I normally enjoy Melissa Ferguson books despite them being closed door. But this one did not do it for me.

It's the normal office, he falls first romance and it's Melissa is good at!

I for some reason had a problem connecting with the characters and the plot. It started strong then it dropped.

I normally love Melissa's books, but someone will love this!

The Perfect Rom-Com was the first book I read by Melissa Ferguson and it definitely won’t be my last. I really enjoyed reading this one. I really loved that the book, while a romance, had more of a focus on how the main character developed and grew throughout the story. I really enjoyed her journey of self-development throughout the story.

This book is great if you are a fan of
🌸Friends to lovers
🌸Forced Proximity
🌸He falls first
🌸Workplace Romance

A big thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was, in a way, the perfect Rom-Com (for me), but it is also a book about writing the perfect Rom-Com. And this is the point where I think some readers appear to have lost the - forgive me the pun - plot.

Personally I think this was a great story, mostly well-written, with a lot of heart, and great characters, of which many are quaint and charming, and one, very particular one, is infuriatingly horrible. So, the story has it all, heroes, villains, writers, publishing industry insights - and a bit of wisdom and advice light-heartedly hidden between the pages, as well -, a lot of laughter, and a slow-ish burning romance.

The time jump I see so often criticised? Well yes, it's there, but anything important that happened during that time we get told in the ongoing story. So I am not sure what people's gripe is with that.

Is there a significant use of ellipses? Yes, there is. Does it throw you off track when reading? I have no idea, it didn't throw me off; but I like using ellipses in writing, especially in dialogue or thoughts, myself. And I use them quite a bit, thus I know how to read them.

Personally, I think you will enjoy this story just a little bit more if you happen to be a writer yourself, perhaps even a ghostwriter, or perhaps a now-published-author who had to deal with a lot of - sometimes infuriating - struggles along the way, or a literary agent, or an editor.

Maybe the problem of the story is that some of it, if not a good proportion of it, goes over the heads of people who 'only read books'; I think being (at least somewhat) familiar with the publishing industry and the process of writing itself helps the enjoyment tremendously. Thus, the subtitle part that says 'for book lovers' is a little bit misleading, perhaps, and not doing the book a lot of favours.

I felt perfectly entertained, rooted for Bryony and her gang, cheered when the end unfolded the way I anticipated (no, not due to bad writing, quite the contrary - also, a writer knows how stories get written, there are only so many ways one can possibly - and plausible - write them).

I think this is the perfect Rom-Com for writers, small and big, unpublished and published, acclaimed or aspiring, indie or TradPub represented or pursuing.

If it weren't for the subtitle I'd give it 5-stars, but as the subtitle seems - judging by a few of the reviews I read and skimmed over - to inspire wrong expectations I'll leave it at 4.5 and round down instead of up wherever giving half-a-star isn't possible.

Nonetheless, I had a hell of a time with this and I am very glad I picked it up! If you're a writer yourself, and especially if you happen to be ghostwriter, you should absolutely read this if Rom-Coms, or just something rather funny to read, are your thing.

What a gem of a book!

Bryony is an aspiring writer with a book she loves too much to change. While getting rejected, she lucks onto a job as a ghostwriter, and we meet her again 2 years later. She's a good one.

She is so good that her editor is glued to her side as an agent/best friend, and the publishers need her to keep propping up a vapid 'writer' that's the face of the series.

(I did wish we'd seen more of Byrony and Jack in those 2 years-- we rejoin them amid their friendship)

Bryony is sassy and sure of herself-- using her secret life as a writer to support her passion for teaching ESL and sharing her grandmother's legacy. Jack is adorably dashing and always there when Bryony needs her.

Everyone around her sees things she doesn't see -- or doesn't want to see. Then they're forced into a bus together and everything comes to a head.

I really enjoyed this book. I read it in 2 days. I cried when Bryony felt betrayed and I swooned even though I predicted the outcome.

Such a sweet pair and sweet book.

I loved this book. It was so cute and funny. The characters were relatable and brilliant. I loved the banter between the MMC and FMC. This was the perfect rom-com!

Overall it was a cute book. It’s a light hearted book and I enjoyed the characters overall. However, the book started off strong and then went downhill .

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.
For being called “The Perfect RomCom” it really wasn’t. It was bad necessarily, but it as more of the “mid romcom”. Light hearted, fluffy and predictable.

An absolute delight, rivals to lovers hits the publishing industry for this swoony treat! It was a lovely escapade behind the scenes of publishing world, done so well. There were aspects of the publishing industry that I feel were so realistic and niche that only a writer could've written so that felt really special to get a glimpse into that world. I particularly liked the analogy of ghostwriting being compared to being a surrogate mum, it solidified that experience so clearly in my head. The emphasis on the role of a ghostwriter in the publishing industry was also really interesting to read as I feel like it doesn't get mentioned in books often and I really saw Bryony as the unsung hero in the version of the industry that was portrayed.

Another aspect I thoroughly enjoyed was that this book was set on a bus tour! It's incredibly rare that book tours get mentioned in books but I was ultra happy that a lot of the romance actually occurred with the backdrop of them being stuck on a bus together. It felt so refreshing and fun to read whilst still realistic and probable.

I was hooked from a few pages in and this book hits the ground running. There is so much drama, so many plot twists and a surprising amount of publishing insider info crammed into this read. One thing I could not fault was the pacing, this might have some of the best pacing I've read in a romance book (ever)? At some points the plot jumped a little bit and things moved arguably too fast but for the most part, I was here for it! Bryony is absolutely fearless and equally insecure which gave me such a soft spot for her and made her character feel immensely relatable. She's also the ultimate underdog and is pulled in so many difficult directions that by the end of the book I just wanted to give her a hug in all honesty.

Jack and Bryony's chemistry was pretty sizzling hot ('make something else your muse, make me your muse') although this book didn't have any spice which I would've loved to see. It is nice however to read a romance that isn't dripping in sex scenes every two seconds, so I respect that but it was a little too closed door for my tastes personally.

There were also some funny moments packed in ('how is she breathing? She looks like Darth Vader's lover') was one of my favourite highlights it really cracked me up haha.

It felt super unrealistic that Bryony almost magically was over her breakup and wasn't affected at all. This was an example when the pacing outdid the plot and it felt like things were moving at an unbelievable rate that lost its realism a little. Some of the wording was a bit confusing, ('they countered with one every seven. I countered with one every nine'; 'it's like being a neurosurgeon working on an airplane during war').

I wasn't crazy about Jack saving Bryony, I felt like Bryony was such a strong and independent character that it was kind of disappointing that the plot ended up relying on Jack to fix the issue that Jack kind of put her in, in the first place. I also wish we got to know Jack better, because I didn't feel like his character was super fleshed out.

The Perfect Rom-Com is exactly that! I loved Briony and Jack. Briony is passionate about writing and about the ESL learning center that her grandmother started, that is woefully low on funds. Jack is an agent for a publishing house. Their first meeting is uneventful at first but then Briony gets bold and everything changes. I loved the chemistry and the friendship that Jack and Briony had together. I was fascinated at the behind the scenes look at the writing and publishing world. The grand gesture at the end is perfection. I loved everything about this book.

📖 I so badly wanted to like this book. There were parts, specifically Jack and Bryrony’s relationship in the early chapters, that I really enjoyed (for the very few pages that was).

However, this book was a flop for me for a number of reasons. You will never have a successful rom-com when there are 2 years skipped between the opening of the book and the rest of the story. Relationships are built in those small moments so readers seeing them as they meet then magically as best friends who have spent 3-5 days together for the last 2 years does NOT work.

Also, Melissa… what was with all the fragmented sentences?!? It was so incredibly frustrating to read. Please start writing in full sentences again, PLEASE!

Lastly, the ending was honestly irritating. In no way, shape or form would that have happened. Like… no. Impossible. It was a horrid attempt at a grand gesture.

Ultimately, it was a forgettable story.

Thank you to NetGalley for an eArc in exchange for a review.

Ah, with Melissa Ferguson behind it, the rom-com really shines! Her writing style is so witty and warm, blending humor with real emotional depth. The dialogue is fast-paced and smart, making it easy to connect with the characters right away. Ferguson has a knack for creating memorable, lovable protagonists who are charmingly flawed but also incredibly relatable. In this book, the mix of quirky situations and sweet moments makes it feel like the perfect balance of laugh-out-loud and heartwarming. It’s the kind of read that leaves you smiling long after you've finished.

4.5 stars

QUICK GLANCE-
My format- ebook
Other formats- 📖Physical (304 pages) 🎧Audio (10 hours and 49 minutes)
Spice: 🌶️(just kissing)
Language: 🚫
Publication Date- February 11, 2025

MY THOUGHTS-
“The Perfect Rom-Com” offered a delightful change after a spree of dark and twisty books. It was a cozy read with interesting characters and a sweet friendship. There’s something truly heartwarming about watching a friendship evolve into love and seeing the characters realize their true feelings for each other. The humor sprinkled throughout added a light-hearted touch. However, the miscommunication trope, which can seem immature and easily resolved by simply talking, did detract from the experience for me. Despite this personal preference, I would still recommend the book to anyone who loves a sweet, clean romance.

🥰 Friends to lovers
👌Forced Proximity
👨 He falls first
📖 Workplace Romance
👩‍🏫 ESL teacher rep
📈 Character Growth

Thank you to Thomas Nelson Fiction, Melissa Ferguson, and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Perfect Rom-Com: A Romance Novel for Book Lovers
by Melissa Ferguson
Publisher: Thomas Nelson Publishers
Series: None
Rated: 5
Obtain: Borrow
Back of the Book: “Aspiring author Bryony Page attends her first writers conference bursting with optimism and ready to sell her manuscript with long-shot dreams of raising awareness for The Bridge, her grandmother’s financially struggling organization where she teaches ESL full-time. But after a disastrous pitch session, she stumbles into correcting another author’s work in a last-ditch attempt to make a good impression with the agent. And she, as it turns out, is spot on.
No one is more surprised than Bryony when the agent offers her the opportunity to be a ghostwriter for Amelia Benedict, popular rom-com novelist. Bryony agrees on one condition: she’ll write books for this vain, demanding woman just as long as Jack Sterling, literary agent of the legendary Foundry Literary Agency, works to sell her own book too.
What nobody predicted, however, was that Bryony’s books would turn Amelia Benedict into the Amelia Benedict, household name and bestselling author with millions of copies sold around the world.
And just like that, the Foundry Agency can’t let her go.
But on a personal note, Jack is realizing he can’t either.”

Impressions: Let me preface this with the fact that I read this in like a day. I am now binge-reading all of Melissa Ferguson’s other books.

This book was full of engaging, inner-thought banter and romance. I enjoyed Bryony and how she developed throughout the book surprising herself by the end. It reminds me of my internal thoughts and struggles. It is interesting how we perceive ourselves versus others' perceptions. As much as I enjoyed Jack’s character and fell in love with him along with Bryony by the end of the book, I realized that since we were following Bryony so much, we lost perspective of him. It reminded me how easily we can be in our heads, worrying about ourselves while forgetting others. This was a lighthearted and easy-to-read story.

Quotes: “He respects people who respect themselves. Now, I don’t respect myself, but I can pretend.” - This book was full of relatable quips that made Bryony feel relatable.

“I wanted to live in his nothings and him to live in mine.” -Isn’t this what falling in love is all about?

I received an ARC of this book via the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review shared here.

I really enjoyed this book. I wrote a review but lost it, I remember this got me out of a reading slump at the time I finished it though. I loved the couple and the pacing of the story, I was hooked from the beginning. A funny, entertaining, swoon worthy romance for sure.

•𝐀𝐑𝐂 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰•

{𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝑹𝒐𝒎-𝑪𝒐𝒎}

“𝐋𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠.”

🌸 Release Date: February 11, 2025 🌸
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Twenty-nine-year-old Bryony Page only wanted one thing: to get her manuscript picked up by an agent and published so that she could save her struggling workplace. Well things didn’t go quite as smoothly as she had planned and after many refusals and less-than-lovely comments about her manuscript, Bryony was ready to give up. And then she met Jack Sterling, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚌, 𝚟𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚕𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚘𝚞𝚜, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚒𝚛𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚊𝚐𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎, and something snapped within her. This, shall we say, entertaining encounter led to an unusual offer she couldn’t refuse.

After being a ghostwriter for Amelia Benedict for two years, Bryony has finally had enough. She was sick and tired of being the “big brain inside the stupid face”, as she so eloquently put it, and wanted to be acknowledged for her writing so she could finally publish her own book. It was only getting worse as Amelia became a bestselling author and household name and started viewing everyone around her as disposable. As Bryony put it, Amelia was the textbook definition of a civilized sociopath. The “brains behind the books” and the “face of the books” end up having to go on a book tour together. What could possibly go wrong?

Ladies, we all love a man who pines after a woman (HIS woman) and, therefore, y’all are gonna LOVE Jack Sterling! I know Bryony (and every other woman) died when he told her, “𝙼𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚖𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚖𝚞𝚜𝚎.” 🫠 Jack & Bryony’s “agent-writer-colleague-friend-but-not-too-close-friend-support-system relationship” was highly amusing and certainly entertaining. But oooh did things get so much better once the feelings were out in the open! These two were oil and water, city mouse and country mouse—aka perfect for each other 😁 Watching their banter and obvious chemistry was so much fun! And that ending…PERFECTION 🤌🏻

Top Moments:
📙 The pep talk with Gloria
📙 First interaction w/ Jack Sterling
📙 The elevator encounter
📙 The bookshop event w/ Amelia
📙 Serghei’s dislike of Jack
📙 The Pin Pals
📙 Amelia…everything with Amelia 🤦🏻‍♀️
📙 “Make me your muse.”
📙 The “first date”
📙 Betrayal
📙 Penny’s revenge
📙 The Bright Show
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I received a complimentary arc of this book from NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction. All opinions listed are purely my own.

I love the take of a rom com about a rom com ghost writer. The writing in this was so witty and the banter between Bryony and Jack was so much fun to read. Especially with this coming out around Valentine's day, I can't wait to tell all of my friends to get a copy!

Bryony, an ESL teacher, wants to save her grandmother's legacy, and she is convinced publishing her novel will help her do that. But she messes up her book pitch with Jack, who is however interested in something else: her becoming a ghostwriter for Amelia, a socialite. Two years later, the books she wrote are bestsellers, and yet her own novel is nowhere near published...
This is a workplace, slow burn, forced proximity romance. It wasn't bad, BUT, despite this being marketed as a rom-com (I mean, it's right there in the title), and that this does contain a romance element, this is way more chick-lit (focused on Bryony's journey) than rom-com. Jack was not a very likeable MMC. Also, there was not a ton of dialogue, which I'm not a fan of. Don't get me wrong, this is good chick-lit, if that's what you're looking for, but when you're expecting a romance, it can be a bit of a letdown.
I received an advance review copy of this book for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Another spectacular entry from Melissa Ferguson!! All Bryony Page wants is to publish her novel and save her grandmother’s ESL non-profit when she finds herself ghostwriting for famous rom-com author Amelia Benedict. As her ghost-written books explode in popularity, her initially contentious relationship with agent Jack Sterling slowly warms over the years to a friendship…and more? I devoured this book. It’s witty, it’s snappy, it’s fast-paced, it’s funny, it’s my favorite Melissa Ferguson in years. There are quippy one-liners and lots of slow-burn romantic tension between the two leads! I also loved the unique behind-the-scenes look at ghostwriters and literary agents when most NYC-set stories are focused on authors and editors. This book left me with such a smile on my face and I highly recommend it. Go grab it for the perfect Valentine’s weekend read!

(My only caveat would be if you are someone who doesn’t like stories where the FMC is dating someone else we don’t like while her feelings grow for the MMC, this book may not be for you. There is NO cheating in this book but it does flirt with that line a teensy bit.)

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me an ARC of this novel. I was not required to give a review and all opinions expressed above are my own.

The Perfect Rom-Com by Melissa Ferguson

Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you to Thomas Nelson Fiction, Netgalley, and the author for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

“…life, while at times terrible, hard, and unpredictable, could never keep goodness from poking through the ground too.” 💗✨

The Perfect Rom-Com is a wonderful, engaging, and heartwarming story that focuses on personal growth, navigating all seasons of life, and self discovery.

Bryony is an aspiring author. She works as an ESL teacher at a school that was founded by her family to help immigrants. Bryony attends an event for writers that connects writers with literary agents. At the event, Bryony gets a meeting with Jack, a very successful literary agent. She hopes he’ll consider the manuscript of her novel, which is based on her grandma’s life and the school she works at. Instead, Jack ends up asking her to be a ghostwriter for a socialite client of his.

Two years later, the books that Bryony has written as a ghostwriter have become bestsellers and Bryony finds herself trying to navigate the obligation of being a ghostwriter while trying to get her book published.

Overall, this was an enjoyable, fun read. Bryony’s passion for the work that she does is incredible. Her empathy, enthusiasm, and determination all make her a fabulous FMC. Bryony and Jack are a cute couple and their relationship is super sweet! Their understanding of each other and banter were both awesome!

I’d recommend The Perfect Rom-Com to anyone looking for a sweet closed door romance that emphasizes personal growth and following your dreams! 🩷

Tropes:
- Friends to lovers
- Forced proximity
- Workplace romance
- He falls first
- Slow burn
- Writer FMC
- Literary agent MMC

Melissa Ferguson knows how to write a Rom-Com and in this case she has succeeded in writing "the Perfect Rom-Com." This is her best book yet!

In this novel, plucky Bryony Page is on a mission to become a published author -- and she will not let anything or anyone stop her. When she comes up against her last roadblock, what will she do to make her dreams come true? Follow along in this rollercoaster tale to see what happens.

As always, Melissa Ferguson delivers a sweet and clean romance story full of laughter and fun that can be recommended to just about anyone! This is one not to miss!

Thanks to Melissa Ferguson and NetGalley for an ARC copy of this novel to review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.,