Just in time for summer, a wonderful beach read from Katherine Center. This one features Katie, a Dallas-based videographer who is about to lose her job in a downsizing move at her firm. Cole, her manager, sets her up with an assignment that he convinces her to take, thinking it might save her job. Katie is to go to Key West, Florida, and create a promotional video for the US Coast Guard. The video will feature Tom "Hutch" Hutcheson, who happens to be Internet famous for saving Jennifer Anniston's dog, and also happens to be Coles older brother. Katie really doesn't want to take this on -- she's heard that Hutch is hard to get along with, that he hates love and romance, and he's all business. Plus, there's the small matter that she can't swim, at all, and will need to pass a survival test in the water before she will be allowed to tag along with the Coast Guard people to film her video. This is so much fun, as Hutch turns out to be a lot nicer than advertised, and maybe not such a love-hater after all!

I was lucky enough to be approved for the arc of both the book and audiobook. While I read the book some, I enjoyed the audiobook more. The narrator was great.

Katie and Hutch being thrown together because she can't swim and needs to be able to in order to film a documentary day in the life piece on his. He is in the Coast Guard and she needs to be able to swim to go through the training. Once he starts helping her learn to swim sparks fly and the fun, funny and laugh out loud moments start. How the story progresses was great and the shocking twist toward the end was a surprise.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

DNF @ 40% *sigh* Katherine Center has always been hit or miss for me, but I really thought we had turned a corner when I read The Bodyguard and absolutely adored it! Hello Stranger was a bit of a step back, but even that one didn't truly annoy me like her early books. So when I read last year's release (The Rom-Commers) and again loved it, I was convinced that Katherine Center was a new, solid go-to author for me. Now I fear we're back to square one.
I didn't love this book. I wanted to love it, but I just couldn't get into it. Maybe it's just a case of bad timing, but sadly I had to eventually give up. Still holding onto hope for KC though because The Body Guard was just sooo good!

This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart


Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

4.5 hearts

I have never been disappointed by this author. Katherine Center takes me on a journey with realistic characters who are sometimes wonderful, sometimes horrible. While some of the situations may not be believable, the emotions are dead accurate.

Katie is a videographer. One of her co-workers got the assignment to film the Coast Guard guy in a demonstration rescue and promo for the Coast Guard. The guy is called Puppy Love (Pup Daddy in the ebook), because he rescued Jennifer Aniston's dog and went viral. He has refused to do any interviews or anything ever since. It turns out the co-worker, Cole is his brother.

Katie would love to do this and maybe even interview, Puppy Love, otherwise known as Hutch, for her own project of Day in the Life. Most of her subjects have been women because she is with them a full day, sleeping at their home, etc. The staff at the company all needs to do great work because the owner is miserable from her divorce and firing people left and right.

Katie goes, even though she doesn't know how to swim, and will have to pass a water test to ride in the helicopter. The Coast Guard facility is in Key west. Cole's aunt Rue puts her up. She meets Hutch and after the initial shock Cole isn't coming Hutch works nicely with her. But there are reasons Hutch agreed to the interview to make sure Cole came and reasons Cole doesn't want to come.

Aunt Rue and her friends are awesome. I really like both Katie and Hutch; they are good people. Of course, Hutch and Katie fall for each other, and the rescue Great Dane, George Bailey. Cole absolutely makes a huge mess and then Katie goes back to get George Bailey when a hurricane is coming and that doesn't go perfectly for them.

Be sure to listen to the author's note about the background on The Love Haters. Every Katherine Center book is full of inspiration, feel good, and character growth, as the characters get to know and care for each other while dealing with life.

4.25 - 4.5 stars

Trigger warnings - disordered eating and body dysmorphia

Katherine Center is an author that I can count on for a 4+ star read. She writes stories that need to be told including such interesting perspectives and characters. While parts of this book felt a little bit predictable, I still thoroughly enjoyed the story. I found Katie to be very relatable. She was a girl who had a very toxic relationship that lead her down a road of disordered eating and body dysmorphia that really took over her life. I also loved Katie's journey about learning to love color again. It was also a metaphor for her life, that was rather bland and dull in many ways but came to be filled with color as she opened her heart to love and fully embracing life again. The storyline about her learning to love herself was so relatable and raw. Also, the power of seeing yourselves through the eyes of someone else. Beanie is the best friend we all need. Cole I found to be rather immature and insufferable at times but I did appreciate his growth arc. Hutch was such a fun MMC. He is someone who carries some things that are dark from his past, but strives to make the most of each day and spread as much joy and positivity that he can. Rue is the grandmother figure everyone needs in their life. The truth about the accident was heartbreaking but the story of how they turned a tragedy into something magical is so powerful.

I would definitely recommend this book and can't wait for Katherine Center's next book!

The Love Haters is a fun book. I want to say that up front because I really did enjoy reading it! That said, it wasn't my absolute favorite Katherine Center book I've read. I had definite moments of laughing out loud and loved some of the characters (Rue and George Bailey were the obvious standouts). The romance at the center of this book between Katie and Hutch started off a little stilted in my opinion. Hutch felt kind of flat, particularly when he was mostly reduced to being ogled by Katie. But as the two of them started to interact - and banter - more, he came to life, and ultimately, I found myself rooting for the two of them.

The thing I struggled with most was Katie's body image struggles. Not the concept of them - no issues there, given that most women (and most people, probably) have felt the same. But in order to set up for her romance arc with herself, we got a lot of information up front. Arguably too much. Early chapters functioned more as info dumps than story elements, and while I enjoyed Katie's love list of body parts (her ode to her thumb was very fun), there were times when her self exploration was too on the nose to be good reading.

Still, though, I sped through the last 40 or so percent of this book, because it was fun and dramatic and a little silly in the way that I wanted it to be. It also made me want to go throw on the most colorful outfit that I owned.

3.75/5

amazing! 5 stars. 10/10. no notes!!! how does she do it?!? i don’t know but i hope she never stops. this one might be my favorite. i absolutely loved it. and i loved how i felt reading it—warm, fuzzy, and happy!!! katherine has cracked the code for rom coms.


thank you netgalley for the ARC!!! all thoughts and ideas are completely my own. seriously, this was amazing.

❤️ The Love Haters ❤️⁣
⁣⁣
⁣I’m so torn on this book! I adored some parts but also struggled a bit. Katherine Center is such a good writer, but I will admit I found Katie (the main character) a little bit annoying. The work/brother drama just felt unnecessary and dumb. And the ending was just too over the top and ridiculous. I don’t want to spoil anything, but I was summing it up to my husband and cracking up because it was just so unrealistic! ⁣
⁣⁣
⁣For the positives- it’s set in Key West (love!), starts off with an adorable meet cute featuring a dog, and Katie’s personal growth was nice to read about. ⁣
⁣⁣
⁣Four stars! This is still a good book, but it’s not The Bodyguard or Things You Save in a Fire! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⁣
⁣⁣
⁣Thank you to @netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of The Love Haters. It publishes on May 20, 2025!

3.5 stars

Katie Vaughn’s career is on the line.... so she accepts a risky assignment: profile a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. However, she may or may not be able to swim. he can’t swim.

What follows is a whirlwind of secrets, swim lessons, helicopter rides, and one very lovable rescue dog named George Bailey. While the humor occasionally felt too slapstick and the body image focus a bit heavy-handed early on, Katherine Center still delivers her signature heart. At its core, this is as much a story about self-love as it is about romance. However, I felt like there was some aspects of this book that I am just not personally a fan of. Still, this is a well written book.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

I absolutely love Katherine Center books, the romance, the witty banter, all of it is so enjoyable and this book was no different.

This book follows Katie Vaughn. She has been burned by love in the past where her ex-fiancé cheated on her when he became famous and the the internet had no problems with talking about the way she looks. Because of this, she has issues with her body image and even at one point wasn't eating the way she should to lose weight.

Her job is currently on the line, because they new boss is on a firing spree and her coworker Cole has picked her for this amazing opportunity to prove herself and keep her job. The job is in the Florida Keys and she has to profile Tom "Hutch" Hutcheson a Coast Guard rescue swimmer. The catch, she doesn't know how to swim and she doesn't like wearing a bathing suit. Oh and Hutch only agreed to this gig because he is expecting Cole to be the one shooting it. Why Cole? Because Cole is his brother who hasn't spoke to him for the last year.

Will Katie learn to swim in time to do this gig and keep her job? Will Hutch completely shut the job down once he learns Katie is the one doing it instead of Cole?

I really did enjoy this book. I listened to it on audio and I felt that the narrator did a wonderful job with it. While I am not a huge fan of the body shamming and one of the main plots being body image issues, in the end it worked out because the message was learning how to love yourself no matter what and not caring how others perceive you. I also loved Hutch. While he is an alpha male (I mean he is in the Coast Guard, what do you expect), but he doesn't flaunt it and he doesn't see himself in that way.

I really loved their connection together and I loved watching their relationship blossom. I also love the side characters of Hutch's aunt Rue and her friends and Hutch's rescue Great Dane, George Bailey.

My only real problem with the book was Cole so that is why this isn't a five star book for me, but otherwise I felt the book was really good and had me in my feels at times. She also had me laughing out loud at times as well. Katherine Center is an auto-read author for me and I look forward to her books every year.

Read if you like:
-Strangers - to -friends - to lovers
-Alpha male
-Fake Dating
-Only One Bed
-Key West setting
-Workplace Romance
-Witty Banter
-Forced Proximity
-Loveable Side Characters
-Imperfect by relatable FMC

Thank you @macmillan.audio, @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the #gifted copies.
-

As one of my favorite authors, Katherine Center continues to nail romance and self-discovery. In the Love Haters, Katie is on a journey to love herself, be present, take up space and find joy once more. She was jilted by her famous ex-fiance and the internet cesspit of haters damaged her already weak self-image. Now, she has to challenge herself by filming a promo video on the Coast Guard - learning to swim, ride in choppers and perhaps open her heart to love once more. The only issue I have is that her male leads tend to fall flat - very show and tell how great or flawed they are - versus the female leads are so complex.

**Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the ARC. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely**

I am leaning towards 3 on this one. Overall, I did enjoy the book and can relate to the issues of body image struggles. However especially near the end of the book I was like okay girl..:
However I was never publicly ridiculed online and told myself to go off myself due to my looks so her feelings definitely were on a different level personally.

I liked hutch off the bat. They did have a installed type of situation but they also developed their rapport over weeks. It wasn’t super dived into as a romance and that’s fine but I think from the cover and title I was expecting something different.

The main conflict with the MMC confused me. It just didn’t feel real and I couldn’t take that seriously really. I wish that was hashed out a different way. It seemed so juvenile for grown men. But also the stakes for the fmc- like what?!

I don’t know. Overall, fine and there were times I really thought it could be really good.
There were just so many directions and problems. The pacing was off and the chemistry just didn’t connect completely on page.
I wish it focused more on a few things to make the connection with things stronger.

A fun summer read! I wouldn't go so far as to call it a rom-com, but this is a fun romp of a book following our main character Katie as she ventures on a trip to Key West to capture footage for her job. The trip is a do-or-die, as layoffs are on the horizon. I loved the setting and the character of Rue. Several aspects were quite unbelievable, but the story was fun and kept me turning the page.

Thank you to Saint Martin's Press and Netgalley for access to the eArc. This title is set to release on May 20, 2025.

Katie Vaughn has been burned by love in the past—now she may be lighting her career on fire. She has two choices: wait to get laid off from her job as a video producer or, at her coworker Cole’s request, take a career-making gig profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. The catch? Katie’s not exactly qualified. She can’t swim—but pretends that she can.

Plus, Cole and Hutch are brothers. And they don’t get along. Next stop: paradise! But paradise is messier than it seems. As Katie gets entangled with Hutch (the most scientifically good-looking man she has ever seen . . . but maybe a bit of a love hater), along with his colorful aunt Rue and his rescue Great Dane, she gets trapped in a lie. Or two. Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines

Great if you're looking for a light read! One of the things I love about a lot of Katherine Center's books is how well they dive into different themes and how well they explore them. I felt like that was missing a little in this one.

That said, I really did enjoy this story and getting to know Katie and Hutch. The setting and the story were fun, and the characters were believable. If you're looking for the deeper aspect, you might be disappointed with this one, but if you go into it realizing that it's a lighter read, I think you'll enjoy it!

I received an advanced complimentary digital copy of this book from Netgalley. Opinions expressed are my own. 4⭐

Delightful romp in the Keys! Producer Janie learns to love her body and face her fears with help from her bestie, a group of Golden Girls, simultaneously learning to swim from and do a promo video of hunky Coast Guard rescuer Hank. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for an advanced reader copy for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Katherine Center for the opportunity to read this e-ARC!

Katherine Center's books are absolute gold. Her books are automatic-reads for me. Her writing style is quick and humorous and her characters are quirky and lovable. The Love Haters is no exception. I couldn't put this book down!

This was a 5-star read and I absolutely recommend reading it this summer!

Beginning was a bit much, middle was great, ending was soooo dragged out unnecessarily and the reason this became a three star read.

Overall this was cute. The main focus of this story is love in all aspects of the word. Friendship love, family love, new love, self love, and the biggest one of all: body love. The body dysmorphia was MUCH in the beginning of this story but I did like how it played out toward the end.

The romance was sweet but no way those two last past the epilogue. I didn’t get the chemistry at all but that’s largely to do with Hutch having little personality. He had cute quirks and sweet things about him but I kept imagining Zac Efron in Bay Watch. Maybe my own fault.

This is gonna be a book I’ll likely forget I read, but the in the moment read was enjoyable. Not upset that I read it and finished it but wouldn’t have missed much either!

Read if you like:
🫂 body positivity
🐕 DOGS
🌶️ mild spice (1/5 - two REALLY good kisses)
👵🏼 meddling old ladies
🌊 the sea
🛟 rescue heros

This book was way too focused on body image issues (the first 20% were almost exclusively on the topic), and it was written very immaturely and dramatically.

•Romance • Body Image • Rescue Swimmer Vibes•

📘 My take: There were plenty of charming moments—some laugh-out-loud funny scenes and a super sweet dog that stole the show. 🐾 This had the warmth and heart I expect from Katherine Center, but the pacing felt a little uneven and some character moments left me wanting more.

::WHAT I LIKED::
👉 The main character’s body image journey was thoughtfully handled.
👉 There were genuinely sweet and funny moments that made me smile.
👉 The dog? Total scene-stealer. 🐾

::WHAT I WONDERED ABOUT::
👉 The love interest was dreamy… almost too dreamy. I wanted more layers to him!
👉 The main character sometimes felt like two different people—her emotional journey didn’t always match how she showed up in the romance.
👉 The best-friend dynamic didn’t land for me. Their interactions felt repetitive and one-sided.

::YOU WILL LIKE THIS BOOK IF YOU…::
💘 Crave romance with meaningful themes
💋 Enjoy characters navigating self-worth and starting over
🐶 Love a cozy, dog-friendly read
🌀 Don’t mind when things lean more feel-good than fully fleshed-out

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

With each Katherine Center I read, I find myself loving her books more and more. Katie's got many problems - her love life is abysmal, her job is on the line, and she can't swim. Her not knowing how to swim is a big problem because she has to do a career-making profile on Hutch, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer. I absolutely adore Rue. She gives off fairy godmother vibes with her meddling. The paradise that she runs perfectly showcases girlhood too. Hutch is a grump but oh so dreamy. This was a great rom-com coming into beach read season. The audio was perfection, which I listened to in combination with the digital copy. Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the gifted eARC and ALC. All opinions are my own.

Instagram post will be liive before or on release day.