3.75 ⭐️ / 5
🌶🌶 / 5

This may well turn out to be one of my favorite books of 2022!

The Roughest Draft is the story of co-authors and best friends Katrina and Nathan. They have a partnership many would dream of but after their second book is published, the two have a falling out. 3 years laters Nathan is writing on his own and Katrina has retired. But fate, or more accurately a publishing contract and pushy fiancé (Chris is gross 🤮) bring these two back together to write a third book. They have a lot to unpack from their shared history but underneath it all, the magic of their partnership still exists.

One of the best things about this book is the writing. The prose is masterful and direct. At times Katrina and Nathan are are trying to cut each other down than they become intimately vulnerable because they were once each other’s safe space. And the authors draw the reader right into each scene with them. I also like that it’s written in Dual POV so we get insight to both characters.

This is a story within a story. Both of these characters feel so deeply but have trouble expressing it except in their writing. It was funny when reading Katrina’s narration about fans searching their last book for clues into their breakup, I became aware that I myself was searching this book for insight into its co-authors.

Also, I think as readers we tend to forget how hard authors work to create the best story. I appreciated the look behind the curtain through Katrina and Nathan. Not just their writing process but the pressure they felt from rumors and speculations into their personal lives.

The conflict felt underwhelming to me. I like that the authors pursued something deeper than physical infidelity and I can even understand why Katrina and Nathan’s feelings were enough to fracture their relationship. However, the climax in the flashback scene fell flat without a big confrontation. Katrina’s struggle with her writing was especially relatable. It highlights the important but sometimes overlooked fear that many of contend with: the fear of failure. But it was a hard to believe that a single trip to the beach was enough to move her past her fears.

Still, this book is engaging. It has a good pace and balance between the flashbacks and present day. It’s easy to fall in love with Katrina and Nathan’s relationship. Everything is in this book is just dialed down. Don’t go in expecting a sweeping, dramatic romance. It feels more like a story of love sneaking in. It’s like the ocean on a clear day - powerful current but calm and soothing. It was a pleasure to read!

Tropes: friends to enemies to lovers, soulmates/ meant to be, forced proximity, second-chance romance

Katrina Freeling and Nathan Van Huysen were co-authors on a widely acclaimed book, but after the writing was done, they ended their partnership on bad terms, for reasons neither would divulge to the public. They haven't spoken since, and never planned to, except they have one final book due on contract. When they finally reunite to write their final book, they have to face the past and figure out the future.

This was an emotional book. Both Katrina and Nathan felt a lot of pain regarding their past with each other, their feelings on love, fear of failing, and fear of the future. The author did a great job at showing how their feelings kept them trapped and stuck not knowing how to move forward. The relationship between the two was so deep, and they fought their feeling for a long time.

I really liked the back and forth perspectives of Katrina and Nathan, as well as the jumps back in time. It was nice being inside both of their heads and knowing how the other was perceiving their actions. At times I felt too aware that I was reading something written by an author, if that makes sense. It was almost too meta. That's the only negative, because I really liked the story otherwise.

**Review will be published January 23rd, 2022 on my blog/Instagram/Goodreads**

HARD FOUGHT HEA.

I find myself having a hard time writing this review. Even though I really enjoyed this book. From the get-go I wanted to know what happened between Katrina and Nathan. The slow unveiling of their history and magnetism pulled me in.

This book isn’t ooey-gooey romantic. No fluff, no adorableness, nothing of the sort. Fair warning because I was expecting something with a bit more of any of those listed above. It’s deep and intricate. It felt very adult (not in an explicit sense, but the context). Things really played out very real world. I found that I was thinking often on these kinds of situations and how the nuances of life can create breaking points and new connections.

Nathan and Katrina could have definitely used a sit down, drag out conversation (which admittedly, would have severely shortened the book). The way they expressed themselves through writing was intense. And that pinnacle moment where things were at last said pulled at my soul. Two people who had to fight for themselves as individuals and together. The title is very apt and the story inside far exceeds the idea of the roughest draft.

A bit heavy, but a hard won happily ever after. I loved getting a chance to read this duo’s first adult romance and look forward to what they write next. I didn’t want to speed read this at all because every single word seemed to matter. Every paragraph played into the novel. The engrossing nature had me finishing it in a day.

Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Romance
- Language: some strong
- Romance: one brief/vague open door
- Trigger/Content Warnings: gaslighting, brief cheating (an unreturned kiss), depictions of anxiety, divorce

“Sometimes processing emotions is easier on the page.”
— 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝘿𝙧𝙖𝙛𝙩, Emily Wibberley & Austin Siegemund-Broka

This book, y’all. It’s taken me a couple days to really collect my thoughts, and I’m still not entirely sure I’ll be able to do it justice, but I’m sure going to try.

I don’t think I’ve ever had a book speak directly to my soul as much as this one did. Emily and Austin are insanely talented writers; that much has always been evident to those of us who have fallen in love with their young adult work. But this book. 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌. This book felt like a love letter to writers everywhere. Emily and Austin’s way of telling us, “We see you. We know you. You’re not alone.”

Katrina and Nathan are my favorite kinds of characters. I can identify with Katrina’s fear, and I can identify with Nathan’s need for recognition.

Apart, these two are listless, floating through their lives. Katrina is *comfortable* in her relationship, content to never put words to paper for the masses to consume again. All Nathan wants is the opposite of that, to write books that resonate with people. What they don’t realize is the thing they’re each missing is each other.

This slow burn romance was so exquisitely crafted that you don’t find yourself wishing for more. What’s more, the romance almost took a backseat to the examination of the inner most thoughts and feelings of writers everywhere, and I loved every. single. second.

The dual POV, timeline jumps, and their first ever villain made this the perfect recipe for yet another #Wibbroka best seller. Their first crack at an adult novel was a resounding success, and I’m so excited for Emily and Austin.

Thanks for the early look for collection development. I was expecting a rom com, but it's not an uplifting tale, as the professional reviews also indicate. Will try something else, as Berkley publishes a lot of my favorite books!

Wonderful prose takes us on a journey exploring the world of writing and the drama between Katrina and Nathan. This enemies to loves romance showcases the challenge of not only writing a novel but co writing it with someone you've hated for years.

While slow to start in the beginning and the lack of communication between the characters to solve an issue that was never a real issue to begin with, this story will hold you tight until the end, desperate to know how it will all end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the eArc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing me an e-copy of THE ROUGHEST DRAFT to review. I loved this book so much that it's my favorite 2021 read. I wish everybody could read this right now, alas, January 2022 is not far away.

THE ROUGHEST DRAFT involves two writers, Katrina and Nathan, who had a wildly successful romance novel. After a falling out, Nathan tries to continue his writing career with a bit of success while Katrina becomes engaged to their agent, Chris.

The two must come together to write a book once again. Nathan needs the sales while Katrina is trying to keep Chris' love by having another bestseller for him (major red flag right there, Katrina).

This is not a rom-com and the story reads more like women's fiction, but it's a love story - that is most certain.

While it's a book within-a-book plot, the story focuses on Katrina and Nathan in present time writing their newest book and the past - writing the successful book that tore them apart.

The two have major issues just speaking aloud what they mean and instead, turn to the pages of their novel to explain their love. At times, this can be frustrating for the reader, but when you accept this is how they communicate, it's lovely and steamy at the same time.

THE ROUGHEST DRAFT also gives readers a look at how hard writing is and the pressure authors face after they write a bestseller.

I love second-chance romances and this one also had a friends-to-enemies-to-lovers theme.

I rate THE ROUGHEST DRAFT five out of five stars.

Have I ever read a book that could so singly be resolved through therapy as this one? I don’t think so. And even if the entire plot hadn’t been resolvable if they’d just sat down with a therapist, if they’d just sat down and talked honestly, it would have been.

Granted that wouldn’t have made for such a—I hesitate to say great story, because I didn’t feel like it was, nor overly compelling. How to put this best into words? I thought the more interesting story would have been them coming back to one another and learning to build a healthy relationship, opening up little by little, until the end when all of their feelings are on the table, rather than what happened here. That felt more like they were consistently ignoring what exactly had sent their partnership spiralling in the first place, until the point when it did so again (and I want to just note here, that Katrina’s sudden about-face on that topic would have not nearly been so sudden if it had had build-up along the way).

That being said, perhaps part of the reason I felt this way was because I couldn’t find a reason to want these characters together. On the whole, they just felt a little bland, lacking in characterisation. I’m not even sure I could have told their points of view apart except for the fact the chapters were titled with their names. So I never felt a whole lot for them—I never even got that much of a sense of emotion off the page, except pure rage when it came to Chris—and I was never that engaged in the progression of their relationship.

And speaking of Chris, this one’s a personal bugbear. I don’t really enjoy when books put one of the MCs in a relationship with a character who is quite clearly an awful person—within the first few chapters of this, Chris was telling Katrina he’d break their engagement off if she didn’t write another novel, for his monetary gain. I wasn’t the slightest bit conflicted about what Nathan would do to their relationship, because I wanted it ended from page one. I think this dynamic works, if the MC is supposed to be not entirely likeable or sympathisable, but comes to develop as a character and leaves the awfulness behind. That was not the case here. You may not necessarily like either Nathan or Katrina at the start—and they’re rightfully called out on how selfishly they’re acting—but you’re supposed to sympathise with them both. Hence why this trope just fell flat. I think it needed some kind of more explicit commentary on the way Chris seemed to have beaten Katrina down a little, made her feel she should be grateful to him, which would have explained just why, when every scene they had together was him being truly terrible to her, she still stayed with him to the point she did.

Having said this, let me end on a positive note. I liked how neither character was particularly likeable at the start. They’d clearly both hurt the other, they’d clearly done so pretty selfishly, and through that selfish hurt had never gone back to fix what had gone wrong. And that had affected other relationships too. They were always also called out on that. It was a nice break from those second chance romances where only one has hurt the other, and you’re supposed to believe that it’s always entirely forgivable.

If you are looking for an angsty, complicated romance with exquisite writing, look no further than The Roughest Draft.
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The writing is SO good. I just can’t emphasize that enough. This was my first book from Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka and I’m honestly obsessed with their writing now. ⁣
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I’m not one to love romances with characters already in relationships, and in a way this story has two (Nathan is married during the past chapters), but damn if I didn’t get sucked into Katrina and Nathan’s love story. That being said, know that they both fall in love while they’re engaged/married to other people. And it’s not until 70% of the way into the book that they’re both single. I know this might not work for everyone, but this story and the way it’s told really really worked for me! ⁣
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I loved so much about The Roughest Draft, I’ll probably never stop screaming about the writing, but the whole concept of the story and the forced proximity was SO so good. ⁣
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If you want a romance with a plot that feels like Beach Read and People We Meet on Vacation combined with complicated relationships, angst, pining, and emotions, The Roughest Draft needs to be on your TBR.

Noooo I've never had a book take a nosedive for me so fast. It makes me so sad and disappointed. When I started this book, I very quickly fell in love. I said on Instagram that I was calling it as a 5 star must read for me.

I highlighted so many passages. The words were lovely, insightful, and moving.

And then I kept reading and it just became so....overwrought and drawn out and dramatic and wordy. . I can't put it another way. So many FEELINGS. Such deep, serious, life-altering feelings about EVERYTHING.

And the problem between them wasn't even a problem. I kept waiting for this big reveal and there just wasn't one. It was a non issue. And as someone who has been through long distance dating, 18 years of marriage, nine deployments and endless heartbreakingly scary issues and worries and stress...it's not that hard if you want it. You TALK to each other and fix it. You don't act like it's the end of the world and refuse to communicate.

Sigh.

I will say, this book seemingly offers some wonderful insight into the world of a writer and writing dues. The authors are very talented and that's clear.

2.5 stars rounded up.

Sometimes melt in your mouth sweet, sometimes intense, overall quite satisfying. Great for fans of enemies-to-lovers and missed connections.

Great prose, terrible everything else. I feel like this book sold purely based on the hook-y pitch of "two married coauthors write a romance about two coauthors falling in love while writing a romance" and not on the basis of any substance because I didn't find much in here to like. Again, the prose is great but the characters feel incredibly flat and boring and even their narrative voices sound exactly the same. Any time I stopped reading in the middle of a chapter I had trouble figuring out whose POV I was in when I picked it back up. Also, the ~big reason~ their partnership fell apart is incredibly anticlimactic. Two stars because the prose is pretty and because I did actually finish it instead of DNFing.

This was just okay for me. I think I'm burned out on books like this after the success of Beach Read. My biggest issue with this book is one that I've had with a lot of other contemporary romances written in this same style - the dual first person pov. Very few can actually pull this off where the characters have distinct voices. Instead, they always sound like carbon copies and I have trouble remembering which pov I'm reading about, and in this book there was an additional issue with the flashbacks, and I had to keep looking back to see whether I was in the present or the past and whose narrative I was following. It just gets tedious after awhile. Nathan and Katrina sounded exactly the same. I also had trouble buying into their romance because the flashbacks didn't do a good enough job showing us why these two fell in love. We were pretty much just told they were. I did feel the chemistry between them while they were writing but I could have done without the cheating aspect. Also, when authors write characters who are authors, and those authors are touted as brilliant, etc, with examples of that so-called brilliant writing, it just rubs me the wrong way. I think a lot of people will enjoy this book, especially if they loved Emily Henry's Beach Read and People We Meet on Vacation and there is nothing keeping me from recommending it for contemporary romance fans. It's just not something that I would re-read. 3 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the DRC in exchange for an honest review.

This was just the romantic relief I needed. The chemistry between the characters was electric and tangible. I also loved all the literary references - very reminiscent of Beach Read by Emily Henry (in a good way). It's a book for book lovers.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for providing a digital arc in exchange for my honest review.

Really great romance centered around 2 co authors. Loved the setting and the flashbacks. A good side friend character as well. I liked this one better than Beach Read, another author centered romance.

I enjoyed the first 20% or so of this book but then it felt like it dragged on from then, unchanging. Katrina and Nathan's thoughts and writing were just repetitive after a while and I found myself skipping ahead, looking for evolution but nothing happened.

I love romances about writing and this dual author, dual perspective, dual timeline romance was a great experiment. I was put off by the emotional cheating, but enjoyed the complicated characters and how their personal lives mesh with their writing lives.

The Roughest Draft dives deep into poetic prose, conflicted characters, and imperfect happily ever afters. It captures the uncharted territory of what happens when fiction and reality are blurred and blended together, creating a beautifully honest love story that will completely melt your heart.

Former co-writers, Katrina and Nathan, haven’t spoken after an intense falling out following the completion of their bestseller. Now, four years later, they have to work together again one last time. But with their lingering past unresolved, their drafted story becomes deeply personal as they remember what they used to be, best friends and partners, a formidable team who had respect and love for one another.

From the very first chapter, these characters leaped off the page and into my heart. By halfway, I felt like I KNEW Katrina and Nathan. And reading the last chapter, I didn’t want to let them go. They were so real and relatable, flawed in their actions and raw in their emotions. The tension between the two was off the charts, with crazy amounts of chemistry, longing, and angst! And, I absolutely LOVED it!! Every emotion, action, and reaction flowed seamlessly, developing into a passionate read with a great love for the written word, and I fell wholly invested in this story.

If you loved Beach Read and People We Meet on Vacation, I highly recommend this book! It’s one I can’t wait to read again, and I am looking forward to more adult romances by this duo!

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.*

Thank you to the publisher for the review copy!

I'm not a huge fan of cheating/ affairs in books and while this wasn't a physical affair you could tell the two had feelings for each other and they had a cheating type of thing going on with the way they wrote together.

I am a fan of the right people being together, and you could tell they were right for each other so in that respect I would say it was done well.

I was a bit bored throughout the first half though and much like every other book, things could've been fixed had the characters had one fuckin conversation with each other.

Still, the chemistry didn't really fall into place until halfway through and when you realize why they were at odds with each other for 4 fuckin years you'll probably pull out some hair in disbelief.

Cute ending though and I hope this isn't the real story of the authors love life. Can Melissa get her own story and happy ending please.

The Roughest Draft kept me engaged for a long time. The authors have a real knack for the analyzing and describing the finer points of relationship-related emotions. They also did a nice job describing one way the joint writing process can work. I enjoyed the way the evolution of the relationship between Katrina and Nathan was revealed. Throughout the first half of the book, I thought it was positively brilliant. But by the end, I just wanted to shake the two of them and tell them to talk to each other already. I’d have given it 5 stars if it’d been about 50 pages shorter.