Katie Vaughn, in a last-ditch effort to avoid office-wide layoffs, has agreed to pack up her things and make the trip to Key West to profile Tom "Hutch" Hutchinson and the Coast Guard's rescue team on behalf of Hutch's brother, Cole. But things in Key West turn out to be a little more complicated than Katie anticipated, when she starts to have feelings for Hutch, when Cole turns up in Key West, when Katie finds herself unwittingly caught up in a series of lies, and when she gets caught in the path of a hurricane. Is all of this worth her job in the end?

I loved this book. I love Katherine Center's writing style. I find it easy to read, the dialogue is witty and realistic. I've loved everything she's written, and The Love Haters was no exception. I liked Katie's character. She has a healthy (entertaining) dose of cynicism, and her body-image issues are incredibly relatable. This book was a fun, easy read and I loved it. Looking forward to Center's next adventure.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read an advance copy of The Love Haters by Katherine Center. This review is based on that advance copy, provided solely for the purpose of an honest review.

My thoughts:
This book ended up being a delightful surprise, but it did take some time to get there. The first 15% felt a bit slow, and I wasn’t quite sure where the story was headed. However, once the pacing picked up, I was fully invested. The premise felt fresh and unique, and I appreciated the way the story balanced humor with deeper emotional moments.

I do wish the romance had been explored more thoroughly. The early relationship building between Katie and Hutch felt a little rushed, and I found myself wanting more scenes of them interacting and getting to know each other throughout their time in Key West. That said, there were several laugh-out-loud moments that made this such an enjoyable read, and the final stretch of the book really delivered. I loved how the story wrapped up, and the emotional payoff in the last quarter was exactly what I was hoping for.

Overall, The Love Haters is a fun, heartwarming story with a memorable setting and a great cast of characters. Despite a slow start and a few missed opportunities in the romance development, it’s a book I’d easily recommend to fans of Katherine Center or anyone looking for a feel-good romantic comedy with just the right touch of heart.

This is such a cute story, I really enjoyed it, all the way through the ending. Nice character development and self acceptance message.

Big Katherine Center fan here :) I enjoy her books for realistic characters and scenarios, as well as her heartfelt plots with emotional depth. This book was a bit off target, with some farfetched situations and male characters that came off as quite childish. There is humor and emotional growth, but lacked the charm.

Sincere thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

There’s warmth and charm here, the passion for reinventing, body image, and found family pull you in. But at times the plot feels a little stretched, and the romance doesn’t always hit the spark you hope for. Still, it’s an enjoyable ride with moments that linger.

I loved this!! Immediately I was smitten with Hutch and the entire cast of characters, and the story itself was so enjoyable! Katherine puts so much heart in her books and it's so evident in this one as well. Had a great time!!

I need this as a romcom-feel good movie immediately. I feel this book would have really shined as thus.

The setting- gorgeous. Reading it just FELT like vacation. But, as much as I usually LOVE Katherine Center's writing, this one just fell a little flat for me. It could have just been the lack of connection that I felt for the FMC and MMC as a couple. Love the premise, love the IDEA of their relationship, but it just missed some of the meat of the relationship building and romance in my opinion. I really appreciated Katie's personal journey. I also loved the side characters of Aunt Rue and George Bailey. Lovable dogs in books>everything really.

I will say I did LOVE the ending. That the third-act breakup has an adventure element to it was a nice change and nice surprise.

Like I said, I would watch this romcom in a heartbeat- because a lot of the romantic tension that I felt was missing could be filled with some great actors.


Also I will likely read this again. For the vibes and the band of older ladies.

Thank you to NetGalley, Katherine Center, and St. Martin's Press for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a review. The Love Haters by Katherine Center is a fun and quick book romance between a dreamy Coast Guard rescue swimmer and the fish out of water documentarian there to film a military recruitment video.

This book was a very typical Katherine Center novel. A fun and quick read with some interesting characters and side stories. However, the main character Katie was a little too inept to be super believable. She goes from never having swam before to having to pass a helicopter escape test in no time. She also seems to have zero common sense at some times that makes her feel immature. I just really enjoyed the male main character far more than the female one. This is a good beach read/summer read that I would put in the compulsively readable but not amazing category.

I adore Katherine Center’s books, and this story surely did not disappoint. It had some heartwarming moments and made me laugh out loud. I loved the audiobook and following along with the kindle version. Katie and Hutch were so likable, and I rooted for them to be together. As a whole, this book pulled on my heartstrings and was a lot of fun to read. The ending had me smiling so big! Another win for Katherine Center.

I loved The Love Haters! Katherine Center always writes the cutest, most fun rom-coms, and also loved the finding self-love theme in this one. Definitely recommend for a fun, lighthearted read!

Love a fun meet cute with a dog! I enjoyed the story but did feel like the progression of the relationship could have had more lead up to the characters initial kiss. However, the plot did thicken which allowed ample time for the chemistry to grow. I do wish we’d gotten a longer epilogue or just a little more of the characters HEA! Oh I also wish we’d gotten a scene with her speaking to her ex after the song came out. Overall- 3.5 stars rounded up because I’m a fan of Katherine Center. 🌺

While this is definitely not my favorite of hers, I can honestly say it was an OK read. The premise was creative, characters somewhat memorable, but the romance was a little blah.

It’s a quick read and I did pair with the audio, narration was flawless. There is A LOT of talk about body dysmorphia, that I could see irking some readers, but I didn’t feel it overpowered the plot

In summary, if you want a quick read, a few light laughs, and some heart pulling moments, pick this one up

I've been lucky enough to read multiple advance reader copies of Katherine Center's books, and I feel that she continues to get better and better with each read. The "Love Haters" is no exception. It had everything I wanted in a romcom: quirky and lovable characters, a descriptive setting, some angsty drama, and plenty of relatable moments. I was also lucky enough to go to one of Katherine Center's book tour dates, where she gave a detailed description of all the love portrayed in this book, from romantic to familial to pet love; this book had it all. Not to mention the thoroughly researched experience of working with the National Guard to learn more about the character that would shape Hutch. All in all, a great read from Katherine Center!

sadly not my favorite of hers- just couldn’t get into any of the characters and story line. Missing the romance in this one. Will I give center another chance? Yes

The Love Haters by Katherine Center is a beautifully written contemporary romance that kept me hooked from beginning to end. Katie Vaughn, a video producer hiding the fact she can’t swim, takes on a risky assignment profiling rugged Coast Guard rescue swimmer Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson—and quickly finds herself tangled in lies, fears, and unexpected feelings. Set in sunny Key West with Hutch’s lovable Great Dane stealing scenes, the story explores self-acceptance, complicated family ties, and learning to love. This is the second Katherine Center book I’ve read, and it was just as engaging and heartfelt as the first.

This was such a fun read. I really enjoyed the characters and I always love this authors writing because it’s so fun & funny

The Love Haters by Katherine Center was not my first book by this author, but it’s the latest book of hers that I absolutely loved! From the very first chapter, the story hooked me with its warmth, wit, and heart. The characters felt so real and endearing that I didn’t want the book to end. It’s a story you can just get lost in and time races by while you are reading. Katie’s store is so endearing and had me rooting for me the whole way through. This was such a fun, feel-good read that still carried plenty of depth, and it’s left me eager to dive into more of her work. I can’t wait to see what Katherine Center writes next!

I am torn because on the one hand this book had som many lines that really stuck with me and honestly helped me (the ones about being brave and what life is for specifically) but then other parts just fell kind of flat. The last 40% crammed a lot in and then I felt like we didn’t really get a pay off of the main couple together. But still very cute and light and profound.

I really wanted to like this book, but this was just not it. It was my first Katherine Center book, and I know this one is pretty different than her others, it just missed the mark completely for me. I liked the first 100 pages or so, but after that it just kept getting more and more unrealistic. The romance wasn’t a main subject, so the romance felt forced and unrealistic. There wasn’t much slow burn or build up, so it almost made it feel too convenient for the plot. I liked the idea that body image issues could be discussed, but again it was far too unrealistic and almost felt silly in the way it was brought into the book. I think the idea of this plot was great, but unfortunately the execution was not quite there.

I actually liked the coast guard aspect of the story, it was an interesting piece and I enjoyed it! I for sure will be reading other books by Katherine Center, but this book was just not for me.

A cute rom-com. Nothing groundbreaking. I found the FMC to be a bit irritating, but I was generally able to get past it & enjoy the story. Not my favorite from this author but not my least favorite either! Would recommend for a cute/easy summer read