I simply adore Katherine Center books! I have read at least five and each one is better than the last one I read, if that is even possible. Try as hard as I might, I am unable to pick a favorite — they are all my favorites! It’s easy to devour her books because they are just so delicious, delightful and deeply satisfying. You will always find wit, sincerity and wisdom in Ms. Center’s words and an uplifting story that will fill your heart.

The best part of a Katherine Center book is, of course, the storytelling and the characters. While there are a couple of “downer” moments, the overall story is upbeat and entertaining. The book centers around two characters that the reader gets to know very well. The ensemble surrounding them are also important and well drawn.

Sadie Montgomery has finally gotten her big break — she is a top ten finalist in a portrait contest of 2,000 people. This is Sadie’s wheelhouse - portraiture - so it should be relatively easy to win, right? Not so fast. Her timing couldn’t be worse because she is in desperate need of brain surgery and while she wants to wait until after the contest, her father pressures her to do it right away because her mother delayed and died from the same thing.

Sadie goes through with the surgery and there are complications that challenge her artistic abilities to the extreme. Hard as she tries, and she does attempt many different techniques, it proves very difficult to overcome. In the meantime, her dog is sick and her evil stepsister, who truly is evil, moves in to her building. Poor Sadie! But on the positive front, she has a very dear friend Sue, whose parents are the landlords, and has made a new friend in the building who helps her out a lot when she seems to most need it.

You cannot help but root for Sadie as she tries to overcome these hurdles and finally get her big break by winning the contest. I just adored Sadie and am definitely going to miss her now that the book is over. But the journey was so terrific that I cannot recommend this book highly enough! I promise you will love Hello Stranger and you will have a tough time putting it down. I know I did!

There’s just something about a Katherine Center book… they always have a protagonist you want to root for. Enough adversity that it’s believable, but sufficient to help the protagonist go through a needed evolution to get them to where they should be headed. I really enjoyed Hello Stranger, and appreciated the opportunity to gain some insight into a barrier I knew nothing about. While I figured out the plot twist before it came, I still enjoyed happening upon it. Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this ARC!

Not my favorite by Katherine Center. Her last book was so good and sadly this one just wasn’t as captivating.

After hearing so many great things about Kathrine Center (thank you Haley Pham) I finally decided to give this one a go.
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I absolutely adored Sadie as a main character. She was so strong in working through her tough past as well as navigating her new struggles and I couldn't help rooting for her the whole time. I appreciated all of the research and detail that went into describing her condition and making it easy to understand as a reader.
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Centers writing was so vibrant. I loved how in depth all of the side characters were, how well drawn out the plot was and everything in between. It was so easy to just fall into this story and feel as if you are right there with all of our characters.
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I will definitely be picking up another Kathrine Center book this one was just so perfect!

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and author for the copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is probably my first three star read by Katherine Center. It just didn’t live up to her previous books. It was very predictable.

I love Katherine Center and her books have always been a 4 or 5 star for me but this one ended up more of a 3.5. I loved this main characters and it was a fun plot but I found most of the book to be predictable. I would still recommend this one to anyone who just wants a sweet and very easy read.

Not what I expected - both good and bad. The synopsis had me thinking this was a made up condition and too fantastical to be believable. But I’ve been wanting to read one of Center’s books so I figured I would give it a shot. By the end it wasn’t Sadie’s condition that felt too unbelievable, it was everything else. If miscommunication is a pet peeve then steer clear because wow. A couple super simple questions or straight answers and the twist/conflict wouldn’t be an issue. Honestly it didn’t even need to be there, however it was an amusing reveal. It just didn’t need to be the whole basis of the 3rd act breakup and reconciliation. Plus it was apparent early on what was going to happen.

A moving contemporary romance novel about memory and how people change and yet stay the same over time. Great for when you want something cathartic

Thank you NetGalley and publishers for an e-galley. All opinions are my own.

I absolutely LOVE Katherine Center! She does a great job creating quirky characters and a fun love story. I have always appreciated the research she does and how she incorporates it into her stories. It makes the stories make a lasting impression more than just a sweet story.

This story about Sadie, a portrait artist who finds herself in a conundrum when she recieves some unfortunate news about her health. I laughed out loud multiple times as Sadie isn't one to just let tough times get the best of her.

A very fun, if a little predictable, romance. Great main and supporting characters. Would recommend this to anyone looking for a romance with a little bit of family drama and a lot of heart. Looking forward to the author's next book!

Although I enjoyed this, it’s not my favorite Katherine Center story. I would still recommend to those who enjoy romcoms.

I absolutely loved the story of Sadie Montgomery and how her life turned upside down when a sudden seizure turns into a need for brain surgery, which turns into most-likely "temporary" face blindness.

Sadie is a portrait artist. As a portrait artist, being able to see clearly is incredibly important to Sadie and her livelihood. In particular, being able to see faces and make them into beautifully painted portraits is her passion, her dream. So, when Sadie places into this huge, prestigious national contest, the same one her mother placed into and was working on when she unexpectedly passed away, it was the biggest news of Sadie's life thus far. This is her chance to change her life around, get her big break, and be able to move out of her "hovel" on the rooftop of her best friend's parent's apartment complex. So to have her big break within reach and then not be able to see faces... it was not the plan to say the least.

Being with Sadie as she navigates life without such an important, taken-for-granted piece of her brain was a pleasure to read. Not only was this an incredibly cute rom-com between Sadie and her veterinarian and then Sadie and her downstairs neighbor, but it also included some really important life lessons. The importance of using all five senses. The importance of being kind and helpful to others. The importance of treating strangers as if they are not strangers, but friends. I truly loved this book and these characters and was sad for it to end.

This was my first Katherine Center book but it definitely won't be my last. Highly recommend this read! Thank you so much to Netgalley for this free ebook.

#hellostranger #katherinecenter #romcom #dogs #doglovers #faceblindness #romance #lifelessons

She did it again! Another hit that I couldn’t put down. This book pulled at my heart strings and had me hooked from the beginning.

I’ll say it over and over, Katherine Center is amazing! Every new book I love more and more. I learned so much from this story as well, I love how she expanded on a medical condition that is not well known. Love the twist and love story. Each day I read I had to go and tell my husband the plot.

This was a fun light read that I really enjoyed reading and loved the twist. I would definitely recommend this book to others!

Katherine Center is the queen of easy romance--it's the right balance of tension and stress and enjoyment. These characters were fun & I loved the message! I do like my pacing a bit different, though, as well as wishing some of the scenarios seemed more realistic instead of rushed.

Such a fun, clever romance. Loved the twist at the end. This one really has me sucked in all the way through! Definitely a new favorite read!

“but i guess that’s the great thing about life—it gives you chance after chance to rethink it all. who you want to be. how you want to live. what really matters.”

READ IF YOU LIKE: creative love triangles, meet-cutes, rom-coms with feels, complicated family dynamics

what a creative and lovely book!! katherine center's writing is something really special. she has such an ability to take flawed characters and wrap them in love, presenting them in a way that is so relatable and admirable and just lovely.

i had never heard of face blindness before reading this book, and although i went in blind (pun not intended), i ended up skimming the synopsis a few chapters in because i needed soooome direction. the first bit of the book is quite chaotic and had me somewhat confused, but once things clicked, i was so all in.

parker might be (read: is) the worst character i've maybe ever read???? so villian ish and just purely evil for no good reason. and i especially hated how the parents sided with her at every turn like… FOR WHAT?!

a few friends said they saw the twist from the get go so turns out i'm a moron but i really didn't for a long time, and then once i saw it i was like OHHHHH. so good and really loved how everything played out!

highly rec this book for all romance fans!!

also, the author's note >>>>>>>>

Katherine always writes the sweetest and charming books. She does cover heavy topics., but there’s always hope and a happy ending. I appreciate the humor and the story and the banter. Whenever I need a pick me up, I read Katherine’s books and this one was that for me.

This had everything I love about a romance, met with unexpected and flawed characters that warm your heart right up to their story. I found this story, while some content was medically heavy, light-hearted and hopeful. Enjoyed it very much.