The Rom-Commers

Good Vibes

Katherine Center surprised me with her captivating storytelling. Despite my initial doubts, this book left me in a delightful book hangover—I’ve tried other reads, but nothing quite sticks. I can’t believe it took me this long to discover her! Her name has been all over BookTok, but I didn't think her books were my style. How wrong I was! I finished listening to her book this morning, and nothing else compares. The narrator masterfully holds your attention, and the story is an absolute joy.

Years ago, a tragic accident on the Wheeler family vacation forever changed their lives—the mother lost her life, the father lost the use of his hand, and the daughters were never the same. Emma, the eldest, channeled her grief into becoming a stellar screenwriter, even winning a prestigious internship she had to forfeit to care for her father. Now, thanks to an old friend and agent, Emma gets a fleeting chance to pursue her dreams. She’s been hired to assist Charlie Yates, the award-winning screenwriter she’s admired for years. However, upon meeting Charlie, Emma realizes that some heroes are best admired from afar—a very long distance afar.

This novel will take you on an emotional rollercoaster, making you laugh one moment and cry the next. Like all truly heartfelt stories, it evokes a wide range of emotions from the start, keeping you fully invested until the end. It’s almost like an emotional cleanse—you’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and you’ll come out feeling rejuvenated.

The book is sweet, fun, funny, heartwarming, agonizing, surprising, and highly entertaining. Katherine Center proves herself a spectacular Rom-Com writer, with at least 50% of the novel being dialogue—something she masters brilliantly. I laughed out loud many times and adored her impactful one-word paragraphs. Center has a talent for crafting wonderful characters that readers can’t help but love and root for. Plus, there’s a fantastic twist that caught me by surprise—bonus points for that. How many Rom-Com authors can write truly surprising twists?

Unfortunately, it will probably be another year or two before Katherine Center finishes her next masterpiece. Luckily, I have plenty of her other books to dive into while I eagerly await her next release.

3.5 - This was a quick, fun romcom full of sweet moments and a touch of drama (both family and health-related). The story brings together two writers to create a romcom, but of course, one of them (the famous screenwriter whom she idolizes) hates the genre.

Characters

Emma: She's the classic eldest daughter who feels she has to handle everything alone (I can relate). Her writing career has been put on hold due to her family commitments, but she exudes a quiet confidence as she heads to LA. Emma is direct and anxious, which makes for an interesting mix. I really liked her.

Charlie: My first thought about him was, “this man has the emotional intelligence of a potato.” While I still think this, the way he asks clarifying questions about feelings and social interactions gives off a slight neurodiverse vibe. Maybe he's just low on emotional intelligence and a bit of a toxic masculinity type. Either way, he's the typical grumpy guy who turns out to be a sweetheart, despite sometimes doing thoughtless things.

Overall, I enjoyed the writing style and narration. The scenes were vividly described without being over the top. The book is told from Emma's first-person perspective. It's a slow burn with no explicit content, and delightfully cheesy in the best way!

-2.5-

Este libro contiene 3 escenas de la protagonista escuchando pláticas ajenas “sin querer”, por supuesto hablando mal de ella porque Charlie Yates es un imbécil.

Bueno esto va de una escritora Emma Wheeler que es contratada por su ex, que se siente culpable con ella y que ahora es agente, para trabajar con su escritor favorito de Hollywood Charlie Yates, en una comedia romántica de encargo y conseguir dinero y para el proyecto de mafiosos que realmente quiere hacer.

El inicio me pareció bien, de hecho usa bien la película It Happened One Night, que sirve para dos cosas:
1) Que te ofenda que se quiera hacer un remake de algo que ya es perfecto y no lo necesita. Cosa que ha pasado muchas veces, la última que recuerdo es Rebecca.
2) Y como ejemplo de que una romcom puede ser una obra maestra.

También me gustaron los ejemplos que se dan, porque ya sabemos como el género es bastante menospreciado y tratado como no serio realista, pero las películas de zombies si pueden ser realistas y serias, si seguro.

Pero es que Charlie Yates es un personaje irredimible, aunque al final me desesperó más Emma. Y lo peor es que termina tampoco respetando algo que a mí me gusta que es que superen sus problemas JUNTOS. Pero es que yo no veo a estos personajes juntos mucho tiempo.

I just finished The Rom-commers by Katherine Center and here are my thoughts.

Emma Wheeler is a nobody in the screenwriting world after missing her shot all those years ago because of her dads accident. Then out of nowhere she gets the opportunity of a lifetime. Her idol, her moby dick, Charlie Yates has to produce a screenplay and she is being brought on board to rewrite his script.

With her sister taking over her dads care and her ticket to LA bought, Emma cannot believe her luck. Trouble is, Charlie isn't interested in working with her, in fact he said a big heck no to it. He isn't invested in this script anyway but has to produce something to get to the gig he actually wants. He isn't the kind of man who should be writing a rom-com as he doesn't even believe in love.

Emma isn't swayed and she isn't going to let a love hater ruin rom-coms. Taking Charlie on all kinds of romantic adventures, Emma pulls out all the stops to show Charlie what's missing from his screenplay and maybe what kind of woman is missing from his life.


Grumpy sunshine comedy perfection. This book had me side splitting laughing in its comedic genius. The tears that rolled down my face were hard to wipe away. I needed this book andI didn't know it. Charlie is that moody man who doesn't appreciate what he has. Emma is pure joy and so delightful. I loved her right from the beginning. Even with all the bad that has happened to her, she still sees the perfection in that perfect kiss. Relishes in the beauty of the small things.

I loved how she schooled Charlie in romance. He is the hot shot and he couldn't bring the magic of the script to life without this bubbly beauty! They are such opposites but they balance each other out and I loved watching how their relationship developed and grew.

It was beautifully written and highly entertaining. I loved every single second.

5 stars... all the stars!!

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for my gifted copy!

Katherine Center does it AGAIN!!!
One of the only “just kisses”/ no spice authors that nails it every single time. I cannot get over how her writing makes me feel
Her writing draws me in and keeps me entertained every single time
I think this was my second favorite (after Hello Stranger) but was still 5 stars!!!

Two writers work together to make a terrible rom-com better and find themselves living a rom-com of their own.

This had some very likeable moments but didn't quite hit for me. It felt kind of like the rough draft of the script they were working on. Everyone seems like they could deeply benefit from some therapy. People say some absolutely terrible things to each other, some of which never really get addressed or apologized for.

The timeline jumps ahead in spots which isn't always an issue, but one jump covers multiple weeks of them living together and getting to know each other. I think I needed to see that to truly feel like I was rooting for this relationship.

I won't personally read this again but I would recommend it to a friend. There are some heartfelt depictions of grief and the reality of being a caretaker. There are cute moments where the caretaker gets to be taken care of for once. But there's also a lot of ugly words being exchanged between characters that pull this a little bit too far past bittersweet for me.

Sometimes One Shot Really Can Change Everything. This is one of those tales where it should have been over from the very beginning - these two people are just *so* broken by their lives to this point that it *shouldn't* work...

And yet it does, because this is a romantic comedy and that is the very *purpose* of romantic comedies, to give the rest of us hope that something like this *can* work - even in our own completely broken states. And hell, *particularly* when the book is meta enough to actively make *that very same point* within its text. (Helped by the overall plot of... actively writing a romantic comedy movie. ;) )

Yes, some of the things that both characters do are horrible. Yes, perhaps some (or even much) of this tale doesn't or even can't happen in real life. Well, again as pointed out within the text here, neither can zombies or space aliens or some such... and yet people love those movies for somewhat similar reasons as to why they love romantic comedies.

So sit back and enjoy the ride and the feels. If you have to turn your brain off and enjoy the spectacle for sheer spectacle, *do that*. But don't criticize a book that many will truly love and find catharsis in over your own hangups. Particularly don't review bomb something just because "that can't really happen". *Particularly when one of the main issues in the book is exploring how reality doesn't really apply in romantic comedies, including this one.*

Overall a strong tale with complex and complicated characters, with a lot of laughs, some smiles, and even a few dusty room scenes to boot. Come in expecting to laugh and perhaps wet your eyes a bit, and you truly won't be disappointed here.

Very much recommended.

“The Rom-Commers” is a delightful read set in the charming backdrop of a cozy mansion in Los Angeles. The author skillfully weaves together humor, romance, and drama, creating a captivating story that keeps you hooked till the end. The characters are endearing and relatable, adding depth to the narrative. The witty dialogue make this book a joy to read, with many laugh-out-loud moments. While some parts felt a bit predictable, overall, “The Rom-Commers” is a heartwarming and entertaining novel that is perfect for fans of romantic comedies.