Nobody Puts Romcoms In The Corner by Kathryn Freeman

5 Stars Feb 26, 2023

My review

5/5 stars

This is the second book that I've read by this author now, and I've immensely enjoyed them both. As an avid romcom watcher, the title of this book alone was enough to make me want to read it.

The premise of the book was a lot of fun - two roommates who barely know each other realise they can make a bit of money from TikTok by recording themselves recreating famous scenes from romcoms. It delivered exactly as I hoped it would - all of my favourite romcoms were discussed or recreated, including some of the lesser-known ones that it takes a real fan to know. The way the scenes were recreated was adorable and I enjoyed every single one; they gave me all the same feelings as the scenes in the movies themselves (a testament to the writing).

Both Harry and Sally (even the characters names are a little nod to the genre) were brilliantly written characters. Sally's total dedication to her idea of love was a perfect depiction of how romcoms can skew your view of reality if they are taken too literally. Harry's blunt refusal of the idea of love in general made him the perfect romcom hero, and of course, he comes round to the idea in the end (as they all do in the movies). Behind both of these surface-level traits, both characters were dealing with some real hard trauma that made them face how real-life can get in the way of your own prejudices and happiness. Those traumas were, rightly, tough to read at times and made me want to reach into the book and give both of them a big hug (another testament to the writing).

Their chemistry jumped off the page from start to finish, with a wit and humour that charmed me throughout. Like in the movies, their happy ending was inevitable, but also like the movies, I was totally bought into solving the mystery of how they were going to get there.

This was a beautifully written, funny and charming love letter to a movie genre that often gets a bad rap. I adored it as much as I adore the movies that it pays homage to.

*I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Book blurb

Sally is a classic romantic and Harry is a classic cynic, but when a drunken bet leads the new flatmates to (badly) recreate ‘the lift’ from Dirty Dancing, and the video goes viral (#EpicRomcomReenactmentFailure), they both realise there’s potential financial benefit in blundering their way through the romcom lexicon for their suddenly vast social media following.

Now, as Harry and Sally bring major romcom moments to new life – including recreating that classic diner scene – their faking it turns to making…out and suddenly they’re living a real life romcom of their own! But like all the greatest love stories, the road to happily ever after is paved with unexpected challenges for this hero and heroine…