This was a great road-trip listen!
It’s all about the openness and tenacity of Emma Wheeler, the female main character in this story. She makes the reader, as well as her fellow characters, fall in love with her simply with her belief in love, as she navigates a life that has tried to discourage her at every turn. I especially liked how educated this character was on her topic of choice, and of course the inevitable happy ending.

The Rom-Comers by Katherine Center, audiobook read by Patti Murin Emma is a screenwriter and college professor who put her dreams of Hollywood stardom on hold to take care of her disabled father. A call from her former high school boyfriend now agent, Logan, changes all that when she gets hired to ghostwrite a rom-com screenplay with Charlie Yates! (yes the Charlie Yates! Hope you like that name because you will hear it a lot throughout this book!) Charlie Yates thinks rom-coms are trivial and moreover that love doesn’t exist. Can Emma change his mind in time to get a good screenplay written and make her time away from her family worth it?



I want to start by saying I love everything that I have read by Katherine Center. I really was anxiously awaiting this book and when I didn’t get chosen for the eARC I applied for the audiobook and am so glad that is the version I read. The narrator was amazing! I was listening to this on my drive to and from work for a week and talking back to my car stereo. “No!” “Really?” “What a jerk!” “Don’t believe that Emma!” I really loved this book. My only qualm was the end was a little monologuey for me, but that’s ok. I laughed out loud multiple times. I was swept away by the story as Emma made Charlie Yates do everything he thought was romantic in his screenplay that she disagreed with. I got mad that Emma doubted herself and believed the surface of what Charlie was saying, rather than looking deeper and validating her truth. But this makes sense for the character, someone who has been hiding from life due to a family tragedy; keeping her life safe and small, and not really living at all. I liked that Jack Stapleton from The Bodyguard shows up as Charlie Yates’ best friend, connecting this book with my other favorite Katherine Center novel. Center has the ability to take grief and tragedy seriously while also showing humor and the small ways people soldier on. For a book that concerns some heavy topics, it felt light, even while taking it’s characters seriously. Thanks to Macmillian Audio and Net Galley for this early audiobook in exchange for my honest review. 4.5 stars

Romance is the hill I will go rest on. The author's note for this book should be the manifesto for romance readers.

This book made me laugh out loud. A genuine laugh. More than once. I also am not ashamed to say I cried. It reminded me of the experience I had reading Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld. It's that deep, butterfly inducing, giddy feeling. It was the days in school wondering if the person you liked felt the same way.

Very well balanced grumpy/sunshine. They weren't extreme ends of the spectrum but normal acting humans with predisposition towards one but weren't locked into that as their only character trait. I also adored that they had hobbies and talents outside of their jobs. It made for dimensional characters.

No spice. If that matters to you. But it didn't need it, it wasn't missed. In fact, I could argue that this book is an example of how we don't need spice in every romance book to make it good.

I'll be thinking about this one for some time.
Note: I listened to the audiobook ARC but will most likely buy a physical copy.

Thank you to NetGalley for an Advanced Listeners Copy.
I have read all of Katherine Center’s books and loved most of them, but this one fell flat for me. I’ve learned that the celebrity/regular person trope is just not for me. This book reminded me of Nora Goes Off Script and Funny You Should Ask (I didn’t care for those either). I definitely enjoyed aspects of this book and Patti Murin is a wonderful narrator. I admired Emma’s dedication to her father and enjoyed Charlie’s character development. Hello Stranger was one of my favorite books of 2023, so I was disappointed not to love this one.

Thank you net galley for granting me access to this audiobook. This is my first Katherine Center book and now I completely understand the hype!
I absolutely loved Emma and Charlie. The banter throughout the story proves that opposites do fall for each other. The narration in this was amazing. I laughed, I cried and overall just didn’t want it to end.

I am just so in love with this novel. It's exactly what you expect from this author, and from the title and cover art you know that this is going to be well, a romcom. I was so enthralled when this book packed such heartfelt experiences from the characters, witty banter and of course, a love story. I finished this book days ago and seriously can't stop thinking about it. Please make time to read or listen to the author's known at the end, as I also believe that love stories are worth being told, enjoyed, and loved.

"I did eventually give in and marry Charlie..."

Uh, thanks?

This book ends so awkwardly. We get an epilogue where the heroine says, "...every single day, he asked me to marry him, which I loved, even though every day I also evaded the question... I...resisted saying yes in that way you can when absolutely everyone knows you want to say yes and you will say yes, eventually. And anticipation is half the fun."

This book is painful. There was so much potential, but this author includes bizarre plot twists that really bring the story down for me. Before I completely tear this apart, let me start with the positive. Katherine Center can write in a way that makes me really feel. She has a lot of talent. But, her choices make this book NOT romantic and NOT satisfying at the end (see above for one example).

I enjoyed a lot of the story with Emma coming in to help Charlie write a rom-com. He is pretty dismissive of her so she doesn't put up with it. She puts her foot down and gets what she wants out of the situation. THAT part was satisfying.

However, she ends up being a doormat and a martyr. Pretty much every relationship in this book is REALLY emotionally unhealthy, from an unhealthy guilt making her serve her dad to her own detriment for 10 years, fighting TERRIBLY with her sister and not apologizing but demanding her sister grovel, her dad telling her he just decides to be happy (sweep it under the rug psychology), the hero "protecting her" through being a total douche, her chasing the hero down MULTIPLE TIMES, etc.

I received the audiobook as an advanced reader copy. The narrator does a great job and all the characters have distinct voices.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an advanced audio copy of “The Rom-Commers” in exchange for a review

I’ve been with Katherine Center since ‘How to Walk Away.’ She’s a classic go-to in the sweet romance, human connection space. I always pick up her new books as the come out.

So why only 3 stars? While I enjoyed it, I’m not sure it’ll stick with me long term.

Katherine Center is easy to read with an enjoyable story. I enjoyed listening to the book but wasn't crazy about the English accent. Overall, likeable characters and a good ending.

First, and I think most importantly, can I just say from the very beginning how much I hated the character TJ? Teej. Jablowme. Backwards cap guy. I mean, I know he wasn’t meant to love, but ugh! *Please forgive pardon all spelling errors of his name, I listened to the audiobook, ha.

Second, and most obvious from my 5 star review, is that I loved this book. It had so much that I loved in it.

Things I loved:
I love how she described what Rom-Coms are about and the comparison to sex, it made me laugh, but at the same time she’s not wrong.

I loved the characters. Emma just felt so relatable and all her thoughts and emotions just felt real and like something I would’ve thought/said/done too. Charlie was amazing, but wasn’t perfect like so many other romance books. He had his issues and Emma just figured them out. Of course there was the communication errors where you’re just mad and thinking “why wouldn’t you just tell her/him?!”

I loved the whole writing a rom-com together, while your life turned into one because of “research” just was so fun to read. Her explanations of what necessary parts of rom-coms were, and then seeing it in their friendship, and the bickering and all of it just was fun.

I loved how real the hard things in life were portrayed. The guilt and the hard part about caretaking.

I loved the quote: “If you wait for other people to light you up, then I guess you’re at the mercy of darkness”

Things I didn’t love:

The HEA was all in the final epilogue and mainly…

That it ended.

3.5 stars. Cute story with likable characters. There were some swoony moments. My complaint is that for a book about two writers working on a screenplay, we didn’t see enough of them collaborating/writing. We were told they worked well together, but I would have like to see more of that in action. I wanted to see them write a scene together that made me feel something (both the scene they were writing AND the banter it took to get them to that end result). I did enjoy seeing them talk about rewriting the terrible kiss in the screenplay, but I would have liked more scenes like that. The main conflict veered dangerously close to “unnecessary misunderstanding” territory, but I feel like the resolution helped make up for some of the frustration I felt during that section. I also wish there had been just a little more of them coming together before the big conflict because that would have helped me weather the frustration even better. That being said, there were still some very cute scenes that kept the romance kind of subtle and just hinted that were thoroughly enjoyable. The Bodyguard cameos were also fun.

Listen. This book. THIS BOOK is the epitome of a Rom-Com. Like, Duh! It was so delightful. I laughed so hard. I even cried (b/c trigger warning-there is speak about death and cancer) and it was just perfect! When I started this I HATED Charlie. Like, wanted to throat punch him so hard. But, in the end he redeems himself. The character development was great and I love how the ending just ties the entire book up. Katherine Center never fails me-she will be an auto buy :) I wish I had a hardcopy of this because there were so many more quotes that I wanted to write down and post it note around my house.

If you want a book that is light, sweet, funny, emotional then grab this one because you will not be disappointed. The audio version is so good!

4.5 Stars! Kudos to Patti Murin, the narrator of audiobooks matters so much because it will make or break it for me. If they suck, I'm not listening. Not the case here. She did a fantastic job!

⭐️3.25
4-5 stars seems to be consistent in the reviews of The Rom-Commers, so my expectations were high and I am clearly in the minority.

I tried, but did NOT like Charlie. He was extremely rude and I was cringing because Emma seemed to be acting out of desperation.

The pace was too slow but I stuck with it, just waiting for more to happen and to finally connect with the characters. Once the story got going, it felt rushed and then quickly ended.

This one wasn’t my favorite by this author, but it reminded me of Happy Place by Emily Henry. If you liked that one, this book is for you. Overall, I liked it but definitely didn’t love it.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc. All opinions are my own.
Publication date: June 11, 2024

This was my first Katharine Center book and having heard great things, I was excited. The Rom-Commers is a fun premise with good narrators, but more filler than actual story. It won’t discourage me from giving another book of hers a try, though.

4.5 rounded up

I LOVED this book. It was cute, funny, and heart warming. I'll be recommending this to everyone I know. Everyone.

Katherine Center has done it again with this heartwarming, hug of a story. This may be my favorite of hers yet, it’s definitely my favorite romance of the year!

If you haven’t read a Katherine Center story, I would describe it best as being hugged by your favorite sweater when you need it most. She writes emotional and relatable storylines, her character’s are endearing and perfectly flawed, and she expertly balances real-life difficulties and humor, giving her stories emotion and depth. I haven’t read one book of hers that didn’t play with my heartstrings, and this one tugged on every emotion.

I fell in love with Emma and Charlie, both were beautifully flawed, but their story wasn’t all fluff. Both had experienced life changing events and had to learn to navigate through big change and all its own stressors, and neither made it through unscathed. I loved Emma, her strength in picking up the pieces and how she put her life on hold for the good of her family, but was saddened for the guilt and anxiety she felt that made it difficult for her to ask for or allow others to help. And I adored Charlie, right from the grumpy start and my heart broke for all he went through. I adored watching both them grow together, helping each other face their fears, as their feeling for one another grew. I loved their banter and silliness as they worked together and conducted their ‘research’, the angst of what was going on around them was palpable, but despite the heaviness of the situations each faced, I found the story to be beautiful and uplifting, packed with happiness and hope. Just perfect!!! I would also be remorse not to mention the secondary characters, especially Emma’s dad. I found them all just beautifully written adding their own bit of magic to this one, and for those that read The Body Guard, Jack Stapleton makes a cameo appearance.

Patti Murin does a fantastic job bringing this cast of characters to life, inciting just the right amount of enthusiasm, pacing and tone to fit the mood, while allowing the chemistry and banter between Emma and Charlie shine.

Thank you to NetGalley, Katherine Center, St. Martin’s Press AND Macmillan Audio for granting me access to this book AND audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

This book is scheduled to publish June 11, 2024. Reserve your copy now, you won’t be disappointed!

A wonderful Katherine Center novel. It was a great story that kept the reader reading. the characters are relatable. You get invested in their story, and their backstories.

A clean romance story with all the humor and some tear jerking moments. I enjoyed the audiobook. Well liked main characters. Good family relationships and sister relationship. Their insults were excellent. Enemy to lover trope. I liked the dad's advice about being grateful and focusing on the positive. I should read more rom com. This book left me with a good feeling. The dad focuses on making the lady in his life laugh as much as possible even though he's not in the best of shape.

This story is about two writers, one well-known and one not so well-known. The one well-known is trying to write a rom-com except it's not good as his other works. The one not well-known was reluctantly hired on to help him rewrite his story. It was a rocky start to this teamwork. The well-known writer was too cocky for his own good and he said some mean things. The not so well-known writer has some skills up her sleeve and she's ready to teach him a lesson, especially when he doesn't believe in love. She made him watch many kissing scenes as one of her lessons!

Thank you St. Martin's Press, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

4.5/5 stars
This book solidified Katherine Center as an auto buy author for me. I loved this story. Sweet and funny romance.
She falls first, he falls harder, a bit of a “workplace” romance

ARC Review! Release Date: June 10th, 2024

Rating: 4.5 / 5
No Spice

This was a very cute slow burn workplace romance.

You started off with your FMC, Emma, who is a struggling screen writer who has to take care of her ill father, and has put her dreams on hold. She gets the opportunity of a lifetime to work with one of the greatest screen writers of all time. Enter your MMC, Charlie.

Their banter is so much fun, and I am obsessed with Emma‘s witty nature! The way that the author describes her overall personality and her looks just make the story that much more fun. Charlie is the perfect grumpy to Emma‘s sunshine and watching him slowly open up to a person He obviously loved from the moment he saw her was such a beautiful time.

I really felt that I was watching the story happen in real time and the imagery was so perfect. there’s also a really fun bonus chapter where you get to see a specific scene unravel through Charlie’s eyes, which was very unique and I was Living for it.

There is perfect amount of family drama, past trauma, and learning how to let people in on both sides. I could see this becoming a screen adaptation for sure.

This was my first Katherine Center novel and I already have a nice healthy amount of screenshots for more books of hers to add to my TBR!