ARC Review: Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan

 

From The New York Times bestselling author of Nora Goes Off Script , a romance about a single mother who’s offered a Pretty Woman -type deal that’s too good to refuse.

If they begin by pretending, can they end with something real?

Dolly Brick has never met a problem she couldn’t solve. Not when her mom left when she was twelve, and not at thirty-nine when she moves with her son back to Whitfield, Rhode Island for the summer to keep her dad and brother from losing the family home.

So when she comes across Stewart Whitfield—annoyingly handsome scion of the Whitfield family—with a flat tire and at the wrong end of a very public, very humiliating breakup, it’s in her nature to help. But Stewart’s proposed arrangement ends up being more than either of them bargained for, because as public dinners and high society benefits turn into sunset boat rides and swinging on the porch, Dolly starts to feel something more than helpful. She’s never relied on anyone besides herself, can she really start now?

Title: Dolly All the Time

Author: Annabel Monaghan

Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons

Expected Publication Date: May 26, 2026

Review:

Thank you to GP Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this title to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

I'm pretty sure there is nothing Annabel Monaghan could write that I would not read and love. She is an auto-read author for me. Her stories are so relatable and her characters are build out so well you cannot help but falling for them. This story was no exception. I adored everything about this book: the characters, the scenery, the plot. Everything.

Dolly  Brick is a teacher and single mom just trying to keep up with bills and take care of her son. When her childhood home has a fire in the Summer, she moves back home to help her dad. Dolly is the one everyone leans on; the caretaker who never truly takes care of herself. It even includes her assisting one of the town's famous rich son, Stewart Whitefield, change a tire. When she's offered a deal to fake date Stewart to help his image, it's an offer she cannot refuse seeing as her childhood home needs a ton of work she cannot afford. And Stewart is willing to pay her the money she needs and more to get her to agree to the deal. Of course they don't expect to catch feelings for each other. But when things explode in their faces, Dolly needs to re-evaluate what she truly needs and if Stewart is the one to give it to her.

Dolly is such a fabulous character. I totally connected with her on a cellular level. I am a care taker, have been all my life. She was easy to understand for me. She gives easily of herself, to a fault. And while she mostly takes care of herself well enough, it's not at all what she truly needs. She doesn't allow herself to relax. Watching her take care of her family was a bit exhausting with all her jobs and worrying about what will come next for her family. Enter Stewart, a man on a mission to up his image. Stewart is also someone who takes care of things, never truly letting himself relax. Too worried about looking good for his family and others. Too worried about taking over the family company because it's all he believes he can do. When he starts to spend time with Dolly, his views begin to change. She's pretty much his mirror; it's amazing how much they have in common, really. And he slowly begins to relax and realize there are other things in life besides working.

Monaghan builds out such a great world. It was easly to visualize Whitfield Rhode Island. I've never visited that area but all the boat talk and rich mansions were easy to imagine. It reminded me of East Hampton Long Island, where I spent quite a bit of time when I was younger. The divide she creates between the family the town is named for and the "common" people is palpable. But once you meet Stewart's family, you also see they are really no different from anyone else. Did I want to smack them sometimes with their frivilous use of money, sure. But I also loved how they used it for good, as well. 

The side characters in this book had me at every turn. Stewart's sister, Busy, was one of my favorites. I loved how she formed such a sweet friendship with Dolly. And Gus! He was such a great kid who was just trying to find himself, and Dolly was trying to give him that chance. I could go on and on about all the side characters in this book and this review would be pages long. Just know each one lends something fabulous to the story.

The pacing of the story was amazing. I finished it in less than 24 hours. I didn't want to put it down. Monaghan definitely wrapped me in the story and had me invested in where it would go. I laughed in so many places but also felt my heart clench much of the time and shed some tears over it. Monaghan hits so many different emotions in this story. 

My one complaint was the wrap up. Monaghan chose to have half a year go by in a very small number of pages. It felt just a tad rushed. But even with this, I still felt the story deserved all the stars. This is up there with Nora for me as my favorite book by Monaghan. I cannot wait to see what she writes next!

Author:

Annabel Monaghan is the New York Times bestselling author of IT'S A LOVE STORY, SUMMER ROMANCE, SAME TIME NEXT SUMMER and NORA GOES OFF SCRIPT. She is also the author of two novels for young adults, A Girl Named Digit and Double Digit.