Katherine Center is one of my favorite romance writers. Romance is not always my favorite genre’s, but her books hit all the right notes for me. And Hello Stranger was one of her best! It was funny, it was real, and I loved watching Sadie struggle not only with her face blindness, but with her complicated feelings about her mothers death and complicated family. It was sweet and funny and such a satisfying ending. I loved this book!

This was a solid 4.5/5 stars for me! I really related to and felt for the characters and found the storyline very unique. I even learned a lot about face blindness along the way. I did find myself less motivated throughout the middle but it quickly picked back up. The twist in the end of this book has me more caught off guard than any thriller has this year. I think I may have even gasped out loud while I was reading.
I really appreciated the note from the author in the end and it helped me see even more into the authors thought process while writing which always makes the story even more special.
Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's Press for this ebook in exchange for my honest review!

I absolutely devoured this book! I was in the mood for something light and fun and boy, did this one do the trick! A DELIGHTFUL romp that was light enough to be fun but deep enough to hit me in the feels and take my breath away at times. A quirky cast of characters rounded this one out, resulting in a charming novel that can be read in one sitting!

I did not like this book at all. This is my first book by this author, but I was so looking forward to it based on how much praise her other books have received.

I was unsure how the author was going to go about the whole face-blind plot, but it was actually well done. It was done through a medical condition that sounded well-researched and well-explained in the book. It makes so much sense for the plot and so I was happy about that.

About 30% into this book it felt like there was still no romance happening. I thought this was supposed to be a contemporary romance book so it felt like things should have been progressing in the romance area by this point. Now, I'm all for other plots happening and having the romance follow along, but still.

There's something young and almost immature about the writing. Our main character, Sadie, sounds way younger than she actually is. The way she thinks and most times how she acts doesn't line up with what she's trying to achieve in life and at her age. I don't even feel like the author was trying to write an immature-sounding character, but that's how she comes off.

Along the same lines, one of the characters, Sadie's stepsister Parker, was not well written. There is literally no reason for her to be so evil and mean, even at the end. She felt like a plot device that wasn't even necessary in the first place.

Overall, I was very disappointed by this book and I'm not sure if I'll be reading any of Center's books in the future. I'd had really high hopes for this one that was crushed not even halfway through. Do yourself a favor and skip this one.

<b> This will be my favorite romcom of the year, probably,</b> and yes, I know Her Royal Majesty Emily Henry is gracing us with <i>Happy Place</i> soon. (Which I am also excited for, but that's a separate review.) I'm that confident in how much I enjoyed this. People like different things in books, and this book pointed its paint-sticky, dog drool-covered finger at me, and said, "Yes, you clumsy, nervous, wounded little optimist. This is OUR time."

Where to begin????

This book is about Sadie, a twenty-something portrait artist struggling to make ends meet in the city. She's determined to honor her late mother's legacy and make it as a painter, to prove herself to her hyper-successful but emotionally distant and disappointed surgeon father. Things are finally looking up when she places in the top ten of a prestigious portrait competition, and Sadie has six weeks to paint a portrait to compete for the grand prize and the recognition it will get her work.

But on the eve of her big break, Sadie discovers that she needs a procedure to correct a cavernoma (malformed blood vessel) in her brain. It's scary, and she'd rather wait until after the contest, but her estranged cardiothoracic surgeon dad talks her into the importance of the procedure, and she goes in to get it done. Only, once in the recovery, she discovers that she's developed an edema (normal swelling from the surgery) near her fusiform face gyrus (the part of the brain that helps you recognize faces and pair them with memories you have with that individual). The long and short of it: Sadie has acquired apperceptive prosopagnosia. Also known as face blindness.

(Note: While I don't have that condition, I believe you can really tell that Center has done a lot of work with people who both study and have prosopagnosia, which she details in the after note, and that work comes through in the book.)

Sadie's healthcare team is optimistic that it will improve, but not certain. In the meantime, Sadie has to sort a way to paint a portrait for the contest in several weeks when she can't recognize the subject matter or fit features together anymore. Throw in the reappearance of her frustrating step-mother, her awful step-sister, and her absent father, along with some issues with her aging dog's health, a sudden, dizzying crush on the new veterinarian, and a blossoming, confusing friendship with a guy in her building, and Sadie's basically up to her eyeballs in "What now."

I
ate
this
up.

I devoured it like strawberry cheesecake with real good crust. Like gooey brownies. Like, I don't even know what. I wrecked my sleep schedule over this UNINTENTIONALLY, and there aren't many romcoms that provoke me to that point anymore.

This was so, so freaking wholesome, and kind, and nuanced. The romance is cozy and warm. You get the experience of <i>knowing</i> that this dude is extremely caring with everyone--that he cares especially about her, too--while you watch Sadie pick up the puzzle pieces to put all of it together. Not just who he is, but how to accept help and to work through her trauma around being "too needy."

Have I seen similar emotional beats in romance novels before? Yes. But this wasn't just pacing out a plot. It was dancing it--full out, thoughtfully weaving elements from Sadie's childhood, ambitions, hopes, and fears into a well-paced and gorgeously written romcom. There were some plot points I predicted, but Center's imaginative and rich storytelling made those moments satisfying, like coming upon a view you knew would be gorgeous after the journey to get there.

I have a lot of quirks with romance, and lately, as someone who reads quite a lot of them, I've been a bit tired of the usual miscommunication/typical third-act breakup plot structure. Often, it feels like the conflict could be more interesting if the characters had room to work past the surface level hiccup and get into the real vulnerability.

But this book really proves that if done well, "predictable" becomes "anticipatory." (Yes, I am referencing the author's note at the end, which I also loved.) It is vulnerable, sweet, and funny. It has such heart. I have an ARC, but I'll be getting a physical copy of this.

I'll stop rambling now, but definitely pick this up if you like dogs and sweet, kind people who care about them.

**Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

In the author's note, Center says that the word predictable is "so saturated with negativity" and it made me pause and rethink my thoughts about this novel. Because the whole time I, of course, knew what was going to happen with our two main characters and kept thinking about the predictability of it all. I love Center's comment about using a better term. Anticipation. "As in: 'This love story really created fantastic anticipation.'" This book did exactly that. Even though the reader knew what the outcome would be throughout the novel, it was fantastic anticipation to see how these two main characters ended up together.

Brief Book Review
Hello Stranger by Katherine Center

Synopsis (from Goodreads)
Sadie Montgomery has had good breaks and bad breaks in her life, but as a struggling artist, all she needs is one lucky break. Things seem to be going her way when she lands one of the coveted finalist spots in a portrait competition. It happens to coincide with a surgery she needs to have. Minor, they say. Less than a week in the hospital they say.
Nothing about you will change, they say. Upon recovery, it begins to dawn on Sadie that she can see everything around her, but she can no longer see faces. Temporary, they say. Lots of people deal with this, they say. As she struggles to cope-and hang onto her artistic dreams-she finds solace in her fourteen-year-old dog, Peanut. Thankfully, she can still see animal faces. When Peanut gets sick, she rushes him to the emergency vet nearby. That's when she meets veterinarian Dr. Addison. And she's pleasantly surprised when he asks her on a date.
But she doesn't want anyone to know about her face blindness. Least of all Joe, her obnoxious neighbor who always wears a bowling jacket and seems to know everyone in the building. He's always there at the most embarrassing but convenient times, and soon, they develop a sort of friendship.
But could it be something more? As Sadie tries to save her career, confront her haunting past, and handle falling in love with two different guys she realizes that happiness can be found in the places -and people- you least expect.

Brief Bookish Thoughts
📚Ultimately, a Story of finding your path, trusting yourself, learning to adapt when life alters your course. Finding joy in the journey, no matter how long it takes to reach your #happilyeverafter

📚Love love love the End notes💕
READ THEM
Katherine expertly articulates why we love the romance genre

“ Love is healing. It is unapologetically optimistic. It’s the thing that puts us back together” (quote from End notes)

Overall
Katherine expertly gives the reader a glimpse into the daily lives and struggles of others on their path to finding love and connection. Each character is unique. Each story offering a new insight or perspective. Each story filled with hope.

❤️Hope and happily ever afters. ❤️

Thank you to @stmartinspress @smpromance @netgalley for my digital ARC in return for an honest review. Opinions expressed are my own.

I had originally given this book three stars after I finished it, because I still felt the pressure from Bookstagram, raving about how great this book was. The more I thought about, the more I realized there was too much about it that didn't work for me.

This is my second Katherine Center novel and I don't think I'll be reading any more of hers. When I read a romance, I want romance but her books seem to be 75% fiction and then you get the smallest sliver of romance.

But this story... wow. Ok I'm going to try not to spoil it but let me say, it was so unbelievable that I was laughing. In any of the different interactions they had, Joe NEVER said anything that alluded to the big twist??? Like what? He was friends/romantically interested in her but he just kept all their interactions in different boxes. That was the most illogical thing I've ever read.

Don't get me wrong, I loved all her interactions with Joe (even though the majority of them didn't start until nearly 50% through), but the ending was just so ridiculous.

This was yet another delightful book by Katherine Center. It was sweet, funny, and enlightening, as the main character, Sadie, navigates life with acquired face blindness. The explanation of the condition was thorough and relevant, as the contributing factor in this unique storyline. Sadie and Joe were fun characters to follow with great banter, and there was a surprise revealed that I actually did not see coming!

Hello Stranger was truly a fun read that I would certainly recommend. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was just what I needed! A fun romance with a few surprising twists and a handful of laugh out loud moments. This book has all the feels and I loved it from page one.

Katherine Center's books always make me feel so hopeful and optimistic. She takes an overwhelming situation and turns it into an uplifting story.

I highly recommend this book. The story is unique and the characters are so lovable.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC.

I have been loving all of Katherine Center's books and Hello Stranger was no exception. It was a great story, with developed characters and interesting story line that is not similar to other romantic novels. I am looking forward to reading future works by this author.

Thank you to Macmillian publishing and Net Galley for providing me an ARC of this book.

Sadie is a portrait artist in her late 20’s who is doing “totally fine” or at least that’s what she tells her estranged father. When she becomes a finalist in an esteemed portrait painting competition she thinks this is her chance to really prove to everyone she can do well as a creative and not a doctor like her father wishes. On her way to celebrate her achievement, tragedy strikes and Sadie ends up in the hospital with life and career altering facial blindness. Now she has just six weeks to cure her facial blindness, paint a portrait that will win her a $10K prize, deal with the a**hole that lives in her building, and plan a wedding between herself and her new hunky veterinarian Dr. Oliver Addison, whom she’s just met.

I'm really kind of torn on this book. While I can say it was not what I expected (I thought it would be an amnesia trope but thankfully, it was not) it had both a lot of highs and a lot of lows. The highs;. I loved the hero, he had big “golden retriever” energy and what can I say, I’m a sucker for a soft hero. I think that Sadie's facial blindness was a super interesting plot and was not something that I had expected or ever read before. Even though I guessed the "twist" of the book pretty early on it was still fun and really enjoyable to uncover as the story continued. That being said, my number one critic of this book was just how irritating and immature the FMC was. When I finally found out, a good 30% in, that she was 28 I was floored. Her behavior towards her "evil" step mother especially, who from my perspective was actually quite nice. Additionally, the narrative voice felt strange, the author is in her 40's and a lot of the narration felt like she was trying too hard to be "cool" or sound young. I'm not saying that authors can't write characters of any and all ages but the language just felt shoe horned in. In that same vein, there were a few instances where it felt like the author was using "big" words just to use them like she went a little thesaurus happy. The epilogue also felt very preachy and laid out every lesson in a format that was all but a bullet pointed list. I realize this may make it seem like I really disliked the book but as I said the plot was enjoyable and I really liked the hero and those 2 things alone were good enough to save this from being a 2 star or even a DNF.

Love this one. I wasn't sure I was going to be able to read it (my mom had a cavernoma and became symptomatic just like the main character and her mom), but glad I did. I couldn't put the second half down (and stayed up much later than I usually do to finish). I didn't find this one very romantic (Sadie and Joe progressed quickly to "I love you") and saw the "twist" coming (if you could call it a twist), but the anticipation is what kept me reading. It was a sweet, feel-good story and I definitely want to read the rest of Katherine Center's books now (I've had the Bodyguard on my kindle for a while).

Thanks Netgalley for the ARC!

Review posted to GoodReads and live now - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5150445587

4.5⭐️ rounded up
Sadie is a struggling artist who has finally landed in one of the finalist spots in a portrait competition. At the same time that she is about to start her masterpiece for the competition, she ends up undergoing a major surgery. As her luck would have it, she ends up with a major side effect from the surgery and loses her ability to see faces. This story takes us through Sadie trying to save her career, fall in love, and battle her tumultuous family life.

This was my first Katherine Center book and, needless to say, I am hooked. This book had me laughing out loud. Sadie was such a quirky but lovable character. The book had some romance and some insightful, heavier aspects about life as well. Highly recommend!

Thank you to Katherine Center, NetGalley, and Saint Martin’s press for the ARC ❤️

Hello Stranger by @katherinecenter 👩🏼‍🎨🐶
Rating: 5 ⭐️
Publication date: July 11,2023

This book got me out of a reading slump, it feels like coming up for fresh air!

Have you ever tried to read a book upside down in another language? This is exactly what Sadie Montgomery feels. After minor brain surgery, she develops temporary face blindness. How does this affect her? Well, she recently was selected as a finalist in the North American Portrait Society competition. Could she adjust well enough to win the competition and boost her career?

This novel explores how Sadie copes with her condition and handles certain situations including: family drama, mourning of a lost one, learning to move on and the fact that she’s in love with two guys. The novel is written a certain way that is very easy to follow Sadie’s internal dialogue. You get to feel for the characters, I laughed, cried a bit and felt frustrated. Had a few plot twists that left my jaw open. The medical terms ands science of it is pretty well explained and can be understood easily. All of the characters, except an evil stepsister, had their own untold story which influenced greatly in Sadie’s life.

The only thing I didn’t enjoy was how Sadie didn’t want help from anybody. We all need help from time to time and there is nothing wrong with that.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin Press for the ARC of Hello Stranger by Katherine Center.

I loved this sweet romance! It was a breath of fresh air ~ a fun easy read entertainment me completely in only two days!

What I liked:
•Sadie is an interesting character struggling as an artist then with a neurological condition that creates an even more complicated struggle.
•her relationship with her best friend Sue (and Sue’s parents/landlords) is enviable!
•Sadie is tough and independent but stubborn to her own detriment
•Sadie’s therapist has great insight and I took some of her suggestions to heart! Normalizing therapy and not demonizing it in any way was refreshing
•her romantic relationship is one I’m definitely rooting for! Joe is a fabulous character!
•humorous writing!

What I didn’t like
•Sadie’s need to keep her condition “secret”
•the big twist was obvious to me from the beginning but didn’t keep me from loving the book

I’ve never read anything by this author, but this book has me wanting to read them all! Do you have a favorite!?

Book 22 of 2023
Read April 8-9

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin Press for the ARC of Hello Stranger by Katherine Center. This book was a delightful read!

I always learn something when reading one of Katherine Center's novels. I thoroughly enjoyed the characters and the story was so layered and beautiful. Katherine Center has such a gift for telling a hopeful story.

ARC Review. PUB date July, 11th, 2023

First off, I'm super grateful to @stmartinspress, @netgalley and @katherinecenter for offering me the chance to read this before it's published for an honest review in return.

Now off to the review portion of this post. This was the first Katherine Center book I've read and it did not disappoint.

This book caught my attention as soon as I read the plot. I had never read a book with this kind of story. A tragic and life changing diagnosis that's MAYBE temporary?! Sign me up for that roller coaster.

The writing was beautiful and made it super easy to connect with the characters. Almost like you know them. Like you're reading a diary or hearing someone's most inner thoughts. enjoyed all of it all.

I did see the twist coming which is why it's rated 4 stars and not 5. But I do recommend it!

The perfect book to cuddle up under a blanket with a cup of tea. All the feel good emotions you can ever want. Cozy!

This wasn’t what I expected. I figured out the “twist” almost from the start, but that didn’t lessen my enjoyment of the story. The stepsister plot felt really random and unnecessary.

One thing about me? I don't mind knowing how something will end. Spoilers don't often ruin something for me and predictability doesn't take away from the enjoyment I feel along the way. Maybe that's why I love reading romance novels so much. A guaranteed happily ever after and the fun part is figuring out exactly how the characters are going to get there. Of course this book is predictable, just like most other rom coms out there, but that didn't stop me from reading it in a day and rooting for Sadie to finally figure out what I as the reader already knew. It wasn't a perfect read, but it didn't need to be for me to enjoy the journey.

Overall, 3.5 stars for me, rounded up to 4.

Thank you to NetGalley and and St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.