Sadie Montgomery is a young portrait artist who has just gotten the news that she has been chosen to participate in a prestigious art competition that will require her to paint a portrait within the next six weeks. Her life is upended when she has a medical emergency that requires urgent brain surgery. Things get complicated when Sadie develops a disorder called prosopagnosia or face-blindness after the procedure. Sadie’s new life dynamic forces her to begrudgingly accept the kindness of the people who want to help her. In the process she will examine her relationship with her father and her own resentment towards the new family he built after Sadie’s mother passed, as well as sort out her feelings toward two young men (her own neighbor, and a handsome veterinarian) whom she has connected with.

Thoughts:
This is a closed-door romance with themes of hope, courage, kindness, and vulnerability, among others. Sadie is used to doing things on her own without any help from her family even though she has been struggling for years. She sees vulnerability as weakness, but her face-blindness disorder forces her to recognize the joys of accepting kindness and being kind to others in return. I loved Sadie’s process and her compassion, forgiveness, and gratefulness despite everything that has happened to her.

The premise of this story is captivating, and the pace is adequate. Although I could figure out early in the story an important reveal, I needed to know how Sadie’s life was going to unfold in this period of her life. As for the ending, it was satisfying, though I am not a fan of characters interjecting in lengthy explanations of misunderstandings. However, this book provided two things I personally enjoy, which are learning new things, and invitations to reflect.

Overall, a four-star read for me, and a terrific book for those liking themes of family dynamics, grief, vulnerability, hope and kindness, and closed-door romances.

This is a cute, lighthearted rom-com following Sadie Montgomery, a struggling artist trying to survive. Her relationships with her parents are basically non-existant. There are family issues involved which in turn affects the character and her story going forward. (no spoilers).
A life alternating event changes Sadie's life forever and this is when the book actually starts to progress the plot forward and start getting interesting. The plot twists and writing style is so fun to read. I honestly loved it.



Thank you netgallery for this arc in exchange for a honest review!

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

Sadie Montgomery is on the precipice of her big break! She has just been placed as a finalist in a portrait painting competition. The same competition that her mom placed in before she died. When on her way home to celebrate with friends, Sadie has a seizure. After brain surgery, she was diagnosed with face blindness. Maybe it will go away, maybe it won't. Not even the worst part. The worst part is falling in love with two guys - Joe and Dr. Oliver Addison! What's a girl to do!

This novel had me laughing out loud to the point where I was afraid I was going to wake my husband at 2 am while I was trying to read the book because I just could not put it down! Katherine Center did not disappoint! Following Sadie's journey through her medical issues, her tumultuous relationship with her dad and stepmom, her evil stepsister, the career she craves, and falling in love was a treat!

This was middle-of-the-road Katherine Center for me. Not as good as "The Bodyguard' or "Things You Save in a Fire" but better than "What You Wish For."

It was clear that Center had done her research and consulted a veterinarian for the veterinary-related content (also confirmed by her thanking a veterinarian friend/reader/vet-content-advisor in the acknowledgments) - good on her for getting this right.

The story was entertaining and interesting enough to keep me reading through to the end - the portrait competition and Sadie's participation in this, particularly her departure from her life long signature painting style --necessitated by her brain injury - was the most interesting plotline.

The romance was so-so -- it was just that the big 'reveal' was so incredibly obvious from nearly the beginning that it was all rather anti-climactic.

The surrounding content was alright - the best friend, the family conflict, the dog, etc -- mostly fluff but cute enough. The backstory of her mother dying of the exact same ailment during the exact same portrait contest, and her father blaming her etc etc -- just felt overly contrived. And, as I have found typical with Center's books there's a little TOO much repetition/internal monologue sometimes. I get it, you've mulled it over for 3 pages, let's move onward. I found myself skimming a fair bit.

Overall, pretty good - if you've read Center's other books - this will be par for the course & enjoyable.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC! Hello Stranger is Katherine Centers' new book that follows Sadie, a struggling artist. Sadie goes in for brain surgery, then comes out with a rare side effect; face blindness. It's a romance novel, but with so much more. A heartwarming story, trials and tribulations, great (and some not so great) side characters, and many laughable moments. This book will leave you smiling once you finish it!

I went into this book blind and really enjoyed it . I loved that we got a romance book and we also got to learn about the condition Sadie was experiencing. This book was different from what i read normally . But I liked it . I liked seeing the character progression throughout the books and loved the strangers to friends to lovers vibes in the book. Overall a cute book and I liked it !

I've not read a book by Katherine Center that I haven't loved. This book was NO exception. I loved the story and fell in love with the characters.

While I usually love Katherine Center, this latest effort wasn't my favorite. Did I like it? Sure, it's cute, and it kept me entertained enough to finish it. I liked the main characters and the set up, too. I haven't read a book that deals with face blindness, and I think the relationship at the book's center and the complexities of falling in love with someone when you can't see their face was all cleverly constructed. However, as the book progressed, it just felt too obviously plotted and convenient. While I liked the *concept* behind the twist that happens with the love triangle, I didn't like the execution. But overall, is it a fun little rom com, with some unexpected and/or unique elements? Sure.

Katherine Center is one of my "go to" authors. When a new book gets published, I know that I am definitely going to read it. Of all the books of hers that I have read, "Hello Stranger" is probably my favorite. The story centers on Sadie who is a portrait artist waiting for her big break. Sadie's break is about to happen as she is chosen to be a finalist in well known portrait contest and has six weeks to create a portrait that will impress the judges. Life gets in the way when Sadie has a seizure which leads to a "minor" brain operation that leaves her face blind. I never knew such a thing even existed. It's pretty difficult to paint a portrait when you are face blind. Added to the mix is Sadie's blossoming relationship with her neighbor and her crush on her new vet as well as some complicated family history. This story made me smile and also made me think a lot about what we see and how we interpret it. How much of what we "see" is because we expect to see it? The book is poignant in all the right places and left me book happy!

This book will grab you in from page 1. A story of finding love when you least expect it and finding love for all the right reason. You won’t be able to put it down!

I love Katherine Center's books and writing. She's one of my top authors I run to read. Unfortunately, HELLO STRANGER didn't live up to my expectations for a Katherine Center book.

What worked for me:
* Facial Blindness was a super cool and unique challenge for a character
* Sadie and Joe together was super sweet. Even though she kept her health a secret, I love how they could be themselves.
* The back third of the novel was a lot stronger than the beginning.
* Sadie's honesty that one conversation or "I'm sorry" with her father doesn't solve everything that happened in the past.

What didn't work for me:
* The beginning half is overwhelmingly slow and hard to get through. So much of it was focused on her reaction to her new condition, therapy, the art show, and her awful family that I simply wasn't engaged with the story. If another author had written the book I would have DNF'd.
* I had the same critique with THE BODYGUARD in that most of the epilogue gets a bit preachy about life and whatever epiphanies the MC has during the time period in between the end of the novel and the epilogue. I wish it could be written more naturally.

I'm disappointed, but I still love Katherine Center (and her comments at the end about why we readers appreciate and devour romance novels) and will definitely pick up her next book. THINGS YOU SAVE IN A FIRE is my favorite novel of hers. Go pick up that one next if you haven't read it.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Katherine Center books always give me the warm and fuzzy feelings I look for in a sweet romance, and this one was no exception. I enjoyed the inner monologue of Sadie, who is estranged from her father after her mothers sudden death many years ago. She has been on her own for quite sometime, and does not want any help from anyone, even after she has brain surgery and develops a condition where she can’t see faces.

I loved being witness to Sadie’s growth through an extremely traumatic and difficult time in her life. I felt like we became friends through reading, and I was invested in her success as both an artist and a person overcoming adversity. I loved her relationship with Joe and seeing how their friendship progressed. I’m not the biggest fan of miscommunications, so that irked me a bit, but I loved the overall story and characters so much that it almost didn’t matter. I will continue to be a huge Katherine Center fan for years to come!

I can’t tell you how big of a fan I am of Katherine Center, her characters are relatable and feel so lifelike. With that being said, I was super excited to get the opportunity to read an advanced copy of Hello Stranger.
Sadie Montgomery, an aspiring artist, recently entered an art competition where she has the potential to win $10,000. Sadie wants so badly to impress her father and convince him that she can become a successful artist; but right before the competition Sadie learn she needs to have brain surgery. It’s not a complicated surgery and all should go well. Unfortunately, the surgery causes Sadie to develop apperceptive prosopagnosia – she can’t recognize faces. To make matters worse, her dog gets sick and has to go to the Vet.
Now what can Sadie do? How is she ever going to win much less compete in the competition?
This is a fun feel good story with great characters. Sadie and Joe are an adorable couple!!
Thank you St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for my ARC.

In the author's note, Katherine Center mentions how books can be described as predictable and some might perceive that as negative but there needs to be a new word to describe a predictable book - in a good way. I agree, this book was very predictable and I still loved it. It was a romance where you know how it will end but you aren't sure how exactly you'll get there. It was such a pleasant experience that I tore through this.

In her recent novel, Hello Stranger, Katherine Center manages to weave humor into a book about heavy subjects in a way that makes it fun to read. I enjoyed the story and also enjoyed learning about Prosopagnosia and the various ways affects those who have it. Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with an ARC ebook in exchange for my honest review.

after undergoing minor brain surgery, Sadie develops Prosopagnosia, better known as face blindness. As a portrait artist, her career relies on being able to see faces. In the process of coping with her new reality, Sadie discovers just how much she didn’t see before. Explaining it is a little harder.

This book explores grief—old grief in regards to a lost love one, new grief in regards to a lost normal, preemptive grief in regards to unknown future loss. It also has love. The tumultuous love of life, the steady love of friends, the strained love of family, and the budding love of a seemingly obnoxious neighbor.

The themes are intertwined in such a delicate way that despite the heaviness of the topics discussed, the book has a levity to it that seems impossible to achieve. It’s reality in it’s best form.

From its premise to its plot to its characters, I am in love with this novel.

Katherine Center does it again. She's written a wonderful, feel-good romance that I want to reread over and over again. Not everything ended perfectly (with her family), but I loved how she stood up for herself and was finally heard, even if it wasn't on her own merits. (though, I would have really loved an apology from her dad for how he shipped her off to boarding school). The ending was predictable, but I didn't care because the writing was addicting.

Katherine Center is an author who can do no wrong. She creates beautiful stories and characters that you can’t really forget. Her latest novel has everything you can ask for in a book. All
The stars for her latest, Hello Stranger. I couldn’t put it down. This will likely be a favorite of mine for this year. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

A book AND learning about a condition that I was only slightly aware of beforehand? I’ll take it! I had no idea what this book was about but I knew that I’d love it because I love KC! I don’t have enough words for how much I enjoyed this book. I swooned. I swooned. And then I swooned some more.
But aside from swooning, you can tell so much research went into this book. It was written with care.

This book came out of nowhere and was such a breath of fresh air!! Hello Stranger is a story about Sadie and her quirky life. She is an artist and is getting ready to enter a contest that her mother, who has passed away, won years ago. A medical emergency changes everything and she has to figure out life all over again. The story was so heartfelt and the characters well developed and fun! I loved her interactions with the men in her life and the plot twist at the end had my heart singing and dancing!! I would highly recommend this book. It's got a great story, family drama and swoon-worthy romance.