I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I have really enjoyed Katherine Center romance books, and this one is great as well. Katie and Hutch are such great characters. Katie is a film producer and gets an assignment to film Hutch who is a trained Air Rescue Diver (think The Guardian with Ashton Kutcher). Katie also has some massive insecurities about her body, and we see a lot of her physical self-loathing on page. I could see how this might bother some readers, but as a tall girl who grew up in the mid-90s to early-00s I felt so seen!! As much as I enjoyed the characters and the story, I loved reading about Katie redefining her relationship with her body. I didn't like the going along with lies in the end of the second act, but glad how it resolved. This is a fast read with depth, great characters, and lots of character growth. Greatly enjoyed!

I’m not going to lie, Center is one of my absolute favorite authors! It is rare for me to not love her books and this one was no exception! I loved Katie and Hutch and loved watching their story unfold. However, I did want to shake Katie! Why did she go along with all the crazy antics of someone she barely knew! That just added some unneeded drama.
One of my favorite things is that Center writes “real” women. They have flaws and struggle with the same thoughts as we do. I loved how Katie relied on her best friend Beanie and then found such a wonderful support system with Rue and The Gals. Those friendships were the real winning part of this book!

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

As per usual with Katherine Center, I loved this. Katherine just injects magic into everything she writes. This book was heartfelt while also being hilarious. And the premise was also so unique!! This was just a good time and I miss these characters already.

3.5 rounded up for goodreads. In true Katherine Center fashion, this was a quick, fun, witty rom-com. She always finds a way to make the characters come alive & have you cheering for them all along. Taking you on an adventure with some predictable outcomes, some that make you LOL & at the same incorporating a story of body positivity and self love. This made me want to pack up & head to key west!

I was so excited to receive an email from St Martin’s Press inviting me to read an early copy of this book!! Big thanks to Katherine Center, St. Martin’s Press & NetGalley!

Love this book so much!!! As someone who has also struggled with body image, I felt seen by Katie’s character. I also love the green flag in human form that is Hutch. I’ve never wanted to be stranded on a pontoon boat in the middle of a hurricane, but it definitely doesn’t seem so bad now.

Katherine Center does it again!

-Enemies to Lovers
-Coast Guard Hero
-Forced Proximity
-grumpy x sunshine

Some of my favorite quotes:
“You’re a TV jingle you never wanted to learn, but can’t erase. You’re a puzzle that can’t be solved—or a question that can’t be answered—or a dream you wake up from that feels like it really happened. But it didn’t happen. And it can’t happen. Because that’s not how dreams work.”

“You weren’t the reason she died. You were her last wish.”

““Wow,” she said, starting to look tired. “Your life is worse than mine.” “Probably.”“Let’s be best friends, then,” she said.”

“The way I was missing him. The way I couldn’t stop longing for him. The way my thoughts, and my heart, and my entire body were completely capsized by everything that had just happened . . . there was no other explanation. It just had to be love.“

““Love is the worst.” But he was smiling at me. “It makes you jealous. And possessive. And desperate. It upsets your orderly life. It haunts you, and worries you, and gets you drunk with your brother. It tempts you. It makes you say yes when you should say no, and it stops you from saying yes when that’s the only thing you want to do.“

“People are resilient. We keep going. We find all kinds of ways to thrive anyway.”

“The past can’t hurt you now like it did then. The story of your life is always full of mystery. You can unfold it on a table like a map, and study it, and understand it in new ways. It’s not different, but you are.”


“That’s what no one ever tells you. You can look around with your own eyes. You can find your own details. Notice for yourself what matters—and decide what it means. It’s as true as it is life-changing. But the only way to do it is to do it.”

Love and Revelations

| rom com | contemporary romance | amazing story telling | real & wholesome | humorous | self love | body dysmorphia | phobias | chromophobia | videographer x rescue swimmer | the keys | slow burn | friendship | relatable | animal companion | single POV | to feel seen |

Would I recommend this book? A million times yes.
Is it spicy? Not at all—but if you love love, this story will leave its mark on you.

This is the story of a woman on a journey to love herself—a journey that feels both achingly familiar and refreshingly new. It's heartwarming, grounding, and so deeply human. It didn’t just move me—it made me reflect on how stories shape the way I feel, not just about the characters, but about myself.
The storytelling is exceptional—thoughtful, intentional, and full of real emotion. I learned things I’d never even considered before, like the life and risks of a rescue swimmer. I'd never encountered this profession in fiction or otherwise, and it opened my eyes to a whole new kind of bravery and responsibility.

Having read Katherine Center before, I knew what to expect: love, passion, and raw human emotion. I also knew there wouldn't be any spice—and honestly, it wasn’t missed. When the story is this real, this relatable, and this emotionally rich, the absence of spice doesn’t feel like a lack. It’s replaced by depth.

And I say this as someone who's currently in my Love Hater era. Love isn’t easy. It’s not clean or logical. It can hurt. But it can also bring out the very best in us—and sometimes, the parts we didn’t even know existed. This book gets that. It’s fulfilling, it’s tender, and it lingers. I don’t often find contemporary romances that strike me this deeply, which is exactly why I urge you: if you're even thinking about reading this, just do it. Let it unfold. You won't regret it.

I especially recommend this book to anyone who has struggled with self-image or felt unkind to themselves in their own skin. There are moments, reflections, and lines in this book that will stay with me—some forever.

Thank you, Katherine, for this story. For reminding me that love starts at home—with self-love—and only from there can it truly flourish.

Happy Reading, Friends xx

I think that this was an interesting read, different from most of the books that I read because it features a character who is a video producer and the other character is a coast guard swimmer. I don’t know anything about the coast guard or what goes into being a video producer so it was interesting to read about it. I think Katie seems like a very self depreciating person but I liked Hutch. I also liked his rescue dog. The plot was fine, just overall I thought the whole concept of love haters was kind of strange, I get why Katie would be classified as one however one bad experience should not automatically make you hate love.

Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for a chance to read this ARC copy.

4.5 ⭐️ Take me to the Florida keys to fall in love with a coast guard rescue swimmer! What a perfect summer read this was. I laughed, I teared up, I was on the edge of my seat. Katie's story is so much deeper when you dive into this book, her journey to self love and acceptance is something every woman should strive to reach.

Katherine Center has become one of my must-read romance authors. And I think this might be my favourite book yet!

I picked up my ARC after several disappointing reads, hoping this would get me out of my reading slump - and it ended up being a 5-star read! I can't count the number of times I laughed out loud. The characters were sweet, the story was the right amount of romance, humour and heart. What I didn't expect, though, is how much I cried - because of George Bailey. If I didn't know better, I'd swear he was modelled after my own boy! They have almost identical backgrounds, are both large dogs who think they're small, and they have the same temperament <spoiler>My boy would 10/10 carry around toads for fun. He is the ultimate weirdo. And without a doubt, I would turn around in a hurricane to go back to him.</spoiler> I wasn't expecting to be so stressed for the last several chapters! I flew through this one and couldn't put it down. I am officially going to read through all of Katherine Center's backlist, because I am obsessed! I will definitely be grabbing a copy for my bookshelf when this comes out, because I know it will be a reread.

The love story between the main female character, Katie, and herself is the star of the show. Having a bestie/cousin that forces her to talk about her body and has helped her rise from the ashes of past eating issues was so well done.

There is also Hutch, a male character who “hates love” but is an absolute amazing person. He always sees the good in people or how to make the most of a situation. He also has a giant Great Dane that thinks he’s a lap dog. The friendship that developed between Hutch and Katie was such an amazing addition to this story.

2 stars

First off I want to say there is no warning for how prevalent body image issues are in this story. It is THE MAIN PLOT. Throughout the book, it felt like the FMC mentioned her body hatred or her food issues or her past ED on every dang page. This can be incredibly triggering to so many people. Even though it is not a particular trigger for me personally, it was talked about so much that I was getting exhausted by it. I wanted to DNF so many times and I regret that I didn't. The way weight was talked about constantly, it was clear the author is over 50.

There is NO WAY not a single person in the FMCs life never noticed her sectoral heterochromia. I have tiny dots in one of my irises and people who I don't know well have mentioned it so its impossible hers wasn't noticed. And why did nobody ever correct her that her eyes are not hazel but blue?? This is truly the most unbelievable part of the book.

The first 75% of this book is so focused on the FMCs body that the romance felt a bit random. Then the 3rd act conflict is the STUPIDEST situation I have ever read. Let me spoil it for you. The FMC Katie was sent by her boss(?) Cole to do a documentary piece of his Coast Guard brother Hutch. Cole decides to lie and tell Hutch that he and Katie are dating to save her job (?) with their boss who wants to lay people off, yet somehow two people dating means...they won't get fired?? He never tells Katie this plan but convinces her to stick to the lie (hello sexual harassment case) so now Hutch thinks Katie cheated on her boyfriend with his brother? Great plan guys. Then they go to a bar and Cole wants to do a drinking contest and says whoever wins IN THE WHOLE BAR gets to kiss Katie...WHAT THE HELL??? Girl report this man to HR. Some other stuff happens which ends up with Cole hooking up with the boss?? I still don't really understand why she came to FL too. Anyhow when they come clean to Hutch that they aren't together, the guys wrestle in public and this is the second book by this author that two grown ass men wrestle in public and I hate it. Then Katie thought Hutch would just run into her arms? YOU LIED TOO and made him feel like he was stealing his brothers girl. That's insane behavior.

Anyhow she ends up alone on a houseboat in the middle of a hurricane and it sinks. Of course Hutch ends up saving her but at one point he makes her think he is just going to LEAVE HER ALONE IN THE OCEAN WITH A RAFT. Why would you do that to someone in this situation?? Psychopath.

Unfortunately I think this author isn't for me. I've hated 3/5 of the books I've read.

Regarding the audiobook, I do feel the narrator was really good and the production was well done.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC.

I’ll start by saying, if Katherine Center wrote a dictionary, I would read it. The Love Haters did not disappoint. It delivered the laughing out loud moments as well as the moments that made me sob.

I loved Hutch and Katie and both of their careers. It felt like something new and fresh. I appreciated the research that was put into Hutch and his career with the U.S. Coast Guard. It was fun learning about the divers. I really loved Aunt Rue and the gals and the community that they had. I adored Beanie and how she pushed Katie to find the good in herself. And I cannot forget George Bailey. I loved him too.

What I loved most of all was beyond the romance. I loved that this book was about going beyond perceptions in relationships of all kinds with others and yourself. It was about second chances. It was about body image and loving yourself. I really respect Katherine Center for diving into these deeper topics. It’s not easy to talk about some of these things, especially knowing that not everyone will agree or connect with it—but I think it was a brave and powerful choice.

This is probably my new favorite by Katherine Center. I’m so sad it’s over. I want more of all these characters.

Thank you NetGalley for the complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I always love a Katherine Center read. She doesn't just write a love story, she makes it meaningful and connected to the larger world. It was fun that she took two people who were trying NOT to have a relationship with anyone and put them together. Seeing their evolution from solitary, lonely creatures to falling in love with each other despite themselves was a lovely ride.

Some of the characters in this book were a little weird and didn't quite seem real--yep, I'm talking about Cole and Jessica. But Hutch and Katie were real enough to forgive the cartoonishness of some of the side characters.

As romances go, it followed the basic skeleton of attraction, being together, problems, separating, then . . . well, I don't want to give away the ending, but it's pretty typical. But a good writer can put very pretty flesh on this basic skeleton. Center always manages to do this, making the reader feel like part of the story and making it seem new each time.

It wasn't the best romance story I ever read, which is why it gets 4 stars. Probably more like 4.5, if that were available. It was definitely an entertaining way to spend a few hours, though. You could do a lot worse, believe me. I have.

I would like to start off by thanking netgalley for the arc of this book.

I have found that anything Katherine Center writes I will love and this is no different.

A little white lie never hurt anybody.... that is what Katie thinks as she tries to see her job as a video producer. To keep from being laid off Katie joins her coworker Cole on an adventure following his brother Tom "Hutch" Hutchinson who is a coastguard rescue swimmer in Key West. Although Katie and Hutch do have one thing in common, they are both "love haters." In perfect Katherine Center fashion these two "love haters" end up finding out they might actually have more than one thing in common. If you love HEA, rescue dogs, and cute swimming lessons you will love this book.

I absolutely cannot go wrong with a Katherine Center book. It's great every time. I loved this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced digital copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC. A quick and easy romcom to read. It wasn’t one of my favorites by Katherine Center. It was a bit cheesy for me. There really could have been more character development between the two main characters. Overall an ok read for me.

Katherine Center is another auto-buy author for me. Every story and character is so easy to connect to.

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

In Katie's desperate attempt to keep her job, she agrees to follow Hutch, a member (and hunky hero) of the US Coast Guard. Only problem? She can't swim. And she hates swimsuits. And the way she looks.

This book ended up finishing ME instead of me finishing it. I loved the idea of Katie falling in love with herself first before falling in love with anyone else. It started out rough for me, I didn't know if I was going to finish. As with Katherine's other books, it is the slowest of slow burns, but it is so worth it in the end. I thought it was action packed, cute, and thought provoking. I'll be implementing the body part I love and why part of the book into my weekly affirmations!

3.5/5, rounded up to 4.

I loved The Love Haters by Katherine Center. Katherine is one of my auto-buy, go-to authors when I want a feel good, low steam happy ending. But the thing I like about her books is that while they are all of those things, they also deal with real issues and emotions that aren't all sunshine and rainbows. If I don't cry at least twice, was it really a Katherine Center book?

Katie is persuaded by her co-worker Cole to travel to Key West and film a video profile of Tom "Hutch" Hutchinson, a coast guard rescue swimmer. Katie is the opposite of qualified--she can't even swim--but she's desperate to keep her job and figures a little white lie won't hurt. Also, turns out Cole and Hutch are brothers, and things get a little messy in paradise. And that's before the hurricane rolls in. I loved watching how everything shook out for Katie down in Florida with the colorful cast of side characters including a rescue great dane with thunderstorm anxiety. I kept thinking of the Taylor Swift line about "just getting color back into my face," and how it fit so well with Katie as she learned to love again and embrace all the colorful moments of life.

All the stars. Fabulous. No notes. Thank you so much to SMP for my advance review copy.