I absolutely adore Katherine Center’s books! I could wear t-shirts imprinted with my favorite quotes from her books, organize fangirl clubs, and reread passages with other devoted fans while we slurp our Chardonnays and weep like babies at the sentimental parts. She's a talented heartstrings player who knows how to make you smile deeply while also drying your happy tears from your face.

Did I enjoy "Rom-Comers"? I didn’t just enjoy it—I fell in love with Emma & Charlie. Their enemies-to-lovers beginning that turns into friends-to-lovers at forced proximity, with sunshine-meets-grump tropes, captivated me. The deep message of the book realistically approaches life itself with its tragedies, losses, and messiness. But through those dark moments, there is always sunshine from the cracks to help you find your way, and eventually, you’re fine with your own path.

This is not a swoon-smile-repeat kind of book, even though there are moments like a grumpy guy turning romantic by tying your shoes, sharpening line dancing skills, or cooking donuts in a mess, ruining his kitchen with chocolate stains and confetti. There are also many heavy themes in this story that make you feel like glass pieces are stabbing into your heart at each turn: death of a parent, guilt, paralysis, Meniere’s disease, cancer, hypochondria, panic attacks, and more.

Center’s way of not sugarcoating but also not harshly handling these subjects, her objective approach, and her ability to show the bright side of things even when they're wrapped in dark corners resonates perfectly with readers who have experienced similar tragedies.

Honestly, even though reading some parts of the book ripped my heart away and the last twist stirred me with frustration, I still loved everything about Emma and Charlie’s not-so-perfect, flawed, complicated, but poignant, honest love story. Nothing can be perfect in real life without a little sadness and heartbreak. But eventually, happiness finds its way through the barriers we build and the emotional baggage we carry for years, allowing us to live fulfilled lives.

Let’s recap the synopsis: Enter- Emma Wheeler: English teacher, 24/7 caregiver of her father for 10 years, delaying her plans to become a full-time screenwriter even though she created a few notable romance screenplays and passed her opportunity in a WB internship to take care of her family, still dealing with the guilt of her mother’s death in a climbing accident and her father’s paralysis. She became the caregiver of her father, guardian-mother-big sister of her 23-year-old little sister, who is about to graduate to chase her dreams in medical expertise as she keeps procrastinating her own life, trapped in a place with guilt, sadness, and longing.

When her ex-boyfriend, who is also her agent, offers her the opportunity of her life to work on a romcom with Charlie Yates: the screenwriter she’s been fangirling over and harboring a longtime platonic crush on, she barely says no, especially since her sister promises to take care of her father and even her father pushes her to take this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And let’s not forget, Charlie can create masterpieces in science fiction or crime thrillers, but the romcom he wrote is a disaster, and she may help him save the script.

She has to be in LA for six weeks to live with Charlie, finishing the script in the best condition to return to her old life. It seems easier said than done because when she arrives at Charlie’s Los Angeles mansion, she realizes he has no idea she’s hired to work with him and has no intention to work with an amateur writer whose none of the projects have been produced. He even tells her incompetencies to her face. And guess what, this man doesn’t believe in love and is still bitter after his last divorce. How can she work with a man like that to create something hopeful, engaging, and sunshiny to connect with the viewers?

But Emma has no intention of going back to her life without saying her piece: she tells him what’s going wrong with his script, and Charlie listens, reconsiders, and surprisingly decides to hire her. What can go wrong if she says yes to work with him? What if the risk is not only creating an engaging love story, which is doomed to go to garbage without seeing a chance to greenlight for production? What if she may also lose her heart to a man who is grumpy enough to reject real love and the possibilities of life?

Overall, this is absolutely one of my favorite romances of the year, and I highly recommend it! It’s freaking amazing!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a digital review copy of this wonderful book in exchange for my honest opinions.

Plot: Emma Wheeler longs to be a screenwriter. She's also the sole caretaker for her kind-hearted dad, who needs full-time care. When she gets the change to re-write a script for a famous screenwriter, it's a break too big too pass.

Katherine Center does is again! The romance, the depth of characters, all the things. I loved the dynamics between Emma and Charles. Emma's life was really hard and she put everyone first. Now, after meeting her screenwriter idol, she's able to put herself first and chase after her dreams.

The one frustrating part was Charles lack of communication with Emma in a really big moment of his life. It wasn't helpful and only hurt both of them! I loved how the story ended and through the loss and pain that both main characters experienced, they were able to find each other and had their "happy ever after".

I highly recommend this book - it's fun, cute, deep, and addicting! Thank you Katherine Center for creating this story.

My rating: 4.5/5 stars

Content warnings: Language

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the early copy!

The humor, the banter, the swoon-worthy moments... This book managed to wade through hard topic like loss and illness while never losing its cheerful spirit.

From page one, I was hooked. The situations Emma puts herself in are just hilarious, but she's such a strong leading lady.

The breakfast scene was probably my favorite one... I wanted a Charlie to make *me* doughnuts...

Impossible to put down, a real delight!

I love everything Katherine Center writes and this book was another winner! I was hooked from the start and I finished in 2 days. Couldnt put this down!!! LOVED it.

I have read all of Katherine’s books now and she is without a doubt my go-to for feel good books with happy endings. But this book might be my all time favorite of hers! Emma and Charlie are fantastic characters. I want to be friends with Emma and I want to hang out with her dad because I love his perspective on life (he is just the best side character).

There are so many beautiful lines in this book that I found myself pausing and reading sections over and over. The idea of finding the good in life even when it would seem like there is no good left, of shifting your perspective, and believing that life can be good again. It’s an absolutely beautiful story.

This book comes out in June and I have a feeling I will be rereading it on the beach this summer. An absolute must read, reread worthy, soak it in and feel the warmth kind of book.

the rom-commers | katherine center

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨/5
Spice: 🔥/4
📚: contemporary romance


When aspiring romantic comedy writer Emma gets the chance to work with her favorite writer of all time, she can't believe her luck... until she finds out Charlie is writing a rom-com, but doesn't believe in love at all. Can she convince him he's wrong for the sake of the screenplay?

In Katherine we trust.

This book is hilarious and quirky and sweet and thoughtful. It's the kind of book that has you grinning like a fool but also touches on things like loss, grief, illness and anxiety. It'll give you warm butterflies and tugs on your heartstrings. I can't wait to get my greedy little hands on a physical copy.


Some things to love:
+ celebrity crush romance
+ forced proximity
+ grumpy/sunshine
+ snarky banter
+ lucky sweatshirts
+ lonely guinea pigs
+ grocery shopping dates
+ "I'll make you believe in love"
+ line dancing
+ nods to The Bodyguard
+ secret grand gestures
+ famous people run-ins

“(love) feels warm,” I said, eyes closed. “It feels hopeful and kind. Sunshiny. And soothing.... It feels like your heart is glowing.”

"Tragedy is a given. There is no version of human life that doesn’t involve reams of it. The question is what we do in the face of it all."

ps: Do you ever finish a book and wonder if the author's real inner dialogue is anything like her character's? I have a feeling Katherine and I could be real friends. Just sayin.

{Thank you to NetGalley for this advanced readers copy}
🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻

In a few words: The Rom-Commers ✨ SHIMMERS! ✨

Katherine Center first stole my heart & became one of my auto-buy authors after I read her second romantic comedy, Hello Stranger.

Then, she became cemented as one of my favorite romance writers EVER when I read The Bodyguard.

Now, I don’t know how else to say that I will read anything she writes — because I absolutely will — and I am so beyond grateful to have received an ARC of The Rom-Commers, a story that isn’t only an ode to the rom-com genre, but an ode to HOPE and the belief that everything will work out in the end, two themes that make a Katherine Center book, well, a KATHERINE CENTER BOOK!

The Rom-Commers made me laugh, it made me cry, and it had me highlighting every sweet, funny, and heartwrenching moment. Emma and Charlie are everything— their dialogue is unmatched (the banter in this book? TOP TIER.), and I can’t wait to reread their story and spend more time in their world.

Just a few things I loved about The Rom-Commers:

✨ “Chase your dreams!” Theme
✨ Hollywood setting
✨ BANTER!
✨ Working through trauma
✨ Will-they-or-won’t-they tension
✨ Grumpy/sunshine
✨ Romantic comedies! (and analyzing romantic comedies!)
✨ SHIMMER!

Please do yourself a favor and add The Rom-Commers to your TBR, pre-order it, and tell your friends… You’re in for a treat!

Thank you to NetGalley, Katherine Center, and St. Martin’s Press for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Katherine Center is a must read romance author for me and The Rom-Commers was such a fun read! The main character Emma was hysterical. I found myself constantly smiling and a few times, actually chuckling out loud and definitely getting some funny looks from my seatmates on the plane, but it was worth it.
Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

I am withholding my review until the publisher:

1) Addresses and denounces the Islamophobic and racist remarks from their employee.
2) Offers tangible steps for how they are going to mitigate the harm this employee caused.
3) Addresses how, moving forward, they will support and protect their Muslim, Arab and Palestinian influencers, authors and readers, in addition to supporting their BIPOC influencers, authors and readers.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

Katherine Center is just SO charming, and she has officially become an auto-read author for me. This one is a romance about two screen writers writing a romance- the banter is perfect, the characters endearing, the story warms your heart. This is exactly the type of book I want to be reading when I’m craving a romance.

Katherine Center always delivers. The first book that I read by her was "The Bodyguard" and I LOVED it. But this book was better! Emma and Charlie were simply the perfect RomCom couple. I loved that a majority of the book took place while they were rewriting the script. The book was full of banter and swoon-worthy moments.

Center's way of dealing and portraying heartbreak was beautiful. This book contained so many examples of heartbreak and showed the it affects everyone differently. I found myself absolutely loving a character one minute and then being so frustrated with them the next minute.

The ending of this book was RomCom perfection. I felt like I was immersed in a classic early 2000s RomCom with Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson. I would highly recommend The Rom-Commers to any fan of Katherine Center and the genre in general.

Katherine Center is officially one of my absolute favorite authors. Her ability to write a light hearted, engaging, thoughtful, and endearing story always feels like a bit of literary hug. While I’ve loved all of her books, this one is near the top- and is full of adorable and relatable characters, a unique plot, a deep and tender family story and the perfect amount of humor.

Center has a gift in being able to tie her fictional stories together with a beautiful life affirming conclusion and this book is no different.. Her fiction writing feels more helpful and true than many self help books I’ve read. The Rom-Commers was both thought provoking and inspiring and one I won't soon forget. Thank you Katherine Center for your wonderful work.

This is my first Katherine Center book but won't be my last. The banter and tension between the characters was great. Also the aspect of a disabled parent and the caregiving put onto the children was well written.

I felt this book deeply and with my whole heart. I laughed, cried and fell head over heels in love with both Charlie and Emma. I couldn’t put it down and ended up reading the entire thing in practically one sitting. Sometimes you read a book at just the right time and that’s what this book was for me -- the exact right book at the exact right time.

Parts of the story were sad and will definitely pull at your heart-strings but The Rom-Commers is also laugh out loud funny. The banter between Charlie and Emma is perfection! I loved every minute. I have thoroughly enjoyed every book that I have ever read by Katherine Center but I can say without a doubt that this one is my absolute favorite. I loved it so so much!!

View my full review on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/C3Pt4NBLhLA/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

In support of the SMP boycott, I will be withholding my review of this title until SMP speaks out. If the boycott is resolved, I will update with a full review.

Both characters seemed very bland. I would not of known there’s any chemistry between the two. So when things started to get heated, it felt like it was completely out of left field. The Romance felt very pushed towards the end. Neither one of them had a personality in my opinion, and it was hard to connect with the characters.

This Katherine Center book followed suit with all of her other works of fiction. It was an enjoyable read! The evolution of the relationship between Emma and Charlie was fun to read but it left me wanting more. I can’t quite put my finger on it. Maybe a little spice? Overall, I liked the store and the character development.

Another hit from Katherine Center! This is my new favorite book from her, even surpassing The Bodyguard. (Although I loved the cameo from Jack and Hannah!) I thought Emma was adorable and Charlie had me in swoon city the whole time. I hope we get more books from this world soon!

This is my third Katherine Center book and I can't believe how quickly she hooked me. I didn't even know what to expect with this book but when I saw this pop up on here I knew I had no choice but to read.

Emma's an aspiring screenwriter who hasn't gotten her big break yet. She's the primary caregiver to her father as she gives her sister the space to go and live her own life. When an opportunity presents itself (through her best friend Logan) to co-write a screenplay with her favourite writer Charlie Yates, the people in her life give *her* the space to live her own life finally.

Emma lands in LA and finds Logan waiting for her but Charlie hasn't got a clue who she is or why she's here since he never agreed to Logan's suggestion. The two (after many words) agree that they'll test out the arrangement and Emma can be on her way. While she's there Charlie proves time and time again why Emma should've never left Texas but Emma's proving herself to Charlie too. He sees her more and more every day they spend working together but the fact of the matter is, Charlie is writing a rom-com he could not care less about and just needs Emma to get him his mediocre screenplay so he can be one step closer to the movie he actually wants to make.

The two spend the entire book proving themselves to one another. They both have a bit of a chip on their shoulder that they need to work through. Emma really uses this time to break down Charlie's cynicism and make him fall in love with falling in love. You could kinda predict where our big moments for the characters were going to be but that didn't stop me from loving them. I loved Emma (shocking). She just sounded like the inside of my brain when it comes to protecting and defending the genre. IF IT DOESN'T HAVE A HEA, I DON'T WANT IT.

Having said that, Emma and Charlie felt a lot like Emilia and Will from Me Before You (minus the absolute devastation at the end of that book). Emma just has that warmth to her (Emilia) and Charlie needs to be cracked (Will) plus the forced proximity.... listen, I know it's a stretch but once I thought it I couldn't forget it.

ALL THIS TO SAY, I loved it. As I expected. I can't wait for more from Katherine.

Katerine Center writes her characters like no other! Every book I pick up written by her feels so relatable, and not at all fabricated or over exaggerated.

The TL;DR answer is this is perfection in book form.
I felt an immense connection with Emma and Charlie, and found their thoughts and troubles believable and relatable. Center has become a must-read author for me.
I laughed, I cried, but mostly I just couldn't put this one down.
10/10 recommend.