Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Katherine Center, for this ARC of “The Love Haters” which came out on May 20, 2025.

I’m a longtime fan of Katherine Center and usually adore her romcoms. While this novel had her signature charm and the cover art is absolutely stunning, The Love Haters didn’t quite resonate with me. The storyline felt a bit too far-fetched, and I struggled with the main character’s persistent negative self-image, which I found frustrating at times.

That said, I know many readers will still find joy in this book, it just wasn’t a personal favorite.

⭐️ Overall Rating: 3/5 stars

This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

As with every other KC book I've read, this one had me smiling, giggling and cheering for our main girl, Katie. Katie finds herself in Key West for her job as a video producer and she gets to work with handsome Coast Guard rescue swimmer, Hutch every single day of the project.Of course, Hutch is not only "the most scientifically good-looking man she has ever seen," he is also protective, giving, kind... and a love hater. Will Katie be able to change that?
In this story, we get to follow Katie on her adventures in Key West while she meets some amazing people, finds herself in some sticky situations, learns to face her fears, and realizes she is braver than she thinks.

"No one's born fearless- you have to earn it. Every time you have to be brace, you get to be a little braver next time. That's what life is for."

I had so much fun reading this story! I loved our main characters and many of the side characters too. Katie goes on a journey of self discovery which I enjoyed as well. I recently got to go to a Katherine Center book signing where she spoke about the seven different types of love shown in this book, the most important one being Katie's love with herself. The conflict for the romance part of the story wasn't my favorite but other than that, I loved this book!

Thank you @netgalley
Thank you @stmartinspress

When I saw Katherine’s book available in NetGalley I immediately had to request it! And I was ecstatic when I was given an early copy !This was such a fun, cute, and informative read! I learned quite a few things about the coast guard, which I found very interesting. But I loved Katie, and Hutch just sounded so dreamy lol. The only reason this isn’t getting the full 5 stars is because I wanted to hear Hutch’s inter monologue as well! But overall, Katherine Center remains on my auto buy list!

I thought The Love Haters was a cute and easy read, but not your strongest work.

The main character, while relatable at times, got on my nerves a bit. I am all for stories about personal growth, but her story felt a bit whiny at times.

It was still a cute read and I would recommend it to others just because I love all your books!

3.5 rounded up
I always know what I’m getting into when I start a KC book. A fun unique plot with well thought out characters, a message of sorts and uplifting joyful storytelling. I appreciated the added info around search and rescue with this one and this has a great setting for a beachy read. It fell short on the romance for me but I did like both the M and F mcs!!

Earlier this week I was reminded why I love surrounding myself with books and bookish people. I got some not so great news on the day I was supposed to see Katherine Center speak at my local indie, Warwicks. I decided to still go with my bestie and hoped the distraction would be good for me. I’m so glad I did! I “met” Katherine Center a few years ago when she joined my book club #readspinrepeatbookclub over zoom. I remember asking her then about coming to San Diego so I knew I couldn’t miss her while she was in town.

You guys, she is a ray of sunshine. She is so smart and funny, I could have listened to her talk for hours.

If you see her out on tour, be sure to thank her for the thorough research she did and time she spent with the gorgeous members of the US Coast Guard. It was hard work but she persevered in order to get the correct info into The Love Haters.

She was so generous in sharing her wisdom. She was talking about writing when I jotted down this gem that I thought it was applicable to life in general: “notice what’s good, what’s working, then do more of that”. Love!

The Love Haters, by Katherine Center, is a light romance novel that has clear movie potential, an abundance of lovable characters, and just enough depth and insight into the human condition that you won't feel you are overindulging in fluff. I finished it in two days, and thoroughly enjoyed myself. The author is a master of this genre! I closed the book thinking hard about all the ways in which most of us diminish the potential joy in our lives through negativity. Indeed, this is a great choice for anytime of year, and certainly for enjoying by the pool or beach. Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read a digital ARC.

Center can definitely craft a tale, but this one fell a little flat for me. Summed up across the book it sounds like a good story, but I got a little bogged down in the details. I felt like the last quarter of the book helped redeem the rest. I was finally invested a little to find out what happened. Perhaps I didn't resonate with the characters as much as I'd hoped, especially Katie. I'll still try Center's future books out, of course...she has talent.
The narration for this audiobook was good with all characters portrayed well, and didn't divert my attention.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC. All opinions are mine.

Katherine Center does it again!
The Love Haters by Katherine Center was phenomenal.
Katherine Center has this incredible way of creating stories that entrap you into a magical world.
This book was full of funny, heartwarming, and sweet moments.
This book has all the feels and will keep you turning the pages faster and faster to see how it ends.
Once you are done, you will have a book hangover and wishing you hadn't read so fast!

Thank You NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

4.5⭐️

😮‍💨😮‍💨 I love every book I read by Katherine and this was no exception. Hutch was the best🥹

🤍friends to lovers
🤍found family
🤍he falls hard first

So thankful for this ARC🤍

First off, if you are looking for a good clean romance read, Katherine Center is your leading lady!

I love her books and while this particular story didn't blow me away, I still love her as an author and would recommend this one.

The story follows Kate who works as a writer/videographer of sorts who to keep her job, must do a mini vlog of another famous internet sensation: Hutch. It just turns out that Hutch is also her cow0rker's brother- this should be an easy set up right? Wrong.

I overall loved the humor in this and loved that Hutch was just so sweet. I think for me what fell flat was the "fake dating" and also the severe lack of confidence of our protagonist. It was crippling and that was hard to relate to.

A special thank you to St. Martins Press for this arc and to NetGalley!

ARC received in exchange for an honest review—and honestly? I’m in love with The Love Haters.

Katherine Center has done it again—served up a swoony, sunshine-soaked rom-com with just the right amount of heart, humor, and hurricane-force charm. I devoured this book like a frozen Key lime pie on a hot Florida afternoon.

Our heroine Katie Vaughn is a delightfully relatable mess—burned by love, faking her way through a job she’s not quite qualified for (can’t swim? No problem!), and somehow still managing to charm a grumpy, gorgeous Coast Guard rescue swimmer named Hutch. (Yes, he’s scientifically good-looking. Yes, I blushed.)

Add in a Great Dane named George Bailey, a conga line or two, and a hurricane of feelings, and you’ve got a story that’s equal parts laugh-out-loud funny and sneakily profound. Aunt Rue and her Golden Girls-esque crew deserve their own spin-off, by the way.

This book is a love letter to bravery, second chances, and the messy, magical ways we find our way back to ourselves. If you’re a fan of forced proximity, enemies-to-lovers, or just need a serotonin boost in book form—The Love Haters is your next must-read.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to sign up for swim lessons and daydream about Key West. 💙🌴🐾

I will read every Katherine Center book! She writes such beautiful, funny stories with both heart and depth. I liked both MCs in this book. It was sort of a grumpy/grumpy dynamic. Loved the setting of the Florida Keys and all the old ladies were the absolute best. High lt recommend her whole backlist.

Katherine Center is one of my favorite authors, so I was thrilled to receive both an ALC and an ARC of her latest novel, The Love Haters.

The book is narrated by Patti Murin, and I really enjoyed her performance.

The focus on body image felt a bit overdone, but overall, I really enjoyed the book.

Publication date- May 20 2025
#TheLoveHaters #netgalley

Let me start by saying that there are things that I do really like about this book. The cover is gorgeous, the plot had a lot of promise, the setting of the Florida Keys was spot on. And Rue - god love that woman. I wish this book had been about her.

As for the rest of it...yikes. Katie spent too much time hating herself, yet the book did not spend enough time really exploring the why of it and her past relationship. Cole is...such a bizarre character. The love story is told to us, not shown. Like, WHEN did they fall for each other?! And what a frigging idiot, not knowing how to swim, sitting on a sinking boat in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico after a HURRICANE, and not speaking up to tell her best friend on a phone call, oh yeah I might need to be rescued. Come on. This book had SO MUCH potential, but unfortunately got incredibly twisted up and fell flat.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley. This was the first book of Katherine Center’s that I’ve read. I enjoyed it. The setting of Key West is PERFECT for a Summer read. I love the relationship between the FMC and MMC. The inner monologue of Katie throughout the book was refreshing. The body issue storyline was handled very well in my opinion. As someone who can relate to Katie I appreciated the self-love journey. Rue is a top notch secondary character. I will definitely be reading more books from Katherine Center in the future!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me the chance to read an ARC of this book!

There's one thing that's certain - a Katherine Center book is always a must read!

This one is no exception. Katie is a videojournalist sent to cover Hutch, a coast guard rescuer who was made famous a few years prior by saving Jennifer Aniston's dog. Katie is trying to save her career and she's told that the only way to do that is to get the intensely private Hutch to do one of her "Day in the Life" videos.

I absolutely loved Rue and the ladies! They were perfect and Rue and Hutch's backstory is tragically beautiful.

I just did not feel the romance between Katie and Hutch and I really, truly, disliked when Cole showed up. It was unnecessary drama and I don't think did much to further the plot.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC!

Rating: 4.75⭐️
Spice: Closed Door
Media: eARC

🛟There was so much about this book that was heartwarming and just made me feel happy. I need this to be made into a movie!

The story begins with the FMC, Katie, a video producer, getting roped into an assignment in Key West to save her job. Key West, you say, doesn’t sound like such a bad gig but it is for Katie who has struggled with body image issues since she was a kid and doesn’t know how to swim. Normally, not an issue but it is when your assignment is with the US Coast Guard.

Once in Key West, Katie meets a cast of characters who make this story delightful. There’s Rue who is a splash of color and her set of friends who honestly are #goals. There’s George Bailey, a Great Dane, who does not understand boundaries. And last there’s Hutch, the MMC, who is the rescue swimmer that Katie will be shadowing for her assignment and happens to be a very attractive man. It’s a fun yet deep story about love in different forms.

My favorite aspect that really hit home was Katie’s journey of loving her body. My favorite parts were how supportive her best friend, Beanie, was in this journey.

Then, Hutch 🥹 so sweet, at one point, he’s trying to get Katie to understand how amazing she is and he says,”…You’re like a human hot-fudge sundae or something.” It was so cute.

This story transported me back to being a kid having ice cream by the beach after a fun day in the sun and just feeling content.

Now I need to figure out how I am retiring in Key West and living with my friends in cottages.

Make sure to add this beach read to your TBR!

The Love Haters by Katherine Center
Rating: 4.5⭐️/5
Genre: Adult Romance
Release Date: 5.20.2025 (Out now)
Thanks to @stmartinspress, @macmillanusa, and @netgalley for the eARC!

Things I loved:
• Body image representation
• Sweet and witty rom-com vibes
• The banter—so good!
• The Great Dane (honestly felt like a main character)
• Learning more about the Coast Guard and rescue swimmers

Katie’s in a long-term relationship with Lucas—until he gets famous and cheats on her. She’s a video producer, and her boss sends her to Key West to film his brother, a U.S. Coast Guard rescue swimmer… but plot twist: Katie doesn’t know how to swim.

Forced proximity, reluctant teamwork, and chemistry you can’t ignore—this book had me hooked.

This is my second Katherine Center novel, and honestly? It’s my favorite so far.

Have you ever read a romance where the pet completely stole the show? Drop your favorite below!

I love Katherine Center's style of writing and focus on finding joy and infusing joy in her stories - no matter the subject matter or challenges that her characters encounter. The authors note at the very end of this book was really helpful in understanding her perspective and the focus on love and joy that she's crafted - even when it doesn't always seem like it.

This was a quick read with two flawed characters that ended up complimenting each other really well. There are some light hearted moments that made for nice relief from some otherwise heavy topics related to loss of parents, body image/shaming, hurricanes, etc. There was quite a bit happening in the book which moved things along and also prevented much depth in certain areas - which doesn't bother me much in a rom com setting.

I will say, I struggled with how the FMC's body image issues were handled. I'm a firm believer in self-love and positive self talk, but also, severe issues like what this character had would also benefit greatly from professional counseling help at the very least. I think that created a little bit of a disservice for people who may be dealing with issues like this in real life - not truly painting a full picture of the help that is available.

Overall, I really love KC's books and they do bring a spark of joy every time I get to sit down and read one. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC of the book.