The Roommate Rule by Georgia Stone
Contemporary Romance
Published July 7, 2026 by Harper Perennial

Reviewed by Kate

The first rule of The Roommate Rule is you need to suspend disbelief. The premise is that Max, Dylan’s friend’s brother, has been invited on a six week (SIX WEEK) influencer trip, and he invites Dylan along, even though they really haven’t spent a lot of time together, and Dylan agrees. This, to me, is a WILD premise – I honestly could not get over the six weeklong trip aspect of it, as it seemed very implausible that a small family-owned hotel would just fill all the available space with influencers and feed them and take them on excursions for that long. I realize this maybe is a bit of a nitpick. I am aware I have high standards. But I also need the foundational facts of a premise to make sense to me, and this was not it for me, unfortunately.

Otherwise, I kind of waffle on whether or not I liked this book. I finished it! An accomplishment to be sure. But it took me nearly two months. It just felt much slower than it should have been. If you’re the type of person who likes a more slow-burn, finding yourself type romance novel, this should be right up your alley. 

One thing that was awesome was there was an incredible sense of place. I loved all the excursions the influencers did, the various hikes and water activities, it made me feel like I was there with them. Additionally, I loved the banter between Dylan and Max, and many of the side characters were great. I liked the writing and characters enough that I am considering going back and reading Max’s twin sister’s book (I loved all the scenes with her and her boyfriend). 

Another thing to note is that The Roommate Rule was funny at times and serious at times, and while I thought it had a good balance between the two, Max’s backstory is pretty intense, so I wouldn’t call this book “lighthearted” or “fluffy” by any means. I thought the core of Max and Dylan’s individual growth to be interesting – Max needed to learn how to accept being cared for by somebody, and Dylan needed to learn how to care for herself more – and I loved how those two journeys mirrored each other throughout the story. Also, shout out to on page therapy sessions!! 

All in all, The Roommate Rule was fun when I picked it up, but it never really compelled me to keep reading.

Grade: C+

Content notes: Max had cancer in the past (author’s content notes)