Round up to 3.5 / 5 stars

I enjoyed this novel and thought it was in interesting take on the strangers to lovers theme. About 60% through I started having an idea about the possible ending. This was both fun and frustrating because I kept waiting for the characters to confirm my suspicions or for something to happen to disprove them. I liked the author’s writing style and found it an enjoyable read.

Wow, wow, wow.

Katherine Center had been on my list of authors to read for awhile, and now I wish I hadn’t waited so long. Hello Stranger pulled me in with its unique premise, but it was Center’s writing, which such a distinct and entertaining voice, that had me giddily flipping each page. Sadie’s story had me laughing, cringing and unexpectedly crying. The emotional payoff is so high in this book that I definitely needed more than a few tissues by the end of it.

I do recommend going into this book pretty much blind, no pun intended. Not knowing much and being along for the ride with each twist and turn made this so much more enjoyable. While there were moments that I was worried the plot was getting too ahead of itself, Center managed to pull it all together in a beautiful web of chaos, self growth and ultimate triumph. This was my first Katherine Center book, but it will definitely not be my last, and I can’t wait to see what journey we go on next. Maybe love is just around the corner and may we all be lucky enough to fall in love with men in bowling jackets.

Katherine Center is amazing. This book did fall alittle flat for me but it was still a great KC book. I love her writing style and her stories are just so good.

I JUST LOVE LOVE AND THIS MADE ME WAY TOO HAPPY THANK YOU SO MUCH TO NETGALLEY FOR THE ADVANCED READER COPY VERY COOL!

I love Katherine Center! She has a whimsical way of telling stories rooted in reality. And dealing with real life issues. This one is fun and real and whimsical all rolled into one!

Sadie Montgomery is a struggling portrait artist who lives in the "extra space" of a store owned by her best friend's parents' store. Susan has been her best friend since college and appreciates the assistance as she lost the financial support of her father, Richard Montgomery, a respected cardiothoracic surgeon, when she refused to go to medical school. He discouraged her from pursuing art as an occupation like her mother who died prematurely from a brain tumor. Her relationship with her father became further strained after he married a woman named Lucinda whose daughter, Parker, coincidentally, bullied Sadie through high school. The last person Sadie wanted to seek help from would be her father until a terrible accident occurs just before the deadline of the North American Portrait Society competition where she is a finalist with a substantial financial award.

Unfortunately, Sadie has a seizure while crossing the street where Joe saves her from being struck by a car. Sadie wakes up in the hospital unable to see faces. She is extremely confused as to what happened to her. Testing revealed she had a rare brain cavernoma tumor resulting in "temporary" facial blindness. She is panicked given that her financial well-being is solely dependent on her ability to see faces and is desperate to finish her project for the portrait competition. With the help of friends and eventually her father she discovers a way to "see" so that she might be able to return to her art. It wouldn't be a romantic comedy without the confusion of Sadie's attraction to her dog Peanuts' vet. Her obsession has her bringing the dog to the doctor more often than needed until she is persuaded to meet up with the man who saved her in the street after her accident. She feels incredibly vulnerable mistaking people as she cannot clearly see anyone's face, including Parker who finds this an opportune time to embarrass and humiliate her. Sadie finds a way to humor herself through all these missteps and discovers that sometimes you can "see" better without your vision.

My favorite part of Hello, Stranger was the more-than-romance feel. The main character has been and continues to overcome a lot. Center’s voice as a writer shines as well!

However, this wasn’t my favorite Katherine Center I’ve read. I wasn’t invested in the plot or characters. I would have loved a little more down-to-earth story- you really have to be ready for some outlandish details.

I will definitely continue to read and recommend her others!

Katherine Center books always give me the warm and fuzzies, so I request them every time they pop up on NetGalley.

Sadie is a portrait artist who may finally be getting her big break. When she is one of ten to get a spot in a prestigious portrait competition, she knows she can win and everything can change. Then she has a seizure that’s related to a formation in her brain that needs to be surgically corrected. Unexpectedly, Sadie comes out of surgery with fever blindness. She tells only those closest to her, keeping it a secret from new friends and acquaintances.

This book was so fun. I love how Center writes funny, punchy dialogue. Even though the plot is heavy in nature, the dialogue never feels too bogged down with emotion or too serious. She balances the fun romance with the serious plot points very well.

My only “complaint” is that I knew one of the big plot twists that was coming and got a little impatient waiting for Sadie to figure it out. But that didn’t change my love for the book overall!

Definitely recommend for fans of this author and/or fans of rom coms!

This was very enjoyable but it’s definitely one of those books where you have to suspend reality a bit. I’m sure it *could* all play out like this but it seems highly unlikely that she wouldn’t have been suspicious at all or that someone else would have clued her in. I also couldn’t fully buy in to her attraction since she didn’t always know who she was even talking to. I know it can be hard to pick up voices but if I’m attracted to someone I’m going to remember their voice. Overall though, I did really enjoy the story and the art aspect of it.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (4.5/5)

𝑴𝒚 𝑻𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔:
This was a book I didn’t know I needed, until I read it. The plot was so different from anything I’ve read before, and because of this it really captured my attention and held it throughout the entirety of the book.

I really do love a good romance where I’m pining for the two main characters the entire time, even if both of them don’t realize they should be together yet. That was definitely the case with this book. Mix a little bit of Cinderella, with a little bit of While You Were Sleeping, and you get Hello Stranger. I could definitely see this book playing out like a romcom movie in my head, and that made me love it even more!

What I really loved most about this book though were the characters themselves. The two main characters were so likable in my opinion, and I was really rooting for them both with everything.

I would definitely recommend this book to all of my romance and romcom lovers out there. This one is for you!

𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒇 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝑳𝒊𝒌𝒆:
- 🧠 Uncommon diagnosis plots
- 🐕 Animals
- 🌹 A good romance comedy

𝑾𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈: N/V Brut - Trius Winery🥂

Katherine Center books are like a big, warm hug. I love the author's writing style and how she tells a story. Center picks an important topic and wraps it around a strong female character. Then, of course, a love story develops. I suggest having some tissues nearby when you read Hello, Stranger. I highly recommend this book and ALL of Katherine Center's backlist.

Fantastic book! Katherine Center did it again. What a unique premise for a book. It seemed far fetched when reading the synopsis, but she has a way of writing about the characters to lure you in and be hooked!

This was a fun contemporary romance. I enjoyed my time reading it but it probably won’t stick with me.
I’d recommend to anyone who enjoyed her other books.

This was such a sweet read and perfect for bookclub. It held my attention from start to finish and absolutely love her writing. Loved the little twist at the end too.

I love Katherine Center! She is one of my favorite authors ever. Hello Stranger, quite honestly was not my favorite,
As always I enjoyed Center’s strong, authentic female lead and the importance she plays to the plot. Her books always read as women’s fiction to me and not just romance.
Out of Center’s recent works I like The Bodyguard much better..
The face blindness angle was different but I just did not enjoy it that much.
I would give Hello Stranger 3 and a half stars. Center’s fun personality and lovely writing saved the book. I did not enjoy either main character.

This story is so original and unique, I was so blown away once I figured out what was happening! I loved that it was a romance that also encompassed deeper issues in the main character, Sadie’s, life.

This book was definitely a bit over the top and felt a bit unrealistic to me but once I got over the outlandishness of it all, I really enjoyed reading it! There were some bits to Sadie’s ailment that seemed to not fit with the narrative but I was able to move past them. Sadie was a great multi-dimensional main character, although I found her to be a bit clueless overall which made for some frustrating miscommunication.

I highly recommend to go into this book with an open mind and some suspense of disbelief - the overall writing and story are so enjoyable!

Read this if you:
* Are interested in learning about the difficulties of acquired apperceptive prosopagnosia (or face blindness)
* Love a love triangle but hate the drama that comes with it
* Have ever struggled to work on your passion

Sadie is ready to pursue her dreams of fame in the art world after becoming a finalist in the North American Portrait Society competition. Before she can even start thinking of what she will create as her final submission, she finds herself in a hospital bed diagnosed with face blindness - she can’t make out the features on the faces of people around her. While she tries to make sense of her new world, she finds herself in a complicated relationship with two men who she has a hard time deciding between.

One of the most unique and clever romances I've ever read!

The heroine is a portrait artist who develops face blindness. I know! Crazy right? Sadie is one of the most lovable heroines who is just trying to get her life together but things don't seem to be working out in her career or her love life. I found her inner monologues hilarious and her tenacity to grow through her struggles so inspiring. She learned to see people beyond faces and discovered some great things about herself in the process.

The sort of love triangle in this plot was done SO FREAKING well! I can't explain without spoilers but I was a bit blown away by how amazing this story came together.

This is definitely a sweet, feel good romance that's low on the steam. While the overall feel of the book is light because I was constantly smiling or laughing, the underlying message is so uplifting.

I highly recommend this beautiful romance!

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book! The title and this beautiful cover drew me in and i was excited to read this book! I will be recommending this book to others for readers advisory.

Hello Stranger is one of those NetGalley ARCs that I've had sitting on my kindle for almost a year that I've been pushing off to meet one deadline or another, and I'm sorry that I didn't get to it sooner because I absolutely loved it, and Katherine Center's quick writing style. It was funny and witty while also grappling with serious issues like surgery and it's aftermath and grief, and while predictable in that way romances are, going a little heavy handed on the foreshadowing, there is a comfort in that too.

Sadie Montgomery is a struggling portrait artist, who finally gets her big break, placing as a top ten finalist in a national portrait contest. A few weeks prior to the event, she suffers a non convulsive seizure in the middle of a crosswalk, narrowly missing being hit by a car, if not for the intervention of the handsome Good Samaritan she met in the grocery store just before. The cause was determined to be a congenital blood vessel defect in the brain, the same condition her mother passed from. After getting the necessary surgery to repair it, she finds that she is now suffering from "face blindness", a condition where facial features appear like jumbled Picasso portraits instead of a recognizable face, and she can no longer paint portraits accurately. Struggling to cope with the difficulties in her life, she becomes slightly unhinged in her obsession with her new, faceless veterinarian, while also trying to keep her creepy neighbor Joe at bay. As she gets to know Joe better, she realizes he may not be as bad as he initially seemed, and falls in love with him, without ever having seen his face. Her self imposed love triangle implodes, leaving her wondering what went wrong, when she breaks things off with Dr. Addison but Joe pushes her away as well. As her condition slowly improves, the puzzle pieces of not just faces start to come together. There was a heavy dose of miscommunication in this one, with Sadie's refusal to admit to anyone that she was suffering from face blindness, which would have resolved a lot of problems, but it was necessary to advance the plot. The story kept me engaged and was easily bingeable in a few sittings, and it's been a while since I've read a book that kept me saying "just one more chapter."

Katherine Center’s romances are just the SWEETEST. I jumped at the opportunity to read this one and I’m so glad I did. The plot wasn’t like your typical romance and I really liked that.

Thanks SO much for the opportunity to read this one early.