Another fabulous read from Katherine Center! While her backlist is great, her last few books have been absolutely incredible!

With The Love Haters, you get some incredible characters. A videographer, a rescue swimmer, a quirky aunt and a Great Dane with the best personality all come through the pages so well in this wonderfully woven story. I appreciate our main relationship so much- the way Katherine went about them felt so fresh and with all of the books out there today that’s a hard thing to do.

The ex-fiancé bugged me- and I know he’s supposed to. But it felt like he either should have been in the story more or just left near the beginning. It wasn’t enough to truly affect my feelings on the book, though.

All in all, this is another one I will be recommending to everyone in my circles!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

Katherine Center has been really hit or miss for me as I have loved The Bodyguard and The Rom-Commers; however, Hello Stranger was not a favorite and unfortunately, this one was not either.

I thought the story was set up well with an immersive setting and lovable characters, yet I was never able to fully get attached to the characters or the relationships. I feel like this was due to what felt like random plot devices thrown in that were predictable yet a bit ridiculous. I really wanted to love this one and am disappointed that I didn't.

This was so sweet and perfect.
Hutch and Katie’s story isn’t just about falling in love it’s about learning to love yourself. It’s about finding a place to belong that makes a place for you too.
It’s about everything the disappearance of a red hibiscus hair clip means. It’s about exchanging monochrome for a bright red sundress. It’s about a Great Dane that knocks you down every time he sees you until you hold him through the biggest thunderstorm ever and probably save him from sharks. It’s about surrendering to the promise of a kiss when you’re suspended over the ocean and viral videos that somehow show the world how you both fell for each other.

Absolutely poignant.
Heart achingly real.
Full of bittersweet truth and a cinematic, technicolor slice of life.

I absolutely ADORED this book!

To avoid a layoff, Katie accepts an offer from her co-worker Cole to fly out to Key West and create a promotional video for the United States Coast Guard featuring rescue swimmer Hutch. The catch: Hutch is Cole's estranged brother and Katie lied about knowing how to swim. Soon Katie finds herself falling head over heels for the handsome Coast Guardsmen, his massive Great Dane, and his charming aunt. Now Katie must decide how far she'll go to save her job as she finds herself caught between two feuding brothers.

There's no other way to say it, The Love Haters is sappy beyond belief. The entire first half is spent on Katie drooling over Hutch that you are so grateful when some conflict finally arrives. From there, the story settles into your standard cheesy romantic comedy (with no steam) that at least has some plot to move it along. Although Center tries to add nuance by discussing body image issues, it never gets the full emotional kick that highlighted some of her better books.

I love Katherine Center. She is a must-read author for me and when I was granted this ARC, I dropped everything else to read it. That said, this wasn’t my favorite of hers. It’s cute, a little quirky and the setting in Key West is great.

My main complaint is with the heroine, Katie, who is talented but underappreciated by her terrible boss. She was also just dumped by her fiancé when he became famous. Add in almost insurmountable insecurities and anxiety and she’s a mess.

That’s fine, but there is so much internal monologuing about how she hates her…everything, that it got very repetitive. Then, as she’s learning to love herself, it started to feel like a self-help book. After reading the author’s note at the end, I guess that was intentional. It just didn't connect for me like her other books.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Katherine Center has a way of writing stories that will rip your broken heart out and tape it back together as you go through a whole roller coaster of emotions. Katie is such a realistic person with all of her struggles and triumphs, and I really enjoyed her journey. Everyone is deserving of love!

I love Katherine Center and have read all her books. Her most recent releases haven't surpassed her earlier works as my all time favorites but this is really up there. I LOVE the cover, I enjoyed the characters, and it has katherine's signature charm and warm feelings. Highly recommend!

In the Love Haters, Katie has a passion for making "A day in the Life" videos. She does these videos on the side while being a video producer for a company whose boss is on a firing rampage. After a coworker, Cole, volunteers Katie for a video on a Coast Guard rescue swimmer to hopefully keep her job, Katie is faced to go up against her greatest fear, swimming. Katie never really learned to swim and now she has to board a helicopter and go out over the open ocean. They even have to put her through a rescue course of her own (Just in case the helicopter goes down during a mission, yikes!!). Cole left out a major detail of this job, the rescue swimmer is actually his brother. And they do not get along. While trying to build a rapport with Hutch and somehow talk him into also doing "A day in the life" video as well as the other profile video, all the family secrets come out and Katie is caught in the middle of Cole and Hutch. How is she going to navigate all of this and keep her job? And is she falling for Hutch and his goofy dog, who keeps jumping on her? She can't be falling for him...
I say this every time I read a Katherine Center book, if you aren't waiting anxiously for her to put out her next book and then devouring it, you are missing out! She always delivers the perfect rom-com!! Centers has the best back and forth, angst-y, unable to stop reading because you have to see the characters together dialogue. She has you turning the pages long into the night and into the day as well. All of her books should be made into a rom-com movie! I would watch these books/ movies over and over again. I will always read anything Katherine Center puts out and I will always recommend her books to anyone who will listen. Special thanks to NetGalley, Katherine Center, and St. Martin's Press for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest opinion. 5 stars for me

I really really enjoyed this book as I do all Katherine Center books to be honest. I loved the fmc character growth and learning how to love herself. Aunt Rue is an amazing character/person, just LOVE her!

Thank you Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for the chance to read this eARC

Katie Vaughn is off to Key West to produce a PR documentary for the US Coast Guard featuring rescue swimmer Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson. It was either that or be one of the employees axed in her company’s cost cutting.

The documentary will include going through some of the training that rescue swimmers endure. No problem — except that Katie can’t swim, and is terrified of helicopters. What could go wrong?

Katherine Center knows how to deliver the goods. Highly recommended. #TheLoveHaters #NetGalley #SaltMarshAuthorSeries

Katherine Center does it again. Another feel good romance that has you cheering for the characters like they were your best friends. The Love Haters will have you laughing out loud and believing in true love.

The Love Haters is a must read if you like romantic comedy stories. The main character, Katie is a video producer who takes on an assignment a little out of her league. Her inner dialog was so relatable that I enjoyed her character a lot. Her assignment is to profile Hutch, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer, but her boss/coworker create a lot of issues for her along the way. This was such a great read and a feel-good story. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the eARC.

3.5 rounded up
Was I missing a chapter? While I live this author and I did live the book, it left me hanging. It needed spice, more than it had. I got to read about Lucky the frog in the epilogue, but nothing on Hutch? Had there been even second base, this would have been a 5. It was too PG13

Thanks to NetGalley, St Martin’s Press, and the author for the chance to read this book.

Katherine Center does it again! I love her writing style, witty banter and chemistry. A great summer/beach read!

4.5 stars
I love Katherine Center!
This book had me laughing out loud! The characters were great.
Katie is a video producer and is trying to save her job. Cole is her boss and wants to help her save her job. He has Katie go to FL to interview Coast Guard hottie Tom “Hutch” Hutchinson.
What can go wrong or right? Let’s see….Aunt Rue, a Great Dane, Katie not being able to swim and faking it, swim lessons, helicopter flights, a hurricane, and more funny things.
Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Could not wait to get my hands on Katherine Center's newest read! But be prepared, this one isn't your typical formulaic rom-com.

Instead of a steamy, tension-filled romance, Center focuses on Katie and Katie's relationship with herself. Throughout the book, Katie has to work through deep-seated body issues. I found myself both rooting for Katie and wanting to tell her to snap out of it! (Fortunately she has Beanie for that!) I was so excited to see where the breakthrough could go.

That said, there is a romance. And Hutch sounds like exactly my dream guy, Katie's too. But this romance didn't pop off the page for me. In fact, its development fell a little flat. I wanted wooing and big declarations. However, that really seemed reserved for Katie's development. Katie and Hutch just seemed to fall together (literally) without much preamble or backstory and build-up. I could have used just a touch more tension. Regardless, Hutch can stay. (Cole, on the other hand, can take a hike.)

I’m sorry! I like Katherine Center but this veered too far into cutesy for my taste, especially the beginning—i expect some degree of implausibility from KC but the first two or three chapters were just the most insane setup so she could put her heroine into the situation she wanted. better once we got there but the fake girlfriend plot line around 75% made me so annoyed. I do feel the heroine was beyond her normal heroine in obliviousness, I think you can struggle with body image without being portrayed as someone everyone falls in love with anyway and you never see that.

I still like her writing and will tune in to the next book. The dog and the pie piece in the eye were very cute. Hutch noticing the sectoral heterochromia was definitely my favorite part

Another great read from Katherine Center! I always know what to expect from her books and this definitely delivered. Great characters, depth, good banter! Interesting reflections on societal beauty standards and the impact they can have on people. Only reason I knocked this down to 3 stars instead of 4 is that the main conflict had to do with basically miscommunication and a somewhat outlandish situation that felt kind of out of place and unrealistic whereas the rest of the book felt very grounded and realistic. Overall a great read though would recommend!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this earl in exchange for my honest opinions all opinions are my own!

I haven't read a Katherine Center book that wasn't 4-5 stars and this one was no exception! I loved the romance between Katie and Hutch but even more so, I loved the romance between Katie and herself. The best love stories are the ones that are about more than romantic love and Katie's self image issues felt extremely personal to me and relatable.

I was so excited to receive an advanced copy from SMP and NetGalley as Katherine Center is a top three author for me. I loved everything about this book. The character development was so strong that I was immediately sucked into the storyline. I loved the bigger lessons in this book, learning to love yourself and learning to conquer your fears. Sometimes that can lead to things you never thought possible. Rue and her friends were a delightful extra to this book. Who wouldn’t want to be friends with them?!? The backstory of Hutch, Cole and Rue was unexpected and heartbreaking but so full of love and redemption that you couldn’t help but smile. Add this to your list to buy in May 2025. “It’s good before, and it’s good during and it’s good after”