Dolly All the Time | Annabel Monaghan

 

Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan — Book Review

Genre: Contemporary Romance / Women’s Fiction
Published: May 26, 2026
Rating: 8/10

Annabel Monaghan’s Dolly All the Time is a warm, witty summer romance about a woman who has spent most of her life taking care of everyone except herself.

Dolly Brick is thirty-nine, a single mother and the kind of person people call whenever something needs to be fixed. After her mother left the family, Dolly became responsible for her father and siblings far too early. Years later, she is still carrying other people’s worries as though they belong entirely to her.

When Dolly returns to her seaside hometown of Whitfield, Rhode Island, with her young son, she plans to spend the summer helping her father and brother save the family home. Then she meets Stewart Whitfield, a wealthy local businessman recovering from a humiliating public breakup. Stewart needs a respectable girlfriend to accompany him to a season of social events, and Dolly needs financial security. Their practical agreement seems simple: they will pretend to be a couple, follow the rules and avoid becoming emotionally involved.

Naturally, their carefully organised arrangement soon becomes much more complicated.

The fake-dating premise may sound familiar, but Monaghan gives it emotional depth by creating two characters who are exhausted from carrying their families. Dolly and Stewart come from very different social worlds, yet both have built their identities around being useful, dependable and constantly available. Their romance is therefore not only about attraction. It is also about what happens when two people who are used to solving everyone else’s problems finally allow themselves to be cared for.

Dolly is the heart of the novel. She is capable, funny and loving, but her independence is partly a survival mechanism. She does not simply enjoy being needed; she has learned to measure her value through what she can do for other people. Her emotional journey asks an important question: when does generosity become self-neglect?

This theme makes the story particularly relatable for readers who have ever felt responsible for keeping a family together. Dolly’s growth does not require her to stop caring about others. Instead, she gradually begins to understand that love should not demand the complete abandonment of her own needs.

The seaside setting adds plenty of escapism. Rocky beaches, boats, elegant houses and summer social events create a world that feels bright, romantic and cinematic. There is a definite Pretty Woman and Cinderella quality to the contrast between Dolly’s practical life and Stewart’s privileged environment, but the novel remains grounded by Dolly’s responsibilities as a mother and daughter.

Monaghan is especially good at writing playful dialogue and natural chemistry. Dolly and Stewart’s conversations feel lively, and their attraction develops through small acts of attention rather than romantic declarations alone. The relationship is at its best when they recognise the burden the other person is carrying.

The novel is not flawless. The final conflict feels more frustrating and prolonged than the earlier emotional development deserves. Stewart’s behaviour near the end may test the patience of readers who dislike extended separation or communication problems. The resolution also arrives more quickly than some readers may find completely satisfying.

Even so, Dolly All the Time remains an engaging and emotionally intelligent romance. Beneath the glamorous summer setting and fake relationship is a compassionate story about caregiving, boundaries and the courage required to receive love rather than constantly earning it.

Final Verdict

Dolly All the Time is an ideal summer read for fans of mature heroines, single-mother romances, coastal settings and fake-dating stories with genuine emotional substance.

It is funny, romantic and comforting, but its most memorable message is a serious one: being strong does not mean carrying everything alone.

Recommended for readers who enjoy:
fake dating, opposites attract, wealthy hero and working-class heroine, single-parent romance, family responsibilities, seaside settings and women learning to choose themselves.

The Reading Mindset Rating: 8/10