Such an effervescent, heartfelt book! I loved Sadie's personality and her ability to look on the bright side of things. She had enough heartbreak in her life to make her curl up in a ball and quit, but she keeps going. Great story on resilience and never giving up on yourself. And the romance was perfection!

I loved The Bodyguard and felt like with the unique plot, this book was sure to be a knockout read for me. Unfortunately, the story not only fell flat but I actively had to push myself to get through it.

Given what the main character was going through/ had been through, I can see why she had certain tendencies. However, her "I don't need anyone" and "I'll show them all" was more annoying than awe-inspiring heroine material. Additionally, even though the doctor prompted us that she may be emotionally unstable, the entire story is about her being obsessive over love interests. Lastly, Sadie was a horrible communicator since she decided it was better to not need anyone than explain why she was behaving irrationally (which would have resolved 98% of the conflicts in this story).

Maybe the author was trying to make the story feel extremely frustrating to show what Sadie was going through with her facial blindness, and in that regard, she did a fantastic job. For me though, the story was such an emotional rollercoaster I was only looking forward to getting off of it.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for sharing a digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

Hello Stranger is a cute romance mixed with comic relief. Sadie’s life quickly falls apart after she finds out she needs brain surgery while she prepares to finally succeed in her art career by winning a portrait competition. Throw in family challenges, surgical complications and, of course, a mixed up love life and you’ll find yourself rooting for Sadie to find her way.

I thoroughly enjoyed Sadie as a character, her struggles and the man she unexpectedly finds herself falling for. On the other hand, I felt that her stepsister was too extreme to be believable, and her family troubles detracted from the story.

The resolution of Sadie’s failed love was enjoyable, but the story stalled too much waiting for the big reveal.

This is a quick, light read that you’ll enjoy if you like sweet, crazy romances. It’s a good summer read.

I received an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy. Katherine Center has a true gift for writing slightly messy, very likable characters that the reader can’t help but root for throughout the story. I flew through this book in a matter of a few hours, so it is definitely an easy, enjoyable read. I just wish there would have been a bit more mystery to the set up of it all. It was so clear and obvious that Joe, Oliver, the grocery store guy, and the person who saved her life were all the same guy. It is a little too far of a leap for me to believe that “Joe” wouldn’t have given Sadie his real name once they became friends, or he wouldn’t have given some indication that they knew each other when she came into his office multiple times because of her dog. Overall, this is a fun, quick book and I think a lot of people will enjoy it.

This was a don’t-want-to-put-it-down, read-despite-extreme-tiredness kind of read for me. I loved every second of it.

I felt so much empathy for Sadie, a struggling artist whose family is awful, and who has to undergo brain surgery to fix a small brain bleed. As she is recovering from that, a swelling from the surgery makes it so that she cannot recognize faces and has a (hopefully temporary) condition called acquired face blindness. And of course this happens right after she’s selected to be one of ten finalists in an art show…where she needs to paint a portrait.

Navigating this new reality would be difficult for anyone, but Sadie refuses help or to acknowledge her condition, so very few people know she has it, making life infinitely more difficult for herself. Also, she’s kind of crushing on two guys. And, there’s an evil stepsister gleefully exploiting her unfortunate circumstances.

Despite the levity of the subject matter, Hello Stranger manages to also be sweet as well as emotional, funny as well as poignant. It’s an absolute delight of a read, and one I’ll be thinking about for a long time.

I love Katherine Center’s books!! And I have read all of them! With that said, this one was not my favorite. But it was still VERY GOOD. And if you love it, read her other books. I guarantee you will love them too. This book was interesting in that it dealt with Sadie acquiring face blindness. I had heard of this and clearly it creates havoc in a person’s life. For Sadie — as a portrait artist — it pretty much cripples her ability to paint. How she handles this made for great reading. And the love interest. Well it was totally predictable. But that doesn’t make it bad. Joe was amazing in fact. And actually the fact that much of the story was predictable made the book feel familiar and welcoming.

There’s a new book boyfriend in my life (don’t tell my husband)!! Allllll the heart eyes for my boo Joe!!!

Sadie is a starving portrait artist - but she just got one of the biggest breaks of her career! The contest she entered has picked her as a finalist and she is ready to celebrate. But things turn for the worse when she suddenly has a nonconvulsive sister and requires brain surgery…brain surgery that leaves her face-blind! Not a great diagnosis when your livelyhood literally depends on painting faces!

This story is quirky with the best kind of humor. I loved Sadie’s inner dialogue and watching her learn and grow through her diagnosis. She has had a really rough life and even though she has some trauma, she is also sunshine and light to those around her.

And JOE. I loved him so much. I couldn’t wait for her to run into him again and again and fall for him, even without his face (weird I know but BELIEVE ME). This was not an open door romance but that painting scene had me feeling all types of ways!!

The discussion on confirmation bias was so refreshing. I think we all get stuck in this and learning about it would help so many of us!

Anyway, FIVE FREAKING STARS. All the stars. ALL OF THEM.

3.5 stars

my second katherine center book and something about her writing style is just so entertaining and easy to read!

sadie is a struggling artist who following brain surgery ends up acquiring face blindness, unable to recognize the people around her, even those she has known for years. however, she has the chance of a lifetime coming up, an art show to finally showcase her talents, and has to figure out how to create a portrait while simultaneously coming to terms with her current condition and figuring out how to traverse the now blurry world around her.

the story is so unique and different from most romances that I've read in that it included so much more personal development and self-discovery, elevating the story even more. the pacing of the story was also very well done because I absolutely flew through the book in just one day.

of course I have to talk about the relationship between sadie and joe. it was so cool seeing their relationship flourish and them build up this trust with each other despite her not even being able to fully see him. and their banter too was just incredible and their interactions just had me smiling along the whole time.

the only thing that took away from the story a bit for me was the fact that the conflict went on for so long, despite it being understandable why, I felt like yelling at my kindle at times because I just wanted her to figure it out and for them to get together already. I also wanted to see maybe a bit more of the two together because while I loved the coming-of-age style plot, I was hoping for a bit more romance included as well. while the story was just a bit unrealistic at times, I think that the great writing and fun story line made up for it and I ended up still really enjoying it!

I didn’t make it too far into this one before I just have up on it. The female main character annoyed me so bad. She’d finally accomplished something tangible in her burgeoning art career and immediately runs to her horrible father who basically thinks she’s worthless because she pursued the arts. Why does she want his acceptance? Let it go, girl. Spend your time on more worthy people. Though I’m sure that’s probably the conclusion she eventually comes to by the end of the book, I just can’t stand the idea of someone learning this lesson the hard way. No thanks.

Then she meets this kind guy at the store and completely rejects his kindness because of her pride. And then he basically stalks her from the store. It was so weird. I was so ready to like him but it just got too weird. When I found myself disliking both characters, I had to bail.

I did request the hardback as my Book of the Month Club choice before starting the ARC as I anticipated loving it so maybe one day I’ll go back to it. But that day is not today.

Katherine Center... You write some nice emotional stories. I would almost say this is less a romance novel, and more a about a woman coping with something new that's been brought on and allowing herself to ask for help when she needs it. I do have to say that I didn't really like Sadie very much, but it was also understandable how sad and dark she felt all the time. A lot of that came from dealing with the loss of her mother, very abruptly, at a vulnerable time. I really enjoyed her trying to figure out how to paint portraits while having face blindness (cue "ironic" by Alanis Morissette), and loved her best friend Sue as well. As for the love story part, it was a bit unique in a sense but really predictable. I kept reading anyway to see how her journey improves over time, so it was good pacing there with enough to keep you hooked. I also learned a lot about face blindness, and could really feel what Sadie was feeling. I also liked how things were not super clean from an ending perspective. What I didn't love was some of the ending being a bit too deus ex machina in some ways. I think personally I enjoyed the Bodyguard more but this was a good read if you're into someone feeling like they hit rock bottom... And then actually hitting rock bottom, in terms of circumstance, and then pulling their way out of it.

Steam: CLEAN
Heart Flutters: ❤️

4.5 ⭐️

“This love story really created fantastic anticipation” ❤️


I love KC’s writing style. It’s incredibly easy to devour her books! Her writing feels so relatable and like you’re talking with a friend.

Did I absolutely know how it was going to end? Yes. Did that make the story any less fun and enticing? Not at all. This book felt like a hug in a book.

This was such a sweet, fun, interesting and actually educational read. I found myself telling my husband and my work bestie about face blindness 😂

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read an eARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Katherine Center for this advanced ebook copy of Hello Stranger in exchange for my honest review. I am rating this 3.5 stars. I’m so 50/50 on this book!

This was definitely an interesting story to say the least. I had never heard of this condition so it was interesting how it affects a person who lives with prosopagnosia. There were times I thought that maybe Sadie’s condition was being exaggerated, but as you go through more of the book you can tell this is probably something that is very serious. Having said that I was not a huge fan of Sadie’s character. She did grow throughout the book, but she was so unlikeable most of the time. Do not even get me started on other extremely unlikeable characters…. Yes I’m looking at you Parker and Lucinda. Also I wish we would have had more romance vs Sadie’s family troubles.

Now what did I like about this story? I loved Peanut the pup and Joe! I liked the twist at the end and how the story ended. I liked that I learned something new like prosopagnosia. I loved Mr and Mrs Kim and the way they helped Sadie throughout the story. I loved that Sadie was an artist and how she essentially had to relearn her craft. I liked the banter between Sadie and Joe and I definitely laughed out loud a few times during the story. The thing I really loved about this story was the Author’s Note! It’s a must read.

Overall I definitely recommend this book. I think most readers will enjoy this binge worthy read. This was my first Katherine Center book and although it was not a favorite read of mine I will definitely check out her other books.

This was my first Katherine Center book and I must say I absolutely loved it.

"We're all so busy seeing what we expect to see."

Who knew face blindness was even a thing? But it is, and our MC Sadie is struggling with it after having brain surgery. Worse yet, she is a PORTRAIT artist. Who can't see faces. There was something so heartwarming reading about a character who literally begins to "see" the world with her heart instead of her eyes. She begins to recognize people not by their faces, but maybe by their hair, or the way they walk, their perfume or cologne, maybe simply the jacket they always wear.

I was drawn into Sadie's story from the very beginning. I could feel her pain as she watched her dream slip away. I appreciated her sense of humor and watching as Joe went from 'weasel' to one of the best characters I have ever encountered. Oh, how I loved Joe. Even, her elderly dog, Peanut, has a place forever in my heart.

I cannot say how much I value a plot line that has not been done before (at least not that I have read). I definitely see more Center books in my future.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for my gifted advanced readers copy of this one.

This one is out July 11th and if you are looking for a book with a great message and some extremely lovable characters, be sure to check this one out!

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center

My rating:
5/5
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Okay so originally I gave this a 4, but I had to round up because it made me feel good and I just loved it. There were a couple times where I was frustrated with the book & I think I could have used more overall spice, but even without any spicy parts, there was a level of intimacy that made my heart sing.

When Sadie, a portrait artist finds out she has a brain condition where she needs surgery, she decides to get this surgery done and has a serious complication. When she wakes up, she can no longer see anyone’s faces. They are like a puzzle to her. She can see bits and pieces but not their face as a whole.

This book told the story of Sadie’s life after she had the surgery and had romance, life lessons & some parts that made me so infuriated for her I wanted to throw my kindle against the wall. 😂

Overall I would absolutely recommend this one. Thank you netgalley for the ARC! This one is out now so go add it to your TBR!

This was my first Katherine Center book but it will definitely not be my last!

3.5

this was really good but omg i guessed all components of that big reveal. that’s not a bad thing, and i quite enjoyed that. this was overall a pretty good, cute, and sweet little book. overall, i really enjoy this author and her style of writing <3

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this arc !!

Huge thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the opportunity to read and review this book. This book is just.. *chef’s kiss* for me. I don’t know how Katherine continues to do it, but I absolutely loved the book, especially the twist at the end! She has definitely become an auto-buy author for me over the years.

If you have a feel good story that teaches you that we have to sometimes slow down and enjoy the little things in life, then this book is for you.

Things were starting to go right for Sadie Montgomery. She is a finalist in an art portrait competition that could help her out tremendously if she wins. The next thing she knows is that she's in the hospital being diagnosed with facial blindness, a condition which may or may not be temporary, but it prevents her from being able to see the faces of people. Instead of faces, she sees puzzle pieces all scrambled about. As Sadie struggles to adapt to her new normal, she's confronted by a few other dilemmas along the way. She's unsure how she'll be able to continue her art career, an old family drama pops up again, her dog has a minor crisis, then she meets two men who she develops feelings for.

I have always been a huge fan of Katherine Center books, and I was so excited to get an eARC of Hello Stranger, but unfortunately, I didn't enjoy this one as much as her other works. I found the FMC, Sadie, to be whiny, judgemental, and overly selfish. Sadie acted like this before she even had facial blindness, so it can't be blamed on her crisis. Sadie won't ask for help with anything because she always wants to rescue herself. However,  she won't really stand up for herself and will constantly cry about everything that didn't go her way. She was such an annoying MC. I did like Joe, Sadie's neighbor, who was constantly there to help Sadie when she's having one of her meltdowns or bad days. I figured out the plot twist early on, so there was no surprise for me there. I did like that this novel brings awareness to a not so well know medical condition.  Normally, Katherine Center novels are nothing short of amazing. Unfortunately, this one just didn't work for me.

Another fantastic book by Katherine Center! I love her books and was so excited for this one; it did not disappoint. Her stories always have romance, comedy and a general feel-good story, but I always look forward to the serious issue each book will tackle. In this case, the main character, a portrait artist, deals with sudden face blindness. As I'm sure you can imagine this has a serious impact on her life. Center weaves the stories of a sweet romance, dealing with neighbors, family drama, a life altering medical diagnosis, true friendship, being true to yourself, a love of animals and much more into one novel that has you rooting for the main character the whole way.

This book was amazing and gave me all the feels! The ultimate love story!
Portrait painter, Sadie Montgomery suffers from a rare brain bleed that requires surgery. When she wakes up, she has face-blindness, which ruins her painting career temporarily. Enter two men who Sadie develops feelings for, even though she can’t see their faces. She has to make a choice, devastating one of them. But then it seems she will wind up alone. Will Sadie finally be truthful about what has happened to her before it’s too late?

Another winner by Katherine Center; I swear she only writes great books as this one was every bit as good as the others I have read by her. I always know I can open a new book of hers and feel like I am there watching the characters. They are not words on a page, but I feel like I am there with them.

Sadie has just learned that she is a finalist in an art contest and she can finally show her father that her choice of art as a major was not a waste. Before she can tell him, she has an accident that changes everything. No, not a car accident, but a physical failing accident requiring surgery now instead of completing her art project for the contest.

Without giving anything away, you can assume things don't go as she had planned. What seems like a labor of love, might just involve real love in the end. Pet lovers will also find a lot to like in this story.

A good beach book or one to enjoy while hiding from the heat this summer. 4.5 stars. As always, looking forward to her next one already! Thank you NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest opinion.