This was just the book I needed. It was fun, cute, and just a delight to read. I love that her books have these great characters who you root for and always a little unique twist. This time it deals with having a side effect of a surgery and well lots happen to our lead character. Katherine Center always writes with heart and humor, and I look forward to each book she writes. This was no exception! Posted on Instagram @carolinehoppereads and Goodreads.

Sadie Montgomery needs a good break, and suddenly it arrives in the form of earning a finalist slot in a portrait competition! She's worked long and hard for this day, to prove to herself, to the world, and to her family that she's made the right decisions and has it in her to be a success. What she couldn't foresee was a sudden and urgent need for a minor preventive brain surgery. The surgery is deemed a success, but it slowly dawns on Sadie that a horrific side effect is that she can no longer see faces. Which is enough to kill her career as a portrait artist.

Sadie's learned the hard way not to ask for or accept help from anyone, so she finds comfort in her precious dog and her friend from art school. But when her dog suddenly needs urgent medical care too, she meets the handsome local veterinarian, Dr. Addison (she doesn't have to see his face to know that body and that walk carry a good looking man!). Even better, he asks her on a date! But then her neighbor, Joe, who she swore to hate for all eternity (after she heard talking smack about some woman who spent the night) starts worming his way into her life. Could their friendship develop into something more? Or is Dr. Addison the one for her? And how can she possibly paint a portrait and pursue her dreams when she still can't see anyone's face?

This was such a feel-good book. It was like a lot of Katherine Center's books--a horrible, terrible thing happens and the protagonist has to painfully find a way to live and grow through it. I loved the lighthearted take on heavy, deep, human things like love, dreams, forgiveness, and belonging. This book was like nourishing comfort food to me, and I think it will meet with great success!

I am a relatively new Katherine Center stan, but so far, every single book that I've read by her has been a hit in my opinion and HELLO STRANGER continues that trend. Feel-good, happy, and heart-warming. It has it all!

Katherine Center does it again! This story captivated me from the very start. The characters were so vivid and well written. I also enjoyed the mystery of the neighbor and how Sadie comes to learn more about him. Katherine Center has such a gift for writing stories that have you predicting what will happen but still surprise and keep you guessing. This was definitely one of my favorites of hers. Thank you to netgalley for the early copy!

I’ve been in a big time reading slump this fall with our family dealing with illness, a hurricane and a busy schedule- Hello Stranger absolutely crushed that slump! I read it in two days, which is the fastest I’ve read a book in almost 6 months (but something I used to do regularly).

I always love Katherine Center’s books and this was no exception. When the plot pieces started clicking together it was so satisfying. I usually am annoyed with no spice but I loved the plot and characters so much that I honestly didn’t even notice and it didn’t take away from my rating. Thanks so much for providing this arc!

This story left me feeling good. I am used to Katherine Center's strong heroines, so this character is different from her other main characters, quirky and suffers from low self-esteem, seeing self as a failure. True to the author's style of writing there are certain scenes that are laugh out loud hilarious.
The story has to do with the loss of her mom, contributing to how she is the way she is and not feeling able to connect with her father. The storylines with her stepmom and stepsister are interesting. The main character develops a condition which does not allow her to visually see correctly, instead faces are unclear, so she learns how to use her intuition to guide her in her interactions, and what the character discovers is all is not what it seems. I love how the author weaves such a storyline, creating characters who develop over time through the story and as a reader rooting for them and deeply empathizing with them. You will not be disappointed, another rave review for Katherine Center!

Such a fun and cute book and a perfect pick-me-up on a blah day. I read so many psychological thrillers that I'm always stunned when there are likeable characters in a book! The only thing that disappointed me was that it didn't feature a Texas city like all of her other books. I've always felt like that added to the ambiance.

I'm in my pajanket getting the vapors, fanning myself while reading the ending of this book., LOL! Another Katherine Center book that had me at Hello. I love Katherines writing style, it's like a conversation with your best friend, ugly crying then laughing because your friend knows you so well, they can get you to laugh like no one else can. This story was emotionally satisfying and delightfully clever.

I'm not typically one who stays up well past my bedtime to read a book. I mean let's be honest, I really value my sleep. But Hello Stranger did this exact thing to me. Nearing midnight, tears bursting from my eyes while I'm simultaneously smiling with joy. I loved Hello Stranger by Katherine Center. LOVED.

Sadie is a struggling artist who is looking for that one break in her career and when the opportunity arises she knows she only has one shot. Except as if the universe knows when you are at your make it or break it moment, Sadie is nearly hit by car, put in the hospital, only to find out she needs brain surgery. With just a few weeks until the portrait competition, Sadie goes in for brain surgery and comes out good as new, right? Except Sadie quickly realizes that she is unable to see the faces around her. Not ideal for a portrait artist. The story follows along as Sadie navigates a faceless world, discovering both herself and a growing romance in between the pages.

I said it twice and I'll say it a third time. I loved this book. Katherine Center has a way of writing that makes you feel. You feel the good, the bad, the love, the hurt, the hope, the humor. You feel the characters and believe that you are right with them in the story. If I was a fan of Katherine Center before, I am without a doubt, life-long, fan now. Highly recommend.

Hello Stranger had such a unique spin to the plotline that had me second-guessing what was real right up to the very end. I really enjoyed the dynamic between the two main characters, Sadie and 'Joe' but felt that the relationships among between other characters fell a little short of the depth that gets a reader really invested in the outcome. Overall, I'd recommend this book to someone looking for an entertaining meet-cute type of read.

Poor, wonderful, adorable Sadie. Just as 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, Sadie gets gobsmacked that she has the same inherited brain anomaly that killed her mom. Her re-married, estranged doctor dad insists she has the surgical repair immediately (thank goodness, it is a curable condition). So she does. But as she recovers she discovers she has face-blindness. It’s supposed to be temporary, but will it resolve before her 6 week portrait deadline?

Complicating matters is her instantaneous crush on her dog’s new vet and the helpful neighbor who she first thought was a weasel. The rest of her family consists of a truly evil stepsister and a stepmother who can be a pest. Her best friend suddenly disappears. Sadie does find ways to identify the people around her without comprehending their faces and she desperately tries to complete her competition portrait in time without the loving support she needs.

You cannot help but to root for Sadie. The guys are mystifying — basically unrecognizable as good or bad, so you are along for her journey. The novel is funny, delightful and bittersweet. The central character is written so well and the ending is so satisfying — Katherine Center has written another great romance. 5 stars!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): NO This is a book about Sadie’s eyes, whatever color they may be.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): Hmmm. It’s March and there are marigolds in a bouquet when marigolds usually only bloom in summer, but florists have their tricks.

Ahhhh!!! I’m so grateful and honored to have received an ARC of Katherine Center’s new book. After reading The Bodyguard earlier this year, I immediately went out to buy 3 more of her books. Katherine is such a talented storyteller and holds a real knack for creating such realistic and multi-faceted characters. I’ve become such a huge fan of her work, and I’m certain I will not be disappointed by HELLO STRANGER!

I really wanted to like this book because I love the rest of Katherine Center's work. The plot is unique and it's a classic Center slow burn but I was just bored.

However, the book seems rushed, it is too predictable even for your typical romance novel, there aren't very many foils for the couple, and the secondary characters seem to be copied/pasted from any other book. Sadie isn't a character who I really cared about, despite her family and friend troubles. The resolution between her and her family seems too good to be true and is wrapped up too nicely. There should have been some tension remaining but everyone reunited and things were fine and good.

Neither Sadie nor Joe are particularly well-developed and I just couldn't bring myself to care about them, particularly Joe.

I'll obviously read Katherine Center's next book and I only hope that this was just a fluke.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

When I received an email with an early digital copy of Hello Stranger from Katherine Center, I literally jumped out of my chair. Not only do her bright beautiful book covers bring me so much joy, but her words just skip along the pages in such a beautiful sing-song way, I just can't help smiling through the entire book.

It's almost mean to tease this book so early because it doesn't come out until July 2023, BUT it's one to keep on your radar and add to your most anticipated 2023 summer reading list, fore sure!

Struggling artist, Sadie Montgomery, lands herself a coveted spot in a portrait contest - on the verge of her big lucky break. However, an accident leads to a minor brain surgery. This surgery, unfortunately, results in face blindness. Sadie can see things around her, but when it comes to faces, it's an upside down mess of a jigsaw puzzle. Not exactly the break she needed while preparing for a 'portrait' contest. With the help of her 14 year old dog, Peanut, his sexy veterinarian, Dr. Addison, and her grungy neighbor, Joe, Sadie is able to put her life back together one jigsaw piece at a time, but not without some mistakes along the way.

I simply love Katherine Center.

I really enjoyed this book. It was fun trying to figure it out!! Watching the friendship unfold between Sadie and Joe, as she struggled to maintain her everyday normal that's compounded by acute facial blindness... The secondary players were fun too; Sue, Mr. and Mrs. Kim, and even Lucinda. I love Katherine Center books; she is one of my favorites. I always feel invested in and a part of the character development in her books. This book doesn't drop til June 2023 so I was super excited to get an ARC of this via email from the publisher. Thanks St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for this very advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Just when things seem to finally be going Sadie Montgomery’s way, she discovers that she needs surgery, which she would like to put off because she needs every single day for the next few weeks to get her portrait ready for the contest that she has reached the final round in. But her estranged father returns early from his conference and arranges her surgery, telling her that it can’t wait. If her father, whom she hasn’t talked to in ages, declares the surgery is imperative, she must believe him. Although the surgery is a success, Sadie can no longer see faces. They look like pieces of a puzzle to her. How can she possibly paint a portrait if she can’t see faces? And, then Sadie also has two men in her life. One a veterinarian she decides she’s going to marry and the other a misogynist womanizing weasel named Joe who may not really be a womanizing weasel after all in Katherine Center’s Hello Stranger.

In her author’s note at the end of Hello Stranger, Katherine Center writes: “I hope this story made you laugh. And swoon. I hope it kept you up way too late reading and gave you that blissed-out oxytocin-laden tipsy feeling that all the best love stories create.” I laughed because I stayed up into the wee hours of this morning reading, deciding that when I couldn’t keep my eyes open that I was permitted to get some sleep. I rarely do that anymore but I just couldn’t put this book down. Even though I knew what was going to happen, I had to get there, be there, be part of it.

There is something joyous about Hello Stranger. It’s like getting a big warm hug, a hot drink, and spending time with someone who believes in the kindness of the human race. You don’t want it to end, know it must, while hoping that another novel is springing to life in Center’s Texas home.

Sadie Montgomery is a wonderful character. She is quirky and determined. Self-aware and resilient and giving. She would say she’s a pessimist but I don’t see it. She changes throughout the novel, opening herself to the world and living her life, realizing that this was the way her mother was: open to everything that life has to offer. She finds joy in simple things like dresses that her mother wore and roller skating to 70s disco music.

Despite first impressions, Joe is the type of swoony nice guy that seems too good to be real (yeah, I know he’s fiction) but he does have a failing–if being too helpful can be considered a failing. He’s perceptive (mostly) and kind-hearted, romantic and solid. And swoony, which I know I said already but it bears repeating.

Sadie has an evil step-sister and step-mother, although we discover that maybe the step-mother isn’t really evil but just manipulated by the controlling step-sister. And, maybe there is just a touch of Cinderella in Sadie’s story.

While I didn’t notice as I was reading, some questions arose later about certain circumstances that occurred. But. But. I was too immersed in the story to care about those questions as I was reading. And, frankly, I am willing to shrug away those questions now because that feeling of being so immersed in a wonderful story is far better than nitpicking. I think that says a lot.

Hello Stranger is one of those novels where I felt myself smiling at intervals because it made me happy and definitely made me laugh. This is the book we all need when we want joy and a warm hug–in novel form. A literally literary feel good story.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Katherine Center really can do no wrong.

Hello Stranger introduces us to Sadie, an artist, a portrait artist, who may have just gotten her big break. Sadie is estranged from her widower father but finally feels like she can brag about herself. That is until she has to have brain surgery and can no longer recognize faces. At all.

As Saide struggles with her new reality she meets Dr. Oliver Addison - who saves her dog's life and who is obviously handsome - even without a face. They set up a date! In the meantime Joe lives in Sadie's building and just always seems to be around and willing to help. Sadie does not need help, except that she does. As Sadie and Joe spend more time together she now has these 2 pretty awesome men in her life.

To find out what happens you need to read the book.

Although Hello Stranger deals with some heavy topics - loss of a parent - and is predictable, but in the best way. This is book also has fantastic characters, 2 dreamy men, some family drama and was just what I needed to break me out of a slump.

5 stars. Read it and you'll love it too.

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I'm always excited to hear Katherine Center is releasing a new book. She's become an auto-read author for me since I read How to Walk Away. Hello Stranger was another great release. It had a unique storyline and entertaining characters. It's kind of a hard book to explain without giving a lot away, so here are some things I loved and one I struggled with.

What I loved:

*Katherine Center's writing was as captivating as usual. She knows how to pull me into a story.
*The face blindness aspect was very interesting. Everything Sadie went through with it made me consider things I hadn't before.
* Sadie took me a bit to like, but by the end I loved her.
*All of the side characters were fantastic -- even the ones I loved to hate. They felt like real people I could meet on the street.
*The romance. It was really sweet. I loved how it challenged Sadie and made her a better person. 
*The twists. I could see a couple of them coming, but I thought they were done so well. I am sure there are going to be some surprised readers out there. 
*The overall feeling of happiness at the outcome of the book when I finished.

What I struggled with:

*Sadie. There were moments when I thought that if she was my friend, I would have wanted to give her a good shake. Her thoughts could be very immature. That did help with the growth of her character throughout the story, though. 

Overall, this was another great book by Center. I have a feeling fans of her writing are going to love it.

Thank you St. Martin’s for the advance copy!

I loved it. Katherine Center can do no wrong. She remains an autobuy for me. Read this in one sitting the day I got it! I absolutely loved the story! I really feel like every book gets better and better. The chemistry between the characters was great. The twist and how it was revealed was great too. Loved it all!

I was so pleased to receive this ARC from NetGalley. My favorite thing about Katherine Center’s books is the unique settings/situations and characters. I had never heard of face blindness before, so this was a really interesting way to present an “obstacle” to the story. Katherine Center definitely has another hit on her hands with Hello Stranger!