Book Review: The Rom-Commers | Katherine Center

Katherine Center has yet to deliver any book that I didn’t absolutely love, and The Rom-Commers is no exception. Her books blend character development and emotions with fun plotlines. Center’s books are neither too heavy nor too light—I find they fall right in the sweet spot between!

What is The Rom-Commers about?

Emma Wheeler desperately longs to be a screenwriter. She’s spent her life studying, obsessing over, and writing romantic comedies―good ones! That win contests! But she’s also been the sole caretaker for her kind-hearted dad, who needs full-time care. Now, when she gets a chance to re-write a script for famous screenwriter Charlie Yates―The Charlie Yates! Her personal writing god!―it’s a break too big to pass up.

Emma’s younger sister steps in for caretaking duties, and Emma moves to L.A. for six weeks for the writing gig of a lifetime. But what is it they say? Don’t meet your heroes? Charlie Yates doesn’t want to write with anyone―much less “a failed, nobody screenwriter.” Worse, the romantic comedy he’s written is so terrible it might actually bring on the apocalypse. Plus! He doesn’t even care about the script―it’s just a means to get a different one green-lit. Oh, and he thinks love is an emotional Ponzi scheme.

But Emma’s not going down without a fight. She will stand up for herself, and for rom-coms, and for love itself. She will convince him that love stories matter―even if she has to kiss him senseless to do it. But… what if that kiss is accidentally amazing? What if real life turns out to be so much… more real than fiction? What if the love story they’re writing breaks all Emma’s rules―and comes true? (Synopsis from Goodreads)

What did I think?

Sometimes I find it difficult to write about Katherine Center’s books in a way that captures the story. Her books sound like fluffy romantic comedies in the description of the plot (and this one is named after romantic comedies so it’s even more prominent), but I find her books to have much deeper character development than the average rom-com. It’s on the end of the spectrum that I’d say is closer to contemporary fiction than romance, though where is that line? It’s a love story, but much more.

We are introduced to a woman named Emma Wheeler who dreams of becoming a screenwriter, but is watching that dream pass her by while she stays at home to help her sick father. The deal was that Emma would assist him for ten years until her younger sister Sylvie would take over. When her manager reaches out with a request to help Charlie Yates—one of her all-time favorite screenwriters—with his newest venture into rom-com territory, Emma can barely believe it. Yates is known for blockbuster action films, so romantic comedies aren’t exactly his thing. But surely the great Charlie Yates can’t possibly write a bad script, right?

Wrong. It’s bad. Emma is shocked—how could someone make such a terrible script based on It Happened One Night. Had he even seen the original film? Sylvie has just received an internship, so Emma intends to turn down the author and stay with her dad. She can’t be away for six weeks in LA. Emma’s friend Charlie (who set her up for the job) won’t let her pass up the opportunity.

Emma can’t simply rewrite the script though, it’s Charlie’s project and it’s clear that Logan may have oversold Charlie’s interest in Emma’s help. Charlie doesn’t seem to know why Emma is there. Awkward! Eventually Charlie reads some of Emma’s work and realizes her talent. Over the six weeks in LA, Emma not only helps with the script, but she helps Charlie. Before he can grasp how to write a romantic comedy, she needs to teach him a few things about the genre. Including the fact that a happily-ever-after ending is a must—something Charlie left out of the original script!

I liked the small moments between Emma and Charlie almost more than the big ones. Grocery shopping, cooking, and all the tiny moments that lead to an epic love story. Not everything needs to be grand scale for two people to fall in love, and that’s certainly true in this book! Emma is a relatable character in many ways, not the least of which is that she is imperfect (like all of us). I was cheering for her, but also was frustrated by her at times. Charlie is much more supportive and kind than I expected from the initial encounter between the two. A great male lead, and the banter and chemistry with Emma were wonderful!

A delightful story about two compelling characters taking a romp around LA and showcasing some of the great romance tropes. One of my favorite things about Katherine Center’s books are that they aren’t exclusively a light and fluffy romance, her characters are written with a depth that brings authenticity to their stories. As in life, her characters are dealing with not only the highs in life, but also the lows. Emma in particular is struggling with feelings of guilt that she had left her family for this project in their time of need.

Another wonderful book from Katherine Center with wonderful narration in the audiobook format by Patti Murin and Katherine Center.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for my copy. Opinions are my own.