In Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Margo got pregnant at age 19 after an affair with her professor and needed a quick way to make money as a single mom. And so commenced her time on OnlyFans. This book was so quirky, so clever and so hilarious. I guffawed so many times. Margo had grit and did what she had to do. She was complicated and messy but so entertaining. Her friends and family were hysterical. But it was also emotional and raw and made me root for Margo every step of the way. I loved watching her grow up. An absolute joy to read.

A refreshing and unexpected read from Rufi Thorpe. I thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns which I did not see coming. It redefines family and parental relationships. It could have easily ended in disaster, but it ends on a hopeful note. I will recommend this book as a great beach read with substance.

Having read all of the author's previous work, I had some expectations for her latest novel and I was most definitely NOT disappointed! Margot is such an amazing character and I find myself still thinking of her after three weeks have passed since I finished this book. Rufi Thorpe must have done some extensive research on several themes/topics covered within the novel and I appreciate her diligence; I learned some things while reading this one, which added to the pleasurable experience and kept me talking about this one to so many others!

In addition, I did a combination of print reading and audio listening and I cannot recommend the audio highly enough! The novel is narrated by Elle Fanning and there could not be a more perfect voice for Margot; she did a fantastic job and I can only hope to hear her again in the future. Highly recommend this novel and it will certainly be in the top ten of my 2024 reading!

Nobody could have prepared me for the true plot of this book—though the synopsis promises an array of juicy details.
For yes, this is about OnlyFans and TikTok and pro-wrestling. It’s about a 20-year-old single mother, her son the result of an affair with her english professor.
And yet…oh man, oh yet. It is also a deeply, agonizingly human story about the judgments we make, the way we try and decide who “deserves” a Good Life.
Rufi Thorpe, master of fleshing out realistic characters for people to relate to, has somehow surpassed even herself. Here is a novel full of people who keep handing you reasons to root against them….though I promise you’ll stay glued to the story for the exact opposite reason. You will love them.

Margo’s Got Money Troubles was a complete and total surprise for me. I was expecting light and offbeat, and I got complexity, nuance, heart, and so much more.

The plot is unusual: Margo is a young mom who needs money and ends up trying Only Fans as a way to support herself and her baby.

But this book is so much more than that. It’s a story of a young woman with very little support and a terrible example, but who is an excellent mother. She’s a character who has had some bad things happen, but her heart is wide open and she draws in a cast of ragtag, nuanced characters to be her new family. I loved Margo so much, and I loved her relationship with her estranged ex-pro wrestler dad, Jinx.

I really liked what this book had to say about motherhood, especially young motherhood, and how harshly mothers (and women) are judged. I found myself reexamining some of my own biases.

This is my first Rufi Thorpe, and I’m so excited to find a new author with a backlist I can dive into! This was a five star book for me — I just its freshness, creativity, and perspective.

I went into this novel with low-key expectations as I was not previously familiar with this novel or author. Well, I was blown away by this totally engaging and unique story that I could not consume fast enough to see what happened next.

Margo becomes pregnant by her college English professor. She decides to keep the baby. Mark, the married professor who already has two children already, wants nothing to do with Margo now.

Margo gives birth and comes back to her college apartment. She loses 2 roommates as they don't want to deal with a newborn in the apartment. This happens just as Margo's father, a former professional wrestler shows up (after a stint in rehab) looking to help and needing a place to stay.

I won't give any more plot details as I don't want to spoil a wild ride. The characters in this book are so well-written and interesting, they shine, especially Margo. She is nuanced and complex and it was a pleasure to witness her character growth.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy.

When I saw the synopsis of this book, I requested it so quickly that my fingers may have caught fire. And I am so thankful I did, this is easily in my top 5 books of the year. I would be naturally drawn to literally no individual element of a high-level summary of this book; I don't like babies, I don't care for wrestling much, and I feel mostly indifferent about OnlyFans. But the culmination? I don't know what to say besides oh my god. This book is hilarious and original and I have recommended it more than any other book so far this year.

Rufi Thorpe is a new author for me. I picked the book up because it just sounded interesting and because it says it is "blisteringly funny" and I could certainly use some laughs. I know many of us have had money troubles at some point over the years and have had to find ways to overcome them or manage.

Description:
As the child of a Hooters waitress and an ex-pro wrestler, Margo Millet's always known she’d have to make it on her own. So she enrolls at her local junior college, even though she can’t imagine how she’ll ever make a living. She’s still figuring things out and never planned to have an affair with her English professor—and while the affair is brief, it isn’t brief enough to keep her from getting pregnant. Despite everyone’s advice, she decides to keep the baby, mostly out of naiveté and a yearning for something bigger.

Now, at twenty, Margo is alone with an infant, unemployed, and on the verge of eviction. She needs a cash infusion—fast. When her estranged father, Jinx, shows up on her doorstep and asks to move in with her, she agrees in exchange for help with childcare. Then Margo begins to form a plan: she’ll start an OnlyFans as an experiment, and soon finds herself adapting some of Jinx’s advice from the world of wrestling. Like how to craft a compelling character and make your audience fall in love with you. Before she knows it, she’s turned it into a runaway success. Could this be the answer to all of Margo’s problems, or does internet fame come with too high a price?

Blisteringly funny and filled with sharp insight, Margo’s Got Money Troubles is a tender tale starring an endearing young heroine who’s struggling to wrest money and power from a world that has little interest in giving it to her. It’s a playful and honest examination of the art of storytelling and controlling your own narrative, and an empowering portrait of coming into your own, both online and off.

My Thoughts:
This was a fun an unconventional read that, even though many parts were sad, kept me laughing through much of the book. This was a coming of age story for Margo and she was certainly in a bad situation with no money, no partner, and a baby on the way. Her imaginative and unconventional approach to tackling her money problem was hilarious! I think she was much smarter than most people gave her credit for too. Throughout the book I was hoping for Margo, and her father too, to succeed. There were parts of the story where I was so afraid Margo would lose everything. Well written and well plotted by the author. The story moved well and kept me reading.

Thanks to William Morrow through Netgalley for an advance copy.

I don't know that I have anything to say that hasn't already been said, but Margo's Got Money Trouble is one of the most unique and wonderful books I've read. The premise couldn't get better. The writing is tight but so thoughtful. What it does with points of view is really good even though I don't have a technical explanation for why it works.

The story follow's Margo, who becomes pregnant after a brief affair with her college English professor. After giving birth to Bodhi, she struggles to find childcare and loses her waitressing job. Margo starts an OnlyFans account as a way to make money on a schedule that works for her, and her gentle-yet-intimidating father, who is famous is the wrestling world, helps her figure out a persona to increase her following. There's so much more that happens in this book, but I think it's best to just dive in.

 I am jazzed that this is set to be a TV series so I can enjoy it all over again.

4/5!

I went in blind to Margos Got Money Troubles (aside what's given in the title lol) and I was pleasantly surprised! It was funny, quirky, and heartwarming (although frustrating at times!).

During the pandemic, many people found their way to only fans way to make some money when going to work wasn’t always possible. For Margo, she’s always known that her parents and her family were going to be unable to help her in anyway financially, and that she was going to have to do it on her own. But when she becomes a different character to make her only fans success, the narrative her life takes a different turn, but wow on the surface. This may seem fluffy and fun, and in a lot of ways it is, it’s also really about the idea of success and how generational support and wealth helps people succeed, and that those who don’t have that often face judgment and a battle to survive. This was definitely book that made me laugh, cry, and rage at the system

LOVED THIS ONE!!! 5 STARS!!! This book was everything. A cross between two of my favorite genres: coming of age and moody weird fucked up woman protagonist. Elle Fanning narrated the audiobook and it was 10/10. I loved Margo’s windy journey, the full circle ending, the way she navigates her imperfect parents, and how she comes into herself as Margo/mother/daughter/adult/friend. This book had everything and you should read it if you like similarly funky books!!

Have you ever read a book that from the get go, both author (and through them their characters) challenged you as the reader to step up your game?

Well, for me "Margo's Got Money Troubles" by Rufi Thorpe did exactly that. The author's frequency in shifting between third and first person narration began the challenge for me to stay focused and to "keep up, girl!"

Add to that Margo's "all-or-nothing" quest to determine what it meant to live a "good" life and how best to be a "good" person?! My oh, my oh, MY! Without giving any specifics, let me just say that much of this quest for clarity and self understanding occurred as Margo (and a cast of similarly questing secondary characters) made some extremely questionable life decisions! You know, the kind of life decisions also known as life ruining events!

And yet...this novel left me feeling optimistic and hopeful. Watching characters that over the course of the novel you have watched grow into better versions of themselves will do that to a reader!

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced galley copy! This novel was published on June 11, 2024.

#Margo'sGotMoneyTroubles
#RufiThorpe
#NetGalley

I was truly not prepared for the full plot of this book. Margo is a 20 year old new mother who lost her job after having a baby from an affair with her English Professor and she’s struggling to figure out how to make ends meet and figure out how to balance parenting. She turns to OnlyFans and finds unexpected but reasonable success. Rufi Thorpe created such a REAL cast of characters and depicted the judgements we cast on people and their situations. This story was so enjoyable and you’ll be glued till the end.

I really liked Margo's character and I am proud of how she handled all the adversity that happened to her. I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked up this book but I ended up loving it! A great coming of age story with lots of character development!

Margo is a naive college student who gets pregnant by her professor and is determined to keep and raise her baby alone. Margo is very aware of her situation, finds a creative way to make money to support her baby and herself. Along the way she develops a relationship with her dad, gets to know her roommate and falls for a stranger.
The premise was looking to be depressing but the writer knows what she is doing, the writing came across uplifting and hopeful. There was a moment with Margo that everything built up and she had to lock herself in the bathroom to cry, she had her moment and then went to find another way to move forward. I liked Margo’s resilience and learning from her mistakes.

I started this book this morning and have already finished it, that's how invested I was in Margo's story. This is one of those novels where you're rooting for the protagonist the whole way through and it had me hooked from the very first paragraph.

19 year old Margo finds herself pregnant, alone, and short on cash. In her quest to find meaning in her life, Margo kept her baby (a product of a brief affair with her former English professor) and is now faced with making her way in the world while trying to balance motherhood and her own coming of age.

After Bodhi's arrival and in quick succession her roommates move out, her ex pro-wrestler father shows up after a stint in rehab and moves in, and her former Hooters waitress mother has accepted a youth pastor's proposal. And still Margo is short on cash. What's a young woman with no cash to do? 0nlyF@ns (obviously).

👶🏼 💻 💰 🍄 👶🏼 💻 💰 🍄

This is a witty & heartwarming (sometimes bittersweet and sharp) look into a young woman trying to make her way in the world as a powerful and independent individual with a career that, while successful & relatively safe, causes upheaval that may not be worth the consequences.

I loved the cadence of this book and the narrative style and character development. I deffinitely had a connection with some aspects of Margo's life and found her failures and successes drawing me into the book and rooting for her.

This might be the most emotionally satisfying book I’ve read…ever??? Aaaaah why can’t Rufi Thorpe publish a new book every six months, at least? I am willing to wait when they’re this good, though. But I do think the title and jacket art do this one dirty. It’s not nearly as lightweight as it’s being marketed, and I wouldn’t have picked it up if I weren’t familiar with the author already, which would have been a terrible loss.

Margo is 19 and languishing at community college when she is swept into an affair with a married professor. She ends up pregnant and decides to have the baby. What follows in Margo’s Got Money Troubles is a story and characters that are frustrating, quirky, and endearing.

Let’s jump right into the frustrating. My pragmatic nature trampled my romantic side decades ago so a 19-year-old girl who’s decided college is not for her, but that a baby will give her something to do is quickly going to trigger my judge-y side. The trope of unplanned pregnancies in this day and age is one of my least favorite, but Margo goes ahead despite everyone she knows telling her it will ruin her life. With no more support than a small check from the professor’s mother to keep her quiet she brings her new son Bodhi home to the apartment she shares with three roommates and begins life as a single working mother.

This is just the entry point into a world of eccentric characters and plot points that would be frustrating if author Rufi Thorpe’s didn’t write them so well. In short order two of the roommates have moved out and Margo’s absentee father, a former WWE wrestler has moved in. Faced with the fact that no work is feasible without childcare she decides to stay home and starts an OnlyFans account—a pay-per-view streaming service for adults.

The trials and tribulations continue through the novel, but in the way of ordinary people and life. Mistakes are made, tempers lost, things go wrong, but throughout it all Thorpe keeps Margo real. She neither turns her into a saint or a whore; there’s no sugarcoating being a single mother with a high school education nor is there some magical bailout that solves all of her problems. Instead, Thorpe settles into the world of quirky and unexpected with ease and humor. The kind of humor that saves trauma from turning into tragedy. Yes, Margo’s got money troubles and she’ll continue to have them, but from them she builds a life rich in everything that matters.