The Love Haters - Katherine Center. [Summary: Katie Vaughn has been burned by love in the past—now she may be lighting her career on fire. She has two choices: wait to get laid off from her job as a video producer or, at her coworker Cole’s request, take a career-making gig profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West.
The catch? Katie’s not exactly qualified. She can’t swim—but fakes it that she can.
Plus: Cole is Hutch’s brother. And they don’t get along. Next stop paradise!
But paradise is messier than it seems. As Katie gets entangled with Hutch (the most scientifically good looking man she has ever seen . . . but also a bit of a love hater), along with his colorful Aunt Rue and his rescue Great Dane, she gets trapped in a lie. Or two.
Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines, drinking contests, hurricanes, and stolen kisses ensue—along with chances to tell the truth, to face old fears, and to be truly brave at last.] I received an eARC from Netgalley for an honest review.This is my first Katherine Center book, and I definitely have mixed feelings. I LOVED the main male character, Hutch. Some of the things he says to Katie were just breathtaking. But I had some issues with Katie - her fixation on her body was really hard for me to deal with. In places it was nice to watch her start to love her body, but it was also hard to keep from drowning in her negative thoughts. I mean, the first 60 pages were essentially just Katie talking badly about her thin/conventionally attractive body. I'm not saying she can't have any negative thoughts, but this was A LOT. Almost enough to make me give up. However, I persevered, and I'm SO glad I did. I adored this book by the end. Katie experiences so much. And I'll probably never forget that hibiscus flower clip! The side characters were delightful - from Rue and The Gals, to Cole and even Sullivan. I definitely want to check out more of Center's book, and I might need to reread this one ASAP!

As a self-proclaimed Katherine Center fanatic- this book was so devastatingly raw, fresh, and full of Florida Keys-fun!
I read the book in one sitting- I literally didn’t get up or move.

It’s truly a love story of multitudes. How wonderful to read about relationships that discuss: found family, the physical body, health, spooky exes, hobbies, and most importantly (but not really) a delicious Coast Guard man!

The overall message from this book feels quite profound— Katie coming out of multiple traumatic situations with newfound appreciation for herself and her ability to grow and forgive. I even find myself inspired (and scared) by the Day In My Life idea, paired with the Ten Things I Love About Myself. (Begrudgingly knowing that ten fingers, ten toes, two earlobes, etc. don’t count by Beanie’s standards)

While I can admit, I am quite romantically frustrated at the ending, I can understand why Katherine chose to end the book talking about.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5
Katherine Center wrote a beautiful love story, about learning to love ourselves, and finding love along the way.

The story follows Katie, a videographer, who’s snagged the job opportunity of a lifetime, while trying to stay out of the line of current layoffs. Cole, her coworker, gives her the opportunity that’s he’s trying to avoid, creating a coast guard video about his older brother. Katie is sent and as her life is in turmoil after a breakup with her newly famous, ex fiancé. Her best friend and cousin keeps her going on her self love journey. She meets Cole’s brother Hutch to start the project and starts to fall for him.

This was a cute love story, it hit all the feels, but what I loved the most was the story of Katie learning to love her body a little more. This is such a hard topic to cover and Katherine wrote it beautifully. I really enjoyed the love and friendship and self love all tied in.

I enjoyed this book so much more than I anticipated. As the characters navigate loss, in various forms, love prevails. I think what’s so important is that “love” in this story is more than romantic… it’s friendship, it’s familial, it’s community… and it’s SELF love. This is amazing story that weaves this all together in a truly inspiring way.

Always a fan of Katherine Center's books and this one is no exception. This book is a great mix of complex characters, cute romance, and even some action and suspense! The book follows Katie, a filmaker, who is tasked with creating a recruiting video for the Coast Guard starring Hutch, a rescue swimmer. There are lots of twists and turns throughout and Katie and Hutch must both deal with their difficult pasts. This was a great read, and I finished it in a day and a half. Highly recommend if you are looking for a fun read with some heart.

As much as I love Katherine Center's writing, this one didn't work for me personally. All of the characters were well written and likable but there was such a focus on the main character's body image that there wasn't enough development of the romance. By the end of the book, I didn't really feel like I saw enough of Katie and Hutch's relationship to really root for them.

Katie Vaughn is sent on a work trip to Key West, Florida to film a promotional video for the U.S. Coast Guard, with a feature on a a rescue swimmer named Hutch. Katie arrives under difficult circumstances: lies of omission, the aftermath of a messy breakup, a possibly layoff, and more). If things weren't already stressful enough, Katie is also battling body images issues.

When Katie arrives in Key West she is met by a lovable crew of Rue and The Gals (think Golden Girls).
Between the color that Rue adds to Katie's life, the undeniable sparks with Hutch, the sweet but knock-you-on your fanny Great Dane (George Bailey), the self-help obssesssed best friend, and the thrill and excitement of U.S. Coast Guard rescue work - this is a book you don't want to put down. It made my heart race in more ways than one. I served in the military so a man in uniform is just "another day at the office" to me, but not here. Hutch is totally swoon-worthy.

This book made me feel all the feels - I'm crying and cursing one minute, and laughing the next. You know that if you're reading one of K.C.'s books whatever you're holding in has no choice but to come out. Every.single.time. And I love every minute of it!

I genuinely appreciate how this book is about many different types of love including the love of self. Make sure that when you read this book (and why wouldn't you) that you read the author's note at the end. It's as good as the book itself. It's so beautiful, and inspiring. I'm such a devoted fan and can't wait to see what she writes next.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Get this book wherever books are sold on May 20, 2025.

P.S. I remember on Instagram when K.C. was trying to find different ways to write "dare to hope" and asked for input. I immediately spotted it in the book when I started it this morning, and it made me smile. If her writing alone wasn't reason enough to be a fan, she is also one of the kindest and most interactive authors I have seen on social media. Truly lovely.

Ms. Center is over here doing the Lord’s work blessing us with that ~read now~ feature on @netgalley. As with any book she writes, this one was super cute. Her books have zero spice- but always have the best romance story lines. The main character in this story has a very poor body image and Katherine wrote about it with such vulnerability and care. There was a beautiful character transformation and message. I feel like this would be a great read for teenagers in teaching them how to love their bodies ❤️ All that to say EVERYONE should add this to their TBR list when it comes out in May 😘

Katie pulls a Hail Mary to avoid getting fired from her video production job by going to Key West to profile a coast guard rescue swimmer named Hutch. What she doesn’t realize is along with the job she will get sucked into a family feud, tackled by a Great Dane more than once, and have to face her fear of wearing a swimsuit. Oh and did I mention she can’t swim? Thankfully she has a professional rescue swimmer to teach her a few things!

Everything that could have happened in this book happened, at the perfect time.

Katie is a video producer who is on the cusp of being laid off. She is offered a job by one of her bosses, Cole, in the Keys promoting entry to the coast guard through shooting videos of “Hutch”- who was written PERFECTLY. Although this book has the most fall in lovable characters (Rue is the most wonderful human) it does focus a lot on body image in the first half (which is wonderful because it shows growth and self acceptance which is ALWAYS a chefs kiss) and then in the second half I just got so into the characters that I wanted to scream into the book at them. Overall, this book was worth the read. I am rating this book 3 stars because the beginning was a little hard to get into, but once I got around 50% of the way in, I was in it.

I loved this book. I loved the cover of it, very summery and I’d want to re read it in the summer! This wasn’t just a cutesy romance. There was more to if, focused on real issues like with body image.

Absolutely delightful. This book completely sucked me in. Hutch is absolutely dreamy and Katie is so funny. Some of the more dramatic parts weren’t 100% believable but that’s the fun of reading a book, isn’t it? As always, the author’s note blew me away and I finished this book way too fast with a smile on my face!

Katherine Center has been a pre-order always author for me so I was absolutely thrilled to get the ARC for this. She has the incredible ability of being able to combine personal growth/healing and romance in a way that's relatable and so fun to read, and this one was no different. We follow videographer Katie Vaughn to Key West on a project to film her boss's coast guard brother Hutch on an assignment that may decide her professional fate. In desperation to land the role, Katie omits the tiny little detail that she doesn't know how to swim. But more than that shortcoming, Katie has a lot more pressing fears to deal with. Like many women, she deals with a lot insecurity and body dismorphia, steming from childhood, an ex, and relentless online bullies. Katherine Center wrote this difficult subject well and gives Katie's issues with her image and her budding romance with Hutch and equal amount of page time. And when those two storylines merge and Katie lets Hutch into her head a little bit, it felt like a natural progression and was very sweet to read.

All in all, this was a beautiful and vibrant story with a relatable lead, a swoony love interest, the best ensemble of side characters, and a loveably dopey Great Dane. I mostly liked this book, but did want to see a little bit more of Katie and Hutch on the page as I did feel their romance took a little bit of a step aside for Katie to combat her fears and insecurities. In the author's note, Katherine described this book as almost an enemies to lovers romance between Katherine and her body in which she learns to love herself over time and I do appreciate her intention and she mostly nailed it, but at times it felt like it overpowered the plot. Nonetheless, Katherine Center still remains a favorite of mine.

Sidenote: I think I may have read a different version of this book as some of the other reviewers who had ARCs, and perhaps Katherine went back and changed a few things (in the epilogue specifically), as it mostly was just giving us an update on the characters and included one page about the importance of facing your fears. I would have loved a little more of Katie and Hutch in the epilogue though.

I really didn't expect much from this book after reading the first few pages, but I loved it so much that I finished it in one day. I especially loved the themes of self-acceptance and conquering your fears that were woven throughout the story. The characters were relatable, and the love story was not too over the top. Highly recommend for those who want to get lost in the pages of a good story.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this advanced reader's copy.

This book is everything. Katie’s story made me feel seen. I laughed, I smiled, I cried big tears, and I will 100% be reading it again. Make sure to buy this when it comes out!

4.5 for me.

I read a lot of contemporary romances, often of the romantic comedy or smutty variety, but Katherine Center’s main characters always get me. She has a way of writing characters with relatable issues who find themselves in situations we never hope to be in ourselves. Then we get to watch how they support one another through it.

Her author’s note really sums up what she does so perfectly. “Trust me, and trust yourself: love stories are the best kind of therapy. They aren't shallow, they're deep. Start looking, and you'll see it too.
Love stories make us better at love. In all directions. And getting better at love, of course, means getting better at life.”

This book gave me such hope: hope to overcome personal issues, strategies to solve communication issues in my own relationships and the motivation to keep making little efforts in hopes that they snowball into bigger ones.

I kept trying to cast these characters in my head and can’t wait to discuss with my friends who they would cast once the book is released!

As usual, Katherine Center made me laugh, and cry. I loved this book. The characters are funny and relatable. Except Hut h, because he’s perfect. I also really enjoyed the key west setting, it’s one of my favorite places and a little return trip via this book was a perfect cure for my winter time blues. One of my most favorite things was that I didn’t have to worry too much about George Bailey. I trusted KC to keep him safe and she did. I highly recommend this to fans of Katherine Center, and those who are live haters. Thank you to Net Galley and St Martin’s Press for the eARC.

Another great Katherine Center story! The Love Haters was a fun, wildly funny escape! I love this author’s voice. It is the combination snarky, self-effacing and brutally honest. I feel like her voice matches the one in my head! She puts down on paper what we are all thinking and in this story, the issues surrounding body image and how I see myself rang true I am sure other women will be able to relate as well!

I loved this book so much! It was such a fun quick read. There were so many great characters that I feel in love with, George Bailey was one of my personal favorites. A rescue dog with a big personality. I found Cole to be an Incredible frustrating character, but happy that in the end he made up with his brother. Rue was such a fun loving character who would bend over backwards to help everyone. My only negative thing about the book is that I would have liked to see a little more romance between the main characters, I felt like it was so minimal and I wanted just a little more. Not smut but just more tension and passion between the characters. Thanks for this opportunity. I love all of Katherine’s books!!

I’ve read a number of Katherine Center books and have enjoyed them all, so I was really excited to get this ARC. The previous KC books I’ve read fall into one of two styles: lighthearted and somewhat silly/over-the-top fun rom-coms OR deeper stories. I think The Love Haters is a combination of both styles!

The FMC (Katie) is assigned a work trip to Key West to shadow and film Hutch (a coast guard rescue swimmer) who happens to be her colleague/sorta-boss’ brother/rival. There are a few major issues, though. For one, Katie does not know how to swim, which is kind of critical in that environment. There is a lot riding on this project for everyone involved - Katie’s job is on the line, she has to face her fears and body-image issues, as well as Hutch and his brothers’ strained relationship and complicated history.

I loved all the side characters in this story: Rue & The Gals for taking Katie in and supporting her immediately, Hutch’s giant “puppy,” and Katie’s BFF who is her voice of reason. This book had me giddy, giggling and smiling at the goofy humor and charm that is characteristic of KC’s writing. As someone who is in the mental health field, I loved the psychological themes: exposure therapy principles for conquering fears and the application of Gottman principles to loving oneself (as opposed to applying solely in relationships with others). I loved the author’s note at the end that explained how this book has a theme for enemies-to-lovers applied to oneself (Katie’s healing journey) as well as the themes of love across characters (friends, family, including pets and found family, AND to oneself), and how KC aims to write relatable stories that really pull you in. She certainly had this effect on me, because I couldn’t put this one down.

If you’re a fan of KC’s other books, I think you’ll really enjoy this one.

Thanks to the publisher (St. Martin’s Press), viaNetGalley, for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Katherine Center has done it again with “The Love Haters,” a heartfelt and witty story about love, healing, and second chances. This book had me laughing, crying, and rooting for the characters from start to finish.

Jo, the fiercely independent protagonist, is determined to live life on her own terms, especially after a string of romantic disasters. Enter Will, her annoyingly charming coworker who seems to delight in challenging her “no-love” stance. Their banter is electric, and watching their relationship evolve from reluctant allies to something much deeper was pure joy.

I loved how Center weaved in themes of vulnerability and self-discovery while keeping the plot lighthearted and engaging. The twist involving Jo’s past and her unexpected bond with Will’s sister added an emotional layer that hit all the right notes.

While some parts of the story were a bit predictable, the chemistry between Jo and Will, paired with Center’s signature humor and heart, made this a thoroughly enjoyable read. Highly recommend for anyone who loves a romance with depth and charm!