Love Katherine's book and this is another hit. I really enjoyed the dynamic between the two MCs, and how Emma had her own journey through this narrative that didn't focus solely on Charlie and his actions.

Katherine Center, you sly dog. I will readily admit that she had me in the first half, and I truly thought I was going to have to settle for another romance that had oh-so-much squandered potential. This may have been because I recently read three YA books back-to-back, where one of the heroines was named Emma and the other two had red hair, which is honestly more my fault than anything.

However, it is a great lead-in for our woman of the hour! Katherine Center crafts a new age Beach Read-esque story about screenwriter Emma Wheeler, who meets her match in grump-turned-screenwriting genius Charlie Yates. Together, they will need to pen a rom-com worth swooning over for the Hollywood execs. And in the process, maybe real feelings will emerge? Who knows, who knows...

ANYWAY....the first half of this book almost made me DNF. If there's one thing I hate, it's sentences that are just so. Freaking. Short. They are the worst. The literal worst.

This book was extremely guilty of force-feeding me bite-sized sentences that basically rehashed the same concepts over and over. In the early days of the story, Emma is busy gushing over Charlie Yates, and proceeds to wax on and on about his virtues. At some point, as a reader in the audience, I just wanted to ask her if she was getting paid for all this promotional material. If we cut out a few pages of exposition and awkward character info dumps, we would have more free time and higher serotonin levels.

Yet I have decided to forgive these sins because the latter half of this book really shined. Emma was a genuinely funny character, despite the odds stacked against her via her name and Y/N quirky red hair. Her comebacks were truly quotable and also I loved how she consistently stood up to Charlie, who really could be a bit of an asshole. Me personally, I wouldn't have tolerated some of the stuff he said to Emma in the name of "enemies-to-lovers," but she's definitely better than me. Charlie did eventually wear on me after he gave up the pretentious auteur act. I like grumpy writer characters, sue me.

Against all odds, their love story was actually sweet to witness over the course of the story, although I do wish we had seen more instances of them connecting emotionally. Also this was something I only noticed afterwards, but we never really get a taste of the actual screenplay Emma and Charlie are writing. It's always just described as "we finished the climax today" or "we included a scene where they fall on each other." That is not specific enough!!

But I will admit, it was really entertaining to se the two writers play out the very tropes they were trying to deconstruct in real life with each other. I like a good meta, fourth-wall-breaking read. And yes, I am a sap, so the ending did draw a few tears from my eyes in total Katherine Center fashion. The woman knows her epilogues!!

Overall, I would recommend this to anyone looking for a rom com book about rom coms, and my faith in love has been temporarily restored.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I am here to say that Katherine Center can literally do no wrong with her books.

I absolutely loved The Rom-Commers. There were swoony bits, there were laugh-out-loud bits, and I absolutely devoured this book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Emma and Charlie may be my absolute favorite FMC/MMC in a KC book - I loved their banter, I loved how their friendship and their relationship developed. I didn’t enjoy the jump scare with the medical condition at the end, but I knew that KC would wrap it up nice & lovely.

I really can’t wait to get my physical copy so I can re-read and annotate.

Huge thank you to St Martins Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. And please send me widgets for future KC books because I will never stop reading her.

My thanks to NetGalley and St Martins Press for providing me with a digital copy for review.

Wow. This was my first Katherine Center book and it won’t be the last! This felt like watching a rom-com in book form. I really liked our main character Emma. Charlie, the love interest, took some time for me to warm up to, but once I did it was game over. The premise intrigued me and I loved all the cute little moments together. The end had me crying, but in a heartwarming way. I didn’t love the way Charlie would sometimes talk to Emma, but other than that I was pleasantly surprised by this book and can’t recommend it to romance lovers enough!

A sweet rom-com read with good banter and characters you root for to overcome some heavier situations not unlike her other books. This one isn't my favorite of hers due to the switching between narration styles (breaking the 4th wall for some chapters and talking to the reader kind of broke the flow of the book imo). Thank you to #netgalley and #stmartinspress for this advanced copy!! I enjoyed it.

“ If you wait for people to light you up, then I guess you’re at the mercy of darkness.”

Sometimes I get overwhelmed when I go to review a book that I loved with all of my heart. It’s like I don’t even know where to begin, like I don’t have the right words and like I can’t do it justice.

I read this book on vacation in Hawaii. I live in Alaska… The moment I stepped off the plane in Oahu, t’s like my heart filled up. Lit up. It felt effervescent. Giddy. My heart needed Hawaii.

And that perfectly describes how I feel about this book.

I read it as I floated in the pool, baked in the sun, and drifted in the ocean. I finished the last page under gently waving palm trees, with tears in my eyes.

My heart needed Hawaii and my heart needed this book. In equal measures.

It’s a beautiful commentary on family, love, and commitment. And the banter? It’s top notch. Legendary. This book made me giggle, swoon, and cheer for the characters- main and supporting .

Katherine Center’s books are joy personified in the form of ink on the page. They are my favorite prescription for friends who are tired, weary, and heartbroken. Because her books give you hope. I don’t buy bouquets of flowers, I buy bouquets of KC books.

Okay. I’ve gone long enough. I think you can surmise that I want you to read this book. Actually, I might be demanding you in a menacing way. You MUST read this book or else. OK? OK

Katherine Centers books just keep getting better and better. By far I think this is my absolute favorite one. I immediately connected with both characters. That feeling of being stuck. I get it. The process of grief spanning years and decades. How you’d rather stay safe in your routine than risk getting hurt again. And how quickly that time passes and then you look around and you’ve done nothing for years. How trauma cripples you in more ways than one. How our homes becomes our only safe place and our invisible friends are all we really have.

Just like Emma, My sisters and I also lost my other at a young age, this wasn’t just a story. I too lived it. And Katherine nailed that experience. Even the guilt that a child feels to take care of the other parent. And how possible it is for siblings to have completely different experiences when dealing with the same outcome.

This book killed me. I cried multiple times. At parts I’m not even sure were cry-able moments.

The whole birthday donut interaction had to be my favorite. I wept. Taking care of people your whole life and then having the one person you want to take care of you actually make the effort to do it and how undeserving you feel of it. Wow. “My dad just loves me and therefore thinks everyone else does too.” Crying.

I don’t even know how she managed to do it but she made Charlie the most redeemable character. The things he said were so hurtful and yet the glimpses she gave into who he really was always had you understanding him, and giving him grace. As if we all have been that scared that we’ve downplayed the importance of things.

I loved the amount of dialogue between Emma and Charlie. It was always witty. And always good. I felt that relationship. Even in the mundane moments at the grocery store. I was in that relationship with them. How Katherine managed to make and show such vulnerability between the character while also cracking you up is a true gift.

Thanks for allowing me the opportunity to early read this. I devoured it in 1 day.

**Review will be shared release week on my site and socials!**

THIS FILLED MY SOUL.

I needed an automatic win kind of read and I just knew this would deliver, and it did that and so much more. Gosh I loved this book. It speaks to the soul of every lover of romance everywhere. The themes are woven in with care and love and EVERYONE NEEDS TO READ THIS BOOK OKAY?

I adored Emma and Charlie. From the moment they met you could see the connection between them. I looooved the banter and humor. I laughed so many times and could not stop smiling. Even had some teary eyed moments because the story was as deep as it was light. The perfect combination of both was balanced throughout this book.

You know a romance is good when you love BOTH characters. And while there’s a good moment or two where you want to shake some one, it doesn’t matter because every thing felt authentic. The build up of decision making and past issues made the entire book feel real and a true nod to taking the lemons life gives you and squeezing out whatever lemonade you can.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance
Language: low
Romance: kisses
Violence: low
Trigger/Content Warnings: mentions of divorce, mentions of cancer, loss of a parent (recounted)

Hi, bookstagram! Welcome to my first review!! I LOVED the Rom-Commers and was so excited to take an early peak at the newest Katherine Center book.

The Rom-Commers is FUN in a way that I associate only with Katherine Center. Truly, when I saw this one on NetGalley, I was immediately sold: two writers, Hollywood, redemption arc. And no surprise…Katherine Center DELIVERED.

In The Rom-Commers, screenwriter Emma, who lives at home as a full-time caretaker for her father, ends up working (and living!!!) with famous fellow screenwriter Charlie Yates in LA. They can’t stand each other! There is tension! Chaos ensues!

What I liked: Center made me feel so invested in our two main characters. Emma and Charlie are fun, funny, and have enough depth to feel real. I appreciated that even though 80% of the book is scenes with *just these two,* the story still moved, and I didn’t get tired of their budding relationship.

What I’d change: honestly, nothing. This is one of my favorite romance reads in a while.

Highly recommend this one for fans of character-driven romance.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the e-ARC!

A book about rewriting a rom com script with a grumpy screenwriter who is your idol sounds great to me. Emma is a writer and lover of rom com. She gets a chance to work with her idol and goes to LA. Little does she know that Charlie is not aware of her arrival and there's tension from the start. It's a bit enemies to lovers with Charlie's lack of desire to work with Emma and Emma's honest personality. There's some fun moments that you see the real Charlie and I enjoyed these scenes so much. I also enjoyed having Jack from The Bodyguard making some guest appearance in the story too.

Patti Murin did a great job with the narration and portraying Emma and her emotions.

Thank you @smpromance @macmilllan.audio @netgalley for a copy of this book.

I was absolutely delighted by this Katherine Center rom com! Ella is a writer that has sacrificed a good portion of her life for her family, when she is offered a once in a lifetime opportunity to collaborate with one of her idols, an award winning screenwriter, Charlie. She is tasked with teaching him about the rom com genre and along the way they both learn a little about life.

Wow! I could not put this book down. The Rom-Commers was a fast paced and enjoyable read. Trust me when I say this is a solid 5 star read. I don’t usually laugh out loud while reading books, but this one had me in all the silly feels. I appreciate that this book was not super mushy gushy but more of a real life vibe.

Katherine Center is one of the authors whose books I rush to read. I loved this book. She mixes romance and empathy with heavy topics in a thoughtful and caring way that no one else does. I highly recommend this novel. And read the rest of her books – you won’t be disappointed.

Katherine Center is a QUEEN!

I could not stop smiling as I read this one.

Emma is offered a chance to work with her favorite screenwriter of all time, but when she shows up to help with the screenplay Charlie refuses.

Charlie and Emma are absolutely fantastic. I loved how their relationship went from doubting coworkers to a surprising friendship and finally into a very sweet relationship.

The ending has my heart so much! I cried but they were happy tears! Charlie and Emma were perfect for each other and I enjoyed their journey so much.

This is one of my favorite Katherine Center books and definitely one of my favorites of the year.

Thanks so much Netgalley!

All the feels, seriously. I laughed, I sobbed, and I couldn’t wait to see where this one would go 💖

Emma is a *failed* screenwriter who has just taken ten years off to be caregiver over her father. She feels guilty leaving him under her sister’s care… that is until she reads Charlie Yates horrendous romantic comedy screenplay. Emma adores Charlie, but he definitely needs her help. She moves to his house to bring life and love to the script.

The Rom-Commers is perfect for any fan of RomComs(duh). The story has all the elements of your favorite movies. I would totally watch this movie.

Special thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Emma is a struggling writer, caring for her sick dad. Charlie is an award winning screenwriter with writers block. Circumstances align and Charlie & Emma have to work on a romcom screenplay together
✅ grumpy sunshine
🌶️: no

This book is so charming and hopeful and everything a good rom is. It’s written so vividly that I could see this as a movie (or limited series) in complete detail. An absolute joy!!!

Genre: Romance
Rating: 5/5 ⭐️
Spice: 0/5 🧼

Summary: Emma is a talented writer who dreams of being an accomplished screenwriter but she is the sole caretaker to her beloved father. When an opportunity presents itself for her to partner with one of her writing heroes, her family forces her to go stay with him in LA for 6 weeks. Once there, she realizes she may have to teach him more than he’ll be teaching her.

Thoughts: Katherine Center’s books have always been an auto buy for me. She has such a unique style that balances heavy situations with comedic relief. But this book? This one is my favorite of hers to date.

I was in loooove with Emma. She was so unapologetically herself. She didn’t meet the criteria most people have of what it means to be successful but she wouldn’t allow that to make her voice be any smaller. It was seriously such a refreshing and inspiring dynamic the author created.

The plot was oh so good. The background characters were great. The dialogue was so witty and I loved how fast the pace was in the book. It was so captivating. This book was a breath of fresh air, highly recommend picking it up.

Thank you so much to the author and publisher for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review. The words are mine.

Thank you Netgalley for the gifted ARC of this book.

Book: The Rom Comers
Rating: 4 Stars ****(4/5)


My review:
I am a big fan of Katherine Center and she continues to shine and be my number one author when it comes to light hearted romantic stories. I love how she structures her stories. There is a love story at the core and so many other human emotions are dealt at the periphery of that story. The family ties, the responsibilities, the grief, the guilt, and yet the subconscious desire to chase your dreams.

Katherine Center does it again. She is a fabulous writer and the best part about her contemporary romance novels is that they are refreshingly unique and utterly enjoyable. I am not a big fan of spice, so I give her extra credit for that as well. She writes these highly effective wonderful stories around such brilliantly carved out characters, you fall in love with all those people.
The loved the Rom Comers. It takes you to an amazing world of Hollywood and LA, where the characters are running into popular Hollywood stars at cafes, restaurants, or any public place. With a famous screen writer by her side, our female character gets introduced to most of them which had us fangirling on her behalf.

The love story is such a swoon worthy slow burn, that makes you fall in love with love itself. In addition to the love story at the core, which delightfully progresses in this book, her characters exuberate so many other emotions.
This is a pattern I have seen in all Katherine Center books. Her stories always deliver a beautiful message around hope, positivity, looking at the half glass always full, and the light at the end of the tunnel. The Rom Comers also come with the same message. Each character in this book, gives us a message of being positive, building a life worthy of living around grief, around something that happened in the past, and trying to make the most out of what life even after you have been served with some tough curveballs thrown by life.
Another beautiful novel by KC. With her captivating and fast paced writing style, teamed with rib tickling humor and breath-taking romantic moments, she is ready to win millions of hearts again.

Highly recommend The Rom-Comers if you are looking for an uplifting story , a romantic comedy without much spice.

Plot Summary :
Emma Wheeler is an aspiring screenwriter. This was her dream job but she could not pursue it the way she had dreamt of , as she is also the full-time caretaker of her lively and kind hearted father who is not healthy enough to stay independently. She lands a wonderful opportunity to re-write a Rom-Com script written by a famous, Hollywood screenwriter, Charlie Yates. She adores his work and is an ardent fan. But romcom is an unexplored territory for Charlie Yates and his romcom script is “Apocalyptic”.
When Emma’s younger sister volunteers to taking care of their dad, Emma travels to LA for six weeks. The job was even more challenging than she thought as Charlie Yates does not need anyone to write for him, he is not convinced that the script needs to be handled by a writer who is not famous or experienced enough and to top it all, he does not believe in Love as a concept.
Emma takes this up as a challenge. She is determined to make him believe in Romance, to make him understand that Romcoms are real, and love stories matter and need to be told. Whether this will shape into something else, you need to read the book to know that 😊

5/5 (Finished 02.25.2024)

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First ARC received from NetGalley :)

Prepare to embark on an emotional rollercoaster with this book—it'll have you laughing, crying, and experiencing a myriad of unexpected emotions.

I absolutely adore this book. Right from the start, it captivates you with the premise of an anonymous scriptwriter being enlisted to ghostwrite alongside a celebrity.

Let's talk about Charlie Yates. He's a delightful mix of hilarious, caring, and romantic. Despite being in his mid-30s, his occasional naivety adds charm to his character. From googling the duration of falling in love (all while denying any feelings for Emma) to waking up early to bake birthday donuts—despite his lack of culinary skills—and even begrudgingly joining Emma for line dancing practice, Charlie's antics are endearing.

Yet, beneath his humor lies a selflessness that's deeply touching. When he learns of his cancer diagnosis, his instinct to push Emma away stems from a desire for her happiness, despite his lack of interpersonal experience.

And then there's Emma—funny, oblivious, and refreshingly honest. I adore her candidness, her willingness to confront her feelings head-on, even as she navigates the complexities of her relationship with Charlie.

The heartbreaking confrontation between Emma and her sister towards the end of the book left a profound impact on me. Witnessing Emma's trauma, compounded by her feelings of guilt over their mother's death, being weaponized against her by her own sister was deeply painful.

It vividly portrays the complex dynamics inherent in familial relationships, where love and care coexist alongside the potential for hurt and misunderstanding. Despite their mutual affection, Emma and her sister found themselves inadvertently inflicting emotional wounds upon each other, highlighting the intricate nature of sibling bonds and the profound effects of unresolved trauma.

However, this is a beautifully written story of love, of hope and of family.

I thought The Bodyguard was going to be my all-time favorite Katherine Center book, and then I read The Rom-Commers. WOW. I ran the whole gamut of emotion reading this one! Trepidatious, excited, outraged, swoony, angry again, swoony again…what a ride. I LOVED Emma, and Patti Murin is such an incredible narrator…she really brings characters to life. I also appreciate that when she voices male characters, her voice doesn’t go all weird. There was a point I got mad at Katherine, haha, but to divulge any more would be to give spoilers, and I won’t do that!!

I can’t recommend this more highly. This story is such a brilliant defense of rom-coms, and it just makes you feel GOOD. And if I’m not reading to feel good, then why am I reading? Well done. I cannot WAIT for the next KC book, and I hope against all hope that Patti Murin narrates it!!