Thanks to an ARC from NetGalley I was able to read Katherine Center's newest book (releasing on June 11). I have enjoyed ALL of her previous releases and her newest book always jumps to the top of my favorites from her! With every page read, I was cheering for Emma, her family, and for Charlie. I laughed out loud several times and also teared up as several hard topics were touched on. Loved the emphasis on commitment and family and gratitude amidst the challenges of life.

Oh my goodness I loved this book so much! Emma and Charlie were both just such a delight to read. When the power wash video game was referenced I knew it was going to be 5 stars. I love that game so much. And then near the end as I was crying, I REALLY knew it was going to be five stars. I loved the brief cameos and mentions of the characters from The Bodyguard. The slow slow burn was so good. Man I wish this book was twice as long because I wanted it to just keep going.

This definitely lived up to its title. Sweet rom-com involving two writers who are brought together to save a terrible screenplay, and in the process, they save themselves from what’s holding them back from past emotions. Anthem from Katherine Center!
Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this advanced copy in return for an honest review.

4.5?

I really like Center's writing. The banter, the emotions, the inner thoughts of the main character- it was all very good. It has several hard, deep topics that I wasn't expecting from something that looks/is called/sounds like a romcom, but they only gave the book more depth. I would be prepared and read the content warnings to be sure you know what you're getting into if you think you'll struggle with some harder, sadder content, but I personally enjoyed them (I'm a big angst fan though).

I think I need to reread it because while it's a quick read, it's not something to skim through or read with only half of your attention. I read it while at work so there were periods when I had to set it down or lost focus, and I hit that last 10% and realized I should have waited until I could devote my entire attention to it. (Actually, I tried from the beginning but every time I put it down I had to pick it up again)

There were periods when I didn't quite care for the characters or their actions, and I guessed where the conflict would come from, but they grew on me by the end.

It's a fun read that, though it talks a lot about common romcoms, has its own creative spin and feels pretty unique.

thank you Netgalley for the arc

"Because the bad thing you're worried about is never the bad thing that happens."

"If you wait for other people to light you up, then I guess you're at the mercy of darkness."

Looking back on my highlights of this book, I just am so happy that I read this. Center can do no wrong & always brings out the emotion within her characters.

This book has
-forced proximity
-grumpy x sunshine
-workplace romance
-unique characters

I liked Charlie Yates. Probably in the minority on that one, but I just really felt for his character in certain parts of the book. Did I want to shake him? Yes, but it still brought emotions to me.

Emma- I do not love as much. She just seems very complain-y. Although, I would've been pissed at my sister too haha. I think she just really went for the jugular and it was not okay.

I enjoy the way that Center approached topics and does not sugarcoat things for her characters. I thought that these two finding love while writing a rom-com under some very different types of circumstances was great & I just really enjoy her writing.

Hard for me to review this one because I think it depends on your mood. It was a cute, fluffy, typical (non spicy) romance novel. The plot reminded me a lot of By the Book by Jasmine Guillory. Emma is quirky in the sense that she has crazy red hair and talks like a Gilmore Girl. She kind of got annoying after awhile. I don't think I like the trope where the guy is mean because he's trying to protect the woman from him. Charlie was a little too mean at times. But like I said, overall a cute, fluffy, romance novel, if that's what you're in the mood for :)

This book is by no means perfect, but I had such a good time with it! It was very fast paced. Not a single lull and I flew through it. The characters were also very loveable. Also, this is a clean romance with no steamy scenes, which is exactly how I prefer my romances. The mark of a good "rom-com" (see what I did there 😂)is the couple finally getting together at the end, not this boring nonsense of getting together halfway through the book and then it's all about the sex.
I will say, however, that sometimes the MC would break the fourth wall and that would instantly take me out of the story. I also feel it's a bit eye-roll worthy and cheesy when rom-coms rely on the whole "accidentally bumping into him a bunch of times" trope. It's annoying and overdone, in my opinion. Also, without any spoilers, she gets into a very nasty fight with her sister where they BOTH say very hurtful things, and yet, only the sister owns up to it and apologizes. She never does! That really bothered me.

⭐️⭐️💫 2.5 stars

Here I am on outlier island.

This is one of those books that got worse as I read. When I started this I LOVED it. Truly. I had such high hopes. It was adorkable and tropey and Emma was a delightfully goofy yet brilliant hot mess. And then we meet Charlie and he's a broody, angry, misanthropic award winning screenwriter who just wrote the worlds worst Rom Com script. Why? It's because he doesn't believe in love. Yes!!! She's gonna teach him what it means to love right? Color me giddy because I'm gonna love this.

Her best friend Logan, who is his manager, ghost hires her to work with him to improve his script and bam, now we have Grumpy Sunshine meets Forced Proximity with two writers and I'm ecstatic. Of course Charlies is unaware and that just adds to the angry tension but it's amazing! Their first meeting set the stage perfectly.

And what happens? This grumpy grump became worse as the book went on. He would frequently be rude and insult her. She would overhear him disrespecting her saying she's a terrible writer and she's annoying and to his credit she actually was those things (except the writer part, she was an amazing writer). She had no backbone and heard every terrible thing he said, would contemplate leaving, and then decided being a disrespected doormat is the best thing since sliced bread and stayed.

Now our fair Emma is used to being a doormat because she has been taking care of her dad for the past ten years due to his traumatic brain injury from a rock climbing accident that also killed her mother that she harbors terrible guilt over because it was her idea for the family vacation to be rock climbing and so she martyrs herself into being the family savior and omg you guys she's finally decided to do something for herself and begrudgingly allows her more than capable younger sister (who desperately wants to) help their dad but not without insulting and micromanaging her and drilling it into her head just how incapable she thinks she'll be at helping their dad. Breathe. Did I purposefully write the most obnoxious run on sentence there? Yes, I did it to illustrate the point of how insufferable Emma is about being the family "savior" who uses her guilt as a crutch to self sacrifice.

Newsflash little sis is a much better caregiver because she actually allows their Dad to live a little and doesn't hold him back.

Back to the book.

So cue the angry mysterious phone call that leaves Charlie throwing his phone and rage leaving Emma in a tizzy of whether or not she should still have the special dinner for him to celebrate his almost 5 year cancer free anniversary. He leaves and what does she do? Throws on a slinky dress and cooks beef wellington.

He doesn't come back for hours and she gets appropriately drunk and attempts to dive off his diving board that he's terrified of because pools scare him so why do you still have a pool oh yeah it's a plot device for him to overcome his water fear to save her. Got it.

So he saves her, she's drunk and professes her feelings for him, kisses him, pushes up on him, and all that and he says I can't do this because you can't consent. You're drunk Emma, you can't consent to this. What's her reaction? "Ugh, now he's throwing consent at me? How was I supposed to argue with that? Maybe I could use my feminine wiles." And then she gets mad at him when he says no! SHE. GETS. MAD. AT. HIM.

What. The. Fuck.

The third act breakup was absolute garbage. I would've thrown my kindle like he threw his phone if I didn't respect how much my kindle cost me. Of course there's withheld information that leads to hurt feelings and a breakup. That's Rom Com 101, I'm honestly OK with that but man did she turn into a see you next Tuesday and lash our at her poor baby sister. (and then never apologized to her either, baby sister wound up apologizing to her, fuck that.)

If he wasn't so insufferable the whole book and she didn't turn into a jerk I would've loved the grand gesture and apologies at the end, they were gooooooood. But it was unfortunately too little too late for me.

Bottom line? They both sucked so they honestly deserve each other.

There's also a weird dynamic with an ex-wife who just comes in his house whenever she wants because she still has a key and they share a guinea pig. Yeah.

But ex-wife is team Emma yet Charlie throws ex-wife in Emma's face and says maybe I'll get back with her. Yeah.

Unfortunately this was a miss for me but I do appreciate the opportunity to review it. Thanks for the arc St Martins Press & NetGalley.

I haven’t read any of this author’s books before but I absolutely loved this one! First of all, a story about writers will always draw me in, but a story about writers writing a rom-com is bound to be good. I love how this novel had more than just a romance plot; it discussed chronic illness, grief, failure, fame, love, sisterhood, and much more. I think the humor of this narrative was so great to balance the pessimism of Charlie’s character. It was a classic grumpy/sunshine trope, and it was done so well! I highly recommend anyone interested in writing and rom-coms read this!

Phenomenal, I am so taken back by this book. I normally hate the third act break up but gosh this book did it PERFECTLY. Charlie Yates has my heart.

Read if you love
🌻one pov
🌻forced proximity
🌻enemies to lovers
🌻 he falls hard and fast
🌻both writers

Just phenomenal everyone should read this one🥹

The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center was a joy to read. I am late to the party on this wonderful author and I regret the lost chances. It is a story about two screenwriters cobbling together a romantic comedy movie script. One, the famous screenwriter, is a cynic and no longer believes in love. His partner, who he didn’t want in the first place, has made a study of romantic comedies, and even has a database of movie kisses saved on her computer. To say they clashed, would be understating it. The experienced writer, Charlie, has written an epically horrible script. His agent, Logan Scott, was Emma’s high school boyfriend, who has made it big in Hollywood and has tossed her small jobs over the years. Emma has been the 24-hour-a-day caregiver for her father and so has limited, availability. She does some writing and she teaches college courses online. Now he is offering her the opportunity of a lifetime: go to Hollywood and co-write a script with her idol, Charlie Yates. She makes it happen, only to discover when she arrives that Logan had not passed the arrangement by Charlie first, and he refuses. Not nicely. No summary can do this story justice.

It is an epic romance, perfect for the big screen. As they work they discover that tripping and falling on one’s partner is not as romantic as it seems, line-dancing is more romantic than either of them could have guessed, and bad news is usually followed by good. Wonderful characters; Charlie is the epitome of the disheveled, cranky, semi-hermit, and Emma is a ray of sunshine. She has to learn that she is replaceable and things aren’t always as bad as they look. The script gets finished, but it was a difficult journey. The people the readers expect to fall in love, do. And everyone lives happily ever after. The reader had an epically good time reading this book. Thanks, Katherine Center. I apologize for not hopping on board sooner.

I was invited to read The Rom-Commers by St Martins Press. All thoughts and opinions are my own. #Netgalley #StMartinsPress #KatherineCenter #TheRomCommers

“I’ve always harbored a suspicion that I might be a secret dancing savant. Not line dancing, per se, but just—from all the moves I’d busted in the kitchen while cooking over the years...”

Center has the perfect formula for writing books that you read in practically one sitting. Funny, relatable, sweet, endearing, and so heartfelt.

You can’t help but love Emma.

“I desperately want to know,” I said. “But will just privately obsess over it, like a normal person.”

Same Emma, same. Emma is all of us. And you can’t make this up. Well... Center can. Love her books and can’t recommend this enough.

I expected The Rom-Commers to be exactly that: a standard romantic comedy. I was pleasantly surprised by how heartwarming it is.

Emma Wheeler is a fledgling screenwriter who gets an unexpected offer to work with her writing idol, award-winning screenwriter Charlie Yates. Charlie has written numerous action and sci-fi blockbusters, but he’s just written his first romance, an updated version of the classic rom-com film It Happened One Night. It is—in a word—abysmal. Emma’s forte is writing romantic fiction, and she is tasked with helping Charlie polish his turd into a diamond. The one hiccup is that Charlie doesn’t want Emma’s help.

Both characters are endearing. I loved Charlie immensely. Even in the beginning when he’s gruff, there’s something appealing about him. As the story progresses, we get to see his boyish charm and vulnerability. I clicked with Emma instantly. She’s smart, funny, and talented, and I admired her willingness to put her dreams on hold in order to care for her sick father. It’s touching. Charlie and Emma’s road to love is a bumpy one, paved with humor, setbacks, frustration, and tenderness.

The actual writing process is only a small portion of the story, but Emma’s insight into what makes a good romance is spot on. Hollywood power dynamics are an interesting addition and make for some entertaining moments.

I also loved how well-developed the supporting characters are. Emma’s dad is a gem, and her sister is her biggest cheerleader. I was struck by how invested I became in the outcomes of all the characters—not just Emma and Charlie. The epilogue is particularly satisfying..

Once again, Katherine Center has given us a wonderfully funny and sexy romance that will stay on our minds for a long while. It hit me a little different since I've recently lost a love one, so if that is a trigger, just a warning. But it turns out to be a beautiful love story, so all was well when I was finished reading.

Emma is given the chance of a lifetime to rewrite a screenplay by her idol, Charlie, she is ecstatic and definitely fangirling! Happy endings are few and far between in real life, so that is where Charlie falters when trying his hand at a romantic script. Emma is tasked with helping him find his happily-ever-after. Thus begins the rollercoaster of emotions that really hit you in the feels.

This is fantastically written! You may even find yourself crying in parts, but believe me, it is well worth it to find out how Emma and Charlie's story turns out. Bravo, Katherine Center. You've got a great love story here.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC. The opinions expressed are my own.

The Rom-Commers-⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This one is getting all the stars and more! I do believe this may be my new favorite @katherinecenter novel!💗
So a big thank you to Katherine, @netgalley, and @stmartinspress for allowing me an advanced copy to get to read this gem before pub date.

A huge part of why I loved this book is because it carries so much emotion, but is also lighthearted and fun, which is what we have all come to know and love from Katherine. The characters are so down to earth and very relatable as their problems are very real problems people face daily. Charlie and Emma are adorable and you can’t help but fall in love with them especially with their constant back and forth banter. I have also never been one that just wants to go to LA for any reason, but this book made it slightly more appealing, with the fun name drops of real stars in the book.

If you want to read this cutie pie of a book(trust me you do) then grab your copy today because it’s officially PUB Day for The Rom-Commers!

@katherinecenter I hope you have an amazing first day on tour and I will see you next Friday in Dallas and I could not be more excited!💗🌸

What is your favorite Katherine Center Novel?

#bookstagrammer #bookaddict #booklover #readaholic #bibliophile #instabooks #bookaholic #readinglife #goodreads #abusymomreads #readbetweenthelines #booksofinstagram #bookblogger #booklove #booknerd #bookofthemonthclub #bookish #bookstagram #booklove #abusymomsbookclub

I loved The Bodyguard and Hello Stranger so I was really looking forward to this but unfortunately it fell a bit flat. The lead characters were pretty insufferable. He was straight up mean the entire book. Like actually insulting the FMC repeatedly and while I love a grumpy MMC, I do not want a mean guy. She was convinced she was basically a MPDG and sooo unique and not like other girls when she was probably just like other girls and also kind of a jerk, especially to her sister. I’m so sad this did not work for me!

I think I fell a bit more in love with Katherine Center after this one. This story is the perfect summer read. It had emotions, great character interactions, funny moments, great flow and the best part? It was a rom-com about writing and learning what a rom-com actually is and I can tell you I’m 100% here for it. Katherine Center has a way with words that hooks you right from the beginning and makes the story flow so well you can’t stop reading. This story was more on the light-hearted side for me and the pace was just right. You didn’t have time to get bored but had enough time to have a good character development. This one was one of those books where you forget you’re reading until it’s done.

Talk about an enemies to lovers plot…I don’t think this guy could have been more rude if he tried. Overall I really enjoyed reading The Rom-Commers but I it was hard to fall for Charlie Yates because his rudeness is A+. Great job Katherine Center!!

Charlie Yates is an award winning screenwriter trying to write his first rom-com and it’s a bust. His agent brings in one of his other clients, Emma Wheeler, who longs to be a screenwriter, but has been taking care of her father instead. When they meet they instantly dislike one another. Charlie doesn’t believe in love nor does he understand what it takes to write a real Rom-Com and of course he refuses to accept help from a failed screenwriter. Emma has a tough road ahead of her but she is determined to teach Charlie a thing or two about love both on paper and in real life.

It deals with some real life struggles and even though the constant battling between the two can get repetitive it doesn’t come across cheesy. I love stories about love…especially when it’s complicated like this!

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy

“The job of a rom-com, is to give you a simulated feeling of falling in love.”

Mission waaay accomplished. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Emma Wheeler is a struggling wannabe screenwriter with a lot of promise, who has given up many an opportunity to stay home and be her father’s caretaker. Charlie Yates is a young successful Spielberg/Nolan hybrid of a screenwriter who is struggling to write his next mandated screenplay in a genre he despises - the dreaded Rom-Com.

Let’s just say our main man, Charlie Yates, is a golden retriever masquerading as a black cat, who so ardently does not believe in relationships, that he might just have to Google if he is in love with you…haha MORE please.

The Rom-Commers is also filled with degenerative and chronic illness representation. The story has such heart, with many deeper moments mixed with amazing witty dialogue and longing glances.

It’s a swoony, hopeful, lovely time and ode to one of my absolute favourite genres. 🥰

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Katherine Center and NetGalley for an advanced electronic copy in exchange for an honest review.

Star Rating: 3.5/5 ⭐
Heat Rating: 1/5 🌶️
Audiobook: 4/5 🎧

What to Expect:
- Grumpy/Sunshine
- Forced Proximity
- Workplace Romance
- Hollywood Romance
- Temporary Roommates
- Quirky Characters
- Family Drama
- Past Trauma

Emma Wheeler is an aspiring screenwriter who is given the opportunity to help Charlie Yates rewrite a script for his upcoming romantic comedy. She is a huge fan of Charlie, so this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for her. Unfortunately, this opportunity requires Emma to leave her father in her younger sister's hands while she is in LA for this job. After some miscommunication and bad first impressions, Emma helps Charlie turn his terrible script around. When Emma finds out Charlie doesn't believe in love, she works to make him see love and rom-coms are worth it.

I really enjoyed the grumpy/sunshine dynamic between Emma and Charlie. Emma is optimistic, hopeful and believes in true love. Charlie is successful in his field and has a tough exterior. His time in Hollywood and past disappointments have caused him to be jaded and not believe true love exists. The characters are interesting, well-developed, and have many layers; however I didn't always like them. The story did drag a bit, and sometimes I didn't feel much was happening, but the laugh-out-loud moments kept me reading. I liked the banter between Emma and Charlie and the development of their relationship. I also liked that this was not a typical rom-com and had some heavier topics. The Rom-Commers is my first read by Katherine Center. The author's note at the end of the book is a treat for readers. Overall, this was an enjoyable story, and I would recommend it to those who want a lighthearted story that will leave a smile on your face.

NARRATION:
Patti Murin did a wonderful job with this story. Her voice is very versatile and she did a great job portraying the characters. Murin perfectly conveyed the personalities of Emma and Charlie. Murin is expressive, and her inflection is perfect. I also enjoyed Katherine Center herself narrating a bonus scene. I highly recommend pairing the book with the audio for this story.

Thanks to Katherine Center, Macmillan Audio, and St. Martin’s Press for the gifted eARC and audiobook. Opinions expressed are my own.