I just LOVED this. Katherine Center can do no wrong in my eyes. Everything she writes I fall in love with. Thank you so much for this one netgalley!

As a writer, I loved this entire book being about writers — especially in the entertainment industry. It was super fun getting to explore the will-they/won't-they aspect of Emma and Charlie's relationship while also uncovering their traumas in the process.

Katherine Center, you can do no wrong - don't read the reviews just trust the excellent score and pick up this gem. And, I really wish I had red hair.

Well Hello Katherine Center!! Nice to meet you, I freaking adored this book!
When I review books, I don’t just the authors writing techniques, or seriousness or fanciness. I judge a book on how it makes me feel. Yes part of that means I need to enjoy the plot and there has to be a plot. Part means I need to like the characters. But most importantly if a book makes my stomach flip flop and heart flutter, it means I am really into it.

This books gave me all the things including smiles and lots of tears. Mostly happy tears.

I loved Emma’s snarkiness and Charlie Yates!! Yes Charlie Yates. Is it annoying that he is called that a million times in the book. Sure. But I don’t care. Was it predictable. Sure. But who cares. I loved it all. Def will have to read more of her books!

I loved everything about this book, it was such an entertaining, heartwarming romcom that touched on plenty of hard topics. As a Rom-com lover, how could I not love Emma; she knows life isn’t sunshine and rainbows but she still loves romance and refuses to wallow. Charlie is a loveable anti-romantic who quickly learns the error of his ways.

I thoroughly enjoyed this! I didn't think it packed the same emotional punch as HELLO STRANGER or THE BODYGUARD, but this was fun and compulsively readable. Always excited to see what Katherine Center writes next!

First things first, Katherine Center has a very special way of writing the most heart wrenching stories that absolutely gut you but also make you believe in the beauty and joy of love. And The Rom-Commers is no different.

It’s such a fierce book straight out the gate. To see Emma and Charlie both shed their individual hang ups and allow themselves the opportunity to see what was in front of them was breathtaking. It got me in my feels, had me shed a few tears and their meaningful moments were so tender. I couldn’t help but root for these two to stop getting in their own way.

This is essentially an ode, a quintessential love letter to the art of a good rom-com but more than that - it’s being able to see that a HEA is not the end of a story but only the beginning. Where the characters we’ve grown to know and love are still continuing their lives, journeying through life‘s highs and lows - together.

Ahh this story was so cute!!

Emma is a full time care taker to her dad who had a terrible accident. Her close friend Logan gives her the chance of a life time to work with Charles Yates a huge big time screen writer in Hollywood. How ever it’s a set up and Charles doesn’t believe in rom coms which is Emma specialty, over the course of 6 weeks Emma has to persuade Charles that love is real while huge stakes of money that could change her life are on the lines.

I laughed a bunch in this books!

Thanks you so much for the chance to read this wonderful novel netgallery!

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗼𝗺-𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 by Katherine Center
Publish Date: June 11, 2024 by @stmartinspress
Reviewed by: Mel
Format: Kindle ARC [ Gifted via @netgalley and @stmartinspress ]

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
I’ve had quite a few crazy months since we took our break, and because of that, my reading pace declined drastically. I also had a few books I was in the middle of that lost their momentum and caused me to feel stuck and unenergized to get finish any of them…

Until I picked up 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗼𝗺-𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀! As you know from reading my past reviews and watching our stories - I’m a @katherinecenter junkie and I always have to read her newest releases before they even come out - so I squealed like a little kid when I was approved in NetGalley.

This book was a *chef’s kiss* for a romantic comedy. It was absolutely delightful! It was a fun storyline, the characters were developed really well, and it was so cute I found myself kicking my feet and grinning ear-to-ear.

This book was a delight--a very enjoyable romance that also centered on grief, moving on, and finding your way after loss. Emma has put her life on hold after her father's illness, focusing on taking care of her sister in the wake of losing their mother. She has dreams of becoming a screenwriter, but family always comes first. But when she gets a chance to work with her idol, screenwriter Charlie Yates, even Emma has to admit she needs to leave her comfort zone and put herself out there.

The universe laughs at this, because when Emma gets to L.A., it's clear that Charlie has no idea she was coming nor does he have any desire to work with Emma on a romantic comedy script that he's basically being forced to write. But, shockingly, Emma wins him somewhat over and the two forge a bond over writing and other things. Emma quickly learns that Charlie has his own issues and isn't the perfect person she always idealized.

The best thing about this story is easily Emma and Charlie's chemistry. It positively sizzles and crackles. Emma might be meek and mild in real life, but she shines with Charlie. And while Charlie has no desire to commit to anything, you can easily tell how much he cares for Emma. There are plenty of sad backstories here (and Emma's dad is a delight), but the overall story is just freaking funny. These two are witty and lovable and you want them to work. It's incredibly easy to root for Emma and Charlie, as people and as a couple.

Absolutely fantastic! I loved every moment of this! The characters were fun and witty and I wanted them for myself. I devoured this book.

I alternated between e-book and audio book for this one, and preferred the audio option as the narrators did a great job of bringing the book to life.

The Bodyguard is still my favorite KC book, but I really did enjoy The Rom-Commers! Despite the story dealing with a few rather heavy topics (illness and family dynamics, for example) KC still has her signature light-hearted but complex way of handling romance with depth. Her stories are more than banter and love, and I’ve always appreciated the realness her stories bring to relationships.

DNF @ 37%

KC's books are a hit or miss for me. And the last two have been misses. The last couple female protagonists have just seemed so meh. I found Em to be very immature and a martyr. And don't get me started on Charlie Yates-- whose full name is used too many times.

I was going to keep going, but went on and read a ton of spoilers and I am sticking with the DNF.

I LOVED this book ! Katherine Center is one of my favorite authors and this book does not disappoint ! I love
The characters are so well developed and I couldn’t put the book down . I also tandom listened to the audiobook as well which made for a fun experience !

Katherine Center once again proves why she is a automatic must-read author for me. Her characters are always real and believable - I really loved Emma and the natural relationship that she forms with Charlie. Nothing ever felt forced making it easy to read. I also appreciated the overlap in characters from previous work! This was one of my favorite reads this year so far!

I absolutely love Katherine Center and everything she writes. I know once I open that book I am in for a delicious treat. THE ROM-COMMERS did not fall short. I felt all the feelings with this one! Which is something I just love about all of Center's character development. You just FEEL everything with them.

This was giving enemies to lovers and close proximity trope all in one. Charlie and Emma had the best chemistry from the jump. Even though Charlie was a little bit of a butt-hole in the beginning. You could totally see how both of them began letting their guards down with one another. Both of them carried so much trauma together so it was very raw to read. Definitely cried at the ending but don't worry it was all worth it :)

Please pick this up and all of her other reads. You will not be disappointed, like ever. Just not possible with Center behind the pen.

Emma Wheeler has spent the last decade caring for her father, putting her dreams of becoming a screenwriter on hold. When her ex-boyfriend offers her a chance to co-write a rom-com with her idol, Charlie Yates, she jumps at the opportunity. Leaving her sister to care for their father, Emma heads to LA for six weeks. But Charlie, a bitter skeptic of love, doesn't want her help, and his script is a disaster. Despite the rocky start, Emma is determined to make it work, fighting for both the script and the possibility of real love.

I loved this book! Emma and Charlie's story had me hooked from the very start. Their enemies-to-lovers beginning, which transitions into a deep, heartfelt friends-to-lovers romance as they navigate forced proximity, is very well crafted. The way they fall in love and support each other through dark, difficult moments is really cute and moving.

The book touches on heavy topics like chronic disease, the death of loved ones, hypochondria, panic attacks, and cancer, but they are all explored with sensitivity and depth. Despite these serious issues, the story is filled with sweet, swoon-worthy moments and culminates in a heartwarming, happy ending that left me with a smile.

The audio version was wonderfully narrated by one of my favorite narrators, Patti Murin, adding an extra layer of charm to the story. Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and St. Martin's Press for the gifted copies.

I always look forward to Katherine Center's books, and "The Rom-Commers" did not disappoint. I can't wait for her next release

3.5⭐️

This was fun! The first 2/3rds of this book was funny and adorable. I was laughing and crying and truly loved the concept.

I feel like the end of the book was a bit rushed. I didn’t love how the cancer trope played out, it felt a little forced and thrown in there. It felt a little immature. I also don’t think there was quite enough depth with her dad’s TBI.

This was a great romance pick me up after reading a hefty fantasy. Fun and what I wanted! Didn’t quite hit the mark.

Okay, so I’ve read a few of Katherine Center’s books now, and I can honestly say she might just be my absolute favourite rom com author. “The Rom-Commers” totally lived up to the hype that I built up in my head (my expectations were highhhh)!

This book had me laughing out loud and ugly crying in the best way possible. The relationships were everything, especially the one between Emma and her little sister. Their banter, heart-to-hearts and fights were so real, I felt like I was eavesdropping on real-life sister convos.

Reading this book felt like wrapping myself in a cozy sweater on a chilly day. Center’s stories always restore my faith in humanity and leave me with allll the warm fuzzies. “The Rom-Commers” is a five-star read for me for sure, and I can’t recommend it enough if you are a fan of romantic comedies.

TYSM to @stmartinspress for bestowing me with an advanced copy - I literally screamed when it was sent to me! 🤩 #zerochill

#theromcommers #theromcommersbook #romcombookstagram #katherinecenter #katherinecenterbooks #feelgoodbookclub

I'm a fan of Katherine Center and was very excited for this book.
I have greatly enjoyed many of her previous titles.
In The Rom-Commers, Center writes about Emma Wheeler, a young woman who desperately wants to be a screenwriter but feels torn to pursue her dreams because of her father's disability and her little sister's needs. But when prolific screenwriter Charlie Yates (her hero) needs help writing a rom-com (her specialty), Emma can't pass it up.
The premise is very cute. I have to say, right off the bat, I knew I may have issues with diving into this book. I live in Los Angeles and am very familiar with the film/screenwriting industry. This proximity does put the 'believability' of a storyline like this through the ringer, and hurts my suspension of belief.
All that to say, I think if the characters had been stronger I could have dodged any industry inaccuracies. But it was just too much!
Charlie was built up to be both a god of screenwriting and a terrible person. (But really just a terribly misunderstood person). When an author does so much work to showcase a character's irascibility, moodiness, and awfulness, I think you need just as much (if not more) evidence they are transforming into a better person. But Charlie hardly changed at all! He was the same. Just with moments of odd niceness. It was like a mildly abusive guy being nice a couple times and the heroine mistaking her gratitude for infatuation.
Emma was confusing. She loved screenwriting and yet did so little to pursue it. She was given opportunities far beyond her expertise. The plot was propelled by characters who believed in her for no apparent reason. Katherine Center is usually very conscientious about setting up her character's strengths. They are believable, even if mildly funny. But these two just didn't land for me.
I will read Center's next book, as I'm sure it will be top notch! This book will be great for a lot of people, it just wasn't for me.