I am in the minority when it comes to Hello Stranger, but I really didn’t like the book.

I disliked the main character, Sadie, who was immature, complained too much (I empathize with what happens to her in the book, but she made it so hard to like her) . The plot was predictable and while the characters were over the top and unbelievable. The only part of the story I liked was Joe.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely LOVED this book! I had no idea that there was a brain injury you could get that makes you not able to recognize faces. Such a fun, interesting and very sweet story! One of resilience and being able to overcome difficult experiences. I highly recommend everyone give this a read!
Also, I'm so glad I got to meet Katherine Center at her book tour for, Hello Stranger!! 💗✨️ She was such an absolute joy, so funny and so very sweet! 🩷 I look forward to reading more of her books!

Thank you to Netgalley for sending me this early arc ebook copy! 🫶

hello stranger was a great summer read by katherine center. it was fun, unexpected and had a few twists to. make you want to read more. sadie is a struggling portrait artist who suddenly finds herself challenged as she finally receives an opportunity to achieve her big break, which would mean validation, some much needed money, and a chance to impress her father. as she is recovering from unexpected brain surgery, she realizes she has face blindness and cannot recognize her friends and family. read this one straight through.

I adored this book!!
This was such a great story! Even though the main character goes through some major life trials and obstacles, I felt for this character and wanted to hug her and rooted for her!! The characters were likable and cute and the romance was so cute!
Such a huge fan of Katherine Center!

I have really enjoyed Katherine Center’s books so when this was offered on Netgalley it was an automatic request from me to read.

This was definitely a lighter read for me compared to her other books but still entertaining as I wanted to know how it would all shape up in the end. Too bad I figured out the ending around 3/4 of the way in. So yes, a bit predictable, but I learned more about facial blindness (prosopagnosia) and how it affects a person emotionally as well as artistically.

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. I would recommend this book to those who are wanting a light entertaining read.

- I always feel like these are marketed as romance and I don't feel these are romance novels (no spice/little romance, imo)
- the plot was intriguing and creative (facial blindness) loved the first half
-family themes
-love the cover
-parental loss/grief

Honestly, I feel like Centers earlier work is better.

✨🎨Hello Stranger🎨✨

I read this book in May and it came out weeks ago…… and I’m just now posting my review 🙃

✍️: Katherine Center
✨:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📱: E-ARC on my Kindle, thanks to @netgalley and @stmartinspress

✨my thoughts✨
As to be expected from Katherine Center, this book was adorable and fun! Center is the queen of feel good closed door romance and I am absolutely here for it every time!

I loved Sadie from the start, her fierce independence, her life as a starving artist, her passion for all things that matter to her. I really enjoyed neighbor Joe as well, he was so fun to figure out and their chemistry was cute and fun!

Have you read Katherine Center? If so, what is your favorite?!

4.5 stars: I really enjoy Katherine Center's writing and Hello Stranger is another great story. Sadie Montogmery is a struggling artist, but continues to paint portraits to keep a roof over her head, such as it is. She had earned a spot in a portrait painting competition, but her efforts get derailed. Sadie had to have brain surgery and it caused an area of her brain to swell. It is the area that assists in facial recognition and Sadie ends up with prosopagnosia, better known as face blindness. Not only is she unable to paint portraits, but she doesn't recognize people she sees on a regular basis. Although she is confused, trying to hide her problems and somewhat depressed, she meets two men that make a big impact on her life. The first is her new veterinarian, who saves her geriatric dog, and the second is Joe, the gigolo in her building that wears a vintage bowling jacket. She is not impressed with Joe initially, but as she gets to know him, she realizes that he is actually a nice guy who is dealing with problems of his own. When Dr. Addison stands her up when they make a date, she realized that she has strong feelings for Joe. Will her sight be restored when the swelling subsides? Which man will she choose?

Sadie was a frustrating character. She wants to stand on her own two feet, but she has a lot of people who care about her and she won't accept help from anyone. She keeps her secret about her face blindness, even when she puts her foot in her mouth more than once. Having said all that, I liked that she was a strong, independent woman. I absolutely loved Joe! He was such a good person, almost too good to be true. He was so kind and helpful to Sadie that she eventually thawed where he was concerned. The secondary characters were well drawn, and as the story progressed, even her father became a better person. The only person that I truly disliked from beginning to end is her step-sister, who made her life miserable from the time she moved in with them to the present. She was a bully and just downright mean! Although the story is a bit over the top, Katherine Center explains about her research into this condition and some of the issues that go with it. I enjoyed this story, the friendship, the condition Sadie was dealing with and especially Joe. Another winner by one of my must read authors.

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center was my favorite read from this author. This book is a very unique read and quick paced. It was predictable, but I still enjoyable. This book was so wonderful and made you think about how we see things and people. This author knows how to write a good book and keep the readers coming back for more!

Rating: 3.5/5⭐️ (rounded up to 4⭐️)

Publication Date: July 11th 2023

Author: Katherine Center

Review: I have yet to find a Katherine center booth that I didn’t truly enjoy. Though this one wasn’t really your typical love story. Having facial blindness is a crazy thing to wrap your head around. Of course they are always very predictable but personally I don’t have an issue with that. I enjoy going into a book like this know I will have a HEA
Katherine center is on my always read list.

Thank you netgalley and St martins Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review #NetGalley #bookstagram #kindle #kindleedition #eread

I’m still fairly new to Katherine Center, but I have absolutely loved every title I’ve read and Hello Stranger is no exception. The book had such an interesting premise and not one I knew anything about. I loved the journey and its resolution. And, quite frankly, her writing is just so freaking good, I never want to put the book down once I’ve picked it up. I read daily, but this book was read in a few hours. I simply couldn’t stop and had to know how it ended. Highly recommend.

LOVED this book! Perfect summer read. Katherine Center is always on my list of authors to read as soon as the books come out. Not your typical romantic book!

This was my first Katherine Center book, and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Sadie is a portrait artist who has an unfortunate accident that leaves her face blind. Faces now look like mixed up puzzle pieces, so she's faced with a horrible dilemma since she has just over a month to finish a portrait for a huge competition she's in.

Along the way, she falls for not 1 but 2 guys, a neighbor in her building and her dog's new veterinarian. She has to deal with an overbearing stepmother, an evil step sister, and her father who seemingly wants nothing to do with her.

This was a great story about discovering new ways to "see" people and yourself. Sadie learned to watch how people carried themselves and felt their emotions without being able to see their faces.

I enjoyed seeing all the pieces of this story fall into place.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book.

Katherine Center’s books are always a solid bet when you want a smart, well-crafted, accessible, and heartfelt story. Hello Stranger describes a very unique physical phenomenon that I’d never heard of before. I went into this book blind, so I didn’t know what it would be about. I liked being surprised and watching the set-up unfold, so I won’t say the book’s premise here. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary eARC in exchange for my honest opinions. I think if you have enjoyed other books by Center, you will also enjoy this new one.

This was my second Katherine Center book and I enjoyed it but not as much as The Bodyguard. The writing itself is very good but was predicatable and I did not connect with the characters.

I have become a huge Katherine Center fan!! It started with The Bodyguard, and now I'm reading as many as I can! I have already recommended this one to friends, and I will continue to recommend it. I loved the disability representation in this one. Center is fantastic at writing romance that isn't too spicy (which is my reading preference). Count me in on any future Katherine Center books! I'll be here to cheer her on!

Quote:
- If I ever get run over, it’ll be by an Aston Martin.”
- We’re all struggling with our struggles. Nobody has the answers. And everybody, deep down, is a little bit lost.

Spoiler Free Review:
Sadie is an artist looking for her big break and right when she gets it her life falls apart. She finds out she needs brain surgery and that it has side effects that no one told her about before. The big one being face blindness which as a portrait artist means she can’t draw faces. She is a finalist in a portrait contest for $10k but can’t draw any faces that don’t look like a puzzle. Then she’s meeting all these new people who she actually already knew but did realize it since she can’t see their face. This includes the guys she falling for too. She hopes this resolves its self when the edema from the surgery goes down but until then her whole life feels upside down.

I loved this book so much. I loved the uniqueness of the story — and the overall message about people not really processing the world around them. I thought that I had a lot of the story figured out, but there managed to be a few twists and turns along the way. I will definitely be recommending this book to friends!

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is the first book by Ms. Center that I read and the story caught my attention from the beginning. I would love to make sure that she is ok, because how did she even come up with this story? This was really a story about finding love in a hopeless place, but also a reminder that vulnerability is not a weakness.

Although I really enjoyed this book, I was a bit disappointed at the fact that I could already guess the ending of the book by the mid-way mark. However, this story was so sweet that I couldn't help, but keep reading. I also love the fact that this was a love story with all the feels without including any graphic scenes.

I will be following Katherine's work from now on.

Katherine Center does it again! I have enjoyed her prior novels for their loveable, if not sometimes zany, characters that you will want to root for and this current novel is no exception. The whole book feels like a warm hug. That is not say hard things do not happen in Hello Stranger because they do, but the author keeps the novel on an overall hopeful note.

Sadie is an artist living in Houston and is self-described as tragically failing at life, when she has a seizure in a road and suffers a neurovascular issue. Sadie tries to win a big portrait painting contest while struggling to see people's faces due to her brain injury. There are great secondary characters in Hello Stranger including best friend Sue, an evil step-sister, a difficult step-mother and Sue's delightful parents. This book has competing love interests and a fast moving story line. Hello Stranger is so much than the normal love story, but retains the happy-ever-after feel of a typical romantic plot line.

I received this book in an exchange for an honest review thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin Press. I will post this review on Goodreads, Bookbub and Amazon.