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.

🎨 HELLO STRANGER by Katherine Center 🎨

★★★★☆

📖 About: Diagnosed with face blindness, Sadie grapples with a reality where every face becomes a jumbled puzzle. As she navigates her artistic dreams, family challenges, and cares for her beloved dog, Peanut, Sadie finds herself entangled in a complex web of love and temporary obsessions with two very different men.

🍹 Drink Pairing: Crack open an EXTRA big can of Peach High Noon, and get sipping. You’ll need it for all the ups and downs Sadie's dealing with. 😅

🌟 Review: I was a HUGE fan of “The Bodyguard” so I was so so so excited to be gifted a copy of Katherine Center’s next novel “Hello Stranger”. This story was a bit of an emotional rollercoaster, after the world becomes a bit blurry for our MC Sadie.

I actually really enjoyed myself while reading this story - it was so cute, silly, but also tender and emotional. We all know what it’s like to chase after our dreams, and then have roadblock after roadblock get in our way (some bigger than others!). I don’t want to give too much away with the love interests, but the romance was equally adorable and frustrating as well.

Overall, this book was a very sweet exploration of love, family, and self-discovery and I would highly recommend it if you are looking for a feel-good romcom!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review!

Unfortunately, I didn’t love this book. I could predict the direction the plot was going in very early on, so it felt boring to me from that point onwards. I enjoyed the overall message though and did like the inclusion of the main character having prosopagnosia. I felt like I learned a lot about this medical condition that I had known nothing about prior.

I think a lot of people would like this book, but it just wasn’t for me.

I really liked this book! Katherine center has been a great author to read when I’m wanting to come out of a slump.

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center was a delightful journey following Sadie through her newfound face blindness after a medical procedure. Since Sadie is a portrait artist, a great deal of the book deals with her navigating the new normal she has to deal with every day. This book felt a little redundant at times; however, in the end, Sadie ends up with a lovely little happily ever after.

This was a quick read romance that explored a unique perspective of facial blindness and navigating some challenging relationships.

i really enjoyed the author’s previous book, so i was very excited to pick this one up but unfortunately it just fell a little bit short for me in comparison. it took me much longer to get into the story and the characters weren’t as memorable! it was still an enjoyable book but i don’t know if i’ll ever recommend it as it was just okay to me.

4.5 ⭐️.

I love Katherine Center books and anything she releases is always a must read for me. This was one of my favorites that she has written so far. I truly felt for the main character, Sadie, and was really proud of her for the journey she went on throughout the book. She felt like a person with flaws going through a really terrible situation, and I was really rooting for her. All in all, I think it was a lovely story of hope and romance, with some lighthearted fun along the way. (Also, the cover is beautiful!)

It was overall a fun, easy read, but I did miss the depth of characters that I feel like is a hallmark of Center's other books. It was still a pleasant way to pass a few hours, but I think that the emotional depth was lost in service of the plot.

It was a very cute/ interesting storyline, I enjoyed the entire book other than the major miscommunication between the love interests. To me it doesn’t seem believable that you wouldn’t be able to tell that they are the same person or that one of you would say your names/ professions at some point. Overall well written, good story line and characters, very cute, 3/5 stars

I've read three of her books and am starting to think none of hers will ever come close to Happiness for Beginners. As much as I wanted to love this one, I just didn't enjoy it like I wanted to. The romance seemed forced and way too fast, which made it unbelievable. The story brought more awareness to a disease not many know about, and I learned a lot. I'm glad to hear she did her research on this, because I'm always a little wary of reading books about illnesses the author has no direct experience with. Hopefully there were some sensitivity readers involved.

3.5⭐️
Katherine Center’s books are always a joy to read!

This one was a cute closed door story with the added mystery of the main character experiencing facial blindness.

This one wasn’t my favorite, but I still enjoyed it. I thought the storyline with the sister was a bit extra, but I liked the other parts of the story! I will continue to read all her books. How to Walk Away remains one of my all time faves!

Y’all. So KC is the author of my favorite book of all time (Happiness for Beginners) so every book of hers is an automatic read for me. Imagine my elation when I received an ARC from the publisher. The “it factor” Katherine Center has is every single book feels relatable despite not being anything close to my real life. The character development and depth of writing is unmatched. This book is so good! I say that about all of them but seriously, it’s true. They are all so unique and the characters are so well written. Do yourself a favor and add this to your TBR for Summer!

Another great romance by Center. She’s a go-to if I’m needing a light, easy romance with great characters!

you see, i should have known that I wasn't going to super enjoy this one since I wasn't a massive fan of the bodyguard, but I kept my expectations to the side as I started reading it. It just felt like it went on and on and on and on, and man did I just really not enjoy a lot of the side characters enough to feel invested in the story.

I did not love the storyline of this one, but I am such a fan of Katharine Center. She always writes the sweetest stories that are guaranteed to make you laugh and cry.

I loved this so much! It kept me from a disastrous reading slump after finish CC3. The beginning of the story is pretty heavy, but it gave a different level to the romance.

Sadie Montgomery may finally be getting her big break as a finalist in a very prestigious art competition. She has six weeks to complete the portrait she plans to submit when a necessary, emergency procedure leaves her with “hopefully temporary” face blindness. With the help of her neighbor Joe, Sadie explores some unconventional techniques in an attempt to create a show worthy portrait in time. While Katherine Center’s books are funny and entertaining, I like that she also includes a sentimental/serious aspect to the plot. Overall the story was good but I think the “face blindness” trope is being overused at this point. I think I would have enjoyed this book a little more if I had not already read a couple books using that same trope. It was still a solid 3⭐️ book for me and I look forward to reading more from her..

I foresaw the big twist but it was still entertaining to read the surprising revelations! This is emotional, inspirational and highly enjoyable, heartwarming reading that highly deserved my shiny five stars!

My first book by Katherine Center and definitely won't be my last! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. A feel good romance with charming characters, a love triangle, family drama, and laugh out out loud scenes!