"And they built a life together, and looked after each other, and made the absolute best of their lives...

Tragedy is a given. The question is what we do in face of it all"

When I think about this book what I'll remember the most won't be the romance, but rather the messages around hope and positivity in the face of tragedy.

I loved, maybe love is the wrong word given their circumstances, Emma and Charlie's backstories. The story had the depth that I look for in romance books. It wasn't too heavy, it had funny parts. It kept me entertained as I was reading and put a smile on my face multiple times.

But The Rom-Commers is not a new favorite from KC. I certainly liked it. I didn’t love it. It made me sad that I didn’t love it. I think the characters didn't work for me. I found Emma too chatty and bubbly, Charlie too emotionally stunted. I also don't think they had the chemistry to make it a swoony romance book.

I will continue reading KC because I adore KC's effortless writing. I am also glad that KC insists on her message on telling love stories and being an advocate for reading love stories.

"If you've been shamed away from reading love stories, Hello friend, come over to the fun side. The ridicule, it is wrong. In that way that the world has a way of being so wrong about so many things. Come hang out with me on my hill of love stories. "

I've read the ebook a couple months ago and listened to the audiobook last week. Patti Murin's narration is stellar. Thank you @smpromance and @macmillan.audio for the advanced copies.

There really are a lot of potential triggers in this book (death of a parent, cancer, etc) but the overall mood is light. Of course, our main character Emma is different (curly untamable hair), and the main guy Charlie Yates (it's necessary to use both names when you refer to him even though there's not another Charlie in the book) has an ex-wife she feels she could never compete with. Even though they're both kind of jerks, there are the typical tropes, like their initial meeting being rough and the misunderstandings. Even though the writing itself was fun, it felt like she was taking advantage of tragedy for entertainment, and it felt like a lot. I liked an earlier book I read by Center and enjoyed it but will probably be more careful about the plot next time.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this.

Katherine Center’s books are like warm hugs. And this book is no exception. It’s a saccharine sweet story in the best possible way. I could not put it down because it was such a sweet story. I loved the cameo from a couple characters from a past book.

“If you wait for other people to light you up, then O guess you’re at the mercy of darkness.”

I enjoyed this book, but I do have a few things I could say about it.

The overall plot follows our lead, Emma, as she takes a leap of faith to pursue her dream. Emma gets an unconventional opportunity to help a famous screenwriter tackle a new genre, Rom-Com. She must leave life behind, this including her father, who she has been the primary caregiver for. She is to help famous writer Charlie Yates, a egocentric and very successful writer. This talks proves to her that you should never meet your heroes.

This is very much and enemy to lovers book. While other reviews could stand Emma, I actually think she was the weakest link, and enjoyed Charlie very much. Emma I felt whined too much, was annoying at times and always thought her way was the only way…dare I say she had a huge ego, like Charlie. I also felt like when it came to Charlie, she let him walk all over her, and quickly forgave him for everything. I did like that she did speak to us as the reader. Charlie stayed true to himself . I did feel like their romance took WAY TO LONG, also wanted some sexy time… but alas.

I did enjoy the major conflict of the book, leading to the ending, which I did enjoy as well.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a digital review copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

I had fun reading this book, and I'm a huge Katherine Center fan, but I found the characters of Emma and Charlie to be mostly forgettable (sadly) and while the novel was really fun, I had some issues with it. It wasn't a home run for me like some of her other books have been. There were a few scenes at the end that toed the line of ridiculousness to the point that I began to find Emma annoying and unrealistic. Besides that, I thought their chemistry was only good, not great. BUT I loved the set up of writing a screenplay together, of this sort of enemies to friends to lovers trope thing, and I liked that there was a complex backstory for both Emma and Charlie. So while I will continue to read everything written by Katherine Center, this falls in the medium category of her books for me personally.

Katherine Center books have been hit or miss for me. The last one, Hello Stranger just enraged me with how ridiculous the plot was. But this one… idk.. it just sucked me in. Was it predictable? YUP. But I really loved it. The way the ending got tied up sooooo quickly after the build up to the what was going to be “the big problem” was my only complaint. It was literally only a couple of pages. But this one gave me all the feels and I really loved it.

First, I am extremely thankful that the amount of language in this book was decreased! There were a few words but less than other stories. The Rom- Commers was a fun little story of two screen writers who work on a movie script, and of course fall in love along the way!
It wasn't my favorite of Katherine Center's but it was still extremely enjoyable and most definitely did not turn me away from her future work. I am highly looking forward to her next one.

Can I just say how laugh out loud funny this book was? It was just a nice wholesome, hilarious story. No smut (not that I have a problem with smut
….i just sometimes want a nice funny rom com. This book is IT. It would make an amazing movie.
The characters are flawed, interesting and hilarious. The character growth arcs are “chef’s kiss”. Looks like I will have to add another author to my favorite’s list.
I received a ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

wow did I love this book! katherine center hits it out of the park once again with THE ROM-COMMERS and I had such a blast reading this, she had me laughing aloud several times with the absolutely amazing banter between our two main characters. this book is definitely quite dialogue heavy but I loved getting to see their conversations play out and their verbal back and forth throughout. this book is truly a love letter to the romance genre as we explore what makes a rom-com and the true meaning of love which was so sweet.

the main characters were absolutely incredible! emma has such a great backstory and seeing her connection to her family and all that she is sacrificed but now getting to see her live out her dreams was so touching. the discussions of grief and loss in this were so poignant and definitely evoked some emotions (and admittedly some tears) throughout. and I cannot write this review without mentioning charlie! the way he groveled and the things he said and the tiny things he noticed were just too good. so many amazing quotes and moments - I can definitely see myself rereading this book in the near future!

also the ENDING! I can't spoil anything but just know that it is so worth it and will put you in all the feels. highly highly recommend!!

Katherine Center does it again! Thank you to St. Martin's express for granting me access to this title, because although I read this on my Kindle; Katherine Center is an auto buy author for me so I snagged her book but listened to it. One of my favorite tropes is enemies to lovers add sunshine and grump and I am totally in. What I genuinely appreciate about Katherine Center is that her novels always feel like a warm hug and the plots are radically different. There's no rinse and repeat with Katherine Center. Each novel of hers has given me a different literary gift and story to hold onto.

WOW! I listened to this non-stop in one day. I loved everything about The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center. The Rom-Commers is my new favorite book from her. The audiobook narration was perfect. I cannot stop staring at this beautiful cover. I felt every part of this book. I have always appreciated how Katherine Center adds medical pieces to her book. I'm a healthcare worker and truly appreciate how she handles these elements of her stories (or those I have read). I didn't want the story to end because I greatly care for Emma and Charlie!

I liked this one so much even though it was so weird! So much second-hand embarrassment. I hate that, but also props to Center for being so effective at making you FEEL things. Just not the feelings I really want to feel.

Besides the second-hand embarrassment, this book make me feel profound sadness, happiness and validation for my love of romance.

Charlie was a bit of a jerk, but that's how I like 'em. I really feel like we could have learned even more about him, but I'm glad that he was actually mean and it wasn't all just a simple misunderstanding. I would be annoyed in his position, too.

It's a silly book with lots of dark, emotional moments. Also lots of eavesdropping which usually annoys me but for some reason in this novel it didn't bother me. Maybe because it was so juicy every time?

There's no on-page sex, and there are mentions of cancer, chronic medical conditions, caretaking, and death of a loved one.

I have enjoyed all of Katherine Center's books and this one especially. I think I read it at the right time for me. I'm in a bit of a romance rut at the moment so it was exactly what I needed. I really enjoyed it. Emma gets an opportunity to help Charlie, her favourite screenwriter, to rewrite a rom-com script. He's the typical grumpy guy. She's the fun one. I just loved the humour, the focus on what makes a good rom-com and the emotional stuff too. There are some difficult situations in the book. But it's a romance so always a happy ending. I definitely recommend.

I LOVED this book (but is that any surprise, I’ve loved everything I’ve read by Katherine Center)! It’s about a very famous screenwriter (Charlie) who attempts to write a romcom and it’s terrible, so a completely unknown and semi-unemployed screenwriter (Emma) has to step in and help him, despite his protests. It’s hilarious and adorable and such a perfect summer read. There are so many swoony moments, and I loved Emma and Charlie so much 🥹 all the other characters were so great as well, and I loved the ending. I love Katherine Center’s books because they make you laugh and cry and reflect, and they’re all about romance, but also finding who you are and stepping into that. In conclusion, I loved this book, and you need to read it so that you can love it too!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the opportunity to read before pub day! ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. THE ROM-COMMERS is out now!

"The Rom-Commers" is an enchanting and captivating novel that artfully intertwines humor, romance, and personal development. Katherine Center masterfully crafts a compelling story around Emma Wheeler, a protagonist whose fervor for screenwriting and unwavering commitment to her family makes her incredibly relatable. Her odyssey is one of self-exploration, tenacity, and the pursuit of aspirations, is captivating and just already fun. The Rom-Commers really makes you want to dream big. Her best one yet.

Arc received from the publisher; all thoughts and opinions are my own. I have however purchased my own copy.

I will not be giving feedback at this time but I have written a review and am ready to post it to socials/goodreads once the st martins press boycott is over! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC

Katherine Center is known for writing stories that are heartwarming, endearingly- flawed characters, joyful love with a dash of magic. I adore her backlist and was so excited to receive the advanced reader and listener copy for The Rom-Commers. Thank you Macmillan!

I went in looking for my next favorite read and unfortunately The Rom-Commers fell flat for me.
The main character Charlie Yates, was rude to the main character Emma. He came across as a bully and I couldn’t root for him. It was hard to watch Emma go after a man she had romanticized for a long time without seeing him for who he was showing her. I couldn’t feel the chemistry between them, even when they went on romantic excursions, the dynamic didn’t feel loving. Thankfully the narrator, Patti Murin was fantastic. I listened at 1.8x and she did a great job at both the male and female voices, it flowed nicely.

The story was about rewriting a Rom Com movie and I felt like the recipe that Katherine alluded to was missing in this book. I wanted to love it but I don’t. Perhaps it was a me thing. To me The Rom-Commers was missing that Katherine Center sparkle.

CW:
Death of a parent (described on page), Caregiver, Parent suffering from brain injury, parental abandonment, near drowning, car accident, grief, cancer

Katherine Center can do no wrong. Her characters are lovable, unique, flawed, relatable, and you can't help but root for them. Loved the plot, loved the humors, loved the fake-dates. So so good.

4.5/5

I was SO excited to read this book. The cover is gorgeous and I love the look of the sprayed edges. The book was so much fun and I really enjoyed the style of writing. I ended up missing my download window but ended up purchasing the book anyway. I know she has published quite a few books in the past and this was my first time reading this author. I definitely recommend.

Title: The Rom-Commers
Author: Katherine Center
Genre: Romance
Rating: 5 out of 5

Emma Wheeler desperately longs to be a screenwriter. She’s spent her life studying, obsessing over, and writing romantic comedies―good ones! That win contests! But she’s also been the sole caretaker for her kind-hearted dad, who needs full-time care. Now, when she gets a chance to re-write a script for famous screenwriter Charlie Yates―The Charlie Yates! Her personal writing god!―it’s a break too big to pass up.

Emma’s younger sister steps in for caretaking duties, and Emma moves to L.A. for six weeks for the writing gig of a lifetime. But what is it they say? Don’t meet your heroes? Charlie Yates doesn’t want to write with anyone―much less “a failed, nobody screenwriter.” Worse, the romantic comedy he’s written is so terrible it might actually bring on the apocalypse. Plus! He doesn’t even care about the script―it’s just a means to get a different one green-lit. Oh, and he thinks love is an emotional Ponzi scheme.

But Emma’s not going down without a fight. She will stand up for herself, and for rom-coms, and for love itself. She will convince him that love stories matter―even if she has to kiss him senseless to do it. But . . . what if that kiss is accidentally amazing? What if real life turns out to be so much . . . more real than fiction? What if the love story they’re writing breaks all Emma’s rules―and comes true?

Like all of Katherine Center’s reads, this was stellar! I don’t even know how many times I laughed out lead reading this. Emma’s voice is fantastic and her and Charlie together are so much fun. I loved the style of this novel and found it drew me in from the very beginning and made me part of the story. This would be an excellent beach or weekend read.

Katherine Center is a bestselling author. The Rom-Commers is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)