Jayne Denker hits this one out of the park - you will find love when you least expect it. I love how the author is almost mocking the rom-com algorithm by introducing an agenda on how to find love. Her steps are every romance book's Bible.

I loved Leah's character but didn't find myself as drawn to Eli. The plot is perfect and so realistically down to Earth. It's clear to see from the beginning that Leah is into Eli, but it takes time for Eli to come to his senses. I loved reading all the back and forth in between.

I think anyone who loves a solid Rom-Com is really going to enjoy this.

Eli's obsession with a woman he previously dated causes his sister and friends to set out on a journey to fix him. I mean, what does a guy got to do to win the girl of his dreams except get a makeover inside and out, of course, When Leah works at nearly every place his family takes him to, she gets recruited to help with the makeover. I do think Eli pined for the ex a little too long for the story to work, but Leah was a solid heroine and added to the story. Overall this was a very enjoyable clean story with great character development and genuine feels.

This was a sweet little rom com -- very good for those who prefer a closed-door approach to the steamy stuff. Both main characters were sweet and likeable, but the real gems of this book are the side characters. Eli's friends and family and their budding relationship with Leah was nearly as satisfying as the one between Leah and Eli.

I had high hopes for this one but it fell a little flat for me. It was good just not as good as I had hoped. The characters were a little hard for me to get into so it made it a slow read for me. That is my opinion so just because I wasn't into this one doesn't mean you might not like it. I always say give it a try and see what you think.

Thanks NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read this ARC.

The Rom Com Agenda is such a cute read. Leah grew up in the foster care system and has spent the last year caring for her dying foster mom. She is trying to save up money to get out of Dodge. Leah witnesses Eli pouring out his heart to his girlfriend of four months who rejects him. Several months later, Eli's friends think that Eli can win his girlfriend back by giving him a makeover. Leah meets Eli and his friends and becomes part of the project. Leah doesn't think Eli needs a makeover and falls for him.

The book is well written and the characters are so likable except for Leah's foster brother who wants to take her home away. I guess he is written well since he is the villain, lol. Leah is funny and genuine. I understand Eli pining for his ex but it got a little much sometimes and made him a little bit of a sad sack.

This is a closed-door romance and very cute. Recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley, St Martin's Press, and Jayne Denker for the e-ARC. This review is my own opinion.

"You shouldn't have to change who you are for someone else."

Can I just say, I LOVED ALL THE ROM COM REFERENCES IN THIS BOOK. After losing her foster mother, Leah's spent the past year living alone in their home. However, at any moment, Leah's foster brother, Patrick (who I absolutely despise🙄) is ready to come in and take the house away. Therefore, Leah has made it her mission to save as much money as possible so she can buy her own home (I love how the author makes comparisons between Leah and Kirk from Gilmore Girls hehe😏). Besides, there's nothing left for Leah in Willow Cove anymore. Meanwhile, Eli's still not over his rejection from Victoria, aka the love of his life (or so he thinks), after she leaves him to go to Rome for a year. Eli makes it his mission to win back Victoria. How's he going to do that? BY BECOMING LIKE THOSE HEROES FROM ROM COMS. When Eli's gang meet Leah, they make her Eli's guide to rom com heroness. From Say Anything to Pretty in Pink, from Dirty Dancing to Casablanca. (I love how the author even includes rom coms that were made before Molly Ringwald's days😍). BUT, what happens when Eli and Leah spend more and more time together, eating takeout, binge watching films, and talking on the phone? Eli's learning about meet cutes and grand gestures, but is Victoria the one he's still thinking about? Meanwhile, Leah's getting closer to Eli and the gang, and is now second guessing whether she should leave Willow Cove or not. It looks like the two have got a lot to figure out. THE PERFECT READ DURING THE WINTER SEASON❄❄

The Rom-Com agenda has the found family and friends to lovers tropes. I enjoyed the author’s writing, the many discussions about all the great 80s and 90s rom-coms, and the meddling side characters who stole the show.

What didn’t work for me was Eli spending the majority of the book pining over his ex-girlfriend. Leah and Eli were so clearly perfect for one another but Eli just couldn’t let his ex go and I thought that tainted their budding relationship.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read and I would read more from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely loved this! Read it in one sitting. Would love some spinoffs. I can't wait to see more from Denker.

I knew I would love this book and I was right. The characters felt real, the tropes were there but they felt fresh, and I am just such a sucker for the specific "I'm going to help you win back this girl who isn't right for you and oh no we fell in love in the process that was not supposed to happen". Incredible. Will absolutely recommend.

I really wanted to love it, but it just was taken out of it by Eli. Leah was too good for him. Plus I hate when closed-door books try to do a slow burn. I think slow burn should be exclusively for spicy books as you get something at the end of it!

The Rom-Com Agenda
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Genre: Rom-Com
Format: Kindle eBook and Audiobook
Date Published: 1/10/23
Author: Jayne Denker
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press and Dreamscape Media
GR: 3.49

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Dreamscape Media and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

My Thoughts: The premise was so cute in this book. This follows a friends to lovers trope, which is one of favorite type of tropes. The book opens with Eli’s break-up and he spends a good amount of time in self wallow and then his friends try to help him make self-improvements in an effort to win Victoria back. Leah just lost her foster mother, after taking care of her for a longtime, and is trying to find herself. Leah finds a family of friends, helps Eli self-improve, and along the way finds the family she has been yearning for.

This was a dual narrated story in third person POV by Leah and Eli. Leah was independent and had a good heart but lacked confidence. Leah had a lot of self growth during the story and really was able to stand in her truth, I love seeing this type of self-discovery in a story. Eli was stuck on his prior breakup and all of the self-improvement was oriented towards winning Victoria back, which I did not care for. If you want to self-improve after a break-up, then that should be the end game. The supporting character Patrick, was an idiot, and played his part well. The characters were well developed with depth, witty banter, chemistry, and were just adorable, for the most part. The author’s writing style was complex, humorous, fun, crisp, and kept me engaged.

Overall, this was a cute and fun book. This is the perfect light read for a beach day. I adored the 80’s and 90’s references and it brought up some fond memories for myself. I had the amazing pleasure of having both the ebook and audiobook. Devoured it in under 48 hours. My con for this book was too much time was spent on the ex, I wished that would have been a little less and little more on Leah and Eli’s budding relationship. However, having said that, I still believe this is a cute rom-com. I would recommend picking it up, it is worth the read/listen.

The Rom-Com Agenda is a closed door, friends to lovers romance. The found family elements and rom-com references were fun and endearing.
This was a very slow burn, and I struggled with understanding what was taking so long for Eli to realize his ex was not the one. As he spent so much time pining for her, for the majority of the book I didn’t feel any tension between Eli and Leah. It felt like nothing really happened for a long time. I know rom-coms are predictable and they feel comfortable because you know where it’s going, but with the lack of chemistry here, I just wasn’t feeling it. Considering how long Eli spent wanting his ex back, he seemed to flip the switch so easily.
Thank you St Martin’s Press for a digital copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

BOOK REVIEW: The Rom-Com Agenda by Jayne Denker
2023 Publication Date: January 10

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Pages: 316
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Sub-Genre: Makeover Romance | Friends To Lovers Romance
Time Period: Present Day
Location: Thousand Islands Area (NY | US)
Publisher: St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin

PUBLISHER BOOK SYNOPSIS:
A love letter to all things rom com, Jayne Denker's The Rom Com Agenda is a story of two people finding love right when they least expect it...

You know how the story's supposed to go...but love makes its own plans.

STEP 1: Find yourself
Leah Keegan is used to being alone, especially after taking care of her sick foster mother for the past year. But now there’s nothing keeping her in the sweet town of Willow Cove. It’s time to move on. Again.

STEP 2: Win back the one who got away
Eli Masterson thought he and Victoria were meant to be together until she decided to jet off to Rome for a year. Eli is determined to win her back. But how?

STEP 3: Become a romantic hero
Changing Eli’s physical appearance is easy, but to turn Eli into the sophisticated-yet-vulnerable ideal man, his girl pals force him to watch classic rom-coms. And take notes.

STEP 4: Fall in love?
Inadvertently drawn into the makeover scheme, Leah ends up being Eli’s guide through the wild world of meet-cutes and grand gestures. Even though she believes Eli doesn’t need to change a thing about himself. Even though she just might be falling for Eli . . . and Eli falling for her.

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All my book reviews can be seen at This Is My Everybody | Simple Living | Denise Wilbanks at thisismyeverybody.com/blog/what-book-should-i-read

♡ Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to review it and the opinions contained within are my own.

It took me forever to finish this book. I just didn't care about anyone in it... except maybe Delia... I'd like to hear her story (but not with Gray - he doesn't deserve her). I could just not believe a group of relatives and friends would actively help their loved one change themselves when they were already a good person. Fashion is forgivable, but if they are good and kind, which obviously Eli already was, then what the heck are we doing here? I liked the film references (Better Off Dead is one of my all-time favorite teen flicks), but even those couldn't redeem this book for me.

I enjoyed reading The Rom-Com Agenda by Jayne Denker. The characters in this story will warm your heart. Happy Reading!
**I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely**

This was a very sweet and one quick read for me. I loved the main characters and their arc but more than that I loved how their character development was so perfectly done. I definitely see it becoming my comfort read!!

thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest opinion

2.5 stars

unfortunately this book just wasnt for me. the writing was good and i really liked the concept but the execution just wasn’t working for me. i think the “trying to get my ex back” part was way too much

i liked the whole found family trope which happens to be one of my favourite trope and there were so many good references to movies so that was good but some of the characters were just too much for me

i will probably give this author another chance and just bc it wasn’t for me doesnt mean others won’t enjoy it!

This was really a great rom com book. The slow burn was fantastic and you couldn't help but root for Leah and Eli. I loved the small town, winter setting as well. It made the story feel magical. It was just a super cute and hopeful story and made me feel light and happy. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Leah is back in Willow Cove after taking care of her dying foster mom, and is working every job in town in an attempt to save money so she can get out of town. Eli had his heart broken and is willing to do whatever it takes to win back the love of his life. Eli’s sister and her friends come up with a plan to help Eli win Victoria back and Leah ends up watching lots of Rom-Coms with Eli and spending lots of time with him during his “Makeover.” - We all know what. Happens when a single man and a single woman spend a lot of time together. This was def a slow burn but I at times felt like it was a little TOO slow if that makes sense which is why I decided to give this 4 stars. This was a clean/closed door romance which I really enjoy and overall I thought this was a really cute read.

Thanks so much to St. Martins for the free ARC that I Received. This was right up my alley and I definitely can’t wait to ready more from Jayne! It was cute and quick read for me.