I really enjoyed this book. I enjoyed the characters’ build up to a relationship and that tension that could break at any moment. I loved the dynamic and background of Emma and her family. It was so tragic yet so unique and vital to the story. I loved the character growth and rooted for her throughout the story. I highlighted so many great lines and quotes to save for later that I know will stay with me long after. Overall, I definitely recommend this book!

This book was hilarious and sweet. The exposition is so good, it's easy to forget you're in between plot points. Emma's thoughts are just so rich and funny and deep. Two tropes I find tiring are "this trauma is my fault" and when one character blows up the budding relationship to save the other MC from them. I really think the tension of his metastatic cancer scare and the anxiety around the father's fall and argument with the sister is enough excitement that the reunion between MCs and reveal of his upgrading their hospital care and reveal of the new screenplay getting bought by Donna Cole could all exist without a third act break up.

Also, "power move" and "jedi mind trick" are overused and stand out the second and third times they appear...

Last year, I had the displeasure of giving Katherine Center, one of my favorite authors, a less-than-favorable review for "Hello Stranger." But "The Rom-Commers" is a delightful return to form; I breezed through it and enjoyed it thoroughly.

Emma has spent the past 10 years taking care of her disabled father and putting her own future on hold. When she gets the chance to co-write a screenplay with award-winning, super-successful screenwriter Charlie in L.A., and her sister offers to move in with their dad in Texas, it seems like Emma's own dreams will finally start to come true. But the last thing Charlie wants is a co-writer, even though his rom-com script is a dud (the reason he's being forced to write it is pretty funny). There are SO many twists and turns along the way; at times, it reminded me a little of Emily Henry's "Beach Read," as Charlie learns that there's more to life than movies about Mafia bosses and macho pursuits. This novel warmed my heart!

Thanks to St. Martin's Publishing Group for the advance copy, via NetGalley.

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC of the Rom-Commers.

I really loved this book! I thought Emma and Charlie were both flawed main characters and that added to their believability.

I enjoyed watching them evolve through the book and discover what they had been missing.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for an eARC of this book. I have really enjoyed the books I’ve previously read by Center, but unfortunately I just didn’t like this one. I really wanted to love it but I had a hard time seeing the chemistry between the two main characters. I thought that Charlie could be very harsh towards Emma and lacked emotional intelligence. It frustrated me that instead of calling Charlie on this, Emma just let it slide and let him take his frustrations out on her time and time again. I get that Charlie was going through some stuff but I don’t think it excused his behavior. I also think Emma had some trauma to work through and these struggles were mentioned but I didn’t feel like they were adequately resolved by the end. I felt like she still had some growing to do and that left me a little unsatisfied. I think if her and Charlie were real people they both would need therapy. So, all that being said, it made it pretty hard for me to root for them to be together. I still excitedly await whatever Center writes next even though this book wasn’t for me. I think some of my friends and followers will still enjoy this book but I didn’t :(

Katherine Center provides another cute but thought provoking rom com. Emma Wheeler has become the sole care taker for her only living parent and has been forced to give up her dream of becoming a screenwriter. She then gets the chance to work with a famous screenwriter, known for his alien, mafia, shoot em up bad guy moves, on none other than a rom com script.

The main character can be a tad annoying, but overall this work is funny, heartfelt, and worth a read.

Katherine Center does it again!! I love her writing. It’s so witty and funny and relatable. Emma is such a likable character. After putting her writing career on hold for 10 years to take care of her father she gets to work with her favorite screenwriter, Charlie Yates. I loved how the story developed and it left me feeling so happy! Thank you netgalley for the ARC!

Katherine Center is a must-buy author for me and The Rom-Commers did not disappoint. Emma and Charlie are a fantastic enemies to lovers story, and like all Katherine Center novels, have a lot of depth on top of the witty banter and sexual tension.

My favorite part of this book is that Emma is a character that you truly want to root for. She cares so much for everyone around her, putting everyone else's needs above her own, that you can't help but cheer her on as she learns that it's okay to put herself first. Charlie is also endearing with his own traumas. It feels totally believable that he would have a negative outlook on love.

This was definitely not a believable book, but as Emma teaches Charlie, it doesn't have to be when it's a rom-com. The Bodyguard remains my favorite Katherine Center book, but this one was very enjoyable.

TWs for parental loss, traumatic brain injury, cancer

“The two leads will wind up together. That’s what the audience showed up for. The joy of it all. If you don’t give it to them, it’s beyond unsatisfying—it’s a violation of trust. It’s like sex with no orgasm! What was even the point?”

Absolutely enchanting. I was fully prepared for another saccharine sweet romance from a center but she truly blew me away with this one. This was sharp, witty, perfectly awkwardly funny, and didn’t give off the ultra goofy two shoes’ vibe that some of her previous books have heavily leaned in to. This felt less preachy and more approachable, more raw in its emotion and tackling of defensive mechanisms, especially Charlie.

“I would write a hundred happy endings for us if I could.”

Charlie and Emma’s dynamic was so captivating. I felt giddy and all a flutter seeing them together, trading expert quips and buried compliments. Their chemistry leapt off the page and their budding romance felt organic and mature. As we get to see more and more to Charlie, beyond his brash attitude and comments, his actions truly tell the story of a lovable, dork just doing his best. I was rooting for him so hard and I’m so glad Emma stuck it out with him. He’s worth it, no doubt, though would I have risen above some of his early comments? Hell no.

“There’s something about a kiss that brings all the opposites together. The wanting and the getting. The longing and the having. All those cacophonous emotions that usually collide against each other teaming up at last into a rare and exquisite harmony.”

The family drama with Emma added depth to Emma’s background, even if the ending felt a bit too clean. Not surprising given Center’s brand for sunshine and optimism, but I definitely loved the sister dynamic and change at the end.

“I had a theory that we gravitate toward the stories we need in life. Whatever we’re longing for—adventure, excitement, emotion, connection—we turn to stories that help us find it. Whatever questions we’re struggling with—sometimes ones so deep, we don’t even really know we’re asking them—we look for answers in stories.”

This is my favorite read from the author and such a heartwarming and enjoyable romance I can’t wait for others to experience this one!

This is my absolute favorite Katharine Center book yet (a hard feat…) from the crazy unplanned meeting of the main characters in the beginning, to the underlying family dynamics, to the playful banter between colleagues, I loved the writing, the twists and turns and the vulnerabilities displayed by Emma and Charlie. I laughed, I cried, I felt all the emotions. And I devoured this in a day. No notes.

✨T H E R O M - C O M M E R S✨
🅶🅴🅽🆁🅴—𝑅𝑜𝓂𝒶𝓃𝒸𝑒
🗓ℙ𝕦𝕓 𝔻𝕒𝕥𝕖—𝕁𝕦𝕟𝕖 𝟙𝟙, 𝟚𝟘𝟚𝟜

"𝓦𝓱𝓪𝓽𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻 𝓼𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓽𝓮𝓵𝓵 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻𝓼𝓮𝓵𝓯 𝓪𝓫𝓸𝓾𝓽 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓵𝓲𝓯𝓮, 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽'𝓼 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽'𝓵𝓵 𝓫𝓮 𝓽𝓻𝓾𝓮."

✂️ P L O T L I N E
Emma Wheeler longs to be a screenwriter for Romcoms, but she is also a full time caretaker for her dad and forced herself to give up on her dreams long ago. Charlie Yates is a famous screenwriter who is having a case of the yips and can no longer seem to write anything. When Charlie is forced to write a romcom, he needs all the help he can get. Emma has her work cut out for her since Charlie is a full on pessimist and doesn’t believe anything about love. Will all their research that they need to do for this fictional story turn into something real?

💭 ⓂⓎ ⓉⒽⓄⓊⒼⒽⓉⓈ
Katherine Center really can do no wrong. Her books always make me feel all the warm fuzzies that I’m craving. Don’t let the title and the bright color of the cover fool you though, there are still some serious topics in this book and the most amazing thought provoking quotes. If you are a caretaker for a parent, this book will really resonate with you. A reminder that we don’t need to give up all of our hopes and dreams and that we can’t control everything. The banter between Emma and Charlie was also so fun. With her fierce and sassy personality, she had no problem putting him in his place and made for the best FMC. Pick this one up for all the feel good vibes with a small side of emotional themes.

📚 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎:
💫Workplace romance💕
💫Grumpy vs. sunshine☀️
💫Forced proximity👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨
💫Screenwriters📝
💫Witty Banter🗣️
💫Closed door romance🚪
💫Los Angeles backdrop📍
💫Heartfelt and funny🥰
💫Amazing quotes💭
💫An ode to rom-coms🎥

⚠️ 𝙏𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨: death of a parent.

📝𝕄𝕐 ℝ𝔸𝕋𝕀ℕ𝔾📝
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

💕Q U O T E: ”𝐼 𝒽𝒶𝒹 𝒶 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝑜𝓇𝓎 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓌𝑒 𝑔𝓇𝒶𝓋𝒾𝓉𝒶𝓉𝑒 𝓉𝑜𝓌𝒶𝓇𝒹 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝓉𝑜𝓇𝒾𝑒𝓈 𝓌𝑒 𝓃𝑒𝑒𝒹 𝒾𝓃 𝓁𝒾𝒻𝑒. 𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝓌𝑒'𝓇𝑒 𝓁𝑜𝓃𝑔𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒻𝑜𝓇-𝒶𝒹𝓋𝑒𝓃𝓉𝓊𝓇𝑒, 𝑒𝓍𝒸𝒾𝓉𝑒𝓂𝑒𝓃𝓉, 𝑒𝓂𝑜𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃, 𝒸𝑜𝓃𝓃𝑒𝒸𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃—𝓌𝑒 𝓉𝓊𝓇𝓃 𝓉𝑜 𝓈𝓉𝑜𝓇𝒾𝑒𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒽𝑒𝓁𝓅 𝓊𝓈 𝒻𝒾𝓃𝒹 𝒾𝓉. 𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝓆𝓊𝑒𝓈𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃𝓈 𝓌𝑒'𝓇𝑒 𝓈𝓉𝓇𝓊𝑔𝑔𝓁𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽-𝓈𝑜𝓂𝑒𝓉𝒾𝓂𝑒𝓈 𝑜𝓃𝑒𝓈 𝓈𝑜 𝒹𝑒𝑒𝓅, 𝓌𝑒 𝒹𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓃 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓁𝓁𝓎 𝓀𝓃𝑜𝓌 𝓌𝑒'𝓇𝑒 𝒶𝓈𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓂—𝓌𝑒 𝓁𝑜𝑜𝓀 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝒶𝓃𝓈𝓌𝑒𝓇𝓈 𝒾𝓃 𝓈𝓉𝑜𝓇𝒾𝑒𝓈.”

🙏 Thank you NetGalley, St Martin’s Press, and Katherine Center for this ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts. 💕

This was an adorable story! I was hooked and not really sure where it was going to go, but loved it! All the things about a rom com made it that much better. I love Katherine Center and was glad The Rom-Commers added to my love of her!

A wonderful example of its name, this Rom-Com has plenty of humor and a well built relationship. The focus is on developing the feelings between the characters rather than having steamy scenes. While there is of course sexual tension and even some kissing, this romance novel keeps it clean. Everyone has their own preferences when it comes to romance novels, but I find that when the relationship between the two characters is well developed it truly allows you to connect to them and there is no need for steam.

To me this book is a level 10 rom-com that I absolutely could not put down and loved from cover to cover! Katherine Center is just a rom-com wizard and this book made me feel all the feels. I loved the relationship between Emma and Charlie and how re-writing their script made them realize what they were missing within their own lives and what they wanted in a partner (both professional and personal). I honestly loved how this became a rom-com about writing a script for a rom-com. The ending had me with happy tears springing from my eyes and is going to be a must book this summer!

When I received an ARC of this new book by my VERY FAVORITE author, I was so excited!! (Of course, I will still buy a hardcopy when it comes out, because nothing is better than bookshelves with Katherine Center books on them!) And as always, this new story did not disappoint me at all! Reading it made me happy!

There are several aspects of Katherine Center’s books that make them stand out from other romantic comedies. The first is the emphasis on comedy – her main characters always have a great sense of humor and timing, and this is written so well - I know that I will have laugh-out-loud moments! 😂

And although this book, as others, is centered around romance, it’s more of an anticipation rather than one steamy sex scene after another. That just appeals to me more – personal preference!

Center’s books usually have an epilogue – she doesn’t leave you hanging – and her stories always have some kind of deeper meaning to them, besides the romance and the comedy. In The Rom-Commers, the underlying theme was grief, and it was addressed beautifully.

(I realize I haven’t really mentioned the actual book, but you can know what it’s about by reading the blurb! I like to review by sharing my feelings!)

Now, here’s the one bad thing about reading an ARC of a book by Katherine Center: I have to wait at least a YEAR to read a new one!! She needs to write faster!! 😂

Katherine Center is a five star read for me...each and every time. The Rom-Commers is no different.

Center delves into loss, parental issues, depression, divorce, and what it means to be alive. These two imperfect people, each dealing with catastrophic pasts, work together to just realize what living really means. It's not spicy, but the slow burn of will they or won't they is just divine. Center deals with sensitive topics with grace and the best humour.

Loved this one. I promise you will too. Seriously, give this love story about two writers a chance because it is just perfection.

Synopsis: A struggling writer and caregiver for her father gets the opportunity of a lifetime to go to LA and write a romcom screenplay along side her idol.
Pros/cons: I’m treading lightly because I know how beloved Katherine Center is. She seems lovely and interacts with her readers in an authentic way. I feel bad saying this, I just never enjoy her plots. She has an enjoyable style to her writing but her books aren’t for me.
In this story in particular, I was rooting for it to be a women’s fiction. It had a lot of opportunity to showcase the female lead’s growth and independence; however, it turned in to a romance, which would have been fine- but the characters were so rude to each other! They bantered and were mean 75% of the book but then were in love. I wasn’t buying it. There was also a misunderstanding at the end that I loathed. But this is the beauty of interpretation. While I didn’t like it, my friend Dawn, who I buddy read it with loved it and gave it 5 shiny stars! So I highly recommend you check it out for yourself and see what you think.
Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for this arc- due out in June!

This one hit home, for so many different reasons. Katherine Center writes these cute and butterfly-inducing rom-coms, but they always have that element of seriousness woven in.

The past few years of my life have been very difficult, and the hard situations that Emma, her family and Charlie go through in The Rom-Commers comforted me in ways I didn't know I needed. The multi-faceted explorations of grief made this more than just another book.

I went through so many emotions while reading this- I had goosebumps & butterflies that mingled with the tears streaming down my face that turned into snots of laughter (gross, yes).
The grumpy and sunshine vibe was LEGIT and there were some parts I was ITCHING to hit more dialogue to see what was going to happen (my eyes and brain skipping down to the bottom of the page before I finished actually READING the page).

Another A+++++++ for Katherine Center, and another book I'll have to add to my physical shelves!

Thanks to Netgalley and SMP for the advanced copy!

Katherine Center always hits! The Rom-Commers gives insight into the world of screenwriting while letting you feel like you're behind-the-scenes in Hollywood, but without losing any heart of emotional impact. I loved seeing how Center approaches a topic so many of us deal with, regardless of what our individual home life might look like: how do we balance ambition, love, and obligations of home? This was a delight to read!

Katherine Center’s books are always delightful romances that have some depth in them. She teaches you about health conditions you’ve never heard of while also perfectly describing the human experience and our relationships with others.

The Rom-Commers was no different. It was such a fun read and I appreciate that she writes closed door romances.

However, there is more language than I prefer that sometimes seems unnecessary. I also didn’t love Charlie. Even if he had “good reasons”, he wasn’t very nice to Emma at all and never gave her the time of day but was apparently in love with her. I guess I just like guys who seem more genuine and realizes how lucky they are without having to put on a face, especially in front of other people.