I’d like to thank Katherine Center, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 ⭐

In The Love Haters we follow our hilarious anxiety filled main character Katie who is about to get fired, so she omits a few details in order to be given a job. Cole, her supervisor chooses her to go in his place to film a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West for a promo to get more people to sign up for their job. The reason he didn't choose someone else? They couldn't swim. Fun fact, Katie can't either but that's fine, right?

Another detail she learns, is the Coast Guard rescue swimmer they'll be filming is internet famous for saving Jennifer Anniston's dog, referred to as Pup Daddy. He's also Cole's brother, and his name is Tom "Hutch" Hutcheson. And according to Cole, he's a love hater, but that's fine. Katie is too. While in Key West she meets their Aunt Rue, a very colorful woman, and Hutch's Great Dane, and ends up trapped in several lies Cole tells.

The Love Haters is a beautiful book, but it's also going to be very hard to read for some people. It was hard to read for me. This book is not just a romance. It's about a woman with an eating disorder learning to love herself for the first time, facing her fears and falling in love with someone who notices all these little things about her nobody else ever cared to. She never realized they mattered, making her feel seen without the fear of being too vulnerable, giving her the opportunity to be herself for the first time.

The Love Haters is body positive in a way that is respectful and careful to those who are still learning to love their bodies. I've been in recovery from an eating disorder for years, and this book still lightly triggered me and made me cry in some sections, so I want people to be cautious when entering the book. That's not to say its a dark and dreary book, its fun and funny and Katie has a great relationship with both Hutch, and his aunt, and her best friend and cousin Beanie who she calls everyday. The romance is very realistically paced, and fun to watch unfold. There's a lot of substance to this book, more so than just the romance, which if you know Katherine Center's books will not be a surprise to you. She's a women's fiction author first, wanting the reader to see themselves in the characters and as they learn to love themselves, hope you in the process of reading, learn to love yourself as well.

Trigger Warnings I Gathered: cyber bullying, body shaming, depictions of eating disorder, sexual harassment, car accident, parent death, grief, infidelity

As always Katherine Center does it again with all the feels. I laughed, I cried, I had a blast.

Katherine has always been an auto read author for me and I love how she's always able to so elegantly approach topics that are on the heavier side, especially in the romcom genre.

Pre-Read notes

I'm a long-time and unabashed Katherine Center fan. My favorite from her is Hello Stranger (my review!). It brims with adorable people, animals, and scenarios, and made me feel like cotton candy on the inside. But most importantly, it just bursts with positive disability rep.

Katherine Center writes about what matters, including love. She's the romance writer for non-tomance readers who love love and other stuff that matters lol!

Seriously, she's fun and smart, check her out.

Final Review

I stood up for myself. “Don’t act like this is ridiculous.” Softly, hoping not to hurt my feelings , Beanie said, “It is ridiculous.”“Hey,” I said, “I don’t need your judgment.” p51

I'm shocked to say this...but I didn't think this was a good book, which is unusual for Katherine Center, in my experience. And as it turns out, I'm not an outlier. A lot of readers were uncomfortable with the same elements I was (though, to be fair, sometimes others weighed in on different points of the same issue). I really didn't like how she managed the theme of body dysmorphia and eating disorders, as these are serious conditions and they were treated very much as a plot device here. But if this sort of thing doesn't bug you, you'll probably like it, as otherwise it's silly and pretty cute.

My three favorite things:

🪙 The penny thing! You'll see!

🐕 George Bailey was my favorite comedic element in an entire romcom! He engineered all my lol moments.

👖 Love an independent woman in black jeans!

TW: ED, disordered e*ting, diet culture, anorexia, binge e*ting, stigmatizing, bullying, gaslighting, armchair psychology, objectification, animal injury, open water.

Thank you to the author Katherine Center, publishers St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for an accessible digital arc of THE LOVE HATERS. All views are mine.

4🌟 so lucky to have received an ARC of this book!! I really love katherine center’s writing, so I was super excited about this one. katie travels to key west to try to save her job by filming a video for the coast guard (cue tom!!). their romance is really sweet, and there were also themes of loss, learning to love yourself and your body, and a found family vibe!! this is such a cute spring / summer read, and the action aspects with tom and the coast guard were super cute! and the best part of the book was a supporting character, tom’s dog george bailey 🫶🏼

Katie is at a crossroads. She can either be laid off from her job or profile a rescue swimmer in Key West. The one thing standing in her way is her inability to swim. Katie gets attached to Hutch, his Aunt Rue, and his rescue dog.

This has a great plot touching on loving yourself, friendships and loss. I really enjoyed the main characters and how their love story unfolded. Another must read from Katherine Center!

Thank you to Katherine Center, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Katherine Center is one of my favorites and I know people will love this one. It's funny, has thought provoking moments, a hot rescue swimmer, grumpy/sunshine trope and many moments that will have you swooning. Both The Rom-Commers and The Bodyguard will always be two of my favorite of Katherine Center, they just hold a special place in my heart, but this one really came in close. The level of research she did was evident. Through this beautiful love story, I also learned a lot about the Coast Guard and Rescue Swimming, which was fascinating.

"It was like there was this extra layer of energy whenever we were around each other that just kind of amplified the whatever was happening. Something that would be serious with somebody else felt earth-shaking with him. And anything mildly funny became hilarious."

This was a really interesting storyline and a fun story to read.

Katie's boss, Cole, sends her down to Florida to interview a Coast Guard rescue swimmer hero - and she's fighting to keep her job due to layoffs. In Key West, Katie meets Hutch and his kooky aunt and her gang of friends. They live in remodeled motel court and Hutch teaches them how to swim in his offtime. It's an awesome setting and I'd love to visit! Cole had told Katie that Hutch was a love-hater, but everything she's learning about him points in the other direction, he's a super sweet guy. Then Katie learns more about Cole and Hutch, and their family, in the midst of an oncoming hurricane. There is a dramatic ocean rescue and an adorable dog.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for a temporary, digital ARC in return for my review.

Katie doesn't have much luck with love. Now, she has the opportunity to jump start her career! Instead of being laid off, she can take the opportunity to profile Tom "Hutch" Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West.

Katie's not qualified. She can't even swim.

Katie gets entangled with Hutch, his Aunt Rue, and his Great Dane. She gets caught in a few lies.

Through swim lessons, flights, conga lines, hurricanes, and more, the two decide they love one another. They need to decide if they are brave enough to give in to love.

Loved this one! Katherine Center’s books always have more depth than just your typical romcom and that’s what makes them so impactful & memorable. This one is no different. The Love Haters is full of fun scenes, a beautiful setting, life lessons, and swoon worthy kisses.

Katherine Center is a must read author for me. This book was not my favorite of hers, however it was still a page turning slow burn grumpy/sunshine romance. Add in a huge Great Dane that’s tackling you every time you encounter him and it makes for a humorously delightful read. It also dives into the work the coast guard does. I found this interesting because along with the FMC, I had really no clue what the coast guard did. There are so many lovable characters and lessons about body positivity woven through the pages. Definitely pick this one up!

I found this story delightful. Katie is strongly encouraged by a superior at her work to take a particular videography assignment to show her worth when layoffs are looming. Cole doesn't want the assignment because he would have to follow his big brother around and show how great he is. Katie takes the job and as she's in the Florida Keys, she has space and time to process some of her self-worth issues from her previous relationship.

Hutch is so great. I think the reader didn't get to fully embrace how grumpy he's supposed to be, but he really is a fun hero. He's logical and matter-of-fact and so calm since his job is to rescue people. Center's banter and the quick-moving plot drew my interest so I wasn't fully prepared for the emotional past that Hutch and Cole share with Rue. Rue and her friends were the perfect pot-stirrers to push Katie and Hutch along in their relationship.

I'd probably read Center's grocery list so reading another novel was a delight.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

I received an arc from NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

Katherine Center is one of my new found authors and I enjoy her humor and story-lines. This book has unique characters that will make you laugh through some of their situations but also you will feel the struggle in others. Hutch is a kind and protective individual with his family and with Katie after meeting her for the first time. He truly "Sees" Katie for who she is and treats her with respect. Although they have their ups and downs the truth and their feelings come out in the end.

The secondary characters were just as interesting, especially Rue and of course George Bailey. Who could forget George and his adventures.

I would definitely recommend this book to others and it's a great spring/summer read.

Another fun read from Katherine Center! I loved the Key West setting, and my favorite character was George Bailey--the dog (of course). I also adored Rue and The Gals. They really made this book what it was, and I'd totally love a book or series about them!
A perfect summer/vacation read!

The first paragraph is just for my NetGalley.com, GoodReads.com and Bookbub.com review. It will not be included in my Amazon and Barnes & Noble post.

There are a few authors (for example Katherine Center) that I request their books on NetGalley and then I save them like a treasure to be opened in the future. I do not read them as soon as possible. I let them sit a while in my TBR listing, waiting for that special moment that I have no clear understanding of when that is. At a point where I just have that feeling to begin reading, I do.

Katherine Center is one of my favorite authors. I love her writing, plots and characters so much, that I do not want to actually begin the book because I know that all I will want to do it read it! Also, unfortunately that means I will finish the book much too quickly and then it will be over.

This book starts as many of Ms. Center’s books do. A situation happens that completely draws the reader’s attention, and then she holds it for the entire book. I was totally involved in the story from the beginning. I felt so close to the main character Katie. If you never had body image issues, consider yourself lucky, but I think most people do have some hangups about their bodies. This book explores that theme as well as family and friendship.


As much as this book would make a fantastic movie, I don’t want that movie to be made since an actor would have to be chosen for the role of Katie. Whoever would be chosen would be wrong for some readers and great for others. The problem is that Katie constantly is thinking about her body, and not in a good way. She is always concentrating on her weight. Not showing love and kindness to this wonderful “thing” that keeps her alive by breathing, and her two glorious legs that carry her, and her imaginative brain that give her so much joy and pain with its thoughts and so on. So, whoever is cast as this beautiful person would be too heavy in weight for some and not heavy enough for others. We all have our ideal body in our thoughts, and I think most people would not agree on that ideal. This is the only reason I would not like this book to be made into a movie.

The story is believable and well researched. It took me to Key West and I enjoyed the journey of getting to know Katie and Hutch and the other characters. I think Ms. Center has another gem to add to her wonderful collection of books she has written!

A sincere thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for giving me the immense pleasure of reading the advance reader copy, with no obligation to write a review. My review is written freely as a hobby, and is totally my own opinion, not influenced by receiving the ARC.

“Every time you have to be brave, you get a little braver next time. That’s what life is for.”

Katie is in the midst of a career purgatory- never certain if she’s on the verge of her big breakthrough or about to be laid off. So when her co worker, Cole suggests she take on a gig that’s out of her comfort zone, she feels she has no choice but to accept.

Before long she finds herself headed out to Key West, tasked with profiling everyday hero, Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard that made a big splash rescuing a swimmer. But her plans might not go so swimmingly since Hutch has made it abundantly clear he doesn’t want fame or fortune. Another hitch? Katie lied and said she can swim. Needless to say she’s on the verge of drowning in more ways than one.

Predictably, Katie begins to fall in love with Hutch’s fiery Aunt Rue and her Golden Girlsesque gal pals, along with developing a special affinity for George Bailey, Hutch’s affable dog. Katie also finds herself slowly gravitating towards Hutch too-the strong, silent type surprisingly warm and fuzzy once given the chance. But as some truth behind the assignment comes to surface, it’s hard to not get pulled under by the rip tide of lies. Can Katie keep her head (and her heart) above water?

The Love Haters is the latest super fun romcom from one of my all time favorite authors, Katherine Center. In what’s quickly become Center’s signature style, the story marries quick witted banter with sweet self depreciation that reminds me of the romantic “comfort” comedies of my youth. It also continues to be a breath of fresh air that Center constantly pulls off swoon worthy love stories that lack spice, without sacrificing the heat.

If you’re a fan of her books, you will not be disappointed in this one- The Love Haters being one romance that you can’t help but to love.

I always enjoy Katherine Center's books and this was no exception! There was a ton of heart and a lot of really interesting information about rescue swimmers.

The characters are magnificent. Katie and Hutch have excellent chemistry from the first meeting and even through all the ups and downs, their relationship is believable and fun. I'd read a whole book about Rue and the Gals without question. Not to mention my personal favorite Great Dane, George Bailey.

A really fun story with charming characters and a very interesting premise. Highly recommend.

2.5 stars rounded up

Katherine Center is an automatic read for me. The Rom-Commers was one of my favorite books of last year! Unfortunately, this one fell a little flat. I appreciated the commentary on body image and thought Hutch, Rue, and The Gals were the sweetest, but something about this book left me wanting more. The story didn't feel as fleshed out as her others. I'll still continue to support my gal KC no matter what!

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

This book is cute, funny and gives off all the vibes of a good rom-com!

The book revolves around Katie who is on the cusp of losing her job. In an attempt to not lose said job, she takes an assignment offered to her by her coworker, Cole. Cole has no interest in working this particular assignment since it involves his brother, Hutch, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer.

Katie decides to take the assignment despite her reservations and the fact that she will be required to swim - just one thing, she cannot swim which is a real problem when having to go through training preparations. Katie heads off to Key West and while this should be somewhat fun, she is pretty much thrown off balance by everything. Hutch is attractive and talented at his job. He takes the time to teach Katie to swim and he has a Great Dane who immediately adores her. She has been burned in love, lost in love and she completely thrown off by Hutch.

Katie meets Rue, who is obsessed with bright colors, she makes friends with a group of older women, she spends time with Hutch, training on the helicopter and having more fun than she thought. Until everything gets out of hand - Cole is suddenly there facing his brother, trapping Katie in lies and forcing tension between Katie and Hutch. Still, the kicker is the hurricane Katie finds herself in all because of a Great Dane she just could not leave behind.

The book is filled with numerous situations that had me laughing. Rue and her friends are amazing, the decisions Cole’s make are wild and while hurricanes are extremely serious, Katie’s running commentary with herself and the Great Dane had me laughing out loud.

Through all the fun and entertainment of the story, Katherine Center addresses the issue of body image and simply learning to completely embrace who you are as a person. Katie deals with body issues and as beautiful and capable. Center is an advocate of positive body image and personal self. This does not take away from the novel, it simply addresses an issue many women struggle with and she shows how acceptance is necessary.

I enjoyed this book very much. It is a recommend read from me!

4.5/5 stars

I've probably said this before, but Center's books are an automatic read for me. Whether or not I think the story or characters are exceptional, her writing and thoughts on life in general always leave me uplifted and feeling refreshed and recharged. This one is no exception to the rule.

Katie was such a joy to spend time with...Hutch too, but Katie was the brightest star in the book. Center wrote her as sort of an "Everywoman", a relatable mix of vulnerable and capable, with lots to still learn about herself. She's both cringeworthy and cheer worthy and sometimes even in the same paragraph. She knows her worth in some areas (her job), but in others she's flustered and insecure (her body image). But with the help of her supporting hero (and a wonderful mix of secondary characters) she's able to reconcile her outside and inside selves and begin to treasure the traits and loveliness of both aspects of herself.

And speaking of her family and friends, Center has a way with those as well. They feel as "real" and relatable as her mains, and I especially look for that in the books I read. Beanie, Rue, George Bailey, etc. are hilarious and every bit as foundational to Katie's story as Hutch himself becomes. They each bring different things to the collective table and help make Katie even more lovable and approachable as a character.

And I'd like to emphasize the humor in Center's books. She's one of few writers that I can easily find myself in stitches over with her dry wit and "snarkiness".

So yes, I highly recommend this one as well. It's funny, heartwarming, enlightening and a treatise on how and why we should love ourselves.

My sincere thanks to the author, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing the free early arc of The Love Haters for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

I'm thankful to the publisher for an ARC of this book. I've been a big fan of Katherine Center from almost the beginning, although not every book has been a winner for me (The Bodyguard was definitely not a fave). I think her writing has a lot of humor, which I love and last year, I appreciated her treatise on why love stories matter in her author's note. That said, this book felt very preachy in a way that turned me off to it. I just don't buy that someone could turn around their negative self image so easily, and the plentiful monologues about living life to the fullest and choosing happiness and joy felt like they weren't an extension of the story and could have been better as an author's note. I liked the characters, I certainly laughed at a few of the plot points and especially enjoyed George Bailey. I'm not sure I loved the first person narrative although it grew on me as the story progressed. All in all, it was a fun summer read, just not my favorite love story of the year like last year's Rom Commers was.