This book just wasn’t for me. The pace of the story didn’t work for me. It was too slow of a slow burn for me and I couldn’t connect to the characters. I was really hoping to like this.

This book was a hit and miss for me. I liked the idea for the story and it was enjoyable in spots, like the friends. However, it was a little slow in spots.

The one upside of pulling a thigh muscle during a barre workout? Instant justification for spending an entire day reading my latest NetGalley ARC - The Rom Com Agenda!

The title and synopsis were enough to convince me that I'd enjoy this one, but I did not expect to love it the way that I did! I adored this book, devoured it, sent so many screenshots to my husband that he felt like he read it with me.

This read was so cute, funny, wholesome, nostalgic, sweet, a little sad, and just such an overall pleasure to read. I LOVED the references to Gilmore Girls and Little Women, the wit, the setting, and the many different kinds of love featured (romantic, sibling, friend, found family.)

I can't wait to pick up another of her books. This was in the top five most pleasant surprises while reading a book by a new-to-me author.

It is funny how everyone can see that the one that got away from Eli isn't the one for him, but Eli! This was a perfectly sweet story about finding what is right in front of you. Sometimes what you think you want isn't really it at all. Leah is a really great person. She needs friends and a circle she can count on. I am so glad that she finds that!

This book is a play on the cliche of ROM COMS, there is even a movie montage makeover scene worked in.

This book has some nostalgic appeal. Do you have a favorite romantic comedy? That movie was probably mentioned in this book. I appreciates the Gilmore Girls reference as well.

This was a cute, light and quick read. It comes out in January, which is perfect given the wintery setting.

⭐️3.25⭐️
If you are in the mood to read a literal rom-com movie but in a book format, this book is that! Small-town romance, forced proximity, all the best for this book. I really enjoyed Leah's backstory about her foster mom and her mom, I wished we would've gotten a little more from that. Like the audience, Leah talks about why the way that she is, but I would've liked to see more of the stories from Leah's childhood. The same goes for Eli, we never got to see their character's childhood, just very brief stories. I think it was interesting to have Leah fall for Eli so early on in the book, by the 30% point she already admitted that she had feelings for him, I for sure would've predicted her being the type not to admit any sort of feelings until the end. Eli though, he gives off golden retriever vibes. So sweet, yet such a dummy lol. He really kept telling himself that he was pining over Victoria when he could only think about Leah. Also, I liked how the author didn't make Victoria seem like a spawn of Satan. She just didn't love Eli, but she got her own love story. Overall, this book was cute, all the intimate scenes happen off the pages and the development of the love throughout the book pulls on your heartstrings.

After our main male protagonist, Eli, goes through a devastating breakup with "the one," his sister and closest friends decide to give him a rom-com makeover in order to win her back. It's during this make-over that he meets, Leah, a woman with a mysterious past and several different jobs. Leah reluctantly joins in on the make-over fun and in the process they begin to build a strong connection that has them questioning everything.

This book is like a warm hug. It was so cute! I enjoyed the small town setting and the found family aspect of the book which was unexpected. The banter between Eli and Leah was so much fun. I felt like they could have been people I went to school with in my small town. I also really enjoyed the side characters in the book, although I found myself wanting to spend more time with them than what was given. The absolute best part of the book was the references to classic rom coms. I grew up during the golden rom-com era, and I loved reminiscing about my favorite movies.

I did not enjoy the comments Eli made about Leah's size. It kind of threw off the banter. It was repeated several times throughout the dialogue. Also, I'm not a huge fan of epilogues, but this was one time when I thought it would be nice to have one. I would love to have read what the characters were up to! Overall, it was a cute read and I would read it again!

I loved the premise of this book. Rom-coms are, after all, the superior movie genre. I was a little lost in all the side characters and the pacing was a little wonky. Plus, the obsession with Victoria felt unrealistic AF. No one can be that great. Honestly, it made Eli seem pretty pathetic and I didn't love him as the MMC. Still an adorable romance though.

It was really cute! It just didn’t feel very special to me. It was a little too slow of a slow burn, and cliché at times. If you’re looking for a quick, light romance read then this is a good one.

Thanks to St Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy!

This book takes place in a small town called Willow Cove. Leah usually keeps to herself and works all the odd jobs she can find to save money to leave town. Eli is a sweetheart who falls too hard, too fast for his ex. After that ex dumps him for proposing too soon, his sister and friends try making him over to try winning her back. Leah and Eli's path crosses again and again and before she knows it, she is taken in by Eli and his friends. Will Eli see that his ex was just a fantasy and realize what's right in front of him?

This was a sweet romance with some of the best banter between all of the characters! A great closed door romance and, bonus, no third act breakup! Some lovely representation too.

The whole premise of this book just wasn't for me. I don't enjoy reading about a man being obsessed with another woman for 70% of the book before deciding on the MC. Overall, this felt like it could have made a decent high school YA concept, but it was just uncomfortable for it to be about 30 yos.

I feel as if I appreciated what this book was trying to do, but it just fell a little flat for me. There was enough to keep me reading the whole book, but not enough to keep me turning pages late into the night. I think I mostly had an issue with our hero and how blindly he was sticking with Victoria. I just couldn't believe it, and was getting annoyed with it. However, that premise may be someone else's jam!

Eli is hung up on his ex girlfriend Victoria and is determined to get her back. His friends and sister decide to give him a makeover to help him win Victoria back, Leah is a former foster child living in her deceased foster mother's house trying to save up enough money to leave the cute town of Willow Cove. Leah is reluctantly drawn into the makeover scheme by watching rom-coms with Eli for his makeover education.

This was a fun semi-slow burn. It was a cute premise and I liked the small town vibe. Eli has a slow transition into his feelings for Leah, which at times seems like transference. Eli eventually won me over in the end.

Leah was a loner and had always been, until Her help was elicited with the makeover of lovesick Eli Masterson. She suddenly found herself swept up in an adventure she never could have imagined, and in a place she never expected to find: home

It starts much like any makeover romp in a 90s flick, but moves into the slow burn romance of a Bridgeton novel, without the period drama— and the end of the book arrives without the expected cliches, but a pleasant resolution nonetheless.

While Leah and Eli will hold your attention throughout the book, the other “makeover artists” make for an even more enjoyable read and will keep you smiling!

The Rom-Com Agenda was a very sweet and fun book. I loved Leah but Eli on the other hand, not so much. Leah is a strong woman who has had a rough life and learns how to be loved by the end of the book. I loved how she found a family. Now Eli, I just wanted to shake some sense into him!

The book touches a lot of heavy topics like cancer, death, and foster care but still manages to stay lighthearted. Overall, I enjoyed the book and would recommend to all lovers of rom-coms.

I would like to extend a special thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Jayne Denker, who provided me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a cute, fun, nostalgic read.
If you are a fan of rom-coms you will totally enjoy this quick read!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for this digital ARC.

Main characters: Eli and Leah
Plot: Eli is dumped at the beginning of a promise to his short term girl friend to have something more when she returns from a trip abroad. Victoria leaves for her trip and Eli embarks on a mission to be exactly what she wants upon her return. With the help of his sister, her friends, and a new friend Leah, they attempt to give him the makeover to impress Victoria. Leah is dealing with the recent loss of her foster mother and living in a state of doom as she waits for her foster brother to come and sell the house she cared for his mom in. Overall, it’s a cute story but moves pretty slow at times.

What I loved: Gilmore girls references. Fierce friendships. Self doubt that felt realistic.

I really did love this book. I think it’s cause if hit kinda close to home for me. Especially losing your mom in such a way. I adored both Leah and Eli. I appreciated how independent and strong Leah was and how unafraid Eli was so show his feelings. It was just such a sweet and fluffy book even if it made me absolutely sob my eyes out in a few spots. I will say that there is no spicy scenes in the book if that’s what you’re looking for but honestly, it didn’t need them. I really need a book about Gray and Delia next tho. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone that was looking for a light fluffy read.

A love story… that teaches us learning to love and be loved, can come from a community!

Yes, this is a love story between two people! Leah and Eli have a sweet will they/won’t they romance that slowly burns until the final pages of the book. Their story in and of itself is enough to satisfy most readers, but Jayne Denker, takes things a step further. She uses the community of Willow Cove that Leah has stumbled upon, as the true love story. After all, is only with the help of her new friends that quickly become like family, that Leah is finally able to stay in one place and open her heart to love.

This book deals with some heavy topics in particular; mental health, the foster care system, cancer, death, and learning to accept help from others. To say that the main character, Leah, has had a rough life is an understatement. While the topics are weighted, Jayne Denker uses the plot of the “makeover” as a means to lighten the overall tone. What could have been a depressing story is one that runs the gamut of emotions.

An added bonus is there are lots of lovable side character. Denker did a good job of filling out the community of Willow Cove. She created characters that represent different backgrounds and communities.

Special thanks to St. Martin’s Griffin and NetGalley.com for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest feedback.

3.5 ⭐️- This was a really cute book! Eli gets dumped by “the One”, so his sister and friends make an agenda to make him over and teach him how to be the romantic hero. They quickly bring in Leah to help, who starts to fall for the real Eli, despite the fact that she wants to make no real connections in this town— she wants to get out asap. Eli starts to realize (with the help of a LOT of classic rom coms!) that the thing he’s looking for might have been in front of him throughout this whole process. A sweet, easy read, while cheesy and cliche at times, that has an ending that will make you feel warm and fuzzy. A big shoutout to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC!