Immediately preordered. This book is such a beautiful and heartfelt look at the way our adolescent experiences affect who we become. An honest, patient love story that I will recommend again and again.

Just like all of Annabel's work, this is delightful and heartfelt. Her books always go down easy. While this one read a little clunky in some areas, some final editing will likely work that out.

I can't wait to recommend it to my followers on instagram at @stressiereads. Post in the coming week. I'll also review on Goodreads.

Thank you for the copy!

5 stars!!! This is my second book by Annabel Monaghan and I’m starting to believe that she doesn’t know the word disappoint. Both so far have been written with absolute perfection! It’s a Love Story gave me all the feels that I would want to experience with a rom com and so much more! I absolutely adore Jane and Dan by themselves, but man, when they are together! One thing I especially loved was that the book wasn’t filled with big declarations of love but instead smaller everyday actions that made you feel just as giddy. Jane learns that being funny is a good trait and I’m glad for both her sake and my own, as the humor in this book literally made me laugh out loud! All in all, definitely read this book (especially if you love the Notebook)!

Thank you NetGalley and Putnam Books for sending me an eARC in exchange for my honest review!

Annabel Monaghan strikes again in the best ways, as always. Her stories always make me go through all the emotions. I also feel like she opens a door to a new world I didn't know existed and get to peek behind the curtains of this world. As I read this, I found myself reflecting on how the kids who go up in show business and then work in show business must feel. Then when I read her "Author's Acknowledgements" and her inspriation for the story is actually who I found myself thinking about as I read. CRAZY GOOD!

It's a Love Story is an insta-sparks, happenstance meeting, "enemies to friends to lovers" and force proximity book that invites readers into the world of Jane and Dan. What I love about these characters is they both have such "plain Jane" traits to them but are so much more than that. From the start, you feel an underlying unspoken tension that you can't pinpoint where, how, and why it started because they feel so compatible from the get go. Monaghan writes about them both in ways that you feel their unspoken attraction towards one another that comes off as a feud. As they come together to fulfill the task of a song for their script, they fall in love but Jane allows her own personal burdens to outweighs what she really deserves.

I was rooting for Dan to break down her walls, and kept wishing Jane would simply let him in and you feel her try so many ways. Once Jane is able to face her harsh truths head on, watching it all unfold was chef's kiss and I am forever grateful for this story.

I did receive an ARC of this beautiful story and these thoughts and opinions are authentically my own. Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam books for my ARC copy!

Thank you NetGalley for letting me enjoy this book! I enjoyed the development of the main character’s relationship - i did at certain points think “girl just do it” 4stars!!

Annabel is one of my automatic add to cart authors and I was so excited to read this arc! This book did not disappoint. I love the enemies to lovers trope and while I had high hopes for the song to come to fruition, the ending was great. I highlighted so much throughout the book and laughed several times. Highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and Putnam books for my ARC copy!

What have I to say - it is a MUST for the summer season this year!
The story is so heartwarming, all clear colors and beautiful.

Imagine Long Island summer, white dresses, old fashioned bathing suits, warm potato field, watercolor freedom, evening gatherings around the fire on the beach, all the warm feelings. Big family with all messy doings, farm breakfasts with tons of relatives, laughs, highlighting the true colors, embracing them.

Our FMC Jane has a twisted childhood that was formed\based in the Hollywood spotlights, a lot of personal issues, daddy issues, but she is so, so brave, she’s doing what she’s aimed for, even scared and in the dark of her closet or under the table chewing Kitkat.

Dan is a perfect introverted book boyfriend. He wants to be seen exactly as he is, no a part of the crowd or pack. And Jane sees that straight away. Dan is warm loving, the person who can be your quite wall that sticks around, who intently focused on you or the most beautiful things in the world.

Jokes are absolutely killing it in this book. It’s exactly my type of humor so I’ve enjoyed it beyond the words.


It’s not just a perfect beach read, it’s the story you can cherish in any season to bring some hope that you’re worth of everything. And the right person will see you as you are and love all of you.

I’me grateful indefinitely to have the chance to read it this month and I’m sure I will return to this book later in summer once more.

I loved this book, the authors inspiration coming from Jenette McCurdy’s book makes so much sense. The timeline is relatively quick but the detail and experiences made it feel like we got to see the kind of love that lasts lifetimes. I expected a quick and light read, but instead got a pleasant surprise with the depth of Janes story.

This book was a delight! Perfect for whenever you are having a bad day, week, month, or year and need something to make you smile and give you hope.

It took a few chapters for Jane and Dan to grow on me because they both had so many barriers up. However, once I met Dan’s family I was hooked. I love how Dan and Jane were able to see each other so clearly and talk about the hard stuff. It was also really sweet seeing them support and bring out the best in one another.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group for the ARC!

This was the perfect romcom. Jane is an ex-child star who transitioned from acting to producing. She finally finds the script that she feels is her big break, but she has to acquire the wow factor in order for it to be greenlit. She thinks her old childhood fling turned music superstar, Jack Quinlan, may just be the answer. The only problem is, she has not had contact with him in years and their last encounter did not go well. Her least favorite co-worker Dan, is set to work on the film with her. They head on a wild goose chase on the other side of the country to find Jack.

Enemies to lovers is one of my favorites. I am obsessed with Dan and his family. Annabel Monaghan is becoming a must read author for me. This is the second book of hers that I have read and I will definitely be adding her others to my tbr. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

It’s a Love Story by Annabel Monaghan is a charming and heartfelt novel that delivers an engaging mix of romance, humor, and emotional depth. The protagonist, a young woman grappling with personal dilemmas, embarks on a journey that is as much about self-discovery as it is about love. Monaghan’s writing is witty and relatable, capturing the complexities of relationships in a way that feels both fresh and authentic.

What really stands out is the chemistry between the main characters, which feels natural and compelling. The novel also explores themes of family, friendship, and finding one’s own path, adding layers of emotional richness to the story.

While the plot is fairly predictable in parts, the characters and their development keep things interesting. The pacing might slow down in some sections, but Monaghan’s humor and relatable insights into life’s challenges make up for it. It’s an enjoyable read for anyone looking for a feel-good, light romance with some heartwarming moments.

Overall, It’s a Love Story is a delightful, easy read that will resonate with fans of romance and contemporary fiction. A solid four stars—definitely worth picking up for a cozy reading experience!

I first met Annabel Monaghan in June of 2022. I read Nora Goes Off Script in one day while sitting in my apartment complex's pool and refusing to get out. I sobbed next to the water fountain.

Since then, I have devoured all of her books and even had the privilege of meeting her in Woodstock, GA last June. She was the nicest author I've had the pleasure of meeting. I was certain that last year's Summer Romance was her best. That was before It's a Love Story. I will admit that I thought I had put Annabel Monaghan on a pedastal and spent the first 7% fearful it wouldn't measure up to her backlist. Boy am I glad I was wrong. I spent the remainder of my snow day reading and taking breaks to savor the writing and the budding romance between Jane and Dan. I'm afraid that I won't be able to wait until next summer for her next book. Annabel Monaghan is the real deal and should be among romance author lists like Emily Henry and the like.

This book is like a warm blanket on a cold day. It’s like a hug in book form. I love all of Annabel Monaghan’s books, but THIS is my new favorite. I felt giddy while reading it. It felt like a front row seat to a love story. I was happy when the characters were happy and I was sad when the characters were sad. It was uplifting and searing at the same time. It was a Taylor Swift song in book format. The characters were raw and honest and it felt so relatable. True life issues. Anxiety. Negative self talk and narratives. Realizations. Acceptance. This was an exceptional reading experience. Highly recommend. Cannot wait to recommend it to all my family and friends.

I read this book in one sitting, sacrificing sleep, but it was entirely worth it. I had high expectations because I thoroughly enjoyed nora goes off script, same time next summer, and summer romance, and my expectations were met. I have to say though, that now, Its a love story is my new favorite Annabel Monaghan book. From the beginning, I was enthralled. Maybe its because I related to the FMC so much, and the MMC was everything I needed him to be! He was soooooo lovable! I felt everything the FMC did, it was heartbreaking to read about someone who thought like I did. I now have a new understanding of myself, and what love can be like. Thank you for a great read!!

I have loved all of Annabel Monaghan’s books and this one may be my favorite! And not just because I also love dateline and totally relate to them tricking us by putting the criminal in normal clothes 🤣.

I stayed up past my bedtime so I could finish reading. If you know my love of sleeping, this is huge.

I also learned the word ‘din’.

5/5!!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC, in return for an unbiased review. 2.5 stars, rounded up.

Annabel Monaghan, say it ain’t so.

Monaghan’s excellent novel “Nora Goes Off-Script” was clever and original, featuring a grown-up woman acting like a grown-up. It mocked all the eye-rolling rom-com tropes. “Same Time Next Summer” and “Summer Romance,” while entertaining, displayed an alarming slide into the genre she’d previously skewered. And now…”It’s a Love Story” is 100% bought in to those very tropes: A twenty-something white girl (but who reads like a teenager), works in media, and is “a mess”; the "love" is a predictable I-hate-you-but-really-love-you relationship; the character even go back to his picturesque small town in summertime- it’s all very, very clichéd, and very Hallmark Channel Christmas. There is nothing new here.

I am sure that this book will be a hit with the BookTok and Colleen Hoover crowd- but Ms. Monaghan, YOU ARE SO MUCH BETTER THAN THIS NONSENSE.

Whenever I read an Annabel Monaghan book I just want to climb into the book, each one is so comforting and cozy. I like how the characters are flawed but never cruel. This book is no different.

Jane and Dan are both stubborn people but their story was sweet and emotional. It was a fun journey to watch them begin to like each other and help one another grow into more confident people. The side characters (Dan's big and loud Irish family and Jane's always-there-in-a-pinch best friend, Clem) were also very fun to read about. Overall, I loved this book and can't wait for others to read it when it's published in May!

I really loved this book. Loved the characters, the setting, the tension- it was all fantastic. Dan and Jane were well written, multi-dimensional characters that had me rooting for them both individually and together. The only things that I didn't like are the Taylor Swift title which doesn't feel like it truly fits the book and the cover. Both things I can look past because the book was so, so good.

It’s a Love Story was a read that is far unlike the authors previous works. It’s well written, and I found myself unable to put it down. That being said, there were a couple of moments that I found so embarrassing that I NEEDED to put it down.
It was hard to get a true grasp of who Jane was a character that was hard to fully understand. She had a lot of conflicting personality traits, which translates easier in real life than with a fictional character. I also felt like her relationship was SUPER insta lovey. I’ve noticed this frequently with Annabel Monaghan books, but with this one it didn’t translate as well, maybe because they were supposed to be enemies. The love interest, Dan, also was unnecessarily mean and rude to Jane at the beginning of the book. By the fourth of fifth chapter, however, they are no longer enemies.
The romance was on the front page in this book, where in the previous books I felt were more classified as women’s fiction. The secondary problems were that: secondary. Jane’s relationship with her mom, which felt like it would be a bigger part of the story, was limited to a total of 5 pages. Her friend Clem only existed to be her personal therapist.
I did end up enjoying the book, and like how in the end the story tied together. I’m glad she got what she wanted most of all and repaired her relationships. Special thanks to the publisher and author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

There are very few romance authors to whom I claim fealty. If the plot syn]opsis doesn’t interest me, it doesn’t really matter how much I loved your last novel.

Annabel Monaghan is one of those authors. She is a master craftsperson of metaphors. Her novels are master classes in “show, don’t tell.” She can (and will) evoke any emotion with a simple simile. She could write about two people falling in love while watching paint dry and her sentences will keep me turning the pages to find out what shade it ends up.

We’d be here all day (and I’d be breaking some copyright laws) if I were to provide every sentence I highlighted while reading It’s a Love Story. But favorites include :

“It’s like when you finally light a match on the beach and you have to cup it without hands so it won’t blow out. I was getting a sense of myself and wanted to keep it.” [On MMC moving away from home and his family.]

“But it’s more the everyday stuff, like the way they’re always aware of where the other one is in the room, like they’re each other’s house keys.” [On MMC’s parents’ 40-year marriage.]

There is a plot (if you’re into that sort of thing, I guess). It’s good. Especially if you love when one character has a big, loving family and the other grew up with a single mom and abandonment issues. The two main characters are nuanced, the side characters are…aplenty.

I did have some questions about the film industry aspects of the story (are cinematographers really that involved at the pre-pro stage? Are movies really greenlit over the potential soundtrack? Why does Jane seem to have job security?)

Also, text messages were formatted so that they blended in with the main narrative, but sometimes omitting terminal periods for realism. Which I neither loved nor hated, but thought was a unique and interesting choice.

All in all, Monaghan was and continues to be one of my favorite authors in the genre (the other is Cara Bastone, btw).

Thank you to the author for sharing her brilliance and the Powers That Be for the ARC.