Katherine Center slayed the house DOWWWWNNN with this one. Romance books are rarely 5 stars for me, but this one was just soooo good!

This was my first Katherine Center book, and it did not disappoint! As someone who always says that they are not into romance and yet still seems to read them all the time (lol) THIS is the kind of romance I love! This book was giving a little enemies to lovers, turned friends to lovers, grumpy x sunshine, forced proximity realness! I love how cute and sweet Emma and Charlie's love story is. I also really enjoyed the fact that KC gave the characters depth and touched on several real and hard topics that people go through. It made the story feel authentic!

Also a rom-com about two screenwriters writing a rom-com?! What's not to love?

Can't wait to read more of Center's books!

THE ROMCOMMERS review

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25/5

✍🏻Katherine Center is an auto-read author for me! She can do no wrong and all of her books are just so dang good! THE ROMCOMMERS was no exception! 💕 This book had me invested immediately and I kept thinking about it every time I put it down!

✍🏻Here’s a summary of the plot:👇
Emma is trying desperately to make it as a screenwriter when she gets the call of a lifetime. World renowned screenwriter Charlie Yates needs a cowriter for his first ever romantic comedy and Emma has been chosen for the job. Romcoms are Emma’s favorite genre and she’s thrilled to have such an amazing opportunity. Until she finds out Charlie hates everything about romantic comedies and is only writing this script to fulfill a contract requirement. Emma is determined to make Charlie understand just how amazing romcoms are, by any means necessary.

✍🏻The premise of this one was so cute and I loved reading about the screenwriting process! There were several crossovers from KC’s other book THE BODYGUARD that were super fun to pick up on! This book felt like a big love letter to romantic comedies as a whole and honestly gave a new perspective on them (for me personally). Some of the scenes with Emma’s sister were hard to read because of the way the siblings talked to each other. Although it did feel true to life (sometimes people say awful things in the heat of the moment). Otherwise I really enjoyed this one and would highly recommend it! Now I need to finish the rest of KC’s backlist. 🤓

✍🏻Thanks to @stmartinspress and @macmillan.audio for my digital copies!

Katherine Center, the author you are!!! This is my third book by this romcom magician and I loved it so much. (And I knew I would love it as much as a past BOTM pick, Hello Stranger, and the interconnected story, The Bodyguard, that I splurged to add on The Bodyguard and The Rom-Commers to my BOTM box this month so they would all match on my shelves!) The yearning, the realistic emotions, the writing about writing…EVERYTHING was perfect about this book. Emma and Charlie, I love you. Katherine, I love you. Narrator Patti Murin, I love you. Thank you to NetGalley for the audio ARC!

In this cute rom-com/beach read we meet Emma, an aspiring screenwriter and her favorite screenwriter Charlie Yates. Through a series of events, Emma gets an awesome opportunity to write a Rom-Com screen play with Charlie. In the process she learns a lot about life, love, and writing.
Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC.

Emma Wheeler, an aspiring screenwriter obsessed with romantic comedies, finally gets her big break to rewrite a script for her idol, Charlie Yates. However, Charlie is a cynical screenwriter who despises rom-coms and views love as a scam. Their journey from clash to connection is heartwarming, filled with real emotions and unexpected romance. This audiobook beautifully blends the charm of romance comedy with a touching, real-life love story.

I love Katherine Center. I adore everything she has written! This book was just so cute. The characters are so well-rounded and thought out. They practically jump off the page. I can not wait to read the next book and the next and the next.

I absolutely loved this book. The witty banter and the drama are what Center does best. It’s a great beach read and it’s very mild for a romance book, nothing too racy that I wouldn’t feel comfortable recommending to young adults. One of my favorites of hers. I did love both of the audio narrators as well. Very well done

This was a first time read for me by this author. Or should I say first time listen, as I listened to this as an audiobook. I can tell you, I am definitely going to be going back and reading her backlist because this book was awesome! I was hooked from the very start and couldn't stop listening. Emma and Charlie start out as enemies but forced proximity brings their relationship into a new dynamic and they form a friendship which turns into something so much more. Emma is an English teacher whose dream is to become a full-time screenwriter. She wins contests with the romantic comedies that she writes, but her primary focus is caring for her dad, who needs full-time care. Charlie is a famous screenwriter, and Emma gets the opportunity to work with him on writing a screenplay for a rom-com. This is the chance of a lifetime, and with her sister stepping in to care for her dad, she is able to take it. This just might be her big break. But when she arrives in LA, Charlie apparently has no idea she has been hired to work with him, and he refuses to work with some amateur. Although disheartened, Emma doesn't back down and she fills Charlie in on what she thinks is wrong with his script. Surprisingly, he listens and let her help him. As they work together to write a love story, it seems their own love story begins to take shape right before their eyes.
Charlie and Emma worked so well together and I really loved their dynamic. Their interactions and witty dialogue had me laughing all the way. They were really well-crafted characters which I immediately fell in love with and it was fun listening to their relationship take shape. I also like the narrator who did an awesome job of bringing the story and characters to life. So glad to have had the opportunity to listen to this!
My thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing a complimentary copy. This is my honest review.

I love Katherine Center and all of the stories she writes. It's honestly hard for her at this point because some of her books are my favorites of all time. I don't know if anything will ever compare to Things We Save in a Fire, but this one was really good and really enjoyable. As always with this author, there were laugh out loud moments and I cannot recommend this one enough.

Thank you for allowing me to read and review this story. Reviews have been posted to my storygraph, goodreads, Barnes & Noble, and my instagram @manymerrybooks.

Katherine Center knows how to write rom-coms.
Her stories aren't life changing, but they make for great weekend or road trip reads.
The Rom-Commers was as expected an enjoyable but also at times nothing special rom-com.

I really enjoyed the tension between the couple, that's probably the best part of the book.
I could have done without the drama at home and the judgy relationship between the sisters.
But overall, the story was pretty much what I expected from a Katherine Center book.
Emotional at times, funny and engrossing at other times.

I'm glad her books are still part of my reading year.

About the audiobook, it was well done. Not as good as a Julia Whelan narration but plenty good.

"The Rom-Commers" by Katherine Center is, unsurprisingly, a romantic comedy novel.

I've posted recently that I don't really like rom-coms. I loved this one! The characters are really well developed, and I laughed a lot listening to this book!

The main character is Emma Wheeler, who writes rom-coms and takes care of her injured father. Her manager calls to tell her that he has a job for her to help the well-known screenwriter Charlie Price rewrite his latest screenplay. It's a rom-com which isn't his forté. Emma has to move from Texas out to L.A., California, to stay with Charlie Price for 6 weeks of writing. The problem is that Charlie never writes with anyone else, and he hasn't agreed to this deal. When Emma shows up, it's a big surprise to him, and he says, "No!" Of course they get beyond that.

Emma has a witty, sassy personality, and the dialogue is quite funny. The audiobook is expertly narrated by Katherine Center and Patti Murin.

Characters - 5/5
Writing - 5/5
Plot - 5/5
Pacing - 5/5
Unputdownability - 5/5
Enjoyment - 5/5
Narration - 5/5
Cover - 4/5
Overall - 39/8 = 4 7/8 rounded up to 5 stars

I haven't read any books by Katherine Center before, though I have several in my TBR stacks. I'm looking forward to those now!

Thank you to Netgalley, MacMillan Audio, and Katherine Center for providing me with this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Overall, I liked that this book dealt with a lot of difficult issues that both of the characters were facing. It was a very deep and at times emotional romance. I just personally had a hard time really rooting for them. There were times when Charlie the male main character was strictly mean, and I couldn't buy that she would still be so into him after that.

While this book had a lot of potential with its depth, I had a hard time connecting with these characters.

I love the storyline Katherine Center creates with two writers, one famous and one fantastic, who would not be more at odds. Thank you @stmartinspress for my early audio and digital copy. Highly recommend the audio, it’s @pattimurin !!

Emma is like a modern day Meg Ryan. I said what I said, date me if you wish. I loved Meg Ryan growing up, she was fantastic, and Emma owns those vibes equally as the fantastic writer in Center’s new release, THE ROM-COMMERS.

Charlie has a rom-com script that needs to pass muster for an exec’s trophy wife (yes it’s lol-level funny). He and Emma share this well-meaning agent (read friend of Emma’s) who puts them in the most cringe-worthy moments. Katherine Center is a literal genius!

So we basically watch these two banter their way through a contract and fall for each other despite trying not to for many reasons. Emma keeps pulling Charlie out of his shell and we learn so much about his past.

The last ¼ of the novel will really endure you to Charlie and Emma to the point where you’re literally cheering for them.

Add this to your summer reading TBR, as always I kick off summer with Center’s newest and I really loved this one!

I hear there’s also a cameo from The Bodyguard for fans. 😉

There are mentions of loss of a parent, accident injuries, cancer and drowning. I know these can be especially heavy for some, so reach out if you have more questions, I’m happy to answer.

If you like KC’s work for its silly, light-hearted romances and fun characters you will not be disappointed by THE ROM-COMMERS. I flew through it and had a blast!

Emma is an aspiring screenwriter who thinks she’s getting her big break — to work with THE Charlie Yates (a screenwriting legend and her hero) on a rom-com movie but turns out that Charlie wants nothing to do with the frizzy haired amateur. However, Emma seems to win him over in small bits until Charlie’s aversion of Emma is more of a move for self preservation than a lack of attraction.

We love a workplace 🤝 grumpy/sunshine romance! But this one did not unseat my fave from the author (which is THE BODYGUARD!! Read it!!) but it was a fun ride for sure. If I’ve seen criticism for this one it’s been about believability and I think that’s definitely warranted BUT if you are able to turn off the logical side of your brain, ya might enjoy it 😉

Y’all I ADORED the audio, which again was narrated by patti murin — she’s one of my faves!

Firstly, this is a cute read- definite beach read material. I was hoping for some Emily Henry vibes and it... mostly hit the mark. It was my first (audio) book from this author so I didn't have others to compare it to. The premise started out well, I'm down with some Grumpy meets Sunshine tropes, but I didn't warm too much to Charlie. He was a jerk for most of the book and the series of easily avoidable miscommunications got a little out of hand. Emma had redeeming qualities but her caretaker martyrdom and treatment of her (not selfish at all) little sister were hard to stomach.

My main beef was with the last 'twist.' To avoid spoilers, it was a health care scare of sorts and tbh, it was predictable and gave me the ick. A stronger ending definitely would have redeemed the slightly unlikeable characters for me.

There's something about a story where the FMC and MMC are opposites that just does it for me. This book was the perfect blend of lighthearted and emotional. I adored the humor, the care-taking elements, the self-discovery, and the ending. A love story to love stories!!!! I love this book so much!! I love Katherine Center!!

Loved this book. The audio was very well done. Great summer read and a true rom com. It was so cute and fun to read.

***Katherine Center offers a writing-focused story in which forced proximity, past secrets, complicated life circumstances, and a fear of vulnerability complicate the professional and personal lives of an unlikely writing duo.***

Emma Wheeler writes romantic comedies, and she longs to be a screenwriter. But her life in Texas is complicated: her father requires a full-time caregiver, and Emma is it.

When, due to her promising talent and her best friend from high school (who's now a high-powered agent), Emma gets the chance to rework a script by the famous screenwriter Charlie Yates (whose works and quotes are posted all over her room), she bends over backward to make it happen. Her sister steps in to help with their dad at home, and Emma moves to Los Angeles for six weeks of inspiring, career-building, lucrative, and life-changing work.

Only, the last thing Charlie Yates wants is someone changing his (terrible) script. He doesn't even believe in love, and he's quite certain that Emma is not a solution to any of his problems. In fact, he seems determined to undermine any potential progress on the script, which puts Emma in a terrible position.

Oh, and because of several (ahem, rom-com-type) issues, Emma is living in Charles's house for the duration of the project. And Charles's documentary-filmmaker ex-wife is showing up unannounced, seemingly protective of Charles.

Can Emma make Charles believe in true love long enough for them to create something wonderful? Or will the growing obstacles in their path keep them not only from building a great script, but from each other?

As in all good rom-coms, there's a conflict keeping the potential couple apart, and I appreciated the nuances of this one. Center doesn't rely on a miscommunication trope (my very least favorite), and I could see where both sides were coming from emotionally within their prolonged heartbreak of having to be apart.

There's a romantic gesture centering around a script, and it didn't quite sit right with me (regarding who wrote it, who is credited, etc.). But I loved the book's focus on writing, the peek at L.A. life and the movie industry, and that Emma and Charles are both fish out of water who only find peace and success both professionally and personally when they are true to themselves.

I listened to The Rom-Commers as an audiobook courtesy of NetGalley and Macmillan Audio.

Katherine Center is also the author of Hello Stranger, What You Wish For, Things You Save in a Fire, The Bodyguard--check out my reviews on Bossy Bookworm, the blog--and other books.

I love rom-coms, I grew up on the early 2000’s movies - forever chasing that nostalgia and hence, why I wanted to read this story! This was my first Katherine Center book I’ve listened to/read and I enjoyed the story overall. I liked her writing style. Therefore, I will continue to explore the author’s works and read more from her! I appreciated the emphasis given on rom-coms - that they are a respectable story that deserves as much love and attention as any other movie works!

The issue I had from this story was that I could not connect with the FMC or MMC. I found them one dimensional, their relationship surface level. I was wanting more comedy to come out of the rom-com aspect. I found the heavy handed inclusion of his full name “Charlie Yates” bordering on irritating - it was too much. I thought his personality could’ve been adjusted better, I found him just grumpy, kinda mean to FMC and was written in a way that he was made out to be a bit of a sloppy loser?

I just couldn’t believe in his character. He only had beer, lunch meats, olives and cereal? The cereal he uses water bc he has no milk?? There’s just no way. He was written like he was a bit antisocial and completely clueless to any emotions. I just didn’t understand why the FMC was in love with him, he didn’t have endearing qualities.

The narration for the audiobook was okay, but not great. I didn’t care for the attempted male voice by the female narrator for Charlie.

I found that the Epilogue and the bonus chapter of Charlie’s POV were not necessary, didn’t add much to the story for me.

Thank you MacMillan Audio & Netgalley for an ALC!

The Rom-Commers is a quirky romance about two writers who fall in love while writing a rom-com together. The witty banter between Emma and Charlie Yates was a lot of fun to experience and I felt like I was in the kitchen, sitting at the messy table, writing with them.

Charlie and Emma have emotional baggage from their past that makes them both believe that they are incapable of being in a long-term relationship. I felt that Emma went through a greater character arc than Charlie, and I appreciated her growth and willingness to grow and change throughout the story. I felt that Charlie did not go through the same.

I would recommend for those readers who want to learn more about the writing process and like slow-burn, closed-door romance.