Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an eARC of Katherine Center’s latest novel, The Rom-Commers. All opinions are my own!

I loved so many things about this. The banter, the tension, oil and water personalities creating a lovely grumpy sunshine romance. It had me laughing out loud in so many places. The frozen vegetable scene—if you know, you know! I cackled! At first I thought the story was going too fast, but then I realized it was just me being utterly absorbed in the story. I ate it up! I especially love how Katherine Center doesn’t shy away from the tough things that happen in life. Is this a happy story? Absolutely. Does it ignore every day realities? Not at all. Katherine does an amazing job of weaving the good and the bad together into a wonderful story.
So, a rom-com about a rom-com? Yeah, it’s good!

This book was so deeply beautiful and vibrant. The prose is sharp and witty and just so utterly perfect. This is what rom-com should look like.

Center’s writing comes alive on the page as she tells Emma and Charlie’s story. Both characters are so lovable and so human that I fell hard and fast for both of them.

In all honesty I became a little obsessed with this book, I physically could not put it down until I was done. And I think that’s in part to how relatable Emma felt. She and I share so many dreams and insecurities and I know almost exactly how she feels as a caretaker. My family takes turns caring for my great aunt and while it’s an honor to serve her, it is still a sacrifice of sorts.

I really feel like Katherine Center wrote this for me and I hope you give this a chance because it’s just so, so good. Really one of her best.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Rom-Commers is my favorite of the Katherine Center books I’ve read. It has all of the hallmarks you’ve come to expect in her books - lovable characters, overcoming a past trauma, great dialogue and character growth. I always learn something from her books as well. This time around it was about Ménière’s disease.

I especially liked Emma Wheeler’s voice as the story is told from her first-person pov. She even occasionally breaks the wall and talks directly to the reader, which I enjoyed as it’s not the norm. Emma, a writing teacher, knows everything there is to know about her writing hero, Charlie Yates, and romcoms. So to say she’s excited when she gets a chance to rewrite his truly terrible romcom screenplay with him is an understatement.

Charlie has won every writing award, but he knows nothing about love and his romcom screenplay is proof of that. He doesn’t have writer’s block either, he’s just not writing. At the moment. For four years. It’s through Emma’s tutelage that a reluctant Charlie just might get his mojo back and find love in the process.

The Rom-Commers is a perfect blend of heartwarming and heartbreaking. You’ll laugh, shed a tear or two too, and be reminded to not judge people. You don’t know their whole story ... until the end. It’s a nice amalgamation of romance and women’s fiction; a little soft, a little real and all heart.

I highly recommend you pick up The Rom-Commers this summer, June 11th. It’s the perfect book to immerse yourself in as you’re winging to your vacation destination; as you lounge by a body of water; or as you just sit on your sofa pretending you’re in L.A. with Emma and Charlie.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the gifted digital ARC provided through NetGalley.

I'll say it. Katherine Center books make me feel alive! They give me all the feels, cries, laughs, yearnings, longings and wonders of being alive and in love, or not in love. The Rom-Commers is no exception and is maybe even extra in all these categories. It really was a joy to read.

I think Katherine Center is on a mission to validate romantic fiction and as a predominantly romance-reader, I am here for it. I love her books because while they always have that romance that I want, they also have depth and hurt but in the best way. Katherine’s writing style just works for me and I can’t put her books down once I get started.

This book particularly celebrates the romcoms that we all hold dear. I fell in love with Charlie and Emma. His quirks and her spunk made for a very enjoyable story. There were moments that just hurt but then there would be comedic relief and I would giggle to myself over the banter between these two. The ending was just perfect and my cheeks hurt from the smile it put on my face.

I received an advanced copy of this audiobook from NetGalley. The thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

Content Notes: Kisses

Katherine Pannill Center you did it again! The Rom-Commers is the perfect girl meets boy while co-writing a rom-com novel. They don’t like each other; both have family issues and pretty much disagree on everything. That’s just the bare bones of the story because there’s so much more goodness in between the pages. The only downfall of this story is that it doesn’t publish until June 11th so add it to your TBR! I love reading stories before they publish but when it’s such an incredible story like this one, I’m sad that I miss out on reading it on pub day! Thank you Net Galley for this ARC!

Charlie Yates is a world-famous, award-winning screenwriter with epic after epic to his name. Emma Wheeler's screenwriting career has taken a decade long detour. Until now.

Charlie has written a dumpster fire of a Rom-Com script. Its success is tied to whether or not his next big epic will see the light of day. Emma is hired to work on the rewrite of Charlie's epically awful script. Can she get him to believe that romance actually exists?

In "The Rom-Commers", Katherine Center does what she does best. She tells a story that is both vibrant and hilarious as well as deeply emotional and thought-provoking. With every new novel, I think that it is Center's "best yet", and this one definitely takes that title. It's a beautiful read with the sense of humor that only Katherine Center can deliver. This 5 Star read sucked me in from page 1, and I absolutely could not put it down.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Katherine Center for allowing me to be an early reader!

I have received this ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Rom-Commers was, by definition, a great rom-com. In it, you will meet Emma Wheeler and Charley Yates. Yes, Charlie Yates. He's a pretty famous screenplay writer, and Emma is currently obsessed with him. Maybe obsessed isn't a great word because there's definitely a few more that will better describe her epic love for his work. Well, that was before she read the worst screenplay to have ever existed.

It's fair to say that Charley should probably never write a rom-com. Until Emma showed up. Together, they opened each other's eyes to other possibilities. He finally learned what true love was like, and she finally learned to live hers. It was nice to see Emma break out of her ten-year itch of always looking after her dad. I could do without all the white lies and pushing each other out of their lives just to make things easier.

In the end, I really liked these two and how they came to be together. The ending was super cute, and I'm hoping they make more movies together.

Another wonderful Katherine Center book! I really enjoyed how the characters’ relationship developed as well as their personal journeys of growth!

I LOVE KATHERINE CENTER SO MUCH. The Bodyguard is one of my favorite romance books of all time but The Rom-Commers might have stolen that top spot. Everything she writes, including the book, has the most perfect combination of humor and heart.

Will be recommending this to everyone.

Sigh.... I must stop requesting books from Katherine Center. She had such promise for me after I read Things You Save in a Fire - I loved everything about that book. But every book I've read since then has felt like a bit of a let down.

Don't get me wrong - The Rom-Commers is a perfectly fine romcom. Emma, a screenwriting hopeful and full-time caretaker for her ailing father, has a once in-a-lifetime opportunity to rewrite a romcom script with one of the best screenwriters in the industry for 6 weeks. She agrees to leave her caretaking duties behind and fly across country to team up with Charlie. Only when she gets there, she learns that it was all a setup. Charlie doesn't want to write a romcom, he doesn't want to work with Emma – he doesn't want to work with ANYONE. After the initial drama, Emma is determined to make it work by staying in LA to write with Charlie and convince him that love stories matter.

Like I said, it was fine. It wasn't a standout for me. There's lots of cute banter between Charlie and Emma, some cute clothing references, cooking scenes, dancing, etc. I felt a little let down in the character development department. A lot of the bonding between Charlie and Emma was just skimmed over by the author. I never felt a real connection between the two of them. The high drama of the last third of the book felt like a bit much.

For fans of "Beach Read" and "The Roughest Draft"
Thank you St. Martin's Publishing for sending me an e-arc of this novel through the influencer outreach program.
I loved this book! I completely binged it in one day, and honestly I have been sad since it has been over. My brain just keeps going back to Emma and Charlie's world with strawberry hoodies and diving boards. It is the perfect read for spring/summer when you want a light read that still has MEANING. There is so much impact in this one book, proving the significance of all romcoms.

Katherine Center did an amazing job with this work of art. I loved The Bodyguard (Katherine I see what you did here) and this one held the same love in my heart, The ending had me in a slight back and forth. This made me feel in my heart of hearts that my overall rating of this book (even though reading is subjective and this book is living rent free in my head) is 4.25 stars out of 5!

Entertaining, as usual, for Katherine Center! I've loved all of her books and this one is no different. It is a easy and entertaining read that one could stay up late trying to finish!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Katherine Center for an eARC copy of The Rom-Commers via NetGalley.

Emma has been living as her dad's full-time caretaker for ten years, putting all her dreams of becoming a screenwriter (which she was actually pretty good at) to the side until her sister could take over after school. Her life is about to change, however, because she was just offered the job of a lifetime - to help re-write a romance script with one of the most famous, and her all time favorite, screen writers: Charlie Yates. She upends her life and moves to LA, leaving her father in the capable hands of her younger sister, to take a step towards making her dreams a reality. The catch? Charlie has no desire to work with her, “a failed, nobody screenwriter”, doesn't believe love actually exists, and doesn't care one bit about making his script worthy of production. Will her fighting for herself and love as a whole break through and get Charlie on board for producing a swoon-worthy romance?

OH.MY.GOSH. This was suuuuuch a good book. Stayed up all night finishing it because I couldn't put it down. Emma was such a well rounded character, there were moments where she was selfless and moments where she was less than perfect, and I think that made her so much more realistic. I am a sucker for books where a woman being tricked into a job where the boss doesn't want her there, but then changes his mind when he talks to her for a bit and starts to enjoy her company. I was obsessed with Charlie. The way Center would describe his personality and his actions made me feel like he was a real person she was discussing. Him simply observing Emma while she did any number of random things, writing, cooking, etc. wouldn't normally be anything funny or worth noting, but the way it was written had me giggling at his expense and conveyed how at his core he truly was a gooey cinnamon roll MMC.

I can't say enough good things about this book, it may be my favorite of hers so far, and I will definitely be re-reading it in the near future. I would recommend for anyone who loves romance, with a touch of grumpy/sunshine. It's good for any and all romance readers, no spicy scenes, and was overall such a happy read.

I enjoyed this book but not as much as Katherine Center's other books. I felt like the story was a little slow to get going and when it did it still fell a little flat for me. I did love the characters and the banter/wit and longing looks of this book and will still rush to read anything Katherine Center writes!

I have mixed feelings about this book. I went into the story thinking it would be similar in tone and emotion to the other books I've read by Center, but boy, was I wrong. This story packs an emotional punch and explores topics like grief, cancer, caretaking, illness, divorce, and more. Overall, it has a lot of fun and uplifting parts, but the story definitely has some more serious and heartbreaking moments. I didn't expect it to be as emotional as it was, and I would strongly suggest checking out the content warnings before reading.

The main characters are not my favorite either. Emma is a major fangirl, but some of the things she does border on harassment, like her foiled attempts to kiss and have sex with Charlie - super awkward and uncomfortable. Though he gives mixed signals, Charlie explicitly rejects Emma multiple times, and yet she still persists. It made me dislike her character. There was also a scene with her sister where Emma says some really hurtful things that feel uncalled for. In the heat of the moment when they were both so emotional, it's clear they didn't mean what they said, but the entire cruel conversation didn't align with their relationship dynamics and felt totally out of left field.

And I wanted to love Charlie! He has so many wonderful qualities, and he's definitely a layered character, but the meanness behind some of his comments and actions are as cringy as his arrogance. Charlie says a lot of disrespectful and hurtful things behind Emma's back, which made me really dislike him. I think he and Emma are kind of immature, and there's a lot of miscommunication, lying, and talking behind people's backs, and I just couldn't get behind it. On the other hand, they have fabulous banter, and Charlie does many lovely things, simple and big gestures, that show how deeply he really feels for Emma.

Other elements I enjoyed include Emma's relationship with her father and sister (minus that one hurtful scene), the clever banter and dialogue, and the author's writing style. Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

I enjoy anything that Katherine Centers writes. This was good, and cute but I didn't love it as much as some of her previous books. The beginning felt a little too long, she had multiple scenes where the main character accidentally overheard conversations she shouldn't have and parts felt forced. I enjoyed the second half much better, and the last 3rd I couldn't put down. I would still recommend to any romcom lovers (obviously) but I didn't swoon as much as some of her previous works.

I do love her messaging in her books, about doing what you love and having a positive outlook on life and this book was no exception. The dad was the best character, and I 100% agree that you can't control everything in life but you can control the attitude and mindset you approach it with. It was a feel good, warm and fuzzy book through and through.

4.5!

I loved it. So so so much!! I could visualize the entirety of the book on a screen- I need it in my life. Will be recommending this one a lot!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/195790586-the-rom-commers

My goodness this is might be my favourite read of 2024 so far! In “The Rom-Commers” by Katherine Center, readers are taken into a world where love stories unfold both on and off the page. I’m a huge fan of Center and her writing, and this story did not disappoint.

Meet Emma Wheeler. She’s an aspiring screenwriter who has spent her life immersed in romantic comedies, the kind that win contests and warm hearts. But her real-life script takes an unexpected twist when she gets the chance to rewrite a screenplay for none other than her personal writing god.

Emma's move to L.A. for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity is a leap of faith. Her younger sister steps in as caretaker for their kind-hearted dad, allowing Emma to dive headfirst into the world of rom-coms. Meet Charlie Yates. He isn't the collaborative partner Emma envisioned. He dismisses her as a "failed, nobody screenwriter" and views love as an emotional Ponzi scheme. His own romantic comedy script? A disaster that might trigger the apocalypse.

But Emma won't back down. She's determined to prove that love stories matter, even if it means kissing sense into Charlie. As they write together, the line between fiction and reality blurs. What if their love story breaks all of Emma's rules and becomes something more authentic?

Center's writing is both laugh-out-loud funny and heartwarming. It’s what I love about her. I also love how she captures the essence of resilience, vulnerability, and the magic of storytelling. Emma and Charlie's banter dances across the pages, and readers will root for their unconventional romance. I know I did!

This book isn't just about love; it's about rewriting our own narratives, embracing imperfections, and finding joy in unexpected connections. Center's signature blend of wit and emotion shines through, making this novel a delightful addition to the rom-com genre. I think Netflix will totally make this one a movie, too. I know book clubs will be digging into this title in 2024 and for years to come.

Center continues to be the reigning queen of comfort reads, and continues to craft bittersweet romantic comedies that resonate with this reader. Her stories satisfy me in the most soul-nourishing way, and evoke comparisons to Jane Austen and Nora Ephron every time. Center's novels offer a perfect escape, and “The Rom-Commers” is expected to be published on 11 June 11 2024, and promises laughter, love, and a touch of magic.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a temporary e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice: 🌶️
Other: 💖🎥✒️🏊
Genre: Contemporary Romance
POV: Single

Emma has had to give up a lot of career opportunities to take care of her father for the last decade. When an old friend offers her the opportunity to help a mega successful (and personal hero) screenwriter revamp his attempt at writing a romantic comedy, her friends and family come together to make the opportunity happen. The thing is, Charlie really isn't interested in her help. But after meeting Emma, Charlie begins to let down his walls. Can Emma convince him that love actually isn't fiction?

To say I loved this one would be an understatement. I'm already planning on buying several copies as gifts as soon as this book is released. There is just something about a Katherine Center novel that just grips you from page one and Rom-Commers was no exception. I knew 5% in that I was just going to love it ("So predictable!") and I just devoured it like popcorn. Emma was lovely but Charlie was the heart of this story for sure. I loved them together. It was just so easy and the way they often spoke to each other - with such playful honestly - had me smiling through the whole book.