4.5 ⭐️

The Rom-Commers was an absolute delight to read. The female single voice narration kept me coming back for more. It was the kind of story you get completely swallowed by and lose all time and place until suddenly you’re reading the epilogue.

Emma Wheeler is a wanna be screenwriter with a love of all things rom-com but life has handed her so many obstacles that her dreams haven’t quite come true. She has sacrificed her life, her career, her joy to take care of her disabled father who needs 24 hour monitoring. She’s sacrificed it all so her younger sister could live her dreams. She’s just going through the motions every day. Some might say Emma is even punishing herself. The accident that caused her father’s injuries also took her mother’s life and Emma carries around the blame.

Emma is given the opportunity to ghost write with famed screenwriter Charlie Yates. THE Charlie Yates whom she’s idolized and studied over the years. What do they say about meeting your idols? Charlie wants absolutely nothing to do with Emma or her assistance. But Emma is persistent and she knows rom-coms and Charlie eventually agrees to work with her. Charlie has had struggles of his own, a recent divorce, an illness and is also going through the motions of life but not really enjoying it.

As the two work together and get to know one another a true friendship develops. And suddenly Emma is feeling more but is Charlie? What is Charlie thinking or feeling? That’s where the single person narration hooks you in. You need to know Charlie’s feelings and motives and suddenly you’ve finished the book.

I loved all the literary and film references in this story. If you’re a lover of those things you will too. Charlie and Emma are great together and their banter is so fun to read. Emma epically calls him out several times. I also loved Emma’s dynamic with her dad and sister. This is a beautiful story of love, grief and loss and living for the moment.

Thanks to Katherine Center, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC opportunity.

Katherine Center has done it again. Giving us a sweet, romantic story about a rom-com lover and a man who hates them. I loved this book. Emma was a great narrator, and Charlie was a wonderful male lead. I loved both of them and their journey. I loved the Jack Stapleton cameos, but I wished we would have gotten to see Hannah as well.

If you want a beautiful story about two people who are trying to write about love but the real world keeps getting in their way, then this is the book for you.

Another great book by Katherine Center! I like how she touches on deeper topics while also retaining that light rom-com feel. This one specifically talks about illness, grief, and guilt. It’s about finding happiness in the things we have even when we think we may not deserve it. It’s about love and forgiveness and how we can’t control many things that happen to us but can still live happily after those bad things happen. All with a cute romance. I especially loved the ending & epilogue. Highly recommend!

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for gifting me an early copy in exchange for a review.

This is definitely one of my favorite books of 2024 and my perfect rom com💖 I was obsessed from the very beginning to the end, could not put it down.

The tension, the banter, the funny one-liners, the grumpy hero with a secret soft side, and the (non-irritating) quirky heroine absolutely made this book for me.

It was hilarious, and heartfelt, and sad, and swoon-worthy in all the best ways.

DNF at 40%

I went into reading with such high hopes as I’ve enjoyed some of Katherine Center’s other books. A few aspects of this story were cute/fine, but unfortunately weren’t enough to keep me reading. I had a really difficult time investing in the ‘romance’ between the two MCs and felt like the emotion was severely lacking. I also struggled to connect with them as characters, which is such an important element to me in my reading. Additionally, the breaking of the fourth wall in the storytelling also completely isolated me from the narrative.

While The Rom-Commers just wasn’t for me, I appreciate the opportunity for the ARC and extend my gratitude to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martins Press for the E-ARC
Number of stars for this book: 10 000
Number of times I cried: 8
Number of times I giggled: 43

This book is pure magic. I giggled, kicked my feet, cried, and maybe will be getting a tattoo of a few of the last words in this book.

I will now be buying and reading all of Katherine Centers books. Her writing is phenomenal. She is hilarious in her writing.

Emma has had a hard life. Her big dream is to be a screenplay writer and she gets the opportunity to ghostwrite with her favorite author Charlie! Charlie is not exactly what she expected. He’s somewhat of a grumpy recluse.
Over the coarse of this book I fell in love with every single character. EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER. even the guinea pig.

I have also now learned that the grumpy sunshine trope is a favorite of mine.

Do yourself and your brain a favor and read this book RIGHT NOW!

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

TLDR: If you’re familiar with Katherine’s article romance genre, Love Stories Can Save the World, then it’s no surprise that this book is all of that rolled up into a beautiful story. If you love her work, you will no doubt love this one. If you haven’t read yet, let it be this one. It has so much humor and heart. It feels a little like a warm hug from the person you cherish the most.

I loved this gem of a book. I totally ignored my bedtime. I ended up a crying fool and then couldn’t sleep because I was thinking about life, tragedy, disappointment, hope, and love. I woke up the next morning with my eyes all swollen and I felt like I got hit by a bus but also, WORTH IT.

I loved both Emma and Charlie. She is a firecracker and her internal dialogue was so funny and relatable. Charlie is a grump who is far too practical for his own good. “The internet…” 🤭 (IYKYK) The entire cast of characters were just as wonderful. I was rooting for all of them. Well, not T.J. Heywood. I think it was Emma’s father who inspired me the most. “How did he stand beside a personal Grand Canyon of suffering and manage to feel . . . grateful?” I know people like that. I want to be that kind of person in my own suffering. Um, yeah, this is why I cried.

Tropes + things
screenwriters
famous MMC
grumpy x sunshine
unexpected roommates
anxiety/depression rep
family dynamics
slow burn
grief + healing

Thank you to Katherine for providing the physical copy for our traveling ARC and the publisher for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the two main characters and how they were both messy but good for each other. The biggest reason that I didn’t give it five stars is because I wanted a bit more in the development of their relationship. More pining, more tension, more build up, even more cute banter. I still would recommend this to a friend!

Back in the day, Emma used to date Logan and is currently giving Emma the job of a life time. He has told her to come to LA and write for the famous screenwriter Charlie Yates. She can't believe it. This is a dream come true, but she also can't leave her dad, who needs all around care since the hiking accident that killed Emma's mom and left her father in poor condition. As a family, it is decided that Emma is going to head to LA and Emma's younger sister will help take care of their dad.

When Emma gets to LA, she is introduced to Charlie Yates, who is not at all impressed. He doesn't care to re-write the romance movie since that's not his genre. He wants to work on a more important and serious movie, but this romance movie needs to be good in order for his passion project to go through.

While Logan and Charlie talk, Emma overhears that she doesn't even have the job. She was never offered a job and Logan lied to her. Charlie doesn't care about her or her opinions. He doesn't care to work with her or even acknowledge that she exists.

What will Emma do? Will she stay in LA and make a name for herself? Will she go back home and take care of her dad?

I enjoyed reading this book and I love the absolute cheese this book has to offer! I hope this becomes a movie as it's the perfect rom-com story!!

I really really enjoyed The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center. The characters felt real, their emotions & reactions to one another were spot on. I loved the banter in this book. The slow burn was excellent. This was my first time reading a book by Katherine Center, and it makes me want to immediately dive into her backlist. Loved it!

3 stars - liked, would recommend
The Rom-Commers was a fun easy read even though it touched on some heavy topics.

Katherine Center has written another novel that just seems to sweep you off your feet and let you enjoy the ride and just watch two people fall in love with some laughs along the way. It was really easy to imagine how everything looked, and the book played out very easily as a movie (almost like a... Screenplay?!), and the spice rating is equivalent to a Hallmark movie.

I loved:
- Banter between Emma and Charlie
- secondary characters, especially Emma's dad, who is singularly inspiring and has some awesome quotes, and Logan, the meddliest meddler
- all the research scenes... Yes, they were cheesy but we want the Velveeta okay?!
- when someone is convinced and understands love (another angel gets its set of wings!)

I don't really know what I didn't love about the book, other than Charlie's hot and coldness towards Emma and her being kind of clueless about things but honestly... I would also take things at face value because 1) I'd like to protect my heart and 2) I don't have time for that.

It was another amazing Katherine Center book... Each one I read seems to be better than the one before.

Steam: 🔥
Heart Flutters: ❤️❤️

Let me tell you I DEVOURED this in 24 hours. I literally couldn’t stop. Between the dialogue and all the warm, fuzzy feelings, I never wanted to put it down.

✨ Read this book if you:
- are not afraid of the high-dive
- have a thing for men who can rock corduroy pants and rumpled Oxford shirts
- may or may not have a full, curated collection of dramatic kissing clips from around the world bookmarked on YouTube
- PERUVIAN LONG-HAIRED GUINEA PIGS (No, I will not provide further context.)

✨ My Thoughts: This is the perfect summer read if you want to sit on the beach with a smile on your face! This gave me immense Beach Read vibes, with writers working together whose preferred genres are polar opposites. This book is filled with the perfect banter between two lovable -but flawed- people. Our main character Emma is one you can’t help but root for, even if she doesn’t always make the best decisions. And Charlie Yates is the grumpy to her sunshine, who you can tell is just a big softy underneath. This dynamic is simply the best imo and Katherine Center is a master.

Speaking of Katherine Center, this is really putting up a fight for my favorite of hers! Things You Save in a Fire holds such a special place in my heart, and The Bodyguard was SO heartwarming. So The Rom Commers might join their ranks in a three-way tie!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the copy in exchange for my honest review!

Honestly yet another fantastic Katherine Center novel! I loved everything about Emma & Charlie's story... The dynamic, the banter, the chemistry! So freaking good.

This was my first Katherine Center book. The book was so well written. The amount of times this book left me in happy tears was just insane. It was sweet, funny, and resembled reality. I enjoyed every minute of it.
♾️/5💫
This book was AMAZING! I’ve not read something THIS good in some time. I also have not read a book in 24hrs in MONTHS. I literally could not stop reading.

💫Close proximity
💫He falls first
💫Grumpy/Sunshine

FMC a huge fan of the MMC and he’s this awful meany to her, at first. He’s the biggest cynic to exist. They come together to work on a project together.

Ugh this book made me laugh so hard. I was also like this the whole time 🥹🥹🥹🥹, when I wasn’t laughing of course. The banter was top tier 👏🏽👏🏽

Katherine Center does it again with an award winning novel. Just as good as her other books.

This story follows Charlie and Emma. Emma has been taking care of her ailing father. When she gets the opportunity to go to LA to re-write with her Favorite Screenwriter Charlie why wouldn't she go she is over the moon excited. Charlie is in the middle of writing a rom com which he doesn't want to write.

The character build is excellent and felt like you were right there while reading the story. I would always highly recommend the authors books as they are always feel good and just great story lines.

Thanks NetGalley for letting me read and review.

4.25⭐

Another good read by Katherine Center. I really liked the story & plot, the flow, MCs, and the secondary characters. I do love her writing!

In this book, I particularly liked how she set up a low key, laid-back vibe of the Hollywood scene and of Charlie - a famous screenwriter. Throughout the book Charlie's vibe kept the story grounded, a perfect blend with Emma's enthusiasm.

I thought Emma was great - lots of spunk, ambition, sensitivity - and talent as she begins co-writing a script with Charlie..

However, I would have liked more energy coming from Charlie. He was often silent and not revealing much of himself to Emma. I think it was too much and took away from my connecting with his character - and really feeling the chemistry between him and Emma.

Unfortunately for me, this book included a pet peeve of mine - an OTT sob story - and held me back from totally immersing myself in the story. It just seemed overly dramatic and kinda phoney. Unfortunately, Center wrote the story with this aspect being central to Emma's character. A downer for me. In my view, Emma had enough stress and angst just trying to become a screen writer.

Finally, Center did a great job pulling together what was a tricky ending. It was interesting if not a bit soppy.

Thank you to Net Galley for providing me with a galley of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

You don’t have to be a fan of romantic comedy to read the incredibly well-written The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center. It is essentially a perfect rom com. Aspiring writer and caretaker Emma Wheeler is a delightful character. She is reflective and grounded while allowing herself to get swept away by all the aspects of romantic comedy. She’s funny and complex with strong self-respect. She’s overly caring and compassionate along with being meticulously high strung. Emma has the chance to fix a rom com screenplay with Charlie Yates, her absolute screenwriting idol. As you would imagine, this doesn’t go as smoothly as planned. Charlie is a grumpy, sardonic character who intentionally keeps Emma at arms length in all ways. He refuses to believe in love yet Emma’s sunshine rays keep peeling away his softer personality aspects and a few surprises as they write together over 6 weeks. I loved their chemistry, banter, and intensity. While I would have enjoyed a bit more spice, I respect that the author kept things PG-13 in the true spirit of a rom com. Emma’s family was absolutely lovely and it’s no wonder she sacrificed 10 years of her life to care for her sweetly appreciative father. I like how she never let anything cloud her devotion to them but I also like how they encouraged her to start finding her path. The one thing I’m not enthralled with is the cover. It really doesn’t evoke Emma and Charlie, aside from her hair and his chucks. But that’s a minor nitpick.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for providing this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Emma is the penultimate fan of rom-coms. She's a writer, too. An unbelievable opportunity to work with her favorite screenwriter falls in her lap, and her family helps her find a way to get to California, if she can face her fears.

Charlie is on deadline and doesn't write rom-coms, and his script shows it. He has to make it work in order to get another script-to-film. He doesn't work well with others, but he does have a cute guinea pig.

Working together is not easy until Charlie understands rom-coms. Emma teaches him the ins and outs of what is needed, including the HEA. They each need to face some truths and deal with the past.

Breaking the rules of working together leads to a kiss. They're building teamwork, and possibly something else, but Charlie just won't fully open up, and Emma leaves for a family emergency. One can only hope they can find their way back to each other.

This book is such an ode to rom-coms, full of everything you ever wanted in a book, or a movie, with a sunshiny leading lady and grumpy leading man, a great plot, and more. You'll be a fan of rom-coms by the end of this book, if you weren't already.

A summer must-read!

This was truly an amazing story of self discovery and love. I loved both The Bodyguard and Hello Stranger and this did not disappoint. It was every bit as good if not better. I knew I was in for a wild ride, though not with a 6’3” Italian line dancer (iykyk), and I was completely wrecked! I knew exactly what was going to happen and I still cried myself a river. I remember thinking maybe this is not actually a romance and is actually women’s fiction. But never fear there is a HEA!

Emma and Charlie are both opposites but yet so similar it’s kind of scary. Their chemistry is off the charts from the moment they meet. I loved the whole not quite enemies to lovers thing. The banter was so freaking funny, and it was just so fitting because they’re writers! Also the way everything about Emma’s trauma was played out was perfectly aligned to Charlie’s traumas as well! Just in the way they worked through their issues was so in sync.

The way Emma is able to help Charlie recognize and overcome his fears and learn to love is beautiful. Also the way Charlie shows Emma that’s it’s okay to want something for herself and that she is truly capable of loving herself and being loved, I could not handle it. I loved the intimacy between them and how their relationship gradually moved from coworkers to friends to lovers!

The supporting characters were brilliant as well! I loved Emma’s dad, and Cuthbert the guinea pig! Definitely recommend reading this one! Also the way Logan just pushed these to together… he’s the real mvp even though he didn’t always go about it right way! And let’s not forget the little cameo’s from Jack Stapleton. Again, I cannot stress how brilliant this story is!