The absolute best thing about a Katherine Center book is that it's a two for one- you'll get a marvelous story AND you'll get some amazing insight for living a joyful life. Who could ask for anything better?

The Rom-Commers follows Emma, a writer, as she helps her writing idol, Charlie, rewrite a romantic comedy script. There are many layers to this story that make this a complicated relationship. First, Charlie doesn't WANT another writer assisting him and isn't pleased to be in this situation. Emma has a complicated family situation where she has been a caregiver for ten years so she has anxiety about leaving her family for this job. The way the story develops and the relationship evolves is a masterpiece- exciting, funny, frustrating (in a good way), and sweet. And let me tell you, there is a spectacular scene all about movie kisses. SO GOOD!

The lesson in this book is so important- all about how to find joy no matter where you are in your journey.

All the stars!!!!!!!!!!!

One thing about me is that I love a romcoms. I have devoured most of Katherine Center's earlier books, so when I saw this title announced, I was eager to read it ASAP! I'll be honest with you - I read this entire book in two sittings on the same day ... I just couldn't help myself.

Our narrator in this book is Emma. She is a talented writer who absolutely loves movies, especially romantic comedies, but has never had the chance to work in Hollywood because she has spent the last ten years in Texas caring for her disabled father 24/7. Her ex-bf, who is now a big-time agent in LA, has reached out to her to see if she can assist one of his high-profile clients with a re-write of his a terrible rom-com script. Turns out the client is an adventure-sci fi movie writer that Emma is obsessed with!

With her younger sister caring for her dad, Emma sets out for LA and meets Charlie (Mr. Famous Screenplay Writer). He isn't what she expected, nor is the project, but they start working together anyway on the script and it is So. Much. Fun. Emma's inner dialogue and thoughts are funny, and I particularly loved when she SPOKE to the reader directly. It made it so different and fun. Emma was so relatable to me, with her favorite writing hoodie, her nervousness, sarcasm, and inner angst. And I have to mention Charlie's pet hamster!! I love that the author included that facet of him. It showed the soft side of Charlie and made him cute-r. Emma and Charlie have great chemistry, and the build-up, the dialogue, and the unsure-ness that is so very human was all just perfect.

One last thing I wanted to acknowledge was when Emma talked about how and why people gravitate to fiction. How we often turn to stories to help find what we are longing for, or deal with what we're struggling with. This concept resonated with me, and made me think about why I love reading. It was a little moment in the book that I thought was so well done.

This book comes out on June 11, 2024 and I encourage you to check it out! Thank you to the author, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for the delightful opportunity to read an ARC of this book and provide an honest review. All opinions here are my own.

Favorite Katherine Center book. Hands down.
Grieving? Caregiving? Writing? Older sister who puts her life and dreams on hold? Did Katherine Center take a peek into my life and say “that would make a great story”?
This was grumpy/sunshine done endearingly well. This was actually a story that I could not put down!

Katherine Center does it again! What a charming banter-filled hug of a book! One of my favorite of hers so far. I thought the flow worked well, and the relationship was very believable. I loved these characters and their growth. Highly recommend!

I love Katherine Center so much at this point I would even read her grocery list. I was super excited to score an early copy of her latest novel, The Rom-Commers. In true Center fashion, this book was heartwarming and amazing! It addresses difficult topics in a sensitive and realistic way. I loved the three main characters and the chemistry between each of them. The story was laugh out loud funny. As always, I would highly recommend!

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

I engulfed this one in less than 12 hours, if that tells you anything for my love of anything written by Katherine Center.

Emma Wheeler, a full time caretaker for her father and filling the maternal role for her younger, college graduate sister, Sylvie. After giving up all her dreams to take care of those she loves the most, Emma gets the opportunity of a lifetime to work with her favorite screenwriter, Charlie Yates, in helping to rewrite his abysmal rom com.

After a rough start, Charlie and Emma begin to work so well together, on and off the page.

I cried no less than five separate times (bittersweet tears, tears of happiness, and grieving tears) throughout the course of this book and loved every minute of it. Not only for the romance, but the beautiful and real Wheeler family.

Another excellent, incredibly lovely read from one of my favorites.

Thank you to SMP Romance and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. These opinions are my own.

I adored Hello Stranger, and my review especially raved about the Author's Note and its full-throated cheerleading for the romance genre. In many ways, this entire book felt to me like it delivered on all the promise of that note. The Rom-Commers is a romance about romance and the entire rom-com genre. And thus, we get such great insight into the writing process and what makes romances so fabulous.

In this book, Emma Wheeler's agent matches her with multiple award-winning screenwriter, Charlie Yates. He's never written a romance and doesn't have much respect for the genre, so she will be his co-writer to help him deliver. And maybe make him believe in love along the way.

I laughed uproariously and had to share the dialogue with my family who also started laughing, no context necessary. We're still talking about some of the scenes. And reading them entirely from Emma's voice with her very conversational style made them even more fun.

But I also cried more than I have while reading in a long time. There's a storyline about Emma serving as the caregiver for her father, and it made me feel so seen. And I felt hope and joy. I'm not someone who often messages authors, but this book inspired me to write to Katherine Center to thank her, twice. And she was so sweet and gracious.

I can't say enough about how amazing this book is.

I apologize in advance because this is not going to come across as objective at all. Katherine Center has a talent for writing love stories. And yes, the main relationships in her stories are always fantastic. But “The Rom-Commers” is the most definite proof that her “love stories” are not just about falling in love, They are the love we have for our family, for our friends, and most importantly, the love we have for ourselves. This book in particular was an emotional one for me as I found myself gaining new perspective on a TBI of my own, like Emma’s father, but Center’s perfect telling of what it means to suffer from a chronic illness and inspire others to live life to the fullest anyway, to love every bit of life, was a lesson to anyone who’s experienced hardship in life, which is anyone. I could spend much more time breaking down this entire book and everything I loved about it but there simply isn’t enough space in the review. So for now, all I’ll say is that this is the romcom to make you love romcoms.

I'm unconditionally and irrevocably in love with well-made romcoms, and this one quickly became my favourite of all time.

I adored every aspect of this book—the characters, their relationship, the tension, and the banter. It's not only incredibly funny but also heartwarming, with just a touch of heartbreak.

This romcom is flawless, delivering everything I could ask for from this genre.

Thank you, NetGalley, for providing me with this ARC, I couldn't be more grateful.

Ahhh… 3.5 stars rounded to 4. I’ve always loved stories by Katherine Center and had really high hopes for this book. Emma was cute and lovable and funny but there was a spark missing the writing and story. The rom- commers was a miss for me. I however will still recommend this book and when it comes out on audio, I will give it a listen.

Possibly my new favorite Katherine Center (and I have read them all!). This book has the BEST underlying message and is so so well written. It made me laugh, cry, and roll my eyes. I loved the MC and the love interest and just felt so happy the entire time I was reading it.

The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center

A special thank you to @stmartinspress & @netgalley for the ARC of this amazing and heartwarming ebook.

Publication Date: June 11, 2024

I love @katherinecenter ‘s writing! I’m a huge fan of her work, so will have my moment to fangirl a little here - especially because it only seems fitting after reading The Rom-Commers (you’ll see what I mean once you read this book).

💭:

I read this delightful story in two sittings. It easily could have been one had I not fallen asleep. Who needs sleep? 🫢

An aspiring and very talented writer named Emma has had to put her writing on the back burner due to being a FT caregiver for her dad. She has spent the past 10 years caring for him - selflessly giving her younger sister the freedom to pursue her dreams.

Emma gets a call from her ex-bf Logan, who offers her a once in a lifetime opportunity to fly to LA and meet her favourite Screenwriter Charlie Yates. THE Charlie Yates! The man she could only ever dream of meeting in real life, and whose writing she held in high regard.

This book is grumpy x sunshine ☀️, forced proximity, a found second family, with an amazing ending, which will likely have you in tears. Honestly, there were many parts throughout that pulled at my heartstrings.

The plot is clever and goes into great detail on the specifics of how to write a rom-com; leaving me thinking maybe I can write a rom-com too! Lol 😂

If this isn’t on your radar, it should be! I highly recommend this to everyone.

THE ROM-COMMERS is my favorite book of author Katherine Center!!! I really enjoyed the premise and all the heart and charm throughout the story. Romantic comedy screenwriter Emma has the chance to work with her favorite screenwriter of all time, Charlie Yates. And by working, I mean giving all of her honest feedback to Charlie's terribly-written no-happy-ending rom-com script. Together, they rewrite his rom-com script, while writing their own love story at the same time.

I loved Charlie so much. He comes across as aloof and pompous, but when you learn more about him, he is an incredible softie and romantic, with an extremely big heart. I enjoyed the tropes of grumpy vs sunshine, forced proximity, and "co-writers off to a rocky start" to lovers. Emma challenges Charlie in a healthy way that allows him to confront his fears and beliefs. Charlie uses his connections to make Emma's dreams come true.

I appreciated the personal depth and individual growth to the characters. Emma believes she is responsible for the accidental death of her mother. Charlie believes whenever he is sick, the people he loves leave him. With forgiveness and the courage to challenge one's beliefs allows both of them to move on and live the lives they were meant to live. It was a feel-good story that still felt so real and truthful.

I loved the ending and epilogue. Frankly I just loved everything about this endearing love story and am so happy to have witnessed Charlie and Emma's love. One of my favorite quotes: "Whatever story you tell yourself about your life, that's the one that'll be true."

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

NetGalley coming through with some Katherine Center love!

I’ve mentioned it before, but I appreciate Center’s romance novels because they are smut free! Despite being free of steamy scenes, Center is still able to give us the heart swells that we’d read in romance/rom-com novels.

Emma is a screenwriter who hasn’t yet made her big break, but she knows she’s talented and she has an arsenal of rom-com movie knowledge under her belt. Her ex-bf and manager, Logan, calls her up one day offering her the job of a lifetime: fixing and ghostwriting the famed Charlie Yates’ film script… which to everyone’s horror is an absolutely terrible rom-com story. The issue? Upon arriving at Yates’ doorstep, Emma awkwardly realizes that Yates never agreed to hire her. However, after falling for her charm, talents, and unruly hair, Yates hires Emma for 6 weeks as a consultant. After living together for 6 weeks and “researching” rom-coms, can these two resist falling in love?

If you want to unlock all the secrets of the quintessential rom-com, then pick up The Rom-Commers! This book is super cute and I most definitely finished it in 2 sittings. Center’s books remind me of Korean dramas and are like a guilty pleasure, but without any of the guilt.

Something I appreciate about Center’s latest books is that she highlights different medical conditions. In “Hello Stranger,” Center’s story focused around the condition prosopagnosia (or face blindness), which interested me bc my husband has a condition that causes partial blindness. In this latest book, Emma’s dad suffers from a condition called Meniere’s disease, which is a condition my mom also suffers from. All to say, it’s been interesting to identify with Center’s characters in these little ways and to make people aware of these different conditions.

Tbh, I’d probably rate this book a 3.5/5 since I liked The Bodyguard and Hello Stranger more. However, I’m rounding up and giving this a 4/5.

I couldn’t stop reading and finished this book in a day! It was a wonderful rom com about a rom com! The characters were well developed and likable. I can’t say enough good things about it. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys romantic comedies. My favorite by Katherine Center so far!

I loved this book so much. My favorite book of 2024 so far. It was an emotional roller coaster, but it was so worth the ride. Once I started reading, I couldn’t put it down. My emotions were all over the place. I could sit and write about this book all day. The storyline, the characters, the details, the slow burn, it was all spot on. A huge Kudos to the author for a phenomenal book! I am so glad I got an ARC for this, but I will definitely own it. It’s so worth another read and I hardly ever reread a book. I want to see this in a movie!!!

"I've just read a romantic comedy script that will destroy human civilization as we know it."

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

This book is romcom perfection. The multiple layers of romcom happening within the story, the characters, the banter, the barriers and challenges. I'm a huge Katherine Center fan, in general, but this was on another level. I couldn't put it down. It's within the same world as The Bodyguard, which is another favorite in the genre.

My favorite part? The little moments throughout the book were exquisite and so intentionally and carefully crafted. They had me so invested in this love story.

Thank you SO MUCH to publishers at St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC. Publication date is June 11, 2024.

Absolutely devoured this in less than 24 hours. So sweet and exactly what I needed to read. Katherine Center never misses!

One quick note is that the whole “he said, ‘blank’ like, *insert adverb*” got super repetitive. Loved the book regardless, but feel like that was just overdone.

I LOVE a hollywood romance and have enjoyed many of Katherine's books so I was excited to read this once. I really liked the characters and how everything flowed. My one potential issue was the conflict was frustrating and I hate total lack of communication. I kind of got it but at the same time it kind of ruined the slow burn? BUT I loved the male MC and the subtle hints we as readers got that he was smitten.

Emma has been a caretaker for her father for the last ten years and has put her life on hold to do so. When a writing opportunity comes along to work with her idol, she can’t pass it up and her family works together to make it happen. However, Emma finds that Charlie is difficult to work with, isn’t taking her project seriously, and doesn’t believe in love. She fears she’s made a mistake leaving her family, but maybe she’s just the thing Charlie needs in his life.

I love all of Katherine Center’s books, and this one is no exception! She has such a talent for writing characters in a way that you can’t help but adore them. I also love the way she tackles hard subjects with such optimism and positivity without ignoring their difficulty. She always manages to tug on my heartstrings and make me smile and laugh. In this story, I felt such empathy for both characters because they’d been through such traumatic events, but yet it still managed to be light hearted, sweet, and fun. I don’t know how she does it, but I’ll continue to consume it like the serotonin boost it is! I’ll be recommending this book to anyone and everyone!

Thank you to Katherine Center and St. Martin’s Press for the arc in exchange for my honest review.