•𝐀𝐑𝐂 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰•

{𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝑹𝒐𝒎-𝑪𝒐𝒎}

“𝐋𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠.”

🌸 Release Date: February 11, 2025 🌸
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Twenty-nine-year-old Bryony Page only wanted one thing: to get her manuscript picked up by an agent and published so that she could save her struggling workplace. Well things didn’t go quite as smoothly as she had planned and after many refusals and less-than-lovely comments about her manuscript, Bryony was ready to give up. And then she met Jack Sterling, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚌, 𝚟𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚕𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚘𝚞𝚜, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚒𝚛𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚊𝚐𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎, and something snapped within her. This, shall we say, entertaining encounter led to an unusual offer she couldn’t refuse.

After being a ghostwriter for Amelia Benedict for two years, Bryony has finally had enough. She was sick and tired of being the “big brain inside the stupid face”, as she so eloquently put it, and wanted to be acknowledged for her writing so she could finally publish her own book. It was only getting worse as Amelia became a bestselling author and household name and started viewing everyone around her as disposable. As Bryony put it, Amelia was the textbook definition of a civilized sociopath. The “brains behind the books” and the “face of the books” end up having to go on a book tour together. What could possibly go wrong?

Ladies, we all love a man who pines after a woman (HIS woman) and, therefore, y’all are gonna LOVE Jack Sterling! I know Bryony (and every other woman) died when he told her, “𝙼𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚖𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚖𝚞𝚜𝚎.” 🫠 Jack & Bryony’s “agent-writer-colleague-friend-but-not-too-close-friend-support-system relationship” was highly amusing and certainly entertaining. But oooh did things get so much better once the feelings were out in the open! These two were oil and water, city mouse and country mouse—aka perfect for each other 😁 Watching their banter and obvious chemistry was so much fun! And that ending…PERFECTION 🤌🏻

Top Moments:
📙 The pep talk with Gloria
📙 First interaction w/ Jack Sterling
📙 The elevator encounter
📙 The bookshop event w/ Amelia
📙 Serghei’s dislike of Jack
📙 The Pin Pals
📙 Amelia…everything with Amelia 🤦🏻‍♀️
📙 “Make me your muse.”
📙 The “first date”
📙 Betrayal
📙 Penny’s revenge
📙 The Bright Show
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I received a complimentary arc of this book from NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction. All opinions listed are purely my own.

I love the take of a rom com about a rom com ghost writer. The writing in this was so witty and the banter between Bryony and Jack was so much fun to read. Especially with this coming out around Valentine's day, I can't wait to tell all of my friends to get a copy!

Bryony, an ESL teacher, wants to save her grandmother's legacy, and she is convinced publishing her novel will help her do that. But she messes up her book pitch with Jack, who is however interested in something else: her becoming a ghostwriter for Amelia, a socialite. Two years later, the books she wrote are bestsellers, and yet her own novel is nowhere near published...
This is a workplace, slow burn, forced proximity romance. It wasn't bad, BUT, despite this being marketed as a rom-com (I mean, it's right there in the title), and that this does contain a romance element, this is way more chick-lit (focused on Bryony's journey) than rom-com. Jack was not a very likeable MMC. Also, there was not a ton of dialogue, which I'm not a fan of. Don't get me wrong, this is good chick-lit, if that's what you're looking for, but when you're expecting a romance, it can be a bit of a letdown.
I received an advance review copy of this book for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Another spectacular entry from Melissa Ferguson!! All Bryony Page wants is to publish her novel and save her grandmother’s ESL non-profit when she finds herself ghostwriting for famous rom-com author Amelia Benedict. As her ghost-written books explode in popularity, her initially contentious relationship with agent Jack Sterling slowly warms over the years to a friendship…and more? I devoured this book. It’s witty, it’s snappy, it’s fast-paced, it’s funny, it’s my favorite Melissa Ferguson in years. There are quippy one-liners and lots of slow-burn romantic tension between the two leads! I also loved the unique behind-the-scenes look at ghostwriters and literary agents when most NYC-set stories are focused on authors and editors. This book left me with such a smile on my face and I highly recommend it. Go grab it for the perfect Valentine’s weekend read!

(My only caveat would be if you are someone who doesn’t like stories where the FMC is dating someone else we don’t like while her feelings grow for the MMC, this book may not be for you. There is NO cheating in this book but it does flirt with that line a teensy bit.)

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me an ARC of this novel. I was not required to give a review and all opinions expressed above are my own.

The Perfect Rom-Com by Melissa Ferguson

Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you to Thomas Nelson Fiction, Netgalley, and the author for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

“…life, while at times terrible, hard, and unpredictable, could never keep goodness from poking through the ground too.” 💗✨

The Perfect Rom-Com is a wonderful, engaging, and heartwarming story that focuses on personal growth, navigating all seasons of life, and self discovery.

Bryony is an aspiring author. She works as an ESL teacher at a school that was founded by her family to help immigrants. Bryony attends an event for writers that connects writers with literary agents. At the event, Bryony gets a meeting with Jack, a very successful literary agent. She hopes he’ll consider the manuscript of her novel, which is based on her grandma’s life and the school she works at. Instead, Jack ends up asking her to be a ghostwriter for a socialite client of his.

Two years later, the books that Bryony has written as a ghostwriter have become bestsellers and Bryony finds herself trying to navigate the obligation of being a ghostwriter while trying to get her book published.

Overall, this was an enjoyable, fun read. Bryony’s passion for the work that she does is incredible. Her empathy, enthusiasm, and determination all make her a fabulous FMC. Bryony and Jack are a cute couple and their relationship is super sweet! Their understanding of each other and banter were both awesome!

I’d recommend The Perfect Rom-Com to anyone looking for a sweet closed door romance that emphasizes personal growth and following your dreams! 🩷

Tropes:
- Friends to lovers
- Forced proximity
- Workplace romance
- He falls first
- Slow burn
- Writer FMC
- Literary agent MMC

Melissa Ferguson knows how to write a Rom-Com and in this case she has succeeded in writing "the Perfect Rom-Com." This is her best book yet!

In this novel, plucky Bryony Page is on a mission to become a published author -- and she will not let anything or anyone stop her. When she comes up against her last roadblock, what will she do to make her dreams come true? Follow along in this rollercoaster tale to see what happens.

As always, Melissa Ferguson delivers a sweet and clean romance story full of laughter and fun that can be recommended to just about anyone! This is one not to miss!

Thanks to Melissa Ferguson and NetGalley for an ARC copy of this novel to review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.,

Thank you for author and Thomas Nelson Fiction for the eARC.

Blurb:
An aspiring and frustrated writer striked a deal with a publishing agent which led her to taking the role of a very valuable ghostwriter to a media-favorite author. Juggling the pressure of writing a book and hoping to secure her own manuscript being seen, she carried the burden of making sure her grandmother's legacy, The Bridge will not be closed before deadline hits.
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What caught my attention in the first pages was the edgy persistent personality of Bryony and how she managed to grab the attention of the famous publishing agent Jack.
Then as their story progressed, amidst the chaos of book tour, writing deadlines, dealing with the annoying author Amelie who just craves the spotlight but doesn't even know about her books, the chemistry of Jack and Bryony's friendship was captivating to witness. It was a slow burn romance, one that got me giggling when Bryony finally realized his feelings for her all along.
His words "You weren't dating me. But I was dating you".

And when she thought he betrayed her about the manuscript, he just pulled off a reveal that completely threw me off, shrieking in excitement! Talk about an agent in shining armor, ready to save the day!

The comedic banter, the witty plot, the easy-to-love supporting characters, even the annoying Amelia brought so much emotions for me reading this. And if you're a writer, or aspiring writer, I think Bryony Page's story will hit you in the right spot. It did for me, and I'm just in deep respect for authors who are out there trying their best for their stories to be seen, heard and loved. ❤️

Another excellent romcom by Melissa Ferguson! I love that the characters are well developed. The struggles they go through are real and relatable. The way that Jack and Bryony's relationship grew and developed throughout the story was perfect. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a fun, witty, lighthearted read.

Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Bryony Page is an aspiring author who catches a big break as a ghostwriter for a NYT Bestselling author. All the while, she continues to push her agent, Jack, to get her first book published. Bryony works to save her grandmother’s legacy and thinks selling her book will give The Bridge enough publicity to stay afloat.

I absolutely adored the dynamic between Bryony and Jack. Their relationship was everything! Highly recommend this book for anyone wanting a rom com with a deeper message inside as well.

This rom-com was such a delightful read. The cast of characters was one I was cheering for from the very beginning, and Bryony's love for the community at The Bridge made me fall in love with them too.

I enjoyed the love story and found Bryony easy to relate to.

Here's a quick synopsis:

Bryony Page is a author hoping to secure a deal for a book she's written about her grandmother and the organization she has built to teach ESL, The Bridge. And she really needs a deal soon, because The Bridge is in financial trouble. She has one last chance to secure an agent at a writing conference and that last chance is Jack Sterling, a notoriously picky agent. The meeting goes terribly wrong, but then, she unwittingly stumbles into a different kind of deal all together...ghostwriting for Amelia Benedict.

Flash forward a couple years, the Bryony's novels have rocketed Amelia Benedict to a household name. But Bryony is getting frustrated. Jack was supposed to be pitching her book while she wrote these side novels for no credit, and she's not sure he's holding up his side of their bargain. As secrets are discovered and relationships get involved, will Bryony be able to share her novel, and The Bridge, with the world? Or is she destined to write for Amelia Benedict forever?

I loved reading this fun, light-hearted book about pushing for your dreams and the beauty of community.

*Thank you to TNZFiction and NetGalley for this advance reader copy!

This while another promising idea I had to unfortunately DNF after only the first three chapters. I found it boring and force read chapter two and three before stopping.

[Due to this 1⭐️ I will not be sharing on my social media accounts.]

This was an entertaining read into ghostwriting. I loved Bryony's battle between wanting to write her way, but having to listen to the demands of the credited author. Jack was an intriguing character and I do wish we had had more scenes with him. More of the rom in this rom-com! I feel like if we had cut down on some of the internal monologuing we could have had more of that. I also really enjoyed all the references to Two Weeks Notice. Overall, another fun read by this author.

This was a cute rom com! The beginning of this novel really captured my interest. I loved the way the FMC fought for her dream in the beginning which led to the opportunity of ghost writing.

The slow burn romance between the two main characters was swoon worthy. I love a good workplace romance.

I really enjoyed Bryonne character development. I loved her passion for ESL and teaching and programming.

The increase in confidence she had with her writing was beautiful to watch

I also loved seeing the ruthless side of the publishing world and how the main character who was quickly thrown into it navigated.

Overall a good read. I did find parts in the middle a bit repetitive and slower. I’m a huge fan of a duel POV in romances and felt it would have been nice to see what was going on with Jack

I feel that though this book is marketed as a romance book but it equally can be put in woman fiction because of the personal growth and self discovery journey the mc goes through.

But for me there was so many technicalities in the book that I just could not get lost in it and had a hard time following through.

I really liked the character arc of Bryony and few chapters did have a good hold on me and my emotions.

Despite an intriguing start, this book just didn’t work for me. The pacing felt sluggish, with too many words and not enough meaningful action to drive the story forward. While there’s plenty of angst, the emotional depth felt lacking, making it hard to connect with the characters or care about their romance. The story became weighed down by side characters and subplots that felt more distracting than engaging. I really tried to stick with it, but I ultimately couldn’t find a reason to continue past the halfway point.

It was a sweet journey following Bryony as she unexpectedly became a ghostwriter on her pursuit to publish her own novel and save The Bridge.

I was initially captivated and enjoyed a different glimpse at the publishing industry. It felt so many truths were splayed on the page.

I was intrigued by Bryony’s transition to ghostwriter but didn’t love the two-year jump where we don’t see any of the growth in her relationship with Jack. We’re instead just supposed to buy into their relationship. Buy into her portrayal of him. And it left it all feeling hollow. Same with other characters. Her gran was portrayed as a more stoic woman than compassionate and dedicated. Her sister was very two-dimensional. As were all the characters really. Leaving the story to fall flat.

I think it just felt like a lot of meat was missing from the story. A lot of internal monologue and dialogue to carry the story while not feeling like much was happening.

I have enjoyed other work from this author and would read more of her work in the future. But this one just wasn’t for me! received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was rather cute exploring the rather miserable existence of a ghost writer. Our heroine is writing best-selling novels for an extremely obnoxious and arrogant flibbertigibbet of an author. Poor Byrony has ambitions to publish her own novel about her grandmother’s school for immigrants to learn English. I never get much of an idea what her novel was really about even though it’s described as magic-realism and romance and some other genres. She’s convinced that it’s destined to be a bestseller that will help save her grandmother’s school. Everyone tells her she has to edit it down, but she stubbornly doesn’t believe it.

She has become good friends with Jack, the super agent who is first portrayed as an arrogant guy, but suddenly becomes this great guy who will do anything to help his writers.

I was enjoying the book, but the last third becomes rather unbelievable. The agents force Byrony to travel with the witchy author who is so arrogant that she won’t ever read the books that Byrony has written for her and so, somehow, Byrony’s presence on the trip is supposed to help feed answers to the author when she’s asked specific questions about the characters in the books she hasn’t read. I’m not sure how that would help. And the final conclusion of the story was very unbelievable.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book that I received from Netgalley; however, the opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation for my review.

Wow. Just wow. I absolutely adore this book. I couldn’t put it down, and loathed when I had to.

Melissa Ferguson absolutely killed with this rom-com. One might say, it’s the perfect rom-com. In this book, Bryony Page is an aspiring author who just wants to get an agent and sell her manuscript to a publishing company. Things take a few wrong turns and she ends up being a ghostwriter for an insufferable person. She pours her soul into ghostwriting while still holding out hope that she’ll be published under her own name.

Now let me just tell you, I was hooked. Bryony is such a relatable character without trying too hard. I found myself smiling, laughing, and swooning, because yes there’s romance. It’s a true slow burn where they get to know each other as friends first, and I adore it. I’ll be thinking about this book couple for a while. Beyond romance there’s also a deep story line about teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) to adults. This was beautifully told and made for wonderful character defining moments.

Do yourself a favor and pick up this book!

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review. I love this book.

Melissa Ferguson is a very enjoyable author. Her books are packed full of fun banter, interesting characters, and crazy events.
This story was such a charming, fun, and entertaining book to read! I loved every moment I was in it—so much so that I didn’t want to put it down!
I’ve never really known what it takes to be a writer or all the moving parts involved in putting a book out in readers' hands. This story truly gives us, the readers, a glimpse of what it takes.
Melissa Ferguson is a master storyteller, sharing all the struggles writers face when all they want is to tell their stories. This story is also packed with the relational tension between Bryony and Jack. What it’s like to want to write but not be able to write the story you want to or be acknowledged for your writing. All the banter between these two makes the story flow and move along so naturally. It’s all so relatable, and the readers find themselves very invested.
After reading a few of this author’s books, I know that I will jump right in and get it whenever I hear Melissa Ferguson has written a new book!
AFTER ALL, I now know all the ins and outs of what it took for the book to be in my hands!
I loved this story and will recommend it to anyone and everyone who wants a fun book to read.
The publisher and NetGalley gave me this book, but this did not influence my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for access to this e-arc! This was such a sweet and fun one from Melissa Ferguson, would definitely recommend to a friend!