a famous hot guy movie star named Leo. He comes and stays longer than the crew in his trailer on her property and gets to know her and her kids. They soon enough fall in love and start having a relationship of sorts where he's engaging and making promises with the kids, her and all. Then he gets called away on another movie shoot/deal and after he leaves, she's not sure about what happened. Did it happen or not? Was it real? Is it real? She gets confused and mixed signals and ends up getting into a fight with Leo, and then they have to talk and figure things out. It goes over all the real-life things, good and bad, that can happen with marriage, divorce, kids, and navigating a second-chance romance.
It was refreshingly light-hearted yet real and like a heartwarming Hallmark movie. I highly recommend this one to all those who love chick-lit, Hallmark romance, and uplifting, positive cheerful stories that also illustrate the reality of everything.
Thanks so much to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam/G.P. Putnam's sons for letting me read and review this enchanting read. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I’m an absolute wreck and i have no clue how i’m supposed to pick my favorite book of the year.

this book coddled my heart then ripped it out then put it back together. this was too beautiful and i think i’m now gonna cry again.

LEO FOREVER!!!!!

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin for this LOVELY ARC I loved so so so so much.

I wanted to like this more than I did -- it was highly recommended to me by a bookseller I love, but I just didn't get why the main love interest would stay in a small town and why he would fall in love with Nora? There was nothing stated in the book as to why Nora was such a catch?

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Putnam for this eARC!

Oh this was such a pleasure. The titular Nora takes her awful husband leaving her and spins it into a big Hollywood movie script, starring Leo, big Hollywood movie star. When they film a few scenes at her house...Leo just stays a while.

Nora and Leo are great characters, as are her kids (not always true in a novel like this one). Everyone was really kind, and the communication issues felt real and true to the characters. Loved this, would please like to stay in the Tea House also!

Nora Hamilton is a romance screenwriter known for her ability to churn out formulaic scripts for Hallmark channel-style films. Her career is ironic, however, given that her husband has just left her and her two young children after years of a loveless marriage. Reacting to her divorce, Nora writes a new screenplay about her experience, deviating fully from her typical genre. The script is picked up by a major producer who is able to get big stars in the lead roles. Portions of the film are even filmed in Nora's backyard, which is how she meets and gets to know the star Leo Vance, who after filming wraps up, remains in Nora's home in a desperate bid for a taste of normal life. When Leo leaves to film a major action movie and stops communicating with Nora, she is left to wonder if what she had was way too good to be true. This romance novel deviates slightly from the standard formula utilized by the genre because the required "break-up" before the happily-ever-after (which typically takes place in the final quarter of the book), occurs right in the middle, allowing Monaghan to develop Nora as a character independent of her romantic interests. Annie Jones of the Bookshelf (my favorite books podcast) absolutely raved about this book, admitting to having read it twice in the span of four months. I'm not sure I was as blown away as she was, but I can attest that the book was fast-paced, entertaining, and cute - definitely an ideal summer read.

Nora Goes off Script by Annabel Monaghan is a great, easy summer read. I enjoyed reading this book. Great book to take to the beach.

Oh my gosh, I LOVED THIS. The characters were delightful and it filled the hole in my heart that was left when I finished Book Lovers just a couple weeks ago. It's the perfect summer read, and honestly one that I would like to read again one day. Monaghan created a compelling story and lovable characters and I hope it's made into a movie ;)

What an absolute surprise and delight of a novel! Celebrity romances are my favorite kind of read, and this one really stood out for its unique spin on the genre. I really believed both the relationship and the complications that arose. I don’t know if “cozy romance” is a genre, but it should be, and Nora Goes Off Script should be it’s poster child.

want a romance that involves mature characters? this is for you! I rarely come across books that portray aspects such as a main character who is divorced and there are kids involved, and this one was a great one!

This had all of the makings of a 5 star read. The plot was unique, the characters interesting and robust. BUT…. I had a hard time with the whole “male savior” aspect. The character was a strong single mom. Why do we need her to go off the rails because of a guy? I get love and all, but it just didn’t sit right with me. It lost a star for me in that aspect but the writing was witty, fresh and fun.

Thank you #Netgalley @PenguinRandom @PutnamBooks for a complimentary ARC of #NoraGoesOffScript upon my request. All opinions are my own.

What a sweet, precious summer story! I loved it! Nora is a romance scriptwriter (think Hallmark Channel). Nora’s husband, Ben has walked out on her and their two children. She uses the pain from that experience to write a screenplay called “The Tea House.” It is a little darker than her normal script and parts of the movie are actually being filmed at her house. Leo, recently named “sexiest man alive,” is cast as Ben. Nora and Leo have the greatest dialogue and they are both utterly charming characters. You will fall in love with this book!

Thank you Putnam, Annabel Monaghan, and Netgalley for the gifted ARC.

Nora and her two children have recently been left by her husband Ben. She uses that to her advantage and writes the best screenplay ever. The movie is set to film at her 100-year-old home with Leo Vance, Hollywood's leading male actor, set to play her ex-husband Ben.

After filming has wrapped and everyone has gone home, Nora wakes up the next morning to find Leo on her porch. Wanting to escape from his life in NYC, Leo offers Nora $1,000 a day to let him stay at her house for the next week. Knowing that she cannot afford to pass up the money, Nora agrees. So much can happen in seven days. You can fall in love again or you can have your heart broken again.

Nora goes off script is a beautiful, emotional story that will have you felling all the feels. It's set in the small town of Laurel Ridge, NY and filled with memorable characters, a beautiful setting and a story that makes you want to not stop reading. This story is about finding love after divorce, finding love for the first time, healing after heartbreak, and second chances. It was such an incredible book that I read it in one sitting. It had me laughing, crying, yelling at the pages; I'm telling you all the feels (at times I wanted to be a character in the book to knock some sense into some of the characters). I'm sad that Nora and Leo's story is over and wish that this book was longer, so that I had more of their story to read.

Favorite Quote: "If you own up to not being perfect, life gets easier."

I was pleasantly surprised by this romcom within a romcom. Nora writes screenplays for the "Romance Channel." Formulaic happily every afters (almost) pay the bills. But when her narcissistic ex leaves, she pours her jaded heart into an autobiographical screenplay which leads to a film being shot on location...in her house. Cue the meet cute with the hottest star in Hollywood and a whirlwind romance that... doesn't quite end up like the reader might expect. With smart dialog, good characterization, and cute kids, Nora Goes Off Script makes for a great beach read or light book club selection.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an ARC of this book. All opinions in this review are my own.

This book was a lot of fun to read - and was a much needed escape at the time. This book follows Nora as she regains control of her life after a divorce, while raising two young kids, in a small town where everyone is kind of in everyone else's business. Add to it, she is a scriptwriter and just sold an amazing screenplay about her life & divorce, where part of it will be filmed at her house, which is very different from her traditional Hallmark movie-esq scripts. This would already fuel the fire of the small town if there wasn't the additional bonus of the leading man deciding to pay Nora to let him live with her for a few weeks after the shoot wraps because he is going through a crisis. Nora then has to balance her day-to-day care of household and children, feelings towards a very attractive actor who is going through it, and figuring out what to do about the bond it seems he is forming with her children who feel their father abandoned them. AND work on her next big script so she can keep paying the bills.

It was such a nice, realistic book to read, and I absolutely adored all of the very direct hits to Hallmark movie tropes. It comments on the reasons we read and watch these predictable romances without making you feel guilty about them, and it made me laugh out loud & smile. I will definitely need to see what else Annabel has written, because if it is anything like this, I think I would definitely enjoy it. Pick this book up, it is a good time.

4.75 stars!

Okay I loved this book, my literal only problem with it was that I felt like the problem took a bit too long to resolve (while I was reading it) but as soon as the issue is revealed/resolved it all makes sense. I will warn you all that it was a miscommunication of sorts, but one that I think most will enjoy because of how reasonable it was.

I also wish there was a tad bit more at the end before the epilogue, but I also get why it was done the way it was.

This book was super sweet and stressed the importance of standing up for yourself, family (that we find and happen to be born into), take care of oneself, and love. I loved seeing the relationship between Nora and Leo grow, despite Leo overstepping a little in the beginning.

Read for:
- Single parent romance
- Cute kids with realistic and fun personalities
- Small town romance
- Individual character growth
- Supportive relationship

Overall I really enjoyed this book and I would definitely recommend it!!

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the opportunity to review. All thoughts are my own!

Absolutely loved every page of this smart, surprising, endearing romance. It is the perfect anytime read, and will stay with me for years to come. It’s perfect.

I really enjoyed this new book. It had romance and humor and was such a feel-good book. Perfect summer reading. Highly recommend reading this one!

This book was super cute! I enjoyed the idea of falling in love with the person hired to play the character of your ex husband in a movie lol. Even though there wasn't any spice, I found the story carried it's weight without it. I was reeeeeally mad at the MMC about a certain situation and told myself "the author better have an excellent excuse for his behavior"....and she did. So, all in all, I loved it!

If you like Emily Henry, you’re going to love this book, too. Nora is a screen-writer who instead of writing a fluffy, happily ever after script, writes one about her failed marriage. The studio quickly picks it up and casts Leo, a former “Sexiest Man Alive” leading man, as her Ex. Things get further complicated when it’s decided to shoot the movie in her home! With Leo in her home for the movie & to live temporarily their relationship quickly and intensely escalates. But when he has to leave suddenly, will he come back? Will Nora once again have to pick up all the pieces alone? This is a perfect, quick summer read!

Nora Goes Off Script is the story of a recently single mom who writes formulaic movies for The Romance Channel - you know the type: corporate woman + cowboy + a family farm that needs to be saved = happily ever after. When her pretty much worthless husband leaves her, Nora writes her first-ever non-happy ending, at least in the traditional sense. Even though the writing was mainly just therapeutic for Nora, her emotional screenplay gets picked up by a huge production agency out of Hollywood and soon a pair of A-list actors arrive to film the movie in her very own backyard, and one of them doesn't leave...

Leo might be incredibly talented and the owner of a set of eyes that can't help but smolder, but he's burnt out and pretty miserable. After filming Nora's movie, he realizes that he could use a break from celebrity life and offers to rent her backyard tea house for a few days. A few days turn into a few more, and soon Nora's life is completely disrupted, in the best way.

The selling point for this book is completely accurate - it's Evvie Drake meets Emily Henry, in all the best ways, while still feeling like something fresh. This is not your average light-hearted romance, but as a romance lover, I still enjoyed every page. The conflict felt authentic, even as you were rolling your eyes that these two adults should just talk to each other. I'm looking forward to reading what Annal Monaghan puts out next!