Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with this e-ARC
I really liked this book. It was mixed with both fun and serious moments and the protagonist's face blindness was shown really well.. There were a few unnecessary characters and moments but I still enjoyed myself a lot. I'll recommend this book to others for sure

Katherine Center does it again- except dare I say, better than ever before! I needed the anticipation, the hope, the joy that this novel brought me.

Sadie Montgomery is a struggling artist, barely getting by, and living in her art studio as a way of survival. Her mother was also an artist, and when Sadie loses her mother at a young age, she clings to art as a way to stay connected.

Sadie’s father is a successful heart surgeon, and to say they have a poor relationship is an understatement. He does not approve of Sadie’s career choice, or anything else in her life. After the death of Sadie’s mother, her father quickly remarried and brought evil stepmother Lucinda and evil stepsister Parker into the picture.

Our story begins with Sadie celebrating that she is finally going to have her big break! She is a finalist in a prestigious art contest, with a prize of ten thousand dollars-a life-changing amount for Sadie. While en route to a party to celebrate her accomplishment, Sadie has a seizure in the street and is barely saved by a Good Samaritan. Possibly a blessing in disguise, the doctors discover that her seizure was caused by a malformed blood vessel in the brain, a cavernoma, and she requires brain surgery.

What should have been simple surgery, leaves her life completely changed when Sadie wakes up with acquired apperceptive prosopagnosia, also known as face blindness. Everyone looks like a stranger to her, and she has no way of painting a portrait or competing in her make or break art contest. While the doctors are confident her condition will resolve in a matter of time, Sadie is rightfully devastated and left wondering how to live life in the intermediate.

Of course, this is a romance story, and a love triangle at that. Sadie falls for the attractive (at least his body, unknown about the face) veterinarian who saves her senior dog. She also falls for the womanizer neighbor in her building. The inability to see faces forces Sadie to become aware of other physical attributes and personality traits of her love interests, but can she even trust her brain right now to show her what is real?

Hello Stranger is the heart-warming, hopeful story that you need in your life right now.

Read if you love
❤️Relatable characters
💔Complex family dynamics
🧠To learn while being entertained
🎨Art
💕Romance that will remind you that true love is possible

I really, really enjoyed reading this one. I spent like 90% of the book smiling while I read because it was so witty and cute. Sadie was a really easy character to connect with and fall in love with. I loved Joe, Dr. Addison, Mr. & Mrs. Kim, Dr. Nicole, and Sue. I really enjoyed the evil stepsister aspect of the book because it added another layer to the story. I was hooked from the first page. I can say without a doubt that living inside off Sadie’s head for 311 pages was so much fun. This is my first book by Katherine Center and I plan on picking up her others books as well. Highly recommend this one if you are looking for a romantic comedy and an easy but super enjoyable read.

I am a huge fan of Katherine Center, so I was overjoyed to receive an advance copy of her latest novel! It is, as always, a sweet and thoughtful story with thought provoking plot lines and relatable main characters that you love to cheer for.

The story is told in first person by the main character – Sadie Montgomery. Sadie is a portrait artist with a strained relationship with her father and stepmother. She finally gets her lucky break: a finalist spot in a prestigious portrait competition. But as she prepares for her big chance she has a seizure and a diagnosis of a cavernoma (a cluster of abnormal blood vessels in her brain) that requires immediate surgery. What is supposed to be a minor procedure has one major and unexpected side effect – face blindness (acquired apperceptive prosopagnosia).

Sadie struggles personally and professionally to live with her inability to recognize human faces. How can she paint a portrait if she can’t see faces? As she waits for her other senses to adapt, she meets two men who she develops feelings for – Dr. Oliver Addison – the vet who saves her beloved dog Peanut – and her neighbor Joe – who did NOT make a good first impression.

The exploration of how we rely on our ability to recognize faces and the other ways we recognize people was really interesting and helped create a wonderful about Sadie’s growth as a person – and as an artist. I also loved the portrayal of her relationships with her family and friends.

But… the only thing that kept this from being a five star read for me is the portrayal of her evil stepsister and nemesis, Parker. I just found her a little over-the-top evil to be believable. I’m sure there are people that are that hateful, but one person being the cause of all of Sadie’s misfortune was more than I could believe.

Did I love the book? Yes! Will I be buying a paper copy as soon as it’s released? Yes! Do I recommend the book? Absolutely!

I received an ARC from Net Galley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Sadie finally feels like she is getting her big break when she is selected as a finalist for a portrait competition. However, after a surgery complication she is left with prosopragnosia, or face blindness. She meets a handsome veterinarian who saves her dog Peanut. Then become friends with Joe, who’s maybe a player, from her apartment building. She starts to figure out how to live without being able to see faces and to paint portraits of all things. And finds herself into two guys without really seeing them.

I really liked this romcom and loved the main characters. It was a fun, fast read with a unique storyline. I loathed some of the family drama, especially the evil stepsister, Parker, who should honestly be in jail or something. The ending can be send from the beginning but it was enjoyable and just a joyful read full of hope. Sadie somehow managed to keep going and didn’t give up when I think I would have!

Thanks to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the arc for review.

Sadie is a painter about to have her big break, but after a series of unfortunate events she can no longer see faces. She meets a hot veterinarian, Dr. Addison, and crushes hard while trying to hide her struggles of her new face-blindness diagnosis. She's trying even harder to hide her diagnosis from her douchebag neighbor.

Katherine Center's writing is like a warm blanket wrapped around you. Reading about Sadie and seeing how she came into her own while facing multiple challenges was so heartwarming. By the end of the book she was confident and able to let people in (I love character growth). Oh, and the romance was so lovely. Truly, this book, like all Katherine Center books, was a gem.

Also, the author's note deserves 5 stars alone.

This love story really created fantastic anticipation.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eGalley!

Hello Stranger was 3.5/5 stars for me. It was a cute, fun romance that involved a unique aspect in that the main character suffers from prosopagnosia throughout the story. I always appreciate when authors incorporate this kind of thing into stories to shed light and awareness on different things. Overall, this story was enjoyable, funny, and cute, and I really liked the main character and her growth from start to finish. The biggest downfall was the drawn-out middle and the forced incorporation of family drama. The family issues felt like a detraction from the main story and didn't entirely fit in, but wasn't something that ruined the book for me. This isn't a favorite from Katherine Center for me, but still a good story nonetheless!

This book was so sweet! I loved the story, and wanted to smack Parker several times. As a bulldog owner, that scene had me cracking up! Really enjoyed!

I'm a few days late to this party but better late than never!
I've not run into many Katherine Center books that didn't at least stir the collective juices and this one's no different with Hello Stranger.
In fact, there's at least two strangers that woo Sadie's heart. The veterinarian and this guy named Joe who ghosted her....Or, so we presume.
You know not being able to see faces is sometimes more of a blessing than a course because you have to use other sensory perceptions to feel your way through life. Allowing yourself to succumb to the emotional process and incorporate it all as a building awareness campaign in action.
Who would think anyone with such limitations could join an art gallery and become a successful artist in his/her own right?
I love the way in which this headed for all the hot button topics and dealt with her dog Peanut to lead the way.
Apparently, the dog helps her out with the vet in more ways than one and the ending was one I don't think I'll soon forget.

Hello Stranger’s storyline was a complete surprise to me. The main character, Sadie, has face blindness due to a freak accident. I have never heard of face blindness so this was extremely interesting to learn about.
You will go through many emotions reading Hello Stranger. I think I went from laughing to pondering to disbelief to crying.
This is the story of how Sadie tries to find her way in a life where she cannot see faces on people. What makes this even more difficult is that Sadie is an artist…..portrait artist at that. Will she be able to save her career? Will she be able to find a new normal?
Overall, a very entertaining and sweet read.
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

"Hello Stranger" by Katherine Center is my favorite book by this author by far! I have enjoyed all her books and when I saw that she had a new book out, I just knew that I had to read it! This book was so cute and I love the angle of facial recognition. It really gives a new meaning to "love at first sight", without the sight. Do yourself a favor and pick up this delightful book!

Katherine Center is one of my go-to authors as I adore her books! This one was just as great as I imagined. Sadie's dream of placing in an art show comes true, but just then she has an "incident" and must have brain surgery resulting in "face blindness." Now think about what that would do to an artist who paints portraits! Sadie does the best she can even as people's faces now look like a Picasso painting to her! When her evil stepsister, Parker moves into her building, it gets even stranger as Sadie has fallen for Joe, a neighbor who Parker clearly wants as well. It all gets even crazier from there! I laughed, I cried, and repeated it all until the end! And am I the only woman on earth who didn't know what a pajanket was? Cause now I want one!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

HELLO STRANGER was a bit of a mixed bag for me. I don’t typically gravitate towards the light-hearted romance genre, but I adored Katherine Center’s previous book, THE BODYGUARD and knew I wanted to give her upcoming book a try.

The story follows Sadie Montgomery, a fledgling portrait artist, as she navigates life and love after being hit by a car leaves her with the inability to recognize faces (prosopagnosia/face blindness).

The story started out strong. I found the medical aspects of prosopagnosia fascinating and appreciate the author bridging this rare neurologic condition to light. This made for a fantastic premise and great starting point, but the story fell flat from here.

While I felt for Sadie, she really grated on me. She had experienced true trauma in her life but she came across angsty and immature in her relationships with her family, friends, and romantic interests. Her internal monologues and dialogue with other characters also felt like they were intended for a younger audience and the secondary characters hit me the same way (cue the arrival of an “evil stepsister”). The story felt a bit YA and perhaps this is why HELLO STRANGER didn’t work for me.

With a chick-lit story I wasn’t expecting any mind-blowing twists, but this felt a bit too predictable despite the intriguing start. This has gotten great early reviews, so if you don’t mind outlandish circumstances and a YA vibe you might enjoy this more than I did.

RATING: 3/5
PUB DATE: July 11, 2023

Many thanks to St, Martin's Press and NetGalley for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a big Katherine Center fan, so this was an auto-read for me. I found this one a little more predictable than her others, but I still thoroughly enjoyed it. Sadie's a bit of a mess (aren't we all?) and I couldn't help but keep reading to see how things worked out for her. I would definitely recommend for a fun, thought-provoking read!

First of all, thank you Netgalley and Katherine Center for the advance reader eGalley of this book!
The topic is intriguing, but unfortunately fell flat. We know throughout the book that all of the mystery men are the same guy, and it’s annoying waiting for the MC to catch up. Plus the miscommunication trope is played to an extreme here, and it’s just frustrating.
I can’t say I’m not disappointed, after reading The Bodyguard which I adored.

I was so excited to read this book, but was sadly quite disappointed. Outside of the obvious editing and polishing that needs to still be completed with the book I just could not get into this. If you're looking for a book that is quick and lighthearted (for the most part) I do think this could fit the bill. If you're looking for a romance, you may want to keep looking.

This book is about a struggling portrait artist with a problematic family life. She suffers from a stroke and needs to undergo brain surgery. She is left with acquired face blindness after just receiving word of her big break.

Some things I liked about the book:
- I loved that they're bringing attention to face blindness. I honestly didn't know that it was even a real thing prior to this book.
- One of my favorite quotes from the book highlights some of the ridiculousness that is medical statistics: "It's life-threatening" he said, "but it can be cured. The survival rate is thirty to seventy percent." Thirty to seventy percent? What a useless piece of information. -- there were a few quotes in the book that made me laugh out loud, but this one was most memorable.

Things that didn't work for me:
- the characters and dialogue did not have much depth to them.
- I truly did not see a point in adding some of the components of her family life into the story. I think it was to tie in her mother and give her more of a background, but it just did not work at all for me.
- At times I felt as though I was being force fed information on face blindness. It did not seem to come naturally in the book at all. I appreciate that Katherine Center spent a lot of time researching this topic and wanted to give as much information about it as she could -- I just didn't like the delivery.
- The thing that probably upset me the most was there was basically no romance in the book. Sure there was sort of a romance starting, but the whole book was basically about her going to a coffee shop, trying to paint but feeling sory for herself, and weirdly planning a wedding in her head with someone she basically didn't know (oh right and denying her feelings for another person she also basically doesn't know).

This book was kindly given to me by NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center

Another fabulous read from Katerine Center! I read the bodyguard and fell in love with it. While this one didn't surpass The bodyguard for me I still really enjoyed it!

This book was a one of a kind read for me. A portrait artist gets a brain injury and can no longer see faces.

It's intriguing, slow burn, deals with real life problems, over coming obstacles, crazy family members, not giving up and it was just so cute! I felt some parts of it was a little slow, but over all a great read!

I liked the first half of this book considerably more than the second half of it. I just felt like the ending was too convenient. Why had Oliver/Joe never mentioned any of the times they had met Sadie outside of the apartment building or the vet's office? I get that it made for a pretty cool reveal, I just felt let down by the ending. I did, however, really like Oliver and Sadie's relationship and I liked the other familial aspects of the story. This was my first Katherin Center and I would definitely read more by her, but this one didn't do it for me.

“This love story created fantastic anticipation.”

Thanks to Katherine Center for the perfect words to describe this - it’s totally true!! This is such a sweet love story, but one that leans into female strength and conviction (as so many of her books do!). The premise is very creative and one that allows for exploration of all sorts of emotions and in particular bias, which really is a great theme for the days we’re in right now.

It has all the characters you hope for in story like this: Strong female main character with a past that includes some parent issues, evil stepmother, mean girl step sister, loyal best friend and the oh so charming love interest(s?)!

You jump into the story quickly and immediately know where you are and whose story this is. One of the things I think Center does best is the details - she pulls you into the setting and surroundings with such great description you’re not even mad about it. It makes the story so vivid and helps keep you invested in the story while you wait for all the proper beats to happen. The pacing is fantastic.

The problems are real, the disappointments squeeze your heart in that uncomfortable way, and it all just drives the desire - anticipation - you hope for. Very satisfying ending!!

Great read, easy but interesting, highly recommend.

P.S. What I liked just as much as the book is the author’s note at the end about romance novels. I’ve never heard anyone talk/describe them in this way and it’s just perfect.

An absolutely stunning, beautiful, heartwarming, eye opening story. I truly haven’t read something like Hello Stranger before. The fact that Sadie had to rely on her other senses after being unable to see faces was heartbreaking, but oh so beautiful at the same time. She had to learn to fall for someone’s qualities (or negative qualities thanks to her step sister). When everything began to click into place, my jaw dropped. This was my first book of Katherine’s that I’ve read and it did not disappoint. I’m forever a fan. Do yourself a favor and read this beautiful book. Self love, self discovery, and overcoming negativity to become the best version of yourself.