Thank you to Katherine and NetGalley for the ARC in return for my honest review.

This is my third book of Katherine's, and I love her writing style and characters every time. This book had it all: family, girlfriends, romance, and a cute dog!

I loved the Coast Guard aspect and seeing some of the military terms and adventures from both POVs. Also, her body image issues were nice to see, as all women likely have some of those insecurities too.

I already have a few more of her books bumped up on my TBR!

Katie is an ambitious, creative and courageous woman whose growth is so heartbreaking and admirable all at once. She’s relatable in the most realistic way. Then you have Hutch who is the cream of the crop specimen of a human! He’s just too unreal, I couldn’t even handle it… in a good way! As for Beanie and Rue, everyone should have versions of them in their own lives. And George Bailey? None of this would at all be possible without you! Then mix this all in with some action I didn’t expect? Chef’s kiss!

This is truly a love story unlike any other. It’s one that we have with ourselves first, and then some. It’s when you’re at your limits and deciding how far you’re willing to push past your fears. It’s knowing that you are more than how the world sees you, and the reminder that what matters most is how you see yourself. It’s an ode to the best parts of humanity at its finest. An appreciation to those who stood by us, in our past and present lives. It’s a warm embrace to our furry friends who need us as much as we need them, as well as to The Gals, who know so much more than we give them credit for. And a salute to those who risk their lives to save us on a daily.

Another tug to my heartstrings and tear ducts brought to me once again by Katherine Center, thank you for sharing your magic!

Also, thank you to NetGalley for the eARC!

A great rom com that kept me entertained. I blew through it. It’s pretty far fetched but ultimately a great read.

The Love Haters is such a beautiful story about finding yourself, loving yourself and giving yourself the grace you deserve. I feel that Katherine C., handled the sensitive topics with care. But in the midst of this, you have a laugh out loud story about Katie, who is just trying to keep her job.

One quote that stuck with me
“But I bullied you. I picked on you like the meanest mean girl in the world. I made you hate yourself”

I struck me because I resonated with it.
I can’t wait for others to read this. It’s just hilarious, beautiful and heartwarming.
Thank you for allowing me to read this.

Goodreads handle (Brenda (jadore_2read)).

I DEVOURED THIS!!!! Center nails that perfect mix of humor and heart—Zoey’s sarcastic but relatable, and you can’t help but root for her as she learns to love herself again. The side characters are lit too, showing that love isn’t just romantic, but about friendships and family. It’s a quick, feel-good read with a good balance of tension and warmth. Thank you!

What to say about this book other than I loved it! Was this a love story, yes but more of a love of falling in love with yourself and accepting who you are. This book had adventure, adrenaline, mind reframing of how you look at yourself and of course a love story. The characters were likeable, well other than Cole/Ace but he was meant to be unlikable so it was perfect. I highly recommend reading this book when it comes out, hell I plan to read it again.

Katie has hit a rough patch. She has low self-esteem, heartbreak from a recent break-up, and may be at risk for losing her job. When she gets the chance to produce a video in Key West, she jumps at the chance. This new job presents some challenges and a potential chance at love. I loved Katie and the colorful supporting characters (especially the dog!). I recommend reading this heartfelt book!

I will preface this by saying I really love Katherine Center as an author. However, I felt this book had a lot of potential, but I just wasn't believing the connection between the FMC and the MMC. He kept trauma dumping about his ex-fiancé situation and his whole family backstory, but it all felt SO far-fetched and unrealistic with how easily he shared such traumatic details. I wished there was more of a spark beside friendship between the MCs because the "love" story wasnt believable to me. I liked the tie-ins to serious issues like body image, but the whole hurricane and houseboat drama, body apology scene, and ending rescue also felt really cheesy and unrealistic. Overall, a decent read!

Thank you #netgalley and #stmartinspress for letting me review The Love Haters by Katherine Center. I’m always sad when I finish one of her books because reading them is so joyful. I could read her shopping list and be thrilled. Don’t just read this book. Go back and read ALL of her books. You won’t be sorry.

3.5 rounded up to 4

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the Arc.

A year after breaking up with her musician fiancé who seemingly got famous overnight, Katie is dealing with a series of body image issues. Katie was not treated kindly by the press or her fiancé’s fans, and is now content to fade into the background. This aligns perfectly with her job at a video production company, unfortunately for her, they are going through mass layoffs. In an effort to save her job, one of her superiors, Cole has offered her a gig down in Key West interviewing his brother ‘Hutch’ a Coast Guard rescue swimmer. Cole warns Katie that Hutch is a serious, reserved, unfriendly, love hater, except the person Katie meets is nothing like Cole described.

The first 200 pages or so were very enjoyable. After that is when things started to turn a little sour for me. Mostly because the main character gets roped into a web of lies that she didn’t tell, don’t really benefit her, and hurt the people around her. I don’t mind when characters have to work their way out of a situation they created but in this case Katie was just kind of stuck there as a passenger in Cole’s insufferable charades.

This book does have some great Katherine Center staples including personal growth and healing, an older wiser character who’s sees the main character clearly, and a long epilogue covering the whole cast of characters.

I don’t love this one as much as other Katherine Center books, but overall, it was quick, easy, and fun read.

**spoiler alert** This review is based on an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review This review may contain spoilers.

I requested an ARC of The Love Haters because I like Katherine Center, and the colorful, bright, and fun cover immediately caught my eye. What I didn’t expect was the powerful message hidden behind that cheerful exterior—a message I didn’t know I needed to hear. I had no idea this book would resonate with me on such a deep level, leaving me feeling a full range of emotions in the best way possible.

I have to start with Hutch—because wow—but Katie is where my true connection lies. Tom “Hutch” Hutcherson. Need I say more? A swoony, broody man who literally rescues people for a living? I could go on and on. While I despised the turmoil his brother caused, I adored watching Katie fall for Hutch, and I wish I could relive their love story over and over again. I loved how he noticed the little things about Katie—the things she couldn’t see in herself. In private, he was a complete cinnamon roll for her, and I savored every second. Beneath his handsome face and grumpy exterior was a man shaped by deep loss, and learning about the painful loss of his parents only made me love him more.

This is the kind of story where even the side characters leave an impact. Beanie, though present mostly through phone calls, still felt deeply real to me. Rue and The Gals had small but memorable appearances, and I loved them as if they had been in every chapter. Center has a gift for crafting dimensional, lovable characters, and it’s something I truly admire. And, of course, I can’t forget George Bailey, the sweet Great Dane.

One thing I really appreciated was the fresh take on rom-com careers. While I love the classic writers, bookshop owners, and publishing interns, it was refreshing to see both Katie and Hutch in less conventional roles. I not only enjoyed learning about documentary filmmaking and the Coast Guard, but I found myself fascinated by the details—especially the lingo of the rescue swimmers. Experiencing that alongside Katie made it all the more immersive.

Now, Katie. I saw so much of myself in Katie, and that’s not something I say often about leading ladies. Her struggles with self-confidence, heartbreak, and insecurity were incredibly real, and watching her overcome those hurdles in a way that wasn’t cheesy spoke to me on so many levels. There were moments inside Katie’s head where I had to pause because it felt like my own thoughts staring back at me. The way she viewed herself—her body, her worth—felt painfully familiar. At times, I expected to cry because of how much I related to her pain, but instead, I found myself wanting to cry happy tears as I watched her grow.

Katie was surrounded by people who saw what she couldn’t see in herself—Hutch, Rue, Beanie—and that, too, felt deeply relatable. We are our own worst critics, tearing ourselves down while assuming others must see us the same way. But the most powerful part of Katie’s journey was how real her journey of self-love felt. It wasn’t a sudden revelation—it was small, intentional baby steps. Her “love list”—starting with a single earlobe—made me laugh and cry all at once. It was so simple yet so powerful, and it left me feeling inspired to start my own. Though THE Hutch Hutcherson is undoubtedly the dream MMC, it was my connection to Katie that made this book a true favorite for me.

Overall, The Love Haters is, at its core, a love story—despite what the title may imply. It’s a story of falling in love with someone else, yes, but more importantly, it’s about learning to love yourself. I would recommend this book to anyone who has ever looked into a mirror and picked themselves apart. To anyone who has ever chosen to focus on their perceived flaws rather than recognize the beauty in themselves. This book is for you.

I was excited to get a copy of this new book by an author Ive enjoyed in the past. This was a cute love story set in Key West. Katie is a video producer who gets stuck faking her way thru a shoot with Hutch. I didn't love the body image storyline, I felt that was kind of offputting at times, as someone who struggles with that It felt unauthentic? But otherwise this is a cute, easy romance...the characters overall were fine. Not her best book for sure, but I was engaged and somewhat entertained.

This book is a love story about Katie falling in love with all of the different parts of herself. While there is a romantic interest, the main story arc belongs to her.

The author gives us a cast of characters who play varyingly important roles, most of whom have compelling backstories. A romantic interest (Hutch), a work superior (and Hutch’s semi-estranged brother), a wise matriarch with her band of ‘Gals’, and a best friend who knows Katie better than she knows herself.

At first, I thought our narrator Katie's inner dialog felt a bit quippy and unserious. I questioned if this was a writing style, but as her character grew, her thoughts became more introspective and empathetic while still maintaining her original tone. I’m not so sure how much it changed, as opposed to how the quirks of the character grew on me with more context.

The twist and turns of this plot gave me a bit of whiplash. While all the different facets were entertaining on their own, it was a bit of a jumble sorting the important parts that furthered the story, from the ones that didn’t. This was also the case with a side character who was used in a ‘villain’ role to advance an agenda. In my opinion, it wasn’t all that effective, and we could have done without.

Katie’s struggles, and how she thinks and responds in the situations she finds herself in, are very relatable to a lot of readers. We can find common ground with her, even though the predicaments she finds herself in might feel haphazard or prolonged. Hutch’s backstory, profession, and general good guy-ness help her put what is important in life into perspective.
His character elevates and compliments Katie’s while being complex, well rounded, and very likeable on its own.

This book highlights the idea that to love others, you have to first know how to love yourself.
I've enjoyed a lot of Katherine Centers books. While this one may not have been my favorite, I will still read whatever she comes out with next.

A love story? Yes but actually the story of a woman facing her fears and challenging herself to overcome them. All the challenges happen within a framework of a mini documentary creator and a Coast Guard water rescuer. A wonderful tale all around.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

In the Love Haters, a video producer is sent to Key West to film a recruiting video for the Coast Guard in the hopes that she can keep her job. She neglects to mention that she can’t swim. And her coworker Cole, who asks her to go, neglects to mention that his brother, Hutch, is expecting him to be there in her place.

I really love Katherine Center. She writes great characters and interesting stories and The Love Haters is no exception. Katie and Rue are standouts to me in this one. Oh and of course, George Bailey. I was also really interested in the sibling dynamic between Cole and Hutch. She always writes cute and fun romances. Initially, I was wondering if there would be one at all in his book but once it starts, it speeds up quick and obviously with any romcom, there is a weird conflict. The one in this book really made me want to keep reading to see what would happen. A lot of this story was unexpected… possibly because I know nothing about the Coast Guard and like the FMC, I am not a great swimmer.

I didn’t love the focus on body image in this one. I think it was resolved nicely and the way it was handled overall wasn’t inherently bad but it just isn’t something I don’t currently feel comfortable reading about. I don’t think it’ll bother everyone but it was one of the only things that made this not a 5 star read for me.

Overall, I did have a great time with this book and I’d recommend it to anyone who likes the romcom genre and doesn’t care about spice.

- Forced proximity
- Healing journey
- He falls first
- Military (Coast Guard)
- Friends to lovers
- Single POV
- Closed door, no details (ugh, Katherine, come on!)
- 4.5 stars

Katherine Center just keeps getting better. I loved this book and both of its love stories: between Katie and Hutch, and between Katie and herself. Struggling with body image issues and job insecurity, videographer Katie is assigned to film a promo for the Coast Guard featuring her producer's brother, Hutch. That's all I'll say. The plot was unpredictable in a good way and I don't want to ruin it for anyone. (Some of it reminded me a little of "The Reality of Everything" by Rebecca Yarros.)

"The Love Haters" is a story about self-love, courage, survival and how the people who matter are the ones who've seen us (and accepted us) all along. Katherine excels in writing about the big stuff in a way that hits you right where you don't want it to, lingering long after you finish reading. The self-help lover in me is all over this.

Katie and Hutch are likable and relatable. Katie's relationship with her best friend sets the standard for girlhood. The Gals, with Rue (ADORE HER!!) at the helm, are the best background characters. What is about old ladies in books that make everything better? They made me want to go to Key West. And I don't like Florida... or bright colors. The book was well-researched too, illustrating facts and feelings most people would neither know nor experience.

4.5 stars because I wanted to see more romance with Hutch, the redundancy of "love hater" in the first few chapters was annoying and some missing scenes/details made the book feel not as complete as it could have been. (Could've tied it back to the Gottmans in the end, for example. I should be a developmental editor.)

Thank you so much to the publisher for the ARC!!!

Katherine Center rarely disappoints, and with “The Love Haters,” she’s spectacular! I greatly enjoyed every aspect; the main and supporting characters are well-developed, and the story buildup to the conclusion is engaging and well-paced. The themes explored were relatable and often intense; you could feel what the character was feeling, and I felt a great deal of compassion and camaraderie with many of the main themes as well as sub-plot stories. The intertwining of themes and characters is flawless and relatable. Not everyone is likeable all the time, which lent to its sense of accessibility to the reader. The story is fabulous - a quick, easy read, which is incredibly difficult to write. Don’t miss the final pages; they are well worth reading after the last chapter concludes. I highly recommend “The Love Haters” to anyone who enjoys a well-written story where heavy topics are managed with a light yet impactful touch.

I love Katherine Center but this one fell short for me. There was a lot of focus on the females negative body image and we could never really picture what she looked like. The house boat out at sea was too unrealistic. But there was some fun moments.

Read this book in one sitting!!! Classic Katherine Center book , fun , comedic , and just a great rom com in general. I loved the FMC in this one so much and her character was so relatable!

I look forward to reading a new Katherine Center every year and this one didn't disappoint. I enjoyed the setting, the banter, and the lovable characters, including George Bailey, the dog.