I unfortunately couldn't even get through 20% of this read. I was hoping that the beginning wouldn't drag so much, and I struggled to feel any attachment to Bryony.

2.5★

I had to sit through with the rating for a few days since at first I wanted to give it a 4 star but now thinking back it’s a 2.5 star.

It did take me until over half of the book to get into this book. The beginning was so slow and boring. There was simply nothing happening. Also the time skip was so not needed, like why it’s there a whole big time skip were we see that both the main characters have formed a friendship from it. Especially since from the start we can see that they do not like each other. I feel like there was a lot of stuff missing from this story.

Can we talk about the romance that literally comes from out of nowhere. We’re told to believe that both of the characters suddenly developed feelings for one another from all the dates that they apparently had together that we don’t get to see happening at all. There’s literally no chemistry between them.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Every writer want to get published. So when Byrony Page pitches her manuscript and receives an unexpected offer to ghostwrite for the very rich and famous Amelia Benedict, she takes the offer that literary agent Jack Sterling offers her. But, she never loses sight of her dream to publish her manuscript in order to use the royalties to save her grandmother’s ESL program. Byrony’s love for her students was commendable and one that I could relate to myself.

The very privileged and self-absorbed Amelia, was overbearing and was more than anyone could handle, including me. When Byrony has to go on a road trip in an RV with her, I wondered if Amelia and everyone else who had to travel with them would survive. I admired that Jack ran interference on more than one occasion between the two of them.

Things to Enjoy:
friends to more
package of pens
The Bridge students
Jack’s watch
the bowling league
1st date
grand gesture

3.5 stars rounded to 4

I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher, UpLit, and NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own with no obligation to write a positive review.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!
This book was so fun and cute! I am a sucker for a book about books and this did not disappoint. I am also always intrigued by books about ghostwriters because I find that career super interesting. The ending shocked me and I did not see it coming. A great Valentine’s read!

Bryony and Jack are the cutest friendship turned lovers I’ve read in a while. Their original meeting plus subsequent elevator meeting were original (if not implausible). I appreciated the emphasis placed on The Bridge, and the importance of helping immigrants adjust and learn English there. Also, Bryony’s students were adorable. I loved that she was driven by deeper reasons and the message of helping our neighbors is critical, especially now.

Amelia was the worst, so glad to see her get what she deserved, even though I was kinda hoping for a redemption arc where she learned about the importance of helping people, maybe by visiting The Bridge or something. Loved Trina, the bus driver, and was glad she made a second appearance at the end along with Penny.

It was a clean romance, which will probably make it lose some points for some, but I didn’t think it needed anything more. The only thing that bothered me was the choppy sentence structure and some of the dialogue felt a little stilted. 4.25 ⭐️

"And I've been in love for quite some time. I just didn't know it was with him."

⤿🎀09/02/25
2. 75 stars 💫 review posted on goodreads!
Release Date: 11th feb, 2025

From reading the title "the perfect rom-com", I thought it would be a good-feel-cute romance book, that would make you giggle and kick your feet, but alas nothing that sort happened here. The title was deceiving.😒 This was my first book to read by the author. For the majority of the book, up until 55%, it was hard to get into the story because there was simply nothing happening. If anything this book was made of 99% FMC's lengthy monologues (her exaggerating & off-the-plot thoughts) and only 1% romance between the main characters, Jack & Bryony. I'm not talking about spice, let me be clear, I don't like reading them. But for a closed-door romance I can at least expect some budding romance, right?😃 I really didn't feel connected to the characters. There was no angst, the kind that would make you sit at the edge of your bed, biting your nails off in anticipation, but no my expectations were too high apparently because the premise sounded promising and the cover felt too cute to pass.😬 As soon they start dating just after dinner one night, they fall off due to miscommunication and then viola they are back in the end. That's it. If anything, I'm being pretty generous with the rating here. This book had so much potential, only if the lengthy monologues were reduced, and we could see some real romance between the main characters.😞 For what's worth it, I still liked how the ending was made up, seeing the entitled so-called author Amelia being served what she deserved for mentally harassing Bryony and all the staffs.😌🙌🏻

What to expect:
📚 Agent x Ghostwriter
📚 Strangers to Lovers
📚 Slow Burn
📚 Closed Door Romance
📚 Forced Proximity

thankyou to the author, the publisher and netgalley for providing me this arc in exchange for an honest review 💓

I absolutely loved this one, it was funny, heart warming and such an easy read. It definitely made me smile all the way through.

Bryony Page may have written another nearly perfect rom-com, but Amelia Benedict's name is on the cover. One consolation prize is her agent Jack Sterling. And Jack has promised to help shop around Bryony's passion project about her grandmother's ESL nonprofit--The Bridge.

Here are four things I loved about this new release from Melissa Ferguson:

📚At the heart of this book is a love of words and reading. Bryony is a ghostwriter so also we get a glimpse at the book business and how they promote such relationships. Amelia Benedict is a piece of work.
🤣Speaking of Amelia, some of the most humorous scenes show her flexing her bestselling author status and looking like a major doofus.
🤩Jack Sterling is a dreamboat and a shrewd businessman. Melissa Ferguson sets him up as a frenemy at first, but he is soon a beloved friend -- well before Bryony realizes, of course.
👩‍💼Bryony may be one of the quirkiest characters I have met in a Melissa Ferguson novel. Her work with the immigrants at The Bridge is elaborated in so many clever ways throughout -- including a bowling team called the Pin Pals.

This book will be available on Tuesday, February 11 -- just two days from my posting. Happy Publication week! Thank you to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

2⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for an advanced copy of The Perfect Rom-Com.

Bryony is trying to get her book published and when she meets with publisher Jack he hates her book. She edits someone else’s work and that writer becomes a household name. Jack is trying to sell her book to publishers in the meantime so she is happy to continue ghostwriting. But has everything she thought was true wrong?

This book had so much potential but fell so flat for me. We miss out on the two years of when her and Jack became friends and that would have made the book so much better if we had seen that because it would of had us more invested in the relationship. The romance was just not there for me at all. I had such high hopes for this book but it was not a rom-com at all.

Ghostwriter Bryony Page desperately wants to sell books under her own name - which was the deal she made with agent - now friend - Jack Sterling when she agreed to be a ghostwriter. But after years of ghostwriting and turning Amelia Benedict into a household name, Bryony is desperate to publish stories under own name. But the Foundry Agency can't (won't*) let her go.

This was delightful! I really enjoy reading stories about authors and people writing their own stories in the publishing world. Bryony's own pathway is complicated by the fact that she's an incredibly successful ghostwriter.

Jack and Bryony's friendship is really delightful. I never used to like the friends to lovers trope, but this definitely makes me change my mind! I love the banter between them and the Bryony's slow awakening to Jack's feelings.

The Perfect Rom-Com is for fans of slow-burn and feel-good romances!

Thank you to Thomas Nelson and Netgalley for an e-arc of this one! All opinions are my own.

I loved Bryony’s heart for ESL students and for her Gran, and I loved her relationship with her sister Gloria. I would have enjoyed seeing more of those interactions in this book. Jack isn’t my favorite romantic lead, especially since he starts quasi-dating Bryony while they’re both romantically involved with other people - and deceit has a pretty big role in their relationship. The grand gesture at the end of the book, while far-fetched, was nonetheless satisfying. Overall, the book is well-written and definitely opened my eyes to publishing’s challenges.

This was an enjoyable read, albeit not as romantic or comedic as I would expect from the title, nor as explicitly Christian as I would expect from the publisher (I didn’t change my rating because of that; just a note in case readers want to know).

Thank you to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for the free eARC! I post this review with my honest opinions. This is cross posted on Goodreads and Instagram. It will be posted on Amazon on publication day.

I had not read this author before but I'm not one to shy away from reading a new-to-me author. It often works out. It didn't this time, I'm sorry to say. I started and stopped multiple times. I finally just read through in spurts but it just never piqued my interest. It wasn't a fit for me, or what I was expecting, but others may enjoy it. Books are so subjective.

NOTE: I was expecting a Christian fiction publication but there was no faith content at all. It was clean but not what I was expecting. I wish I had known beforehand so my expectations could have been adjusted. I don't mind clean content but I expect Christian content from a Christian publisher.

That aside, this book just wasn't for me. I have enjoyed many rom-coms but this didn't really read like a rom-com in my opinion. For me, a rom-com is funny but still has something to chew on to keep it grounded. Much of the content felt shallow and superfluous. The first 55-60% of the book didn't really go anywhere and I really struggled to keep going many times. The last 15% was the best part of the novel.

I found Bryony a weird mixture of dedicated and flighty. (???) I didn't care for Jack and considered him iffy and untrustworthy. Amelia, the untalented, annoying person that Bryony did the ghostwriting for, was just a mean-spirited, spoiled narcissist with no growth. However, I really liked the assistants, Bryony's Grandma, and her students. The scenes with them were the best scenes. They were very likeable. There were two passages that I highlighted but I did not find this book funny otherwise. That was disappointing.

[To be honest, the entire concept of ghostwriting is something that I find distasteful and dishonest. Someone takes credit for someone else's hard work and the readers are lied to. Why can't talented writers use their own name rather than giving credit to another? It makes zero sense to me. The mainstream publishing world seems to be incredibly cutthroat.]

>>> My thanks to Net Galley and Thomas Nelson (publisher) for an advanced copy of this novel. My words and opinion are my own.

I absolutely adored this book - what a fun journey with two super lovable main characters. Bryony and Jack were the sweetest couple I’ve read about in a while, their banter was 10/10. Think literary agent and aspiring author with messy dynamics in between. Bryony is an ESL teacher and her love for the students she taught was so genuine, made me love her right away. Jack is the grump turned sweetheart. This book was a rom-com but did not lack depth and plot. I highlighted multiple quotes I want to hold onto. I will be reading Melissa’s books in the future!!

Thank you NetGalley, the author and Thomas Nelson for this gifted ARC in exchange for my honest review!

this was a little confusing for me to review personally!! i thought it was going to be a full-on cutesy romance, since the word romcom is in the title, but it wasn’t entirely that? it focused a lot on publishing / ghost writing as a career, and our girl’s growth, and while that’s not a bad thing in the least, it did take me off guard as sometimes it kind of felt like you were reading an informative leaflet. and honestly i just wanted a fluffy romance to disappear to, sue me. the main character was sweet and likeable, but, and this may be absolutely a ‘just me’ problem, sometimes her overlooking her own needs and entirely focusing on other people’s feelings and wants frustrated me to no end. i know this a thing people deal with. i know because i’m one of those people. but it was lowkey frustrating to read pages upon pages of bryony doing everything for other people but not giving a thought to herself. like girl! anyway, i have no thoughts about our male lead. he was just there, he did his job. if you are interested in the publishing industry, this book is for you!! but the romance is not romancing as much as i thought it would.

What a cute story and the perfect book for February.

Byrony Page meets Jack at a publishing conference, and instead of getting her book published, she ends up being a successful ghost writer for an absolute horrible person. I have never disliked a character more than Amelia, but I guess that adds to the story.

I enjoyed how this story unfolds, and how the ESL school and Byrony’s grandmother plays a part in her life. The friendship and slow burn romance between Byrony and Jack was perfection. This story wouldn’t have worked if their relationship was rushed. How it was reveled on the TV show was also fun and glad Amelia got what she deserved.

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

5 stars

I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of The Perfect Rom-Com by Melissa Ferguson. This story is fun and quirky and endearing and eccentric…and I was there for it all! I enjoyed and appreciated what feels like a really unique look into the publishing industry. Man, can you say, “Cutthroat?!” I have always understood that the publishing world is not for the weak of heart, but this book really illustrates that point hard. You’ve got to be tough if you’re gonna be a writer and maneuver through that world. I’ve also known what a ghostwriter is since I was nine and my father explained how the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys series worked, but it was super cool to see a ghostwriter in action (fictionally speaking, that is). Time and time again, I felt really badly for Bryony and all the ugliness she is forced to deal with because of her ghostwriting duties and her requirement for total anonymity. To be an aspiring writer herself and to give her talents and time to some other author, an ungrateful and selfish one at that, is height of frustrating awfulness. Again, I felt really, really badly for Bryony, which means I was cheering for a win for her like crazy! And that win came in the form of Jack Sterling. I love Jack. I love his cheekiness and grumpiness and intelligence and protectiveness and strength when it really counts. He is such a good hero — the perfect one for Bryony. I think my most favorite thing about this story is the fact that Bryony is the lead in her own Rom-Com and she doesn’t even know it. That had me laughing quite a bit. Bryony is so out of touch, but that makes sense as her head is constantly stuck in her fictional worlds with her fictional characters. I feel like Melissa Ferguson is winking at her readers as she shares, through Bryony, a truth about all storytellers, and I really loved this fun insight!

The Perfect Rom-Com is a really awesome story. I truly cannot recommend it enough. If you’re a fan of well-written Rom-Coms with quirky, endearing characters and thematic depth, then this is definitely a book you’ll not want to miss.

I received a copy of this novel in eBook form from the publisher, Thomas Nelson, via NetGalley in order to review. I am under no obligation to leave a positive review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This book was a perfect rom com and my favorite from this author so far! This book follows Bryony a ESL teacher who decides to write the story of her grandmother founding The Bridge,an immigrant center,in order to raise money to help keep the facility open. While trying to find an agent her only luck was with a young confident agent Jack, and he’s not so interested in her book as having her ghostwrite for another author. Bryony agrees to write as a ghostwriter if he’ll be her agent and try to sell her book. We follow Bryony as she struggles with the entitled author and an adorable pining relationship that kept me rooting for the romance. I have read quite a few books from this author and really enjoy her writing. I loved the publishing industry storyline it was interesting seeing the behind the scenes of how books are made. If you are a rom com lover I would definitely recommend picking this up! I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for a chance to read this book for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction as I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This book was adorable! I loved the cover, and the book fits that vibe perfectly. I’ve read Melissa Ferguson’s books in the past so I knew going in what her writing style was like, and that I was going to enjoy it and I wasn’t disappointed.

Bryony is a great main character, and I loved that she was so fleshed out. Yes, she’s a ghost writer, but she also teaches ESL to an eclectic cast of characters, and it just works. You want to root for her to succeed, which not all authors are able to portray properly, but is done really well here. I also really enjoyed Jack- I wasn’t sure where his character was going to go after we first meet him, but very quickly we see what’s under the exterior and why he and Bryony are so good together.

The Perfect Rom-Com is an enigma. It is touted as a romance, but there is very little in the book’s first half. It is more of a contemporary than a romance. Is that weird to say? I would love to know more about Gran’s backstory and what drove her to open The Bridge. What happened with Bryony and Gloria’s parents?

The story of Bryony as a ghostwriter for Amelia Benedict leaves me wondering how many ghostwriters are out there who receive little to no reward for their dedication. The portrayal of Bryony’s struggle in dealing with Amelia’s demanding nature and the lack of recognition for her work is a stark reminder of the challenges faced by many ghostwriters. And if Amelia is such a horrible writer, how did she ever get a contract in the first place?

Bryony was oblivious to the people around her and their feelings. She was too focused on helping everyone to see if they needed or wanted help. Bryony constantly bent over backward to help everyone but not herself. I understand the need to care for those around us and put their needs above mine. I have done this most of my life, but I have also set myself at the forefront now and then.

While this particular book did not strike a pleasurable note, I remain optimistic about Melissa Ferguson’s future books. I have read and enjoyed her other works and look forward to continuing to read them and hopefully enjoy them.

3.25 ⭐

I was a bit caught off guard because The Perfect Rom-Com sets up expectations for a heartwarming romance, but instead is more about the challenges one faces in the publishing industry and he FMC's personal growth. The romance itself is clean and minimal, and focuses more on the FMC's struggles as an aspiring writer and saving her grandmother's life project—a school for adults learning ESL - which I didn't expect.

So I find that this book's strength lies in its underlying critique of the publishing industry, particularly the difficulties of breaking in as a new author and the harsh realities of ghostwriting. Anyone who has faced rejection or struggled to find their own voice will relate to the FMC and her story. However, in spite of liking the theme, I feel that the plot lacked on the emotional side and charm typically associated with a romance.

All in all, if you are looking for something lighter on the romance and more about a writer's breakthrough, this one is definitely for you.