It’s a Love Story
Annabel Monaghan

I am a huge fan of this author and you should be. If you haven’t read her, read this. You’re welcome for the PSA.
I love the main characters of It’s a Love Story. Jane and Dan are super likable in all their foibles. Being an artist I could so relate to Dan and Jane. They have found a perfect script, a love story. Dan has had some success in cinematography and photography while Jane is a struggling producer. They are willing to work together even though Jane believes Dan has torpedoed her film making dreams and their meet cute beforehand.

Before Jane’s secret past and heartbreak can be revealed, they are flying cross country to snag a hit song that will green light their project. Dan’s family join the program in progress while we leave Jane’s support people, her Mom and friend, Clem back in LA.

Jane and Dan struggle with their authenticity (one is all up in it and the other is faking it to they make it) and truly being seen and appreciated for who they are. These quiet introverts must unite not untie. ( if you are an introvert you’ve heard the joke) Will they get there and if so, how will they do it? The journey is exquisite.

In full disclosure my first crush was Dan the Fireman 👨‍🚒 🔥. I’m truly grateful to read my advanced copy of my new favorite book thanks to the author, G.P. Putnam’s Sons and NetGalley. I am truly jealous good reader because you have this whole book ahead of you this summer. 5 Stars ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“There’s a version of me that’s better than the version of me that I show the world”

Jane who was a child actor is now in LA trying to get a script greenlit but it isn’t as easy as it seems. Jane grew up holding on to a secret that she discovered at a young age, from that point on she felt as if she wasn’t worthy. After spending time with Dan she never expected to fall in love with him.

I loved seeing Jane open up and realizing that she is worth so much more than what anyone has ever made her feel. The Notebook is my all time favorite movie and I really enjoyed how it was referenced so much in this book! 🥰

This would be a perfect beach/summer read. Please add this to your summer TBR you won’t regret it! 😊

Thank you Annabel Monaghan, Penguin Group Putnam & NetGalley for an e-ARC copy.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an early copy of It’s A Love Story!

Overall I give this book 3.5-4 stars. I liked how raw the love story was. It was a bit cheesy at times and it could have been a little bit steamier, but overall it was a cute, warm, and fuzzy romance.

I loved how welcoming his family was and how they took her in and just knew they were gonna fall in love. I thought the way Jane warmed up to Dan’s dad and the bonding over muffins was adorable. And then at the end their reaction to the selfie was perfect.

Very quick and easy read and I really enjoyed it more than Summer Romance, so I’m looking forward to giving her other books a chance! I feel like this might be a perfect set up to another book (maybe about Jack’s redemption from being such a colossal jerk).

I adored this book!! I am a huge Annabel M fan, and this one does NOT dissapoint. It has all the makings of a fun, rom-com with the depth and humor on AM gives. Highly recomend!

I always love Annabel's books when I need a quick read romance book. She does such a great job of building vulnerable, likable characters.

I really enjoyed the plot and this book has stuck with me weeks after I read it.

OVER THE MOON to receive an advanced copy of It’s a Love Story. Annabel Monaghan is an authors I tell everyone about when they ask me for book recommendations. This was another 10/10 for me! Thank you so much to Penguin Group G.P. Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book. So very grateful. Publication date May 27, 2025.

4⭐️ Absolutely wonderful love story! I fell in love with the characters immediately. The Finnegan family makes me long for a huge family, each and every member was someone to cherish. Dan and Jane's love story does run at a slightly accelerated pace, but still remains believable and desirable. I loved the clever way that Jane reached out to him at the end of the story, tying things together.

Annabel Monaghan has done it again, though I never doubted that she would! I couldn't imagine enjoying a book of hers more than last year's "Summer Romance", but "It's a Love Story" is right up there with it! Monaghan writes some of the sweetest romances, filled with secondary characters that feel real and genuine and sitting down to read one of her books feels like a warm hug.

Jane Jackson is a former child star (think Disney shows, such as "Hannah Montana"), known for her "oof" face and being the comedic relief, who is now an executive for a film studio. In an industry looking to churn out the next best superhero movie, she is desperate to bring a heartwarming love story to the big screen, even going so far as to exaggerate her connection with an old acquaintance-Jack Quinlan, the world's hottest pop star. She hasn't spoken to Jack in years and their last interaction as teenagers didn't exactly go well, leading (along with other personal revelations) to a years long battle with insecurity. She reluctantly travels with her failed-romantic-interest-turned-work-nemesis, Dan Finnegan, to his hometown where Jack is playing in a music festival. We meet Dan's loud and lovable family and get to know Dan better as well. What started as an "oh shit, I need to cover my ass" trip turns into a journey of self discovery for Jane. This is something Monaghan does well, as the reader goes on this emotional journey with Jane. She morphs from a character in the story, to a fully fledge person who could just as easily be your sister, best friend, or other close acquaintance. I may not have agreed with Jane's reactions to different events, but she is realistic enough that I can understand where she is coming from. Dan's family are obviously secondary characters, meant to present Jane with a different perspective and to help her to see Dan in a new light. But each member has their own discernable personality and like Jane, presents as characters who could easily be real life people. I smiled, laughed, huffed in exasperation, almost cried (only because I'm dead inside), and smiled again while reading this book and I highly recommend picking it up and reading it!

TLDR: This book was awesome, I will read anything Annabel Monaghan writes, and you should too! 10/10 recommend! Thank you to Penguin Group G.P. Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4⭐️

If Annabel writes it, just know I’m going to read it.
I always know going into her books that it will be a fast paced read and one that won’t be able to put down. And this one was no different.

She writes stories that just bring you right in. Characters, settings, and stories that leave you wanting more. I loved Jane and Dan. Their relationship while felt kind of insta lovey progressed so well for me. The complexity of their characters was so good. And just their whole dynamic was perfect. The tension and banter was so good. I say this every time but Annabel has a way of writing characters that I just relate to. And while I’m no “child star” there were definitely characteristics in Jane that I definitely could relate to and understand her thinking and actions. And Dan.. well he has my heart. I just loved him.

Annabel also does the best side characters! I absolutely loved Dans family! The dynamic between Jane and Dans family was one of my favorite things about this book! It was so heartwarming! And Clem was seriously the best! I need her book asap!!

Thank you NetGalley & Putnam Books for the e arc!

This was a really cute, feel good read. I was honestly expecting your typical quick read love story, but the depth of the characters allow you to connect to the story in such a meaningful way, even off the page. I loved the way that Annabel built up the characters throughout the story; I want Jane to be my friend!

My main reason for 4 stars is because I do feel that the kindling of their relationship / love was such an accelerated timeline, that it was not super believable. That doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it though! It’s a very interesting Enemies to Lovers, yet also Instalove.

Thank you so much for NetGalley and and Putnam books for this ARC.

This book was so sweet. I enjoyed the story and the rom-com feel of the book. I loved the setting and I will probably re-read this in the summer. I loved watching Jane and her journey. I think sometimes we need help getting out of that perfectionism. Her and Dan (her rival) are so adorable together and I loved how he treats her. I felt like this one wasn’t as emotional as her other books but it’s still a great summer read. I loved dans family & wish it had been a little longer!

First off, thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

You guys, this BOOK 😭 Annabel has a way of writing stories that absolutely pulls at my heart strings. We follow Jane, a former child star turned producer, who is working so hard at having a script she fell in love with be turned into a movie. She ends up traveling with a guy she hates from work in order to seal the deal, and finds out so much about herself along the way as she spends time with him and his family.

Seeing imperfect characters fight hard for love, and watching them grow and heal never ceases to make my heart swell. This is absolutely one of my favorite romances of all time, and makes me excited for what this author will come up with next ❤️

A great summer read!

The backstory for the romance was fun and quirky in a good way. Jane was a child/teen star on a hit tv show and she played the girl who always made mistakes and had funny mishaps. She even had a signature "oof" face after a classic fumble. Now in her thirties with very unresolved daddy issues, she works for a production studio and fell in love with a script. Dan Finnegan, an artsy but impossibly muscular cinematographer, also loves the script. To try to give the movie more commercial appeal, Jane says she can get one of the hottest singers of the moment, Jack Quinlan, to write an original song for the movie because they knew each other from back in her teen star days. Oops, she lied and he actually inflicted a lot of emotional damage on her when she was 14. But it's okay, because Jack is playing at a festival in Dan's hometown so Jane and Dan stay with his parents, hang with his 4 hot brothers, and gently try to stalk Jack. And then they catch feelings and that part is very sweet and honestly wonderful, even if the dialogue gets overly sappy.

Monaghan has become an auto read author for me because I like her solid writing and storylines. But this book tried a little too hard. The obstacle for Dan and Jane at the 80% mark felt very forced and also predictable. Jane was in touch with her own feelings and desire for control while also deluding herself about being unlovable. It just felt like a reach. Dan was cute and said some lovely things, but started to get a little cringe, honestly! Eep! I also didn't like the title and its Taylor Swift allusions or the classic romance novel tactic of the main character not straightening her hair and therefore getting in touch with who she really is. You can't talk about Long Island humidity and then be happy about how your hair curls when you get out of the 17th shower of the week.

Those quibbles aside, I ate the book up and enjoyed the slow burn of attraction and love between Dan and Jane. High 3 stars!

This would’ve been an easy 5⭐️ read if it wasn’t for that self sabotaging thing. It can ruin an entire book for me and that’s what almost happened here. The FMC in this book made me so mad. I went from loving her to not liking her at all and then back to rooting for her again. I’m all for some drama, but why does it need to be annoying drama?! Anyway, it was still a great book. With a very sweet love story and I do recommend it

I was so excited to get to read an eARC for this novel, because I've absolutely loved the other books I've read by Annabel Monaghan and am a big fan 💜💜 I loved the characters - Jane and Clem and Dan and his big chaotic family of Finnegans. I did not love Jack Quinlan 🤣 I loved all of the humor and witty banter and the romance (and that car scene in the rain storm!) Can't wait to recommend to all my fellow romance lovers.

I liked this one better than Nora Goes Off Script! The characters were cute and came across...real? Here is a link to my Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6937219335

Thank you so much for the ARC! I really enjoyed it!

This romance had such a grounded and cozy feel to it. So often, I read a romance book and feel that it is an idealistic image of what I would love love to look like, but this book really captured a realistic tone mirroring the real way we get to know and fall in love with one another.

Jane is an absolutely delightful and unhinged FMC. Her brain was a spiraling ball of chaos that made her so lovable and deeply relatable from the first page to the last. I saw so much of myself in her and feel like that will be the case with so many readers. She has a beautiful internal arc as she struggles with love, both letting others love you and taking the chance to dive into it with someone else. It's a compelling and heartwarming evolution as she explores these feelings. And then there's Dan... there was a sweetness and sureness to Dan that paired so well with Jane's chaos. He was steady and kind, but very honest and forthright, not afraid to carve his own path, and I loved their stories as individuals and together.

The emphasis on familial love was also a slam dunk with this book. The Finnegans were all so loveable, and watching them embrace Jane was so special, as was Jane's relationship with her own mother. I really enjoyed getting to see the different ways love grows and flourishes, whether it was romantic, platonic, or familial.

This book was such a delight to read, and I am so thankful to have gotten the chance to read and review it early. Thank you, NetGalley and Penguin Group!

Annabel Monaghan is becoming one of my favorite authors, and this book did not disappoint. It was a slower start for me, but once the book took off, I was hooked. I really liked the dynamic of Dan’s family and all of the side characters in the book. I also absolutely loved the romance between Dan and Jane, and loved everything about Jane’s character. I am excited to see what this author writes next!

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for this ARC

Wonderful story as usual from a reliable author! Love the slow burn before they finally kiss. Write another, please!

Great development of the romantic relationship between the characters. I appreciated that it wasn't "instalove" and we got to see the two get to know each other and spend time around Dan's family. The main conflict of trying to track down the singer to write a song wasn't too interesting to me personally, but the rest of the story (setting, characters, and dialogue between Jane and Dan) was enough to make this a really good romance.