This really is the perfect rom com. I enjoyed the relationship building, character development arc, and friends to lovers slow burn romance! The audiobook narrator was excellent! I can't wait to read more Melissa Ferguson books in the future.

This was a very cute rom-com and was a perfect palette cleanser between heavier books. I thought it was super cute, and loved the characters and the plot.

Melissa Ferguson writes such amazing, bingeable romcoms. I love her characters and writing style. This is another great read from her!

Bryony wants to be an Author so bad and will agree to ghost writing just one story for the ever painful Amelia if it means Jack will promote her own book. The deal didn't quite go as planned and Bryony is left feeling double crossed. She will never speak to Jack again, unless...she gets trapped in a room with him.

It was all predictable but an easy light read. I may have laughed once or twice.


Thankyou to the publisher #ThomasNelson and #Netgalley for the ARC.

Middle of the road for the story on this one. I liked the idea of a ghost writer and the publishing side of this story, the characters were really well written and I liked our FMC although I wish we saw more of her real life.
This really felt like less of a romance and more of a contemporary novel. The romance felt nonexistent until the last maybe 5% of the story and even then it was a little hard to believe.

I listened to this on audio and the narrator was fantastic! I enjoyed her voice and the speed at which she read. She was understandable and clear in her narration.

I was really looking forward to this, based on the title and synopsis. I felt annoyed by Bryony's monologues. I had hoped to connect with her, but I didn't. In fact, I didn't connect with any of the characters. This wasn't romantic at all, and it was just all telling and no showing and way too wordy.

I was hoping for an immersive, relatablr, fun book, but I didn't enjoy this at all.

I'm really disappointed.

I didn't find the author easy to listen to.

2 stars

I was pleasantly surprised with this book. I give it 4.5 ⭐️. A ghost writer with a heart of gold, finding herself in a tough situation. Writing magical books for someone whom she can’t stand all while teaching ESOL adults and begging her agent to share her personal manuscript. It is a clean romance novel that kept me very entertained.

Thank you to @harperaudio and @netgalley for the ALC!!

If this isn't "The Perfect Rom-Com," I don't know what is. As a book lover who makes a living in the trade, I love all stories that center around books, publishing, libraries, etc. And I also enjoy rom-coms. So, when I read that one of my favorite authors had written this book, I just had to check it out. And I was definitely NOT disappointed.

Bryony Page is a first-time author, and her book is a passion project for her. If all goes well, it may just allow her to save her grandmother's favorite place. So, Bryony puts a lot of pressure on herself to get everything "just right."

When she attends her first pitch fest, four out of four agents tell her, the book just isn't ready yet. But when her fourth meeting ends in less than half the allotted time, she decides she's not going to take "no" for an answer. Instead, she seeks to learn what improvements are needed. When the agent she's meeting with decides to put her to the test, she's confused. But she takes the bait and rises the challenge. So much so that the infamous agent (Jack Sterling) seeks her out a short time later to offer her a job. The only problem is, the only accolades she's bound to get are in the form of monetary gain. As a ghost writer, her name will never see the light of day. So, she strikes a deal with Jack, and the story takes off from there.

Bryony learns some of the tough lessons many first-time authors still need to learn, but the time under Jack's tutelage teaches her what she needs to know to go even farther than she'd dared dream. If only they could find a buyer for her own book too...

This rom-com is the perfect blend of books, humor, passion and compassion, while delivering on all the feels. Can't wait for another story by Ms. Ferguson!

Thank you to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

When an aspiring author agrees to ghostwrite for a famous rom-com novelist in exchange for a chance to sell her own manuscript, she doesn't expect to create a publishing phenomenon—or to get trapped in someone else’s fame.

Love the relationship between Jake and Bryony.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
#NetGalley.

Review: A Truly Captivating Listen

The narrator delivers an outstanding performance with incredible vocal range. Her male voice is impressively convincing, and each female character is so uniquely voiced that you can instantly tell who’s speaking. She had me tearing up as Bryonys voice cracked with emotion, and laughing out loud with the sass and wit flying around. It was a fully immersive experience—I genuinely found it hard to press pause.

The storyline itself is both clever and engaging. It follows an author, Bryony, trying to get her book published—only to discover that no matter how much passion you pour into your work, if it doesn’t sell, it won’t get picked up by editors. But Bryony’s knack for details, thanks to her ESL job, lands her a unique opportunity: providing feedback on another book, which snowballs into ghostwriting, and eventually, two full years of working on other people’s manuscripts.

The two-year time jump around the 20% mark was such a smart move. Rather than dragging through the editing grind, we’re dropped into an established routine, which keeps the pace tight and the plot engaging. I really appreciated Bryonys sass and strength—she wasn’t timid before, but she truly shines as someone who knows what she wants and isn't afraid to say it.

What follows is a beautifully compressed timeline—just about a month of story time—but it’s packed with daily heartbreaks, looming deadlines, and the messy, raw moments of real life. And throughout it all, the narrator keeps us deeply connected to Bryony’s thoughts while still managing to blindside us with the final twist.

And that ending? Wow, wow, wow. I’d honestly reread (or relisten!) to this book just to go through all the laughter, tears, and frustration with certain characters again—because that Rom-Com ending was absolutely perfect.

This book is adorable! The narrator is so expressive and really brings the story to life. I really enjoyed the plot and the characters and the twist at the end! Super quick read about a woman named Bryony, who is trying to get her first book published, teams up with an agent. She agrees to ghostwrite for one of his most famous authors in exchange for him agreeing to help get her book out there.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Publishing for providing me with an ALC of this book!

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to listen to this fun book! Byrany was a bit annoying at times but I enjoyed her overall. Love how the story ended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read The Perfect Rom-Com by Melissa Ferguson.

I’m not sure what I expected going in, but it wasn’t this. Despite the title, the “rom-com” element was barely present—this read more like contemporary fiction focused on the publishing world, with a dash of romance. I did enjoy the behind-the-scenes look at ghostwriting and publishing, but the pacing dragged due to long internal monologues, and the chemistry between the leads felt underdeveloped. The romance was more “told” than “shown,” and left me wanting more.

It’s a light, clean read that might appeal to fans of quirky narrators and slow-burn industry insights, but it wasn’t the perfect rom-com I was hoping for.

Overall I really enjoyed this book! There were some places that seemed rushed — for example I would have rather had a chapter or two talking about the initial ghost writing before the big time jump and some of the bigger plot points felt kind of out of the blue. Despite that I really enjoyed the characters and I liked the way that the big “twist” was revealed to the public at the end.

⭐️3.5

The Brief: Bryony wants to be a writer, but when she gets the chance it’s not at all what she expected.

Jack. Jack. Jack. The laid back editor who works his way out of uncomfortable situations. This author has a very unique way of telling a story and I was hooked. I like to read blind, but here are come some thoughts.

-Amelia was something else
-The Bridge students had my heart
-author bus tour was so fun
-the on pointe banter
-the author’s notes made it more special
-ghost writing was totally interesting
-the narration was fantastic! she totally nailed the voices

I received an audio copy from NetGalley and highly recommend this story. So much heart and plenty of laugh out loud moments. I’ve read one other book by this author, but this was a fav for me. My own thoughts.

I could not put this book down! It was captivating and enjoyable. It felt like a true friends-to-lovers romance since Bryony and Jack's friendship was so natural. It did get a bit too wordy at times to keep up with and all the legalese and contract talk did confuse me a bit, but that's more on me. I loved the inclusion of immigrants in this book and how it shed light on their efforts and hard work.

This was such a fun audiobook. Karissa Vacker was such a great choice for this narration. She really helped the book come alive for me and made me love it that much more.

Thank you for the early arc audiobook of this novel!

I have loved all of Melissa Ferguson's books and this one was just as fun and cute. I will say there is one annoying character but that is on par for the story and makes it all worth it!

This story is a wonderful mix of love, friendship and fighting for what/who you believe in. I loved the tie in of the ESL students and organization along with the meaningful message behind it.

This was a great read and I hope you enjoy it as well! 📖✨

3 stars only because I love Karissa Vacker and she will elevate any book she narrates!

I had high hopes for this book, but y'all it was sloooooooow. And where were the rom and com in this rom-com? Other than the title, it was too much of the build up and not enough of the romance for me.

Not a horrible book, but definitely not for me.

I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed it very much. The narrators pace and tone were good. I didn't find myself bored or falling asleep. The story is very cute. I felt the MFC was the child not the MMC who she accuses. No explicit sex or mature language.

I received the audiobook for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

⭐️ 2.5 ⭐️

The main character was insufferable and I didn’t feel any chemistry in the romance.
Although I did like it how it was a story that took place over several years.