This is my third Katherine Center book, and my new favorite! She does such a wonderful job of creating real characters with new stories. I had never heard of face-blindness before and it was so interesting to learn about it. I don't want to give too much away, but I adored so much about the characters and how the book came together in the end. I highly recommend this book once it's available.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

Sadie Montgomery is a struggling portrait artist who finally gets a break. She's been selected as a top 10 finalist in a prestigious and life changing art competition. On her way to celebrate this awesome accomplishment she has a medical emergency that lands her in the hospital. They find out she needs to have brain surgery due to a malformed blood vessel in her brain. surgery goes well but she ends up having edema near the part of the brain responsible for facial recognition. She can see, just not recognize facial features as we normally see them. Which for a portrait artist is the worst news possible! But, when life is at such a low point, she has no choice but to take this new perspective and grow with it. That is, with help of course of some great secondary characters and a couple horrible people that will teach her to overcome.

No spoilers but let's talk about the MMCs, this is a romance after all :) Dr Oliver Addison is the handsome vet at the new clinic close to her building. He is absolutely wonderful and saves little peanut from near death. She has an instant connection with him and is definitely in love at first sight. Joe is the obnoxious neighbor in her building that she slowly gets to know and who will become one of the closest people to her. But, can she really fall for 2 guys at the same time? What will she do, and who will she choose?

This book was great! The way Sadie dealt with everything coming her way was intriguing. There were sad moments, happy moments, infuriating moments and swoon worthy moments all woven into this wonderful book. I will definitely read more Katherine Center books and will go back and order her previous released books!

Goodreads review posted 5/11/2023
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.goodreads.com_user_show_35648421&d=DwICAg&c=YFhW2PYwN3hsZhoCqLOPHsIEIPQ6qDXkZ40AlEYUG9c&r=popkmNN6QA1oq6QVJGJy4rmzVZpXQVeIiq3ZIJ3yUb4&m=V1OBZsNsHZxFnxkjJOPuUhx5Tn0lmd4RZBS5a1JFAffUGabSAZzaJxT9DcLf-Ei-&s=BEIOC806M2lL4ucinDVrOKD3Pe4swU1PPhTWRkVb-js&e=

TikTok review posted 5/11/2023: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTRKPw4PN/

IG review to follow

Yay! Another 5🌟 book from my favorite go-to author Katherine Center!!! 📘🤩 I can’t imagine having to deal with face blindness. It makes you stop and think about the challenges someone faces daily that we take for granted.

Our main character Sadie Montgomery, being a portrait artist, is devastated to find she can no longer see faces.. I felt so emotional for her trying to cope with this “sudden” diagnosis.. and it couldn’t of happened at a worse time for her. She’s a finalist of only ten in the country picked to showcase a painting. This is her big break. But how will she be able to paint a portrait if she can’t see faces?!? Regarding her as an artist, she has no family support, they’re critical and judgmental. Especially her stepsister who has always wreaked havoc on every area of her life. One bright light is that she’s met two men she genuinely likes, although she pulls closer to her neighbor Joe as they spend more time with each other (plus the other guy stood her up). I thought her feelings of needing to be secretive (about her handicap) to be able to date, was a wrong choice, but I can understand why she chose to withhold that info. I loved the uniqueness of the romance with that one special twist that I haven’t read in any other book. KC always writes these fascinating stories about finding happiness when you least expect it. That’s why I enjoy her books so much. They’ve always been the perfect escapist read! This was equally interesting learning about face blindness or in medical terms, prosopagnosia. You can tell she put a lot of research into writing about it. I adored this touching story! ❥ 5 stars — Pub. 7/11/23

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press! All opinions are my own.

Such a beautiful comeback story by Katherine Center! If you aren't already a fan of her writing, its time to become one. I pick up every book she writes. They almost always feature a female heroine and an inspiring story. Loved this one!

“And the idea that anything could just disappear at any moment is something you suddenly understand in a whole new way.”

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center. 

I have yet to be disappointed in any Katherine Center book. She has this charm she gives her characters that make it hard not to fall in love with them. 

What I loved about this story was Sadie's perseverance. She is faced with the unthinkable...face blindness when she is a portrait painter. She has finally got the biggest break as an artist in her life, and is unable to paint as before. I loved that she used her creative spirit to find a new way to paint. 

Oh Joe, what a great character. I loved his nickname, Helpful...he really was Mr Helpful!

This was another win from Center! And the audiobook is the way to go with this one, so perfect!

Thank you NetGalley, St-Martin’s Press and Katherine Center.
I have read most of her novels and I have loved them all.
She knows how to write about people, the intricacies of relationships.
Sadie has had good breaks and bad breaks in her life, but as a struggling artist, all she needs is one lucky break. Things are going her way until she lands one of the coveted finalist spots in a portrait competition and needs minor surgery all during same time frame. After surgery, Sadie realizes that she can see everything around her, but she can no longer see faces.
What a great story, I could not put it down, loved the characters.
Highly recommend.
5 stars

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center is officially my favorite book by this dynamic author! Katherine Center has quickly become one of my favorite authors! I loved everything about this book, the premise was unique, and the character development was stellar.

Center is truly the master of writing complex relationships and emotionally charged events with care. I can always count on her ability to write stories with well-developed characters who I cheer on; characters that are flawed (like all of us) with interesting backstories that tug at your heart. This book did not disappoint because it was all of these things and more.

I received a review copy of this book from the author/publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

I can’t even put into words how much I adored this book! From
Start to finish I could not put it down and multiple little twists I loved the storyline and think this is her best book yet

Quick Summary: An epic, full stop wo-fi ro

My Review: Hello Stranger by Katherine Center was a dream read. I absolutely adored it! I laughed. I cried. I smiled. I empathized. I cheered. I understood. I celebrated.

About the Book: There was so much to love about this book. I was totally invested the whole time. Every character, every struggle, every moment was beautifully written.

My Final Say: This novel gets a 💖 rating. I highly recommend it. It should be read on repeat often.

Rating: 5/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: A
Re-read: Yes
Keeper: Yes
Favorites Shelf: Yes
Besties of All Time: Yes
Audiobook: Yes
Digital ARC: Yes

Sincere appreciation is extended to the author, to St. Martin’s Press, to Macmillan Audio, and to NetGalley who provided access to digital ARCs of this work. The words I have shared are my own and have been voluntarily rendered.

It was maybe two years ago when Brad Pitt started talking about how he suffered from face blindness. Do you remember that? It’s a rare neurological disorder called, prosopagnosia. I had never heard of it before then. It’s when a person struggles to recognize people’s faces. Not like you can’t remember people…but you literally can’t see their face organized like a face. What does that have to do with Hello Stranger by Katherine Center? The FMC needs brain surgery and as a result, she suffers from the same condition. Thus the title, Hello Stranger. 

Last year, I really enjoyed Center’s book The Bodyguard, and was super stoked to receive an ARC of her new book. Our FMC, Sadie is a portrait artist. Yup…you got that right. And now you can imagine how devastating face blindness would be for her! She’s crossing the street one day when she suffers a seizure and is saved from being hit by a car by a good samaritan and is rushed to the hospital. The doctor tells her she has a genetic condition and needs brain surgery. Sadie doesn’t take it too seriously, I mean except for the blacking out thing, she feels fine. AND, she's just won a spot to compete in a very prestigious portrait contest. 

Sadie and her father aren’t close. Her mom died years ago, her dad remarried, and Sadie isn’t fond of her stepmother. And her step sister is her mortal enemy. Sadie's father is a prominent surgeon and convinces Sadie to get the surgery. It turns out that Sadie’s mom suffered from the same brain condition and…that’s how she died. She put off surgery. 

Sadie goes through with it, realizes that she can't recognize faces, and after a brief time recovering, decides she can and must continue with the portrait contest despite her new disabliity. While all of this is happening- Sadie meets two men. The first is a handsome, charming veterinarian who she meets when her dog gets sick. She convinces herself that she WILL MARRY him. Does she know him? Nope. Have they dated? Also no.  Next she meets "Joe," who appears to be absolutely vile when she overhears his phone conversation in her apartment’s elevator. Sadie then sees him again and again in her complex, always with female tenants and she’s sure he’s a total pig who plays the field, or more accurately, the apartment complex. 

Then, he’s nice to her. Helps her. He’s funny, he’s surprisingly not the pig she thought he was. But, what to do?! She’s pining for the handsome vet! And, the hot doctor asks her on a real date!

Sadie is trying desperately to deal with her face blindness, getting therapy, trying to find ways to still paint portraits and dodging her evil stepsister. This all sounds like a very corny rom com. Not normally my thing. But, I really, really enjoyed Hello Stranger. I laughed out loud. It was charming. I loved Sadie’s friendship with her bestie, I got her whole struggling artist vibe, and I definitely fell in love with Joe. The womanizer turned prince. I can’t imagine if every face I saw, including my own, looked like a Picasso painting with noses and ears and eyes all over the place. Sadie found her other senses got stronger and she started to recognize people from how they walked, certain clothing they always wore, and their distinct voices. 

I am addicted to spicy romance and this book had zero heat. And, I did not care. Not one bit. It was just a giant feel good hit for me. A joyful read with a terrific twist at the end. I did sort of see it coming…but that didn’t dull the smile on my face one bit. 

Read it. Review to come on SmexyBooks, etc....

Hello Stranger will be my last Katherine Center book. The premise was intriguing but the storytelling was lacking.

Sadie has a seizure that results in brain surgery. A side effect of the surgery is Sadie has facial blindness. And Sadie has just won a position in a portrait artist competition so this is very bad for Sadie.

As Sadie navigates this challenge in her professional life, she also navigates many challenges in her personal life

Overall, this story was okay. It takes awhile for the romance in this romance novel to happen. Sadie is an immature and, at times, frustrating character.

I loved her step-sister Parker, though! The scenes with her were some of my favorites but they also show the middle-school antics of these fully grown characters.

If you like fluffy romance, read this. I enjoyed this book until I didn’t. I never really loved Sadie, the romance took way too long to get to, and the Joe/Dr. Addison storyline made me want to throw the book.

Thank you to #netgalley and the publisher for the advance e-ARC of #hellostranget.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of this book. This was a my first Katherine Center book, so I didn't know what to expect, but what I found was a cute heart warming book that helped me learn about prosopagnosia or face blindness. It’s almost hard to write about without giving anything away. Katherine waves a beautiful web throughout the story with the characters and events. She really knew how to play with the strings of my heart with her uplifting, feel good, sentimental story and the sweetest characters.

She did it again!! Katherine Center continues to blow me away with her novels. The characters were so quirky and fun and the storyline was incredibly unique. Love love love this book and will be talking about it all year. Thank you netgalley for my free copy.

Hello Stranger is the next book to be released from my girl @katherinecenter. One of my favorite authors and I was psyched to get this advanced copy from @netgalley!

This book hooks you in. Sadie is a portrait artist on Etsy and has a big contest coming up. She has six weeks to draw her best portrait to win the $10,000 prize and to finally have some acknowledgment that she’s doing something with her life.

Sadie falls in a crosswalk and wakes up in the hospital to learn she had a seizure, caused by an abnormality in one of her blood vessels in her brain. She undergoes surgery to correct it, and wakes up not being able to recognize or process people’s faces. It’s called acquired apperceptive prosopagnosia, also known as face blindness. She can’t recognize her dad or even her own face in the mirror. You follow Sadie along her recovery journey, not knowing if she will recover.

I loved this one! 5/5 for me! It will be published on July 25th.

#netgalley #bookreview #stlbookstagram #bookstagram #katherinecenter #hellostranger

Absolutely loved this Katherine Center masterpiece! Such a unique concept and often times health (and pet health) is a heavy topic but this was an overall funny and lighthearted read that I couldn’t put down.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

After Sadie has a freak accident, she gets a strange diagnosis that necessitates immediate brain surgery. When she wakes, she discovers she has face blindness which would be a challenge for anyone but it’s especially bad for Sadie who is a portrait artist with a 6 week deadline for a life changing contest. She’s determined to not show weakness but as her life quickly begins to spiral out of control, she finds herself relying on her skeevy neighbor Joe who keeps rescuing her from disastrous situations.

I had my suspicions but the twist at the end still caught me off guard which was a nice surprise. Overall this was a cute story but there was a major issue for me. A lot of the character flaws presented in this book felt like they were turned up too high. The bullying and emotional abuse from Parker felt over the top like cartoon supervillain level. Sadie’s refusal to tell anyone about her face blindness felt absurd. Sue’s inability to understand or even remember Sadie’s struggles or be a good friend was infuriating. Sadie’s crush on the vet was also way too intense for no reason. All of that combined with the heavy handed lesson at the end just felt like too much for my personal taste.

When people say Katherine Center is the queen of the comfort read they are not kidding! This was such a breath of fresh air for me and despite the fact it's not super twisty turny I was giggling and kicking my feet the whole time! Absolutely obsessed with this and cannot wait to read more of Center's back catalogue

I think Katherine Center will get 5 stars from me for every book of hers that I read. I walk away from her books with a happier perspective on life and this one was no exception.

I’m not sure I can share my thoughts on this book and convince anyone to read it. It’s a story of hard familial relationships, finding one’s self, finding joy in your circumstances, and so much more. Did you put your stuff in your bag?

If there was one author I wish I could be more like, it’s probably Katherine Center. Her positive outlooks in her books have me re-examining myself every. Single. Time. I think there’s a reason she has flowers on all her books. Flowers can bloom in imperfect settings, sharing beauty in harsh environments. Katherine’s stories are just that. Imperfect settings with spots of beauty.

Content: I didn’t notice any swearing, if there was some it was minor. One make out session, but it wasn’t pushing any comfort limits for me. I think this book is appropriate for teenagers and older.

Thank you netgalley for the ARC! All thoughts completely my own

Katherine Center is a gifted author who brings me joy with every book. Her characters are endearing and so lifelike that I think about them even when I'm not reading their story. I also always learn something new.

Hello Stranger tells the story of Sadie Montgomery, a portrait artist who can no longer see faces as a result of a serious brain surgery. The ability may come back or it may not. In the meantime, she needs to come up with the best portrait she has ever done in a matter of weeks for a major portrait competition.

In the midst of this serious challenge, her heart is potentially opening to the idea of dating. At the same time, she needs to get to know herself better and decide what really matters. Her neighbor, Joe, is one person among several who wants to help her on this journey if she will let him.

I loved this book and I'm very grateful to NetGalley and St. Martin's press for the advanced digital copy. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a heartfelt story with quirky characters. It will be published on July 11. You will get to know a dog named Peanut with high-end cuisine tastes, learn how much fun roller skating on a rooftop can be and root for a wonderful main character.

Sadie is a portrait artist who ends up becoming face blind and has to learn to deal with her new reality.
I overall liked this book. The storylines were interesting and I did like the final conclusions of the book and the storyline. I liked Sadie and the way her approach to people and herself.

However, there was a very fat phobic storyline that felt very unnecessary and like it could have been replaced by something else. It wasn't necessary.

Thank you netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

*Will post review on my instagram closer to release date.