Katherine Center is an autobuy author for me, so when I got an ARC from Netgalley I was SO excited! She has a way of writing characters so that you feel so connected to them and Hello Stranger was no different. I went into this one blind and I think that made me enjoy the book even more. Sadie’s dealing with a medical issue that leaves her suffering from face blindness. She’s a portrait artist, so this poses quite an issue. She’s also dealing with some changes in her life and her evil stepsister. Really, Parker is the worst. I wanted to punch her throughout the whole book. This was one of Center’s most unique books and the ending was SO good. I was shocked, surprised and absolutely loved how Sadie’s story panned out. Though not my favorite of hers, still a very solid, enjoyable book. I would have loved to hear from Joe’s perspective at the end, but I really liked the epilogue!

Hello Stranger is such a unique story. It's so different from anything I've read, and that says a lot since I've read almost 300 romance books last year alone.

Sadie is a portrait artist who's just found out she is a finalist for a major art competition. Timing couldn't have been better, since she needs the money. On the same day, she suffers a seizure and finds out she needs brain surgery. Unfortunately, the side effects have left her with face blindness (which is a real disorder and it was very fascinating to learn about it!) While learning to navigate this new–hopefully temporary–reality, she meets two strangers: a neighbor, Joe, and her new vet, Dr. Addison. With feelings being caught for two men, a portrait competition fast approaching with her face blindness still very much there, and family drama on top of all that, Sadie is forced to learn more about herself than she ever had before.

This was fun, different, and certainly entertaining. I found Sadie relatable, and her journey was really heartwarming. The dating situation was a great twist, too! Definitely recommend this.

Thank you, St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

Read if you like,
● frenimes to lovers
● found family
● disability rep
● mistaken identity

Steam level - clean romance

The plot -
Sadie Montogmery has had good breaks and bad breaks in her life, but as a struggling artist, all she needs is one lucky break. Things seem to be going her way when she lands one of the coveted finalist spots in a portrait competition. It happens to coincide with a surgery she needs to have. Minor, they say. Less than a week in the hospital they say. Nothing about you will change, they say. Upon recovery, it begins to dawn on Sadie that she can see everything around her, but she can no longer see faces.

As she struggles to cope―and hang onto her artistic dreams―she finds solace in her fourteen-year-old dog, Peanut. Thankfully, she can still see animal faces. When Peanut gets sick, she rushes him to the emergency vet nearby. That’s when she meets veterinarian Dr. Addison. And she’s pleasantly surprised when he asks her on a date. But she doesn't want anyone to know about her face blindness. Least of all Joe, her obnoxious neighbor who always wears a bowling jacket and seems to know everyone in the building. He’s always there at the most embarrassing but convenient times, and soon, they develop of a relationship.

My thoughts-

I thought sadie was a little immature but a her personality developed during the book, and Joe i liked him, but their banter was do funny to read, my cheeks hurt by smiling and laughing so much. And the way that sadness first heard Joe talk (first encounter) was so funny and then finding out what really happened was hilarious. KC's writing was so easy to go through.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a eARC in exchange for a honest review

Sadie after undergoing brain surgery wakes up to discover she suffers from face blindness. She doesn’t recognize anyone around her, including herself when she looks in the mirror. As a portrait artist this is the worst case scenario as she had just weeks to prep for a big contest that she has been working up to her whole life. Katherine Center always knows just how to write the perfect characters, the way their lives intertwined by the end of the book gave me all the feels. This is a great non steamy romance that will make you see the world a little differently.

A wonderful breathe of fresh air.
Katherine Center has done it again. If you are looking for a great read with a lovable romance look no further.

Sadie is young, budding artist trying to find her way in the world. She has just been notified she is going to be part of going to part of a prestigious art show. But not just any art show, the art show her mother had once been invited to. Sadie loved everything about her mother, the music she listened to, her art and the way she loved to roller-skate. But, she couldn't share this with her mother as she had lost her several years earlier to a stroke. Her dad, a renowned surgeon, had moved on and remarried Lucinda who of course had a spiteful, jealous, relentless daughter who could do no wrong, Parker. The only thing she cherished besides her art was her elderly, spunky dog peanut.

On her way from the store she is walking across the street, only to awaken in the hospital. She wakes in the hospital and to find out she has what is called a cavernoma, a malformed blood vessel. So simple, less than a week in the hospital and she'll be back to creating art.
After some much convincing by her dad Sadie reluctantly agrees to the brain surgery and everything goes perfectly. Well they thought. Sadie has now developed brain swelling, which ends up causing face blindness, or prospagnoisa. When she looks at people faces, they look like a puzzle. Great timing...

Now Sadie has to find her way in this hopefully, temporary situation navigating her in the world and while trying to figure how to complete this portrait for the art show. She must rely on her other senses to make up for the lack of facial recognition. So with the help of her dr she meets with once a week, she's coming to rely on her surroundings, gait, smell, lots of prodding questions etc.

As if that is not enough on her plate, Peanut gets sick. Not moving sick. Sadie rushes him to the vet. The most stunningly, attractive vet she has ever seen. Well the puzzle pieces are stunning, she's already planning out there wedding. Peanut spends a couple days at the vet while she hovers the best she can bringing him every food imaginable that she thinks will help. Dr Oliver Addison is pretty taken with Sadie and her affection to peanut that he asks her on a coffee date.

Next comes along Joe. Joe whom she has overheard talking about a one night stand in the elevator. Quite rudely, I must say. He wears this horrible, old bowling jacket and seems to know everyone in the building. I think he's come out of every female resident in the building. But, Joe seems to always be around sometimes in the most convenient and uncomfortable times. They develop this friendship that seems to be going at a very nice pace.

So will Sadie end up with swooney, adorable and pet loving Oliver or will she end up with Joe who seems be always there when she needs him??

While I was able to guess the ending of the book about halfway through I enjoyed the journey to said ending nonetheless. Even though I was able to guess the twists with the love interests I still found myself enjoying the story. I also found the concept of face blindness in a portrait painter to be quite interesting. I wish the relationship with her father and step mother would have been flushed out a little more. I found the magnitude of her hatred for her step mother to be a little dramatic for a 28 year old woman. Not my favorite of Center’s books but all in all a pleasant read that I did enjoy.

Sadie is living the life of a starving artist. She doesn’t have the money to pay for her wine when a kind stranger offers to pay. Said stranger then saves her from being hit by a car, before she suffers another accident. Turns out, she needs brain surgery urgently. Except, her recovery is less than ideal—she can’t see faces. This is a bit of a problem to a portrait artist. Luckily she has Peanut, her dog to help her get through tough times. Until Peanut gets sick and she rushes him to the vet, who she swoons over. She doesn’t want him to know she can’t see his face. She doesn’t want anyone to know about her face blindness, even Joe the annoying neighbor.

Sadie attempts to paint while face blind, which is a learning curve. She learns a lot about love, family, and herself along the way. This was such an enjoyable heartwarming read!

What can I say? I salivate when I find out that Katherine Center has written another novel. Picking up one of her books is like slipping on your favorite sweater and slippers on a rainy day. "Hello Stranger" is the story of Sadie Montgomery who develops a rare condition called "face blindness" while attempting to create an award-winning portrait for a local art competition that the winner would win $10,000; a sum that Sadie's bank account could surely use and the proof that her dreams of becoming an artist aren't too far-fetched. While Sadie is trying to come to terms with her newfound illness she meets two charismatic men; the perfectly handsome, eligible Dr. Oliver Addison and Joe the sexy, player from her apartment building. As Sadie preemptively plans her wedding to Dr. Addison she cannot help but catch feelings for the tempting, hipster Joe who may have weaseled a way into her heart. Faced with a looming art show deadline and the fact that she has feelings for two men, Sadie must decide what is best for her and hope that the decision she makes is the right one.

As always, Katherine Center weaves a beautiful tale of love and life lessons sprinkled with humor throughout. This book was an absolute gem! Two enthusiastic thumbs up. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC! <3

Was this a perfect book? No. Was it incredibly unrealistic and predictable? Yes. Did I enjoy many moments and learn so much from the story? YES.

This was my first book by this author and I somehow stayed up until 2 am to finish! Not because I was so hooked that I had to keep reading, but more because I needed certain things to be revealed and couldn’t possibly go to sleep until everything was out in the open. I really appreciated the author’s work researching brain injuries and effects after surgery. I thought the face blindness was so fascinating and I loved learning about that.

What didn’t work for me was the ending. It dragged a bit and was super repetitive that I ended up skimming the last couple pages. I also think the family dynamics were unnecessary and didn’t add much to the story except to have a villain, which genuinely doesn’t feel like it ever got fully resolved. It ultimately left a bad taste in my mouth and that story line could’ve been left out without anything else changing with the rest of the book.

I thought the writing was great and I loved the easy flow of conversations between characters. These things made it a super quick read and I’m definitely happy I read the book!

This is my first Katherine Center book I’ve read. The Bodyguard is now on my TBR list! I really enjoyed the premise of the book, although I did think it was predictable. The book prompted some research on ‘face blindness’ since I am a neurosurgical nurse and have never come across this condition.
I enjoyed the relationship between Sadie and Joe. I thought the growth of relationships between Sadie’s father and stepmother were admirable, however I felt the evil step sister was a bit much with no real resolution to that plot point.
Overall I thought the book was witty, uplifting and heartwarming.

Not long after Sadie finds out she is top 10 in a major portrait competition, she also finds herself needing brain surgery. At her father's insistence that the surgery cannot wait until after the competition, everything seems to have gone smoothly with the surgery... until Sadie cannot recognize her best friend's face. Sadie is then diagnosed with acquired face blindness due to swelling in her brain. As Sadie tries to navigate her new normal, she becomes interested in both her dog's vet and one of her neighbors.

This was my first Katherine Center book and it definitely won't be my last. Although I had a hard time wrapping my head around what Sadie could see (or couldn't see) when she looked at someone's face, I thought Center did a good job of explaining Sadie's situation. I also figured out the "twist" almost right away.

Part of me felt like Center crammed almost too much into this book - both the family drama and the face blindness felt like heavy hitting topics. I thought Center did face blindness justice but some of the family drama aspects were lacking and could have used some more page-space (or left out altogether).

Overall, this was a super quick read for me and I'm happy to see that Sadie got her happy ending :) I also adore the Kim family in this book and that Peanut, Sadie's dog, was basically a main character.

Thank you to Net Galley for letting me review Hello Stranger early! Be sure to check it out in July when it releases. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Sadie is a strong female lead character. Like any normal person, she does get down on herself with everything that she has going on, but she bounces back and fights her way through. Hello Stranger is truly a unique story, like none that I have ever read prior. I enjoyed how lighthearted it felt, while there was serious personal growth. The book also makes one think about their circumstances, and if they would be able to find the positive even when everything seems to be falling apart around them. Center did a great job of giving the characters very distinct personalities which either made you really love the, or really hate them (ahem, I’m looking at you evil-stepsister!) It is a fast, easy to read book that will leave a smile on your face and in your heart. A must read for everyone!

Thank Netgalley and St. Martin Press for the ARC.

I enjoy this author's writing style and topics she picks to write. This one deals with face blindness which I didn't know about and I want to read more about it. Sadie the main character was loveable and I had a connection with her. I laughed in parts as well as cried. Can't wait to read more from this author

Hello Stranger's unique medical diagnosis is the central conflict in the story, which I appreciate.

The book's first half did have me invested in Sadie’s journey post-accident/diagnosis. I enjoyed the banter between her and Joe. Towards the 2nd half, the over-the-top family dynamic & miscommunication between Sadie/Joe felt too unrealistic (even for a romance novel).

I usually do enjoy Katherine Center’s books (this one just wasn’t for me!).

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!

This was my second book by Katherine Center and I had really high hopes. I can see why people love this author and her signature writing style. However I had a hard time enjoying this which I believe is definitely just a “me” problem.

While I enjoy a book with well researched medical scenarios, the neuropsychology in this one mixed with some veterinary science was overwhelming. I did not enjoy the love interest for the female main character although I did enjoy the ending and “aha” moment.

I wanted more romance than neuropsychology and I felt that this was less heavy on romance and more heavy on the medical drama and prosopagnosia.

Overall a great concept I think many will enjoy but I was left wanting more romance. 3.5 stars.

Hello Stranger follows main character, Sadie, after she has surgery and subsequently develops vision problems that prevent her from recognizing faces. As she tries to juggle complications to her career and falling for two different guys, she begins to discover herself and what it means to be happy.

This was my first Katherine Center novel and I was so excited to dive into it. Her books have been on my TBR for a while and this gave me a good excuse to prioritize one of her books. Now that I've completed one, I'm happy to say the rest of her books have been bumped up, but I loved this one!

Here's what worked for me:
- The character development. I really enjoyed Sadie's journey. Even though this was a romance novel, her specific character development was the highlight for me!
- Another point for Sadie, I found her very relatable.
- The writing. This was an easy and quick read.
- Humorous. There were numerous parts where I laughed out loud.
- Adorable. It was just a cute and fun read. Exactly what I was looking for after some heavier reads!

What could have been different:
- I did see the twist coming. Fortunately, it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the novel
- A little bit of insta-love for the vet. Insta-love is not a trope I enjoy. So as I read, I just downplayed this aspect in my head.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one and can't wait to read more of Center's novels. I recommend this to romance lovers!

This was 5 stars for me!

I did not want this one to end; I loved it! Katherine has quite the gift of storytelling. Her storylines are so interesting and the characters are well throughout out. She definitely does her research on how characters would behave under specific conditions.

I've never heard of a a facial recognition dysfunction and it was interesting to read about. I also loved the love - interest thrown in there.

I will definitely be recommending this one!

This is my first novel by this author, I really enjoyed the writing style just didn't connect with the characters as much. Sadie is a portrait artist who is a finalist in a portrait competition. Unfortunately she has to have surgery and develops prosopagnosia, which means she can't see faces. She struggles to finish her portrait but meets Dr. Addison, her dog Peanut's vet whom she has a crush on. She also meets Joe a man that lives in her building.

The characters in this novel were interesting but not very fleshed out. I would recommend this to friends and would like to read more from this author.
Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a honest review.

Charming and delightful! I'm not a huge romance reader and four stars is about as high as this type of book will ever get from me, so this was a pleasant surprise. Completely unbelievable plot (of course), but in a fun way. The one-dimensional, cartoonishly evil step sister was the only unredeemable part, but I may have caught vibes that perhaps she will be the focus of a sequel? I would definitely read from this author again, but I might skip out on that book given how ridiculous that character was. Either way, this was a fun read!

Such a cute romance! Katherine Center has mastered the romance genre without too much spice, which I appreciate. The main character was endearing. I loved the tension created by the romance and all the confusion surrounding the characters. A delight to read! 4.5 stars