This author has never let me down and this story was no exception. Right before picking up this book, I learned that someone I know has face blindness so I was already intrigued about the subject matter. This was such a sweet read with a satisfying, feel-good ending. I think my favourite part was the author's note. She verbalized beautifully about how I feel about "predictable" romance novels.

Katherine Center does it again. She pulls at my heartstrings and makes me connect with all her characters. Her novels may have this predictable, but her plotlines are fresh and engaging. It makes the romance worthwhile! I read this in one sitting; I couldn't put it down.

Ok, so about the book itself. We follow the life of Sadie Montgomery. Sadie has an inherited brain anomaly that killed her mom. She finally gets a big break as a finalist to participate in the same portrait contest her mother entered just before she died years ago. She has the surgery, but as she recovers, she discovers she has face blindness. That means she can't recognize people's faces, even her best friends. It's supposed to be temporary, but will it resolve before her 6-week portrait deadline? You have to read it to find out; no spoilers here! This book explores grief, perseverance, boldness, truth & love. You will be in for a ride!

Sadie's journey is funny, delightful, and bittersweet. I couldn't help but root for her in the good and the bad, but I also wanted to yell at her and be like hello!! And that's what makes me always want to pick up a Katherine Center novel.

Hello, Stranger was everything I wanted in a book, and I adored every second of it.

Thank you, Erica, at St. Martins Press and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I was thrilled to receive and read it! I told everyone about it.

What if looking at your face revealed a stranger? The puzzle pieces don't quite come together and the creation formulates only a caricature of yourself?

Sadie is on the cusp of her big break when an unexpected surgery impacts her facial recognition. As a portrait artist about to compete in notable show, she can't see her own face let alone subjects. While coming to terms that she may never get her vision back, Sadie must rely on her other senses. Beauty for this budding artist is now more than skin deep and she must judge others based on their actions rather than appearances.

I've been a fan of Katherine Center's work but her latest novel is spectacular. While Center always gets to the heart of the issue, this time, readers are treated to a sensory experience. Through Sadie's skewed perception, new characters are revealed.

This hard-hitting story leaves readers questioning what would happen if the roles were reversed. Would we be able to grapple with the out-of-focus world that Sadie is thrust into and forced to reexamine our priorities?

" Seeing the world differently helps you see things not just that other people can’t—but that you yourself never could if you weren’t so lucky. It lets you make your own rules. Color outside your own lines. Allow yourself another way of seeing." (Hello Stranger by Katherine Center)

Thanks for letting me read this book I didn't hate the book but I also didn't love it very much either it was just ok I had a hard time getting into it really the characters were not very likeable but hopefully others will enjoy it more

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center

Sadie is a finalist for a portrait competition that could change her life, but a surgery complication leaves her with prosopagnosia, or “face blindness,” which leaves Sadie unable to distinguish facial features (a significant challenge when your work is portraits).

As Sadie tries to navigate this confusing (and hopefully temporary) state, her pup becomes ill and she meets the attractive vet who she swears she’s destined to marry. Meanwhile, Sadie forms an unlikely friendship with her apartment neighbor Joe that left a terrible first impression.

I absolutely adored this book! I learned so much about face blindness, which is a testament of how much research @katherinecenter does when she’s writing a book! As someone who works closely with budding artists, the concept of creating portraits without the ability to see gratuities was fascinating!

I have loved every character that Center has written, and Sadie and her supporting characters were no different. There’s always something so relatable about her leads, and I loved watching Sadie evolve as a woman and as an artist. Every Katherine Center book is a warm hug and a book I simply can’t put down.

Katherine Center is my favorite author and this did not disappoint! She creates stories that I want to come back to again and again. 

Sadie Montgomery is such a relatable character with a big personality, a cast of lovely supporting characters and the best dog in the world - Peanut. A portrait artist, she has the opportunity to compete in a show that her late mother placed in many years before. She won't let anything stop her - not even "acquired apperceptive prosopagnosia" aka face blindness. 

As she navigates this new challenge, she adapts to recognize the people around her, including Peanut's vet, Dr. Oliver Addison, and her neighbor Joe. A love triangle forms where you can't help but root for both of them for various reasons. 

If you like a fuzzy romantic comedy with such, nuanced characters - this book is for you! It was a delightful read and I'm so happy to add it to my bookshelf.

Another amazing book by Katherine Center. I don’t know how she can spin a story that makes me adore a character, get so mad at a ridiculous plot point, get mad at a character, and then tie it all together so I fall back in love.
Why must you mess with my emotions!?!
Alas. Life is messy. If you want to feel “all the feels” please read this and everything else by Center. I always feel so hopeful and happy when I finish her novels and Hello Stranger did not disappoint. These are truly “feel good” books. I know when I need some help in that department, I can come here, and Center will be there for me & I will soon… feel good.

As soon as I got an email inviting me to read this digital ARC, I tossed my plans out the window and settled in to start the latest Katherine Center novel. I’ve only read this and The Bodyguard so far but she’s quickly becoming a favorite author. I’ve purchased multiple of her backlist that I’ll be making my way through soon.

This was an interesting spin on a miscommunication trope. Sadie has face blindness after a brain surgery has left her with swelling in her brain. As you might imagine that makes it difficult to figure out who is who - from her wicked stepsister to her vet to the cute guy who’s obviously a player who lives in her building.

I’m not a big fan of the miscommunication trope on most occasions, but I could appreciate the way Katherine Center played with it here. This was a fun read and I’m so glad I changed up my plans to dive into this one.

Thank you St Martin’s Press for a digital ARC through NetGalley.

I’ve read the majority of Katherine Center’s novels and they surprise me every time. I always start them thinking it’s going to be a fun, maybe fluffy read. While they hit the fun mark every time, Center’s novels weave humor, romance, and fun with interesting, thought-provoking, and sometimes difficult themes.

In Hello Stranger we meet Sadie, a struggling artist who happens to have the quirkiness I love in a main character while still dealing with some heavy stuff.

A traumatic brain injury in the beginning of the novel takes this book on a unique and interesting path as Sadie struggles with living life with face blindness. Throw in a love triangle, an evil step-sister, and past trauma and this novel will have you laughing one minute and wanting to cry the next.

Typically, a storyline that involves miscommunication frustrates me. However, the pacing of this story made it feel more like an anticipation for the resolution than frustration.

This would have been a five star read for me if we could have gone a little deeper into her family relationships and gotten to know some of the side characters a little better. I would have liked to see some more of Sadie and Lucinda’s relationship growth. In addition, I felt the way her father treated her at the beginning and end were very different without a lot of reasoning for why. The explanation given didn’t cover his current treatment of Sadie in regards to her career.

Overall a great, fast read. I highly recommended!

Thank you to St Martins Press and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

Katherine Center writes books with heart and Hello Stranger is no exception. This one left me feeling hopeful and ready to do good in the world. Grateful to have read this one!

I loved this sweet book! Katherine Center is a great author and this one is now my favorite book of hers. The story was engaging and I found myself rooting for Sadie as she goes through the aftermath of brain surgery and the impact to her everyday life and her career. It was fascinating to read about the topic of face blindness and confirmed bias all tied within family relationships, friendships, a career, and love interests.

Her backstory is heartbreaking but adds to her journey of coming into herself as she recovers. Her relationships with her friends and family definitely adds to her story and her continued sweetness despite how others treat her really makes her character shine. The romance aspect was very satisfying and I loved how her relationship developed over time.

Even though Parker was such a PITA, I would love to read her backstory and find out if she has what it takes to change or if she stays stuck in her "hurt before I get hurt" mentality.

I 100% recommend this book and don't miss the amazing author's note at the end.

Thank you St. Martin's Publishing Group and NetGalley for the opportunity for the ultra-early read! I'm thankful that I was able to enjoy this book early while providing my honest review of my reading experience.

Katherine Center is one of my go-to favorite authors. She writes, largely, feel good books with a lot of heart, little moments that make you think and books that bring a little sigh of satisfaction at the end. "Hello Stranger" was no different.

The storyline, in which the main character has Prosopagnosia (how's that for a big word?) or more commonly known as Facial Blindness, was intriguing and not one I have come across before. Add in that she is a portrait artist and in the finals for an art competition and Sadie has quite the dilemma on her hands! Add in a romance (or two, or one) and some fairly comedic missteps and you have all the ingredients for Hello Stranger.

I will say that I didn't really get the side-storyline of her Dad, stepmother and stepsister but it didn't detract at all, it just didn't really add IMO.

Thank you to St Martins Press and Netgalley for the ARC of Hello Stranger in exchange for an honest review!

Imagine if you woke up from a surgery & everything had gone well, but then you realize you can not see people’s faces? They are there, but they look like a scary version of modern art to you - all mismatched - face blindness is what it’s called. This is what happens to Sadie, who happens to be a portrait artist & kind of needs to see peoples faces. This book is heartwarming & had me up late at night wanting to know what happened next. I think I’d recommend going into this one blind (pun intended) because it was just the sweetest read & I adored Sadie’s journey the whole way through. Katherine Center can do no wrong in my book!!

TW/CW: seizure, bullying, past death of a parent, medical issues

I’ll only read for a few more minutes… the famous last words of any bookworm, and in my case, were said last night. I had started Hello, Stranger and wanted to get just a little bit more before I went to bed. Naturally, I stayed up late until I finished it, being unable to put it down. It’s been awhile since I did that with a book, which I guess is just a testament to how much I enjoyed this story.

Center has a way of marrying the mundane with the comical with the outlandish to create a story that is nothing short of pure sweetness. Hello, Stranger was no different. The story starts off with a bang, as Sadie goes through a traumatic experience that leaves her with a new diagnosis: prosopagnosia, or, face blindness. As a portrait artist with a deadline, this creates a whole other set of issues besides the inability to tell who she’s talking to. Throw in an attractive (she thinks) new vet and a mysterious neighbor, and you’ve got a romcom for the books (pun intended).

One word to describe this book is heartwarming. With her new diagnosis, Sadie is more vulnerable and has to face some of her past fears. She receives help from a therapist, and the sessions are somehow both comical and serious all at once. The relationships, both past and present, are developed in ways to show Sadie’s growth and to challenge her. The romance, especially, was sweet. I was able to guess the ending, but that wasn’t necessarily negative. Albeit, I did stress read for awhile trying to reach the ending.

My only complaint was that the Joe’s truth took so long to come out. I was holding a serious grudge against him for almost the entire book. That was one helluva introduction.

Heartwarming and fun, if not a bit far fetched…I enjoyed this romantic romp by Katherine Center. Great characterization, an ending that was a bit predictable but still completely enjoyable!

This book was delightful and so enjoyable to read. The characters were interesting and the story was so different from anything I had read before. This just might be my favorite Katherine Center book!

4.5 out of 5. I love Katherine Center. I was VERY excited when I got this ARC and dropped everything an started reading it. I loved it. It is a wonderfully cute romantic battle against the odds, with strong anticipation. I'm using anticipation because I'm not going to use predictable because that is one of my favorite quotes (rants?) of the book about the way to describe romance movies as predictable: "sometimes i see people grasping for a better word than predictable to describe romance. They'll say it was predictable but in a good way. I see what they are going for. But maybe the word predictable has become predictable. It's so saturated with negativity at this point that threes no real way to update its vibe. Maybe we need a better term - I propose we start using Anticipation. "

I love how much of a fan of romance books and movies the character is. I was so identified in so many moments. These where some of my favorite quotes:

"Love stories do not have happy endings because their authors didn't know any better. They have happy endings because they let readers access a rare and precious kind of emotional bliss.. joy is just a important. I think the ways we take care of each other matter just as much as the way we let each other down. That light matters just as much as darkness. That play matters just as much as work, and kindness matters as much as cruelty and hope matters as much as despair."

"love is nourishing. We all sense it deep down, I hope past the snark and the tough guy exteriors. Love is healing. Its unapologetically optimistic. ITs the thing that puts us back together.

If you need some hope and nourishing, and a bit of happy endings, go read this book as soon as it comes out. Katherine Center, i will read all that you write.

Sadie Montgomery is a portrait artist. Unfortunately she has a lesion on her brain and needs surgery right away. Piece of cake they say. Unfortunately after the surgery she has face blindness. How is she supposed to compete in an art contest when she can’t see faces?! To complicate matters, she doesn’t want anyone to know her condition.
Sadie is quirky, funny and an optimist but even she can’t see how she can make her big break in her current condition.

Katherine Center is one of my favorite feel good authors! Hello Stranger has a fun little twist on the quest for love and self discovery. I was definitely rooting for these characters.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

Katherine Center does it again! I loved the twist at the end even though I had figured it out. This was a really cute, quick read. I am noticing there are more books being wrote with Prosopagnosia (face blindness), and it is really interesting to learn more about it. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book.