Katherine Center does it again with an incredibly written rom-com. As in Center’s Things You Save in a Fire and The Bodyguard, Hello Stranger has a main character who is trying to overcome an internal struggle before she can let herself love and be loved. Center’s writing always made me laugh and cry, and there are so many profound lines in it, especially in the closing chapter. READ IT.

What a good book! read it in one day.
The characters were relatable and fun (except for Parker).
Ilearned about Prosopagnosia.
felt for Sadie.
When knew, I knew! It made me smile.
The writing was a delight.

Katherine Center never disappoints! I've enjoyed each of her releases and Hello Stranger is no different! I could not put this down. Her author's note put it best when it spoke about hope. How romance is a comfort for so many because it gives us hope and something to look forward to. Hello Stranger follows Sadie Montgomery, an artist who is diagnosed with face blindness following an accident. This book was unique, quirky, and filled with love. It truly filled my heart with so much joy! I can't to see what Katherine Center releases next and can't wait to sing the praises of this to everyone I know for the next few months! Thank you so much for the advanced reader copy.

You will laugh, you will cry, you will swoon, and laugh and cry and swoon again. This story of Sadie and Joe and Dr Addison is so powerful and uplifting.

Katherine Center has such a skill for building storylines and creating unique characters that are both the light enough for my tired brain to decipher and serious enough to stay clear of the too sappy lane.

I found Hello Stranger developed at a slow burn pace while remaining unputdownable. It has easily climbed the ranks as one of my favorites that she has put out.

I enjoyed learning about facial blindness and loved Sadie's pad thai loving dog, Peanut, just as much as the other main characters-if not more.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for a gifted copy

My first taste of Katherine Center’s stories was The Bodyguard. Since then, I have devoured almost all of her books and have enjoyed every one. I appreciate her quirky, real characters along with the satisfaction and joy that comes with the resolution of each story.

Hello Stranger was nothing short of my expectations. I laughed, I cried, I swooned, and enjoyed the anticipation and nourishment of the love story! Learning more about acquired face blindness was an added bonus and made me appreciate the development Sadie’s character went through in the story. Word to the wise, don’t skip out on the Author’s Note!

Thank you, NetGalley and Katherine Center, for the opportunity to read the ARC. I definitely stayed up past my bedtime getting lost in this beautiful story!

If it’s a Katherine Center book I’m going to drop everything and read it! I thought the plot of this book was interesting and refreshing…. Something new. It was sweet and smart, and I read it slowly because I didn’t want it to end. Thank you for this wonderful ARC NetGalley!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an eARC of Hello Stranger in exchange for an honest review.

Firstly this book is a solid 4 star, maybe even 4.5 star read for me.

This is my first Katherine Center book, and boy did I enjoy it and truly have a good time. I now desperately need to pick up <i>The Bodyguard</i>, like seriously. I was about maybe halfway through <i>Hello Stranger</i> when I told myself I need to read more Katherine Center. Center's writing and dialogue, and how quickly I read this convinced me I would enjoy her other novels.

Let's start with Sadie. Sadie is delusional and unhinged, just like me. She's my girl now. Literally the scene where she's talking about planning her future with her dog's vet had me dying (because relatable duh), truly an innocent moment but delusional at the same time, I love it. As our main character, I truly cared for her and liked being in her head. I felt for her and her grief. As for our side characters, I thought Sue was nice enough, but we didn't see too much of her for her to make an impression on me. Parker on the other hand--I cannot remember the last time I wanted to punch a character so bad before. She played her part as the evil stepsister so well because I literally started imagining Sadie strangling her every time she appeared on the page. As for the two male love interests I can't say too much without spoiling!

Now if you're reading this because you want a super cute romance novel, this might not be exactly for you. Don't get me wrong there is romance interwoven and there are some cute moments, however I think this novel classifies more as women's fiction than a romance novel. <i>Hello Stranger</i> balances other topics such as grief and Sadie's condition, and her relationship with her father, as well as her romantic feelings for the men she's been seeing recently.

There are some plot points that are cliche and some that are even predictable but that did not deter from me finding this story completely charming. Every time I picked it up, it held my attention. It wasn't revolutionary, however, just by going off pure vibes, I had a great time, and recommend it if the premise interests you!

This was super cute! I tore through this faster than I thought I would. Unfortunately, there were a few big things that kept this from getting a higher rating from me:

1. The majority of the characters are cartoonishly unlikeable. I enjoyed Sadie, Joe, and (shockingly) Lucinda, but everyone else feels very one-dimensional. I feel like there was an attempt to round everyone out, but it didn't hit the mark for me.

2. The writing style was distractingly disjointed, with lots of sentences starting with conjuctions and single-sentence paragraphs. Normally that wouldn't bother me, but the style felt abrupt in a way that kept taking me out of the story.

3. I am really uncertain about how I feel about the portrayal of acquired disability. It seems like Center did her research, but Sadie's face blindness feels more like a means to achieve a unique plotline than any kind of meaningful or realistic disability representation.

4. There is a blatant continuity error in the book regarding a misunderstanding between Sadie and Joe. SPOILERS AHEAD: Sadie sees Joe leave her stepsister Parker's apartment early in the morning and assumes they hooked up. Later that same day, Sadie runs into Parker at the coffee shop. That evening, Joe explains that he was actually in Parker's apartment feeding her cat because Parker had left for a flight to Amsterdam that morning. So... how was she at the coffee shop in Texas? Am I missing something? If I am, I'll delete this part of the review.

In some ways I feel like I somehow accessed an older rough draft of this book compared to other reviewers of the ARC—I noticed a significant number of typos on top of everything else. I'm curious to reread this when it is released to see what changes are made.

Katherine Center is my new favorite romance author. I love how heartwarming and hopeful this story was!

I especially loved reading about Sadie’s family dynamic. Although, it could be tough to read about, it felt so realistic. The dynamic between Sadie and her stepmother especially. Though, Sadie’s relationship with her father left me with some tender spots on my heart.

The romance aspect of this story honestly took a backseat for me, but in the best way. I love Sadie and Joe, but I was so captivated by their interactions with one another that the romance was just a bonus.

I highly recommend this book!

After reading The Bodyguard earlier this month, I knew I had to have more of Katherine Center. I don't know how I've managed to go this long without reading any of her work. Well, I am officially hooked and ready for more!

Hello Stranger was an absolute delight! I loved Sadie's character and found myself rooting for her as she struggled to deal with the grief of losing her mother. Down on her luck in more ways than one, Sadie's journey of self-discovery was quite a joy to experience.

I loved the cast of characters and the unique storyline. Wonderfully written. Now I'm off to find my next Katherine Center book!

Many thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

From the very first page to the author's note at the end, I enjoyed every part of Hello Stranger! It was full of Katherine Center's token charm, banter, and heartfelt emotion. Sadie was definitely a character to root for--I really empathized with her struggles and resonated with many aspects of her beliefs and personality, especially as she learned to accept help from others. I laughed, smiled, hurt, and loved right alongside her. I highly recommend this book!

There was some swearing (at least a few s-words and a couple of f-words), and some sensual innuendos/making out, but nothing intense. The romance was very sweet!

Katherine Center has been one of my go to authors recently, and this book has added to my list of favorites. I usually am pretty good at figuring out endings, but this one keep me hooked and I was caught off guard!

The story follows Sadie after a serious diagnosis and surgery. Not only is Sadie struggling to paint, she also struggles with connecting the same person in different settings due to face blindness

This story was full of subtle hints that lead to the happily ever after for Sadie. Highly recommend this book to discover Sadie’s struggles with face blindness and how she ultimately discovers herself and how she needed to grow following the death of her mother years before.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

4.5 stars rounded up.

Katherine Center never disappoints. Her characters are sweet, quirky and just so lovable. I really loved this story that's centered around face-blindness and I loved the element of how that impacts the way we move thought the world. I loved the bits around her making art and I loved the way the book made me feel.

Center's comments at the end of the book about the romance genre were also very touching and wonderful to read. Here's to more books that lean into hope and positive anticipation.

with gratitude to netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book tells the amazing story of a portrait artist trying to make it in the world, and the struggles she endures when she becomes face blind. Katherine Center does a great job making the reader imagine what it would be like to suddenly be face blind and the story does well at showing the reader the trauma and uncertainty that the main character felt and how she handled it. It was a story unlike any I have ever read, it was both cozy and kept me on the edge of my seat. I was guessing right along with the FMC about where this story was headed and who all these people were. I would highly recommend this book, and as this was my first taste of author Katherine Center, I will definitely be diving into some of her other stories.

Who wouldn’t love Sadie, as she fumbles through life and love?! The scene so vivid in my mind is Sadie singing in a convenience store, in her pink fluffy dress, buying as much $6 wine as she can afford. A portrait painter who suffers with face blindness after a surgery was an interesting conflict. Sadie doesn’t want to admit she can’t recognize people. Luckily she can see a certain man’s muscular torso, even if she can’t see the face attached to it. Her dog and love interests kept me reading. Even better than The Bodyguard, it’s a cute, feel good story that will make a great beach read this summer!

Katherine Center is one of my favorite easy read rom com type authors. I loved and hated these characters and overall really enjoyed the story and that it wasn’t just a normal love story that was then wasn’t. I would say definitely not as great as the bodyguard but still enjoyed it. 3.5 rounded to 4

Five stars is not enough for this book. I’m not even sure that ten would be enough. I’m a huge fan of this author, and I can confidently say that this is her best book yet.

Sadie is an artist with a past that I would definitely label as traumatic. Her relationship with her dad is almost nonexistent, and she is not fond of her stepmother or stepsister. After a near-fatal accident, Sadie has to undergo brain surgery, and I do not want to give anything away that follows. It is a story of finding out who you are, and letting people in.

She is torn between two great guys, and I absolutely loved this storyline. I also loved her friends, and of course, her dog Peanut. This book also made me want to put on a pair of roller skates and live my best life.

Sadie is a fighter, but what I loved most about this story is that she learns to ask for help. Katherine Center writes books in which her characters make you think about why you are grateful, our shared humanity, and how to look for the good everywhere.

I cried reading the epilogue - for all of the best reasons.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this digital book early - I know I will be getting a physical copy when it releases in July.

If I haven’t made it clear, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book!

I love the concept of this book, it was so refreshing to read something out of the ordinary. Sadie is a struggling portrait artist with an inherited genetic condition that requires brain surgery. Soon after surgery Sadie realizes she can no longer see faces, they all resemble puzzle pieces. This comes at the worst possible time for Sadie who is in the final weeks of a career making contest with a $10,000 prize. Sadie's mother entered the same contest 13 years prior but died before submitting her painting, this adds to Sadie's motivation to win this contest. This was definitely an emotional read, Sadie has had a lot of struggles in life including an apathetic father, unlikable stepmom and a villainous step sister. Add in her health problems and struggling career and you really cheer for her when things finally start to work out for her. I love that who she ends up with is someone she saw several times prior to her surgery and subsequent face blindness but it took her change in perspective to really get to know this person. Also just want to say this was probably one of my favourite epilogues ever, I just love how positive Sadie is and how she took a negative situation and really focused on the good things to come out of it.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the arc.

Wow this book was so different than your typical rom com but in the best way. Sadies a struggling portrait artist who suddenly finds herself stricken with face blindness - yup a portrait artist who cant see peoples faces. It's supposed to be temporary but she has a portrait due for a life changing competition and through her journey she tries many coping techniques to help her adjust to her new reality and still paint. While adjusting to her new reality she meets two men - her womanizing neighbour Joe and her dreamy Vet Oliver and even though she cant see either of their faces... things get complicated with both. This book was entertaining with its family drama, its love triangle, Sadies self discovery journey, its cases of mistaken identity and its adorable puppy named Peanut. I definitely recommend.