It was different from the books I usually read nut it was so good. I really enjoyed reading it sm. The concept was so good. I was hooked from the start.

"The Perfect Rom-Com" is a delightful and captivating story that explores the highs and lows of the publishing world, mixed with a charming romance. Bryony Page, an aspiring author with a big heart and even bigger dreams, is a relatable protagonist whose disastrous first writers' conference takes an unexpected turn when she's offered a chance to ghostwrite for Amelia Benedict, a popular rom-com author. The novel expertly captures Bryony’s internal conflict as she agrees to the deal, balancing the excitement of breaking into the industry with the frustration of remaining invisible behind Amelia’s fame. As Bryony helps catapult Amelia to stardom while struggling to get her own voice heard, readers are treated to a smart and witty examination of the sacrifices and complexities involved in the pursuit of creative dreams.

The romantic element between Bryony and literary agent Jack Sterling is equally engaging, providing the story with an emotional heartbeat. Jack’s growing realization that he’s not only committed to Bryony’s writing career but to her personally adds depth to the narrative. Their relationship unfolds with a natural chemistry and slow-burn tension that will have readers rooting for them. "The Perfect Rom-Com" is a warm, insightful read that blends humor, heartache, and hope—perfect for anyone who loves stories about finding success, self-discovery, and love in the most unexpected places.

This author always has a way to bring a smile to my face with her storytelling.

I loved getting a glimpse into the fictional world of book publishing. Bryony was a character who put her family and her job first and it showed in everything she did. I loved her sister, Gloria, and how she knew how to encourage her in whatever situation she was in. Jack was an interesting character who the reader wanted to get behind.

Thanks to netgalley and Thomas Nelson fiction for the arc. The opinions are my own.

Congratulations to the author for writing a perfect rom-com.
This book is smart and filled with funny and emotional moments. I was laughing out loud and trying to find any free moment to get back to reading this.
I liked everything about it- the plot was credible, the character growth amazing and the humor was right up my alley.
Jack and Bryony are soulmates in every possible way and the details that went into all of their interactions were very appreciated.
Thank you netgalley and the author for the ARC! I had a blast.

The Perfect Rom-Com by Melissa Ferguson is a wonderful escape into a truly captivating, heartwarming story. This stories’ wit and humor captured me from the start and the characters stole my heart. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a sweet, funny, and satisfying read.

Melissa Ferguson knows how to rock a rom-com. While nothing about The Perfect Rom-Com felt realistic compared to the lives of anyone I know, all the over-the-top personalities and situations just lent to the comical, far-fetched aspect of the tale. An entertaining read, though be forewarned that you may want to knock a few heads together when characters just don't get how ridiculous they are acting!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Who knew the world of romance writing is so cut throat? In this delightful book we meet ghost writer Bryony and literary agent Jack and we get to experience all the twists and turns involved in making an established author successful…hint it does not involve the established author writing her own books! All Bryony wants to do is keep her grandmother's school in business, the deal she is forced into brings her the money to do it (at least for a while) and right into the life of Jack. I especially loved that they became a couple, but neither they, nor anyone else (except perhaps Bryony's long distance boyfriend) realized it. The catalyst book tour brings the subterfuge and all the feelings to the surface.

The banter in this book is immaculate! Add in a hilarious group of imperfect secondary characters, a feisty grandmother, and a weekly bowling night; this book is a fun, HEA read.

The Perfect Romcom features Bryony Page, ghostwriter and ESL teacher who dreams of publishing her own novel and saving her grandmother’s nonprofit. Pursuing This dream isn’t easy, especially as sparks begin to fly with her agent, Jack Sterling.

There is a lot to like about this book. The author has a warm and engaging tone the draws you into the story, and her protagonist is likable, endearingly flawed, and easy to root for. The ending was especially satisfying, And I enjoyed the humor throughout the book. I do wish we could have gotten to know the secondary characters better- For example, although her grandmother
serves as the inspiration for Bryony’s novel and a driving force behind her ghostwriting work, she is only featured in 1-2 short scenes that give very little sense of who the grandmother is as a person. Even Jack, the love interest of the story, is given very little personality or identity outside of his role in Bryony’s life. If the rest of the characters in the book were given the same loving development as Bryony, I believe this would be a five star book for me. Still, I enjoyed it and would recommend it to a friend who enjoys romcoms.

Thank you to the author, publishers, and NetGalley for this ARC. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I always adore books about authors, and nobody does it like Melissa Ferguson! This book was everything I could ask for - truly the perfect rom-com!

You feel like you're about to read a classic enemies to lovers when this story starts, but then Melissa pulls you in another direction! I had such a fun time reading this story, and I fell head over heels for these characters. I fell in love with The Bridge and I so appreciated the depth that piece of the story added. It was beautiful (and even felt a little meta at times thinking about the beauty of deeper issues in rom-coms while reading about a deeper issue in a rom-com!)

This book made me so happy, and felt like a cozy warm hug. It will only make your heart happier to add it to your shelf.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

An adorable rom-com. Set in the publishing world, where Melissa Ferguson first gained my appreciation in her book Meet Me in the Margins, this story is about the unexpected career path of Bryony Page, an aspiring writer at a literary conference who steels herself to keep pushing for positive feedback from literary agent Jack Sterling. Instead of picking up her book, however, he convinces her to come on board as a ghostwriter for his most successful celebrity author.

Fast-forward a couple of years, and Bryony and Jack are not only a literary team but have also become the best of friends, all while they tug back and forth over Bryony's original manuscript — the passion project that she's hoping will go big and save her family's school for immigrants.
I really liked this couple. I did find a lot of the ghostwriting job to be a bit stressful to read, since the celebrity author is a true narcissist, which is not fun, but the interactions between Bryony and Jack were fun, sweet, and down-to-earth. A great contemporary romance.

4/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Bryony Page is an ESL teacher who dreams of saving her grandmother's struggling foundation, The Bridge, by publishing her debut novel. Things take an unexpected turn after a disastrous pitch at a book conference where she meets Jack Sterling, a ruthless literary agent. Jack offers her a different opportunity: to become the ghostwriter for Amelia Benedict, a famous rom-com novelist. What starts as a temporary gig quickly becomes a long-term deal as Bryony’s writing turns Amelia into a literary sensation—though no one knows the real talent behind the success.

Now, 2 years later, Bryony is still ghostwriting bestseller after bestseller while her own manuscript remains untouched (with maybe a couple of edits), and her dreams of publishing her work seem further away than ever. As her relationship with Jack becomes more complicated, she’s left wondering if she’ll ever step out of the shadows and into the spotlight herself.

Honestly, I expected this book to be your typical rom-com and was surprised that it was much more. The story was heartfelt, authentic, and you could feel the love Bryony had for The Bridge, her manuscript, and writing in general. Jack killed me with the " You weren't dating me. But I was dating you." Just to be transparent, this book wasn't really a rom-com. Did it have romance? Yes, but it was more of a sub-plot than the main focus. Regardless, I still enjoyed it!

3 Vainglorious Stars ⭐️
Spicy Level: 0/5 Only Kissing
“Ooooh, she’s going for the rage words,” Gloria says gleefully, knowing how my vocabulary expands when I’m heated up.
“—only to secure, after said six hours, the most eremitic, vainglorious, and least desirable agent of all time—”
“Vainglorious, I love it,” Gloria interjects.
They say don't judge a book by the cover, and that should possibly also extend to "don't judge a book by its title". I thought I was getting a romcom, I MEAN it's IN THE TITLE... and while there is some element of romance to this plot... this is not a rom-com. This is VERY CLEVERLY DISGUISED CHICKLIT. The problem is while I am "open" in my romance reading, I am PRIMARILY A ROMANCE FOCUSED READER... so I am not the best target market for Chick-lit.

𝙎𝙮𝙣𝙤𝙥𝙨𝙞𝙨:
This follows Bryony Page, an ESL teacher with a mission to save her grandmother's legacy, a foundation and teaching school that helps immigrants learn the English language. To help save this cause she has written a debut novel and is attending a book conference in the hope of finding a literary agent to take on her book. She completely messes up her pitch with one of the most ruthless agents in the business Jack Sterling. But somehow she sparks his interest in something else... so he makes her a proposition to be a ghostwriter for a socialite. Two years later that book became a bestseller and the few after finding similar fame. Now Bryony finds herself in the contractual obligation of being a ghostwriter, all the while still trying to get her book published.

𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙁𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨:
I don't have a problem with chick-lit, but it doesn't hook me as much... so given that 90% of this book was chick-lit which focused primarily on Bryony and Bryony's journey, it was hard for me to be invested. It is a first-person story, so we don't see the other characters' thoughts and opinions except through her eyes. While I love what she stood for and what she was hoping to achieve, I find that given the choice of solely focusing it on her, we lost a lot of the connection with the other characters and so their foundation is lacking.

Bryony really shows a lot of dedication and compassion for her cause. She has this profound sense of loyalty to her family and to her grandmother and the legacy that her grandmother started. She is an amazing teacher and shares such a unique and special bond with her students. She's that type of personality that you can't help but instantly connect with and like, and it's one of the things that I think attracted Jack to her the most. One thing I didn't like about Bryony was her "Relationship" with her long-distance ex. They never talk, never interact - he is never featured. His presence felt like it was there just to cause DRAMA...

I didn't really like Jack because I felt like I did not know him. Besides a few snippets, all their interactions are spoken about previously happening and you are never shown their connection really forming. This is one of my pet peeves in a book as I like being shown and not told. By the time the "story" starts years have passed and Jack and Bryony have already established this codependent friendship. It frustrated me that all their moments of "romance forming" were conversations and reminiscing.

I found Jack completely manipulative, and he irritated me that he lied and used Bryony and that he wasn't able to talk to her and communicate. Yes, a few things he did were sweet and cute and can be sappy and perfect for a little rom-com, but the problem was that there wasn't enough of that romance foundation to keep me hooked in the story.

The one element that I did truly like about this, and found interesting was the aspects around the insider world of traditional publishing. It was the reason I kept reading. Seeing all the different elements that it takes to publish a book, with all the steps, hoops and caveats. It's not something that a regular reader like myself is exposed to, so it was pretty interesting to see that element of the plot and how that played into the overall story.

𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨:
▶ Strangers to Lovers
▶ Agent X Author
▶ Workplace Romance
▶ Chicklit
▶ Under Table Touching
▶ Slow Burn
▶ Forced Proximity

Overall, if you LIKE Chicklit, I think you might like this book since it's about a woman finding herself, finding her passion, standing up for herself, and in the same process finding love in an unexpected place.

This book started out a little rough, in my opinion. It felt like a huge info dump and there was a lot of added details, that I don’t believe needed to be in there. The storyline, itself, was intriguing and is the only thing that kept me interested.

The story was slower than most books I read, which may be why I struggled with all the content. But, about 3/4 in, it picked up and I really enjoyed that last portion of the story.

Bryony was not my favorite character, which I hate to say about the FMC. She was kind of a pushover and let everyone treat her any way they wanted to. Jack, on the other hand, was a great MMC. His starts off as a guy you despise, but he grows on you. He’s definitely the character that carried the whole story.

Overall, I would say this was a 3.5 ⭐️ read for me, but I’m rounding it up, because it had a lot of potential and was still a good read!

This book is also a closed door romance for anyone that is looking for a clean romance 🙂

Thank you Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Absolutely loved this book! Worth reading again & again. Has all the feels for a great movie, #Melissa Ferguson has done it again - written a book that will have you laughing, crying, hoping, wishing and sighing. This book was provided by Net Galley, Melissa and her publisher for me to read. These are my own opinions.

This was definitely a cute romance story with drama of boob publishing and ghost writing. The romance itself however didn't seem to br so strong in this book and I would have loved to see more of how their story evolved. I just had some issues connecting with the characters or the plot.
I did enjoy the writing and the premises! It was an enjoyable clean romance book for sure!

Thank you netgalley and the publisher Thomas Nelson Fiction for an eARC copy in exchange of an honest review!

Oh. My. Goodness. What a stand out book! It has slow-burn romance, it has a villain that you just love to hate, it has relatable main characters and it moves at the perfect pace... And the ending is the very best part!

This is a really well-written romance and I devoured it in a couple of days. I'll be honest - before I read this, I was expecting a mediocre romance. I wasn't super intrigued by the ideas. It sounded not very exciting - a book about the inner workings of publishing? Yawn!

But the way Melissa Ferguson has taken her ideas and perfectly executed them is just *chef's kiss.*

Just you wait - this is a high quality, well written romance on par with some of the most popular writers in the genre.

I will be looking forward to reading other work by this author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is my first book by the author and I can truly say I thoroughly enjoyed it. In the Perfect Rom Com, we meet Bryony Page - teacher/author desperately trying to get her 149,000 page manuscript published. She meets agent Jack Sterling, and it doesn’t take long for him to rip the manuscript apart. Fast forward 2 years and Bryony is ghost writing for one of Jacks clients, and all round nightmare of a human being Amelia Benedict.
As mentioned above, I really enjoyed this heart warming book. The chemistry between Bryony and Jack was perfect, they definitely brought the rom com vibes. I really enjoyed the scenes with “Teacher Bryonys” students, the relationship she built with them definitely proved how much she loved her work at the Bridge. I always enjoy reading about the publishing world and what it takes to make the books we love to read. I want to thank Net Galley, the author, and Thomas Nelson Fiction for the ARC. All thoughts above are my own. I look forward to reading more from this author!

“But as often happens in life, the greatest joys and greatest struggles tend to be delivered to your doorstep in the same basket. And it’s up to you to dissect the two and embrace the good without letting the bad overcome.”

Another keeper by Melissa Ferguson. I really liked the speed of this book. When I first read the summary I wondered how it would all fit, but it was masterfully done. And (ahem) it also gives you a little glimpse into the ghostwriter world 🤫

Thanks to @netgalley for the ebook at not cost in exchange for a review 😉

I liked the premise of this book but the characters don’t really seem to hit it off.

It was interesting as it’s about books and publishing but it’s supposed to be a rom-com and it doesn’t quite hit the mark.

They need more chemistry!!!

While the premise of this one sounded cute, it just didn’t live up to that for me. The male MC was adorable, but I was often annoyed by the female MC. The ending was also too over-the-top and unrealistic.