Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Katherine Center for an advance listening copy of Hello Stranger in exchange for an honest review. I truly love every Katherine Center book I have ever read and this one was no exception. The narrator did a fantastic job describing this story and I’m looking forward to more of their work in the future! The premise was extremely unique in this one and that made this one all the more interesting! This is another feel good love story and it will be available on July 11th!

This was a really cute listen! It was actually my first foray into audiobook listening - and I found this book to be perfect for that format. Since the book has to do with the narrator losing her ability to see faces, experiencing this through audio and not visually by reading really added to the experience. As for the story, it's one of Katherine Center's best and she really told a compelling romance with an engaging personal battle in it.

This book was both fascinating and fun! The story opens with Sadie getting knocked in the head in a freak accident, resulting in a case of "face blindness." She can no longer distinguish one face from the next, which is particularly tragic for her since she has six weeks to submit a final work to a prestigious portrait contest. She has dreamed of this forever; however, all of a sudden she finds herself unable to accurately paint portraits. Meanwhile, she has an emergency with her dog and finds herself dreaming of a possible future relationship with the vet and at the same time, spends more and more time with her neighbor, Joe, despite really disliking him at first.

As with many of Center's novels, this is a sweet, heartwarming book. Joe and Sadie's relationship from hateful neighbors to friendship to love is a delight to read. I found Sadie's journey with face blindness and her recovery fascinating. She goes through a period of discovery as she begins to learn who she is without her art as she knows it. The side characters...both her lovable friends and her horrid step-sister...add a lot to the story. Center deals with challenges like difficult family situations, loss of a parent, and physical trauma with a caring touch. It never crossed the line into being too much.

The audiobook version is great! Patti Muran does a great job portraying Sadie's unique character and does well with the voices of Joe and others. She keeps us within Sadie's world which adds to the experience of reading this one.

What I love about Center's novels is that they are all so unique in storyline while still maintaining the heart and warmth that we have come to expect from her. I recommend this to anyone looking for a bright, uplifting story.

My first taste of Katherine Center's stories was The Bodyguard. Since then, I have devoured almost all of her books and have enjoyed every one. I appreciate her quirky, real characters along with the satisfaction and joy that comes with the resolution of each story.
Hello Stranger was nothing short of my expectations. I laughed, I cried, swooned, and enjoyed the anticipation and nourishment of the love story! Learning more about acquired face blindness was an added bonus and made me appreciate the development Sadie's character went through in the story. Word to the wise, don't skip out on the Author's Note!
Thank you, NetGalley and Katherine Center, for the opportunity to read the ARC. I definitely stayed up past my bedtime getting lost in this beautiful story!

It is so refreshing to find a romantic story that has not been done be for. And a seriously legitimate reason for the miscommunication. And character development that shows our heroine will be just fine if she doesn’t end up with the guy.
If you are a romance fan- this is a must read. I highly recommend reading nothing about this book before digging in!

This was an really interesting premise. I’m a little torn, although I did enjoy some parts of it. Definitely had some mixed thoughts. But I did prefer it in audiobook format!

“We are all muddling through, we are all just doing the best we can. We are struggling with our struggles. The more good things you look for, the more you find.” - I loved this message!

Hello Stranger (Audiobook) was a very cute and quirky read. The face blindness aspect was very interesting and unique. I really enjoyed listening to this audiobook.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to listen!

Read if you like:
🧼 Clean Romance
🎨 Artist FMC
🌀 Quirky FMC
2️⃣ Two Love Interests
🧠 Face Blindness

I really adored this audiobook and blew through it pretty quickly. I loved how the book was set up with Sadie having temporary facial blindness as a result of medical condition.

I truly loved Sadie and how stubborn she was as it reminded me of someone *cough* definitely not myself *cough* and how she had to learn the hard way to accept help and work through her strong confirmation bias about the world and those in it.

I truly loved how her love triangle with Joe who lives in her building and her dogs veterinarian unfolds and enjoyed how she just couldn’t help herself and was feeling all the insta love vibes during this tough time in her life.

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio for my ALC.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Prior to Hello Stranger, I had never heard of Prosopagnosia or face blindness. Not only did I learn about this disorder but I was engrossed in Sadie's story. With the exception of the face blindess, Sadie faced some very real obstacles that were relatable. I had a hard time putting this down.

I absolutely adored this book. It was so cute and quirky and the perfect light hearted read. I thought the main character, Sadie was hilarious. I found myself laughing out loud multiple times. The face blindness aspect of this book was so unique and so interesting to read about. It really makes you think! Although I guess the big plot twist pretty early on I still really enjoyed the reveal. I highly recommend this one!

I love Katherine Center's Books, So I was so excited to receive an Arc Audio book and I was not disappointed.

Things I loved.
Sadie is Flawed. She is struggling and her heart is still broken from when her mom died. Deep down, she just wants to be shown love by her dad and to not be treated like something he thew in the basement. I feel like she becomes so one track minded that it has kept her from seeing things in her own life clearly.

It is easy to relate to Sadie. She never feels good enough. She loves her dog more than anything in the world. For me the part of her constantly letting her trauma control her future hits home.
She is extremely flawed and that is what makes this book so good.

This book is not spicy but instead is a great love story. About accepting yourself and all your flaws and loving yourself and intern finding someone who loves you, Flaws and all.

Thank you Netgalley and McMillan audio for granting me access to Hello Stranger.

This book was a well written. I enjoyed the message it sent. At the end Sadie says “We are all muddling through, we are all just doing the best we can. We are struggling with our struggles. The more good things you look for, the more you find.” I absolutely love this message.

The book was close to 3.5-3.75 stars. I enjoyed the audio, I enjoyed the characters. The cover is beautiful. This author always has the most beautiful bright happy covers.

There were a few things when it came to the dialogue that I struggled with and a couple of the story lines that just didn’t quite click with me, and that’s way I can’t give it full 4 stars. But overall it was a really good book.

I really enjoyed this book! It was a mix between a light rom com but also incorporated a lesser known medical condition that I found fascinating. I've enjoyed other books by Katherine Center and I'll continue to seek them out!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for my copy of Hello Stranger by Katherine Center Narrated by Patti Murin in exchange for an honest review. It publishes July 11, 2023.
Yet another book by Katherine Center that I couldn't bear to put down! Or should I say pause? I adored the narration! But truly, I loved this book! I learned so much about the brain, about how we communicate and recognize faces, and just some neurological stuff I've not heard about before.
I loved the way this story was written, it felt like I was hanging out with a friend, and I just couldn't get enough!

Sadie is one of those characters you instantly bond with , I love her rawness, her honesty and personality . Sadie has quite the shock when she needs a surgery that will change her life .I really enjoy this authors writng , the style and topics not many talk about , I learned something new within this story . I really liked the narrator as well , she brought Sadie to life .

Loved this cute romance. It was a great book that is perfect for summer. I especially Loved the ending after the story was over when the author talked about face blindness. It was a great romance that I also learned during.

This is the book I didn’t know I needed right now. I feel in love with this story from beginning to end, I never wanted to stop listening! Did I know exactly what the major conflict at the end was going to be! Yup, yet I ate it up like candy.

Sadie and “Joe’s” relationship was so much fun. I loved that he was the golden retriever character of the book. We love a man who is a helper. I also learned things about the brain that I didn’t know were possible. What an amazing part of the human body. Another element of the book I liked was the family dynamic. I enjoy when authors dig deep into the side characters personalities instead of just labeling someone as the villain.

This is my second Katherine Center book and I don’t know why I haven’t picked up more books written by her yet because I loved them both. She just knows how to write a swoony, sweet and romantic book.

Katherine’s blurb at the back of the book was beautifully written and I agree wholeheartedly about why the romance genre just works for so many people.

The Narrator did a fantastic job and was very enjoyable to listen to.

5/5 stars friends, do yourself a favor and pick up this book!!

A month ago, I was given an advance copy of the audiobook version of this and I have been DYING to read it. My life is currently insane though, and I wanted to wait until I had a day or two of nearly no distractions so I could focus. Well, that time is finally here.

Sadie is a portrait artist who just received a huge break. On her way home to celebrate, she collapsed in the street. She needed brain surgery, which went fine. Until a few days later, when she could no longer see anyone's face. Swelling in her brain caused her to become face blind. This would throw anyone into a tailspin, but as a portrait artist, very little could be worse. Sadie has never accepted help well, but as she learns to navigate her new life, she has to accept it more and more frequently.

Katherine Center quickly became one of my "automatic read" authors. As in I do not even bother reading the blurb. I will read it regardless. While this is not my favorite book of hers, I did enjoy it a lot. It was different- and I learned a whole lot. I was aware of prosopagnosia, but it was very interesting to read about someone who suddenly developed it. And to a person who is so used to examining faces. I love when a romance book has substance, and this definitely has it. I loved following Sadie's journey on how she began to cope with everything.

The always dependable Patti Murin narrates the audio book.

I received an audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

A Perfect Book for a Day at the Beach or Pool


SUMMARY
Sadie Montgomery ran down to the corner store to pick up some wine for an impromptu celebration of the most significant achievement of her artistic career. She has been named a top ten finalist in the North American Portrait Society competition, with only one more portrait to paint.

But she has just woken up in the hospital without memory of what happened to her. The doctor tells her she has to have brain surgery immediately. She discovers she is face-blind when she wakes up from the brain surgery. She can see people in general, but their faces never come into focus. That is not a good thing for a portrait artist.

Sadie struggles to cope with her new reality. Her artistic dream hangs in the balance while she copes with horrendous family drama, a very sick dog, and falling madly in love with not one but two men. The timing could not be worse. Sadie cannot bear to share the news of her face-blindness with anyone, although her father, stepmother, and her one best friend know the truth.

REVIEW
HELLO STRANGER is a perfect book for a day at the beach. It’s got everything a good beach read needs. The story is light and fun to read, has a strong female lead, and is captivatingly full of both drama and romance. It even creates a hopeful sense of anticipation. It is a perfect escape from reality and will even make you smile.

Sadie’s face blindness makes the book compulsively readable. Can you even imagine this happening to you, let alone a portrait artist, during the most important opportunity of her career? This story is vibrant with emotions, and you can’t help but laugh, cry, and worry about Sadie. If only she would tell people about her face blindness...but then we wouldn’t have this delightful book. Did you know that over one in 50 people have face blindness?

Author Katherine Center has written ten novels, of which I have read five and enjoyed every one of them. She writes novels about how life knocks us down and how we get back up. Her writing is witty, and her research for this book was admirable.

I listened to the audiobook of HELLO STRANGER. Narrator Patti Murin’s performance was delightful. Her voice was perfect for the book. She enhanced the story with her inflection, pacing, and emotional tone. Listeners will leave the book happy. Read it!

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martins Press and Macmillian Audio for an advance reading copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.


Publisher St. Martin’s Press
Published July 11, 2023
Narrated Patti Murin
Review www.bluestockingreviews.com

Katherine Center does it again. I think this is my new favorite book of hers.

Sadie a struggling artist up for a coveted award. She has a surgery six weeks before her art show.

After her surgery she is left with face blindness. How is a portrait artist paint if she can't see faces?

It is an amazing story.