Love Katherine Center books and this was no exception. I laughed, I cried, and I couldn’t put it down yet again. I don’t know how she does it, but every one of her books is just a little better than the last. I grew so attached to these characters and felt like I was living in the book. Incredible read yet again!

Sadie makes her living painting portraits but finds herself suddenly face blind. ARC from NetGelley.

I really loved this. I fell in love with Center’s writing with her first book, and my love continues with this one. It’s uplifting, beautiful, and romantic. And the author definitely knows how to play with your heartstrings.

Hello Stranger is a heartfelt, character-driven story about Sadie Montgomery, an artist who suddenly develops face blindness after a life-changing accident. As she struggles to adapt to her new reality, she grapples with personal and family issues while navigating complicated feelings for two very different men.

Katherine Center is an auto-buy author for me; she does a fantastic job creating flawed, relatable characters who grow and evolve over the course of the story. My one personal criticism is that I didn’t particularly love the face blindness aspect because it veered a bit too close to the miscommunication trope which is not my favorite. Overall, it’s a touching, thought-provoking read about love, self-discovery, and the unexpected ways we see the world. The audiobook, narrated by Patti Murin, brings the characters to life with warmth and sincerity. A solid 4-star book that’s both heartwarming and real.

This book was a struggle to get through. The concept of an artist going through a head injury leading to facial blindness was an interesting concept but I’m not sure it was executed the best. I had a hard time connecting with the main character

How does Ms. Center come up with such unique conditions that her protagonists suffer from or overcome. Loved this book. Always love KC's writing.

This was a sweet and quick read. I loved the interesting premise and learned some science too, regarding face blindness. But truly, the humanity of it all, and the emotional pull of the story were the right combination. I could have just as easily given this five stars but I figured out the ending a little too soon. Still, absolutely recommended as a feel-good, palate cleansing romance. 👀

*I was honored to read an ARC of this book via
NetGalley and the author/publisher. All opinions are my own.*

I absolutely love Katherine Center and this one was no different! Loved every second! The concept of face blindness was new to me but it added a very interesting element to the book.

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

“We’re all just doing the best we can. We’re all struggling with our struggles. Nobody has the answers. And everybody, deep down, is a little bit lost.”
― Katherine Center, Hello Stranger

5 STARS. Vibes were vibing. Do you ever start a book or put off a book because you're just not sure you'll love it? Well that was it for me and I could not have been more wrong. I love an amnesia trope, which this was but wasn't and I loved that. Like in my head I knew what was happening and I could not wait to see how we would get to where we needed to be. An easy, feel good and break your heart read. I cannot wait for my next Katherine Center book.

3.5 Stars!! This was a cute one! I enjoyed the ending but did find most of the twists to be pretty predictable. I also learned a lot about face blindness!! This was my first book by this author but won’t be my last! Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC!!

This was such a beautiful and unique book. It explores the concept of grief, perseverance, boldness, truth & love.

Sadie is a struggling artist whose has just reached a major career milestone by earning a coveted spot in a portrait competition. But she soon discovers that she has to undergo a minor brain surgery procedure. Although it was a success, the residual swelling leaves her with the inability to clearly see faces aka face blindness.

I was extremely happy to be gifted an ARC from NetGalley. I am a huge fan of Katerine Center! I find that I am unable to put down her novels and go through all the emotions with each and every one.

I listened to this in audio format and Patti Murin did a great job delivering the story.
As with all Katherine Center novels, we experience a story based on a severe medical situation happening to the MC. In Hello Stranger, Sadie experiences a medical issue that required brain surgery and she wakes up with face blindness (Prosopagnosia). It is hard to understand how an ability we take for granted gets taken away from us and Center does a great job of bringing these experiences to life. My dislike of the story comes from the unlikeable characters. The MC, Sadie, was bratty and woe is me, which is slightly understandable with the impact from the loss of her mother at a young age. The cliché evil step sister, Parker, was unbearable and hard to fathom someone behaving that way.

I think I need to stop reading her book because this wasn't for me ... it was not what I think it was going to be and I had expectations for this book

This just wasn’t my favorite Katherine Center book. The MC I had a hard time connecting with. It was still a fun read but just not my favorite.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me access this book! (Sorry my review is so late!)

I really enjoyed “the bodyguard” and when I saw this up on NetGalley I knew I had to request it and I was so happy I got approved—and then promptly forgot until now.

This was really cute with a liberal dose of insecurity, trauma, family conflict, and romance. I appreciated the research that went into Sadie’s disability and that, like many of the people I work with, the way the author showed how her trauma influenced her willingness to let others in and to accept help from them. I related a lot to Sadie and honestly teared up a few times on my flight while reading this story. I also really enjoyed the romance and how confirmation bias influences how we view the people around us (I love statistics and research in the wild) and the way we have to challenge initial impressions and assumptions.

Very excited to read whatever she comes up with next!

Sadie is a portrait artist who acquires prosopagnosia, or face blindness following a brain surgery. I loved the way Katherine wrote Sadies journey with her rocky relationship with her family and finding romance. I liked this book and how face blindness was approached and liked the medical aspect to it. I did however find it a tad bit predictable but overall enjoyed it.

I absolutely love Center's other book, The Bodyguard, but this just didn't hit for me. I think the premise and characters didn't work for me unfortunately, but I'll still be reading whatever she publishes next.

This is a sweet, somewhat predictable romance with a big punch of angst that is thankfully resolved at the end. As a sometime artist myself, the premise of a portrait artist who suddenly can't see faces is intriguing, and while I sort of wish (view spoiler) I was not disappointed in the happy ending. I guessed the big twist pretty early on, but I have a feeling this is one of those stories where the author is actually encouraging the reader to put the pieces together so there's vindication when the predicted outcome is what actually happens.

A nice quick read for a time when I needed to forget about the real world for a while.

Doesn't matter now that the book has been out for so long, but thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for offering an advance copy.

DNF - 39% in, and I can't get past my annoyance with the main character. Falling in love and planning your wedding when you haven't even talked to a guy? All the woe is me, just wasn't something I could deal with.

I really enjoyed this one! I'm a sucker for Center's character driven stories, they always pull you in. Not my all-time favorite of hers, but still a very sweet book. Would recommend to a fellow romance fan, especially if they like the bittersweet side of things like me.