I loved this book. I laughed so hard at parts and then also cried. I loved the humor and the one-liners. Parts of this book really tugged at my heart in the best way. I adored the pet guinea pig so much! I loved the characters, their relationship, the tension, and their banter. Such a great rom-com with a very satisfying epilogue to tie it all together.

I really enjoyed this book! I love the twist in it and the banter! I really liked her family and support and relationships with her dad and sister. He was a character I feel like we don’t see a lot, so sweet and tough. Well done!!

I could not put this book down. The Rom-Commers is an emotional and heartwarming romance and I recommend picking it up when it publishes on June 11, 2024. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This is such a funny book. I laughed so hard at some of the scenes. It’s not all laughs though. There’s a wonderful storyline full of wonderful messages about life. The writing is wonderful. I enjoyed this book so much. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced free copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I received a copy from the publisher through Net Galley.

Emma is a struggling writer that is sent to help a very, very famous screenwriter revamp a romcom script. Emma's friend, and manager, Logan has her fly to LA to stay with Charlie for six weeks, but failed to mention this to Charlie. Eventually, after Emma overhears far too many conversations about her, they get to work.

Emma and Charlie have a lot of push and pull at the start of the process, and they seem to get along fairly well once they settle into a routine. Most of their writing time is actually glossed over and summarized after several weeks. They do things for "research" and it becomes quite obvious that Charlie has a little bit of a thing for Emma, but he doesn't willingly admit feelings and tells her he doesn't believe in love. He also has an ex-wife that's not entirely out of the picture as they share custody of a pet and she stays on top of him about going to the doctor, even though she left him. He's open and honest about some things people might avoid, like his previous cancer diagnosis, but clams up when it comes to anything related to Emma. She really throws herself at him a few times, and comes across as a desperate manic pixie dream girl at times with her crazy red hair, easily hurt feelings, and strawberry sweatshirt.

To be completely honest this felt like Beach Read for screenwriters. Charlie doesn't believe in love, happily ever afters, etc. His wife left him and he was hung up on that. He doesn't have a good relationship with his mother. She's got some family baggage and a dead parent as well. Emma starts teaching him about the genre. She took him line dancing. She gets him out of his comfort zone. She gets to work on something with a more famous and accomplished writer that's outside of her normal wheelhouse. The characters don't feel fresh and new, or like fully formed individuals but more of an amalgamation of characteristics from popular books over the last three years.

"Happiness is always better with a little bit of sadness"
Romantic Comedy books are all about the journey, not the destination.
How a couple ends up falling in love and having a happy ending is where the fun lies.
With Katherine Center's latest novel - The Rom-Commers, we meet Emma Wheeler, someone, after a few tragic incidents, becomes the sole caretaker of her father in Texas. She gave up her entire future as an aspiring writer, in order to watch him full time.

By chance, her long time friend finds a way to send her to Los Angeles, to meet Emma's biggest screenwriting idol Charlie Yates. They end up living together in his mansion, so she can help rewrite his romantic screenplay.
The Rom-Commers is written by a fan of rom-commers and is all about rom-comming. It's your basic, run of the mill rom-com - it includes eating cereal without milk, lots of deli meats, drawers of oscars, an unused Esther Williams pool, all the things that make a rom-com witty and completely again, only a rom-com can do.

Unfortunately, as much as I loved Center's past novels, I found this one to be juvenile and lacking depth. Charlie swears he will never love anyone, and it's up to Emma to show him how romantic he can be. I was waiting for reenactments of the famous deli scene from When Harry Met Sally, meeting on top of a famous tower ala Sleepless in Seattle, you get the idea.

It was more reminiscent of Tessa Bailey or Lucy Score, as opposed to Kristin Hannah or even Christina Lauren. It lacked depth and more character development. Why was Charlie the way he was? Could we have had more of Emma's sister or her BFF who united them to begin with? There's no real reason why they are together to begin with.

I will not give up on Center's books, but this one just missed the mark for me. Perfect for one day summer reads.

Okay, everyone!! Katherine Center has outdone herself. This book right here....is so good I could spit!

The premise is just, PERFECT. The characters are simply, ICONS (especially Cuthbert the guinea pig). The comedy is ELITE. The romance, TOP-TIER. I laughed so hard and just had to sit there in silence sometimes to take in the perfect dialogue. I was in awe of the story she told and it made me want to tell a better story to myself about my own life.

Lighting a candle, praying to an altar, putting out the VIBES that this book gets made into a film.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough, it restored me.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Have you ever read a book that feels like it was written just for you? I hadn't until I read this book. There were so many elements of this book that connected with me. I understand the importance of being spoiler free, so I can't get into many details, but I just felt so many moments that just hit me hard on a personal level.

Emma Wheeler, lover and non-professional writer of romantic comedies, gets a once in a life time chance to help re-write a horribly written romantic comedy script with the famous, and her favorite, screenwriter Charlie Yates. When Emma finds that the script in question is due to the "down with love" Charlie having a bad case of the romance yips, she decides to show him everything wonderful about rom-con's and that love stories can matter. Will she be able to break into his closed up heart and show him that everybody deserves a Happily Ever After?

My Grade: A ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice level: 🌶️ out of 5.

The Good:
-Ménière's Disease and Caregiver representation. Thank you to the author for this!
-I absolutely loved the banter between Emma and Charlie. I loved how she gave it right back to him and got his wheels spinning.
-Screenwriting!
-Poor, sweet little Cuthbert.
-Cameo from characters of The Bodyguard by Katherine Center.
-Pocket kisses!

The Meh:
-I would have absolutely adored more kissing. I feel that there just wasn't enough. But I can get over it, considering how much I absolutely loved this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me and others to read this wonderful story!

This was fun and VERY classic Katherine Center, and if you love rom comes you will love all the self aware nods to the genre!

There were also some very heartfelt moments around caregiving, sickness, etc.

It honestly would have been a 5 star except for this one horrible phone call between the main character and her sister, in which she said some absolutely unforgivable things!! They got over it, but I did not!!!!!!

Katherine Center has a knack for taking a pretty simple concept and then fashioning it into an emotional, gut punching masterpiece. I cried often and earnestly throughout The Rom-Commers — but, as Ms. Center wrote herself in this book, “happiness is always better with a little bit of sadness.”

The Rom-Commers deeply affected me. Maybe it’s because I watched my parents be caregivers for their parents for 10 years, or maybe it’s because my own parent suffered a severe medical trauma with a long recovery a year and a half ago. Maybe it’s because I’m also struggling right now in my career and have no earthly idea how to move forward. Whatever it is, I felt so deeply for Emma and her struggle to balance familial obligation and love with career advancement. She is a firecracker and I loved her for it. Emma goes through it, but still manages to be bold and passionate about the people and things she cares about.

The relationship between Emma and our leading man was enthralling. They go through a lot of ups and downs, but I appreciated how they truly became friends first. Their rapport was hilarious and electric with loads of witty dialogue. I guess that’s what happens when an author writes a romance about two writers!

I will say that this book leans a bit more on sexual innuendo than her previous works. While I would still consider it closed door, I wanted to share if that is something that bothers you. I personally was able to breeze past a lot of it, but others might not and that’s okay.

All in all, I loved this book and I hope you do too. It genuinely made me want to start writing a story of my own. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Katherine Center is quickly becoming an auto-buy author for me. I can’t wait to read more of her stories and I hope they share similarities to this one in terms of the plot and lovable characters.

Another winning rom-com from Katherine Center. Hilarious and heartwarming.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/195790586

I absolutely ADORED this book! It had everything that I could ask for in a Katherine Center book. The characters were well developed and I found myself staying up way past my bedtime to sneak a few more chapters in. Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this amazing book! I will definitely be sharing with all of my fellow book lovers!

The humor, the banter, the swoon-worthy moments... This book managed to wade through hard topic like loss and illness while never losing its cheerful spirit.

From page one, I was hooked. The situations Emma puts herself in are just hilarious, but she's such a strong leading lady.

The breakfast scene was probably my favorite one... I wanted a Charlie to make *me* doughnuts...

Impossible to put down, a real delight!

I have absolutely no words! I’m blown away by this book in so many ways!
The banter, the comedy, the sweet moments, and the beautiful ending! I laughed, I cried, I swooned, I blushed, and I was grinning so much my face hurts. I finished it in 24 hours!
Phenomenal! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 I have never given a Rom-com 5 stars before. EVER!
But I am now!!!! There isn’t one thing I would change about this book. Brilliant!!!

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Emma Wheeler, an aspiring screenwriter and caregiver for her father, gets a chance to rewrite a script for her idol, famous screenwriter Charlie Yates. She moves to L.A. for six weeks, leaving her sister to care for their father. However, Charlie is dismissive and uncooperative, disliking collaboration and viewing love as a fraudulent concept. Despite challenges, Emma is determined to prove the importance of love stories. As they work together, unexpected feelings emerge, challenging Emma's rules and leading to a real-life love story that defies fiction.

Katherine Center consistently impresses me with her storytelling prowess. Having read into arcs of her last three books, I can confidently say that she never fails to captivate me. In a genre that often teeters on the edge of cheesiness with overused tropes, Center manages to infuse her narratives with an irresistible charm. I found myself loling and close to tears multiple times, a testament to the emotional depth and humor she seamlessly weaves into her work. I will always look forward to her new books.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for a review

Am I the luckiest? When it comes to getting to read Katherine Center’s books early, the answer is yes. She is one of my favorite authors and I love her characters, love the dialogue and humor and wow was this one swoony. I got an Advance Copy of The Rom-Commers (coming June 11) and it’s another great one.
In this story, our heroine Emma is a screen writer who is not screen writing because of her extensive family obligations. Out of nowhere she gets an opportunity to work with her favorite famous Hollywood screenwriter Charlie to rewrite his newest script. After rearranging her life, she moves to LA to help. The famous writer is famous for all kinds of movies, but never romantic comedy, and he is saddled with writing one as a means to get to a better opportunity. But since he doesn’t believe in love, it’s proving difficult.
Emma and Charlie work together to fix the terrible script and she resolves to make him believe in romantic comedies and love. I am not Katherine Center, so I am not making this sound amazing, but you have to trust me… it’s wonderful.
As always, I love to lose my worries in a Katherine Center novel, and I can’t wait for the next. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC eBook.

This was adorable and such a fun read! I am going to recommend this to everyone for their beach/pool reads this summer.

The book was filled with cliches and coincidence, but aren't those the best parts of a rom-com? I also really appreciate the spotlight on Menaire's disease, as my mom suffers from it.

A woman who has given up most of her life to care for her father is given the opportunity to live out her dreams… and falls in love along the way. This book was just the right mix of fun and heartfelt, and I couldn’t put it down. I always enjoy Katherine Center’s books, but I LOVED this one. Highly recommend!

NetGalley ARC -
I thought this was a great read. Things I enjoyed: the father, the main character being a caregiver, the learning of the tells and personality of the main male character, the sister, the dealing with the ups and downs of life and acknowledgement that you need the bad to feel the good, and the writing