⭐️⭐️⭐️My review: I have loved Center's books that I read in the past so I was really looking forward to this. That being said, I liked this one overall but two things gnawed at me.
1. Katie's complete obsession with her body. Yes, I know there are humans who hate their bodies and it is a real thing. But her constant discussion and fear and dysmorphia was annoying. I know this is the point, that she couldn't help it and it doesn't make sense and it's a real issue for some. But the message that then a man could make her feel beautiful sent the message that if a man is okay with her body, she should be too.
2. Not spoiler really but... we find out how Hutch and Cole came to live with their aunt and I need more. It doesn't make sense given the circumstances that she randomly took them in.
While the love seemed to come out of nowhere, Hutch and Katie were both likable. And George Bailey was awesome, everyone loves a weird dog. The conflict with Hutch and Cole seemed to drag and it's improbable that he would have sent Katie there without more information. When Cole shows up in Key West I wanted to punch him, don't get me started. Very improbable. But it made for a story. Overall, not Center's best work (see The Rom-Commers or The Bodyguard) but a rom-com to pass the time.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an advance digital copy in exchange for my review.

Super cute read! This will make a great beach/pool book as it comes out May 20th. Fun, flirty, tropical vibes. Loved the Coast Guard aspect as well.

Thank you to the publishers and author for the ARC!!

Katherine Center should be a stand up comedian. She’s a genius. She’s telling these raw and vulnerable stories but somehow making you laugh at the same time. This is a wonderful romance but it also is a reminder to everyone that all you have to do is give yourself permission to love yourself. Unapologetically. Every single day. Out loud. Katie is a character that many women can relate to. She’s brave and choosing to let the ugly show only to find that the ugly isn’t ugly. At least not to the people matter to you. Katherine Center, with this book, showed us that connection to people can be incredibly healing and love happens when you’re busy doing other things.

Unfortunately, this book just didn’t work for me. I struggled to get past the body image storyline. Additionally, I never quite felt the connection between the two main characters, which made it difficult to fully invest in their relationship. While others might find it compelling, it just wasn’t the right fit for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for my advanced w copy in exchange for my honest review

The Love Haters is a rom-com that would be perfect to read in the summer. It has a great balance of a budding romance, comedy, and also touches on heavy topics such as body image and grief. I loved watching Katie and Hutch go from friends to more as the book went on. I think the two main characters had chemistry both as friends and as love interests. I enjoyed seeing them interact and work through their issues. Katie's struggles with body image and Hutch's grief felt genuine. I also loved the side characters and wished the reader could see a little bit more of them. Overall, I rated this book 4 stars and would recommend it to anyone who wants a quick summer romance.

This is my favorite book of 2025!!! I felt so connected to the characters and have ordered every edition of this book. Love!

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
🫑(no spice)

This was fun, summer read!

What I Liked: Hutch!! What an excellent MMC! The chemistry with Katie was great. I LOVED George Bailey the moment the Great Dane bounded on to the page. Rue and the Gals.

What I Didn’t Like: Cole/Lying/Miscommunication Trope

Read if you like:
- Hero MMC
- Forced Proximity
- Slow Burn
- Found Family
- Self Love Journey
- Low/No Spice Adult Romance

TW: Body Dismorphia/Disordered Eating

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for the eARC.

I love that Katherine Center takes us on a deep dive into a different subject in each book, whether it's the life of a firefighter, a neurological condition, or the Coast Guard. her books always tend to offer more than just romance. I have always enjoyed her books, but I may have fallen more deeply in love with Aunt Rue than with Katie and Hutch. I just love the way Katherine Center creates and develops her characters, they draw me in so completely. If you love strong characters who you can fall head over heels for, then this is a great summer read!

I love Katherine Center books, and this one did not disappoint! This book was so fun and had everything I love; a delightful group of older ladies called "The Gals", a fantastic Great Dane, evenings by the pool with cocktails and a whole lot of adventure! As usual, Katherine also tackles deeper issues in a thoughtful way. This was a really great read!

It pains me to give anything Katherine Center writes less than 5 stars, but here we are. I adored so many things about this book:

🩵 the setting- perfect summer vibes!
🩵 George Bailey- the goodest dog ever
🩵 Rue- everyone needs a Rue in their life!
🩵 The coast guard world- those men and women are legit heroes!
🩵 Hutch- hubba hubba 😍🔥
🩵 Katie's journey to loving her body, something that I 100% related to
🩵 the humor! I was cracking up so much!
🩵 the entire plot- yes, super far-fetched but it was so fun! Loved it!

So why did I give it 4 stars? Well, I felt like it was missing the "swoon". Katie and Hutch are great characters with an adorable romance. But this romance ends up being one that we are told about rather than getting to see it and be immersed in it. And that's so frustrating because KC typically does a great job with the swoon and romance. There was also a scene with a side character that really rubbed me wrong.

But, it was still a super fun and enjoyable read and one that will be a perfect beach read this summer! Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book!

Although I loved this, it fell a little flat compared to Center's other books for me. I loved the plot and character development as a whole, but there were just some things I struggled to understand and connect with the characters on. Part of the misgivings I originally had were answered later in the novel, but some aspects of what brought them all to this point in their stories were a bit hard for me to believe.

3.75 stars - rounding up

First off I need an Aunt Rue in my life! Rue and her friends really made this story so enjoyable. I loved our main characters romance story as well, but give me older ladies everyday! This was a swoon worthy romance with the perfect beginning, middle and end. This book reminded me of Katherine Center's older books that I fell in love with. All the stars for this one!

I am constantly amazed at how this author can make a story so moving and touching and I didn't see it coming. I started this book and it really was a charming storyline with a fun storyline. What surprised me was how the storyline just flowed along and then all of a sudden you are so invested you can't help but keep reading as you tear up while reading this moving story. I didn't expect to be so invested, but the way this author writes just sweeps you into this world and you care about these characters way more than you thought and loving it. I couldn't put this book down, and loved so much about all of it. I was surprised by how many times I was touched and moved by the relationships, the story, the writing, it was beautiful and gorgeous. I really enjoyed this book and couldn't put it down and yet didn't want it to end. This book was outstanding, would highly recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Cute at times but not believable. Too much will she, won't she, will he, won't he. I expect better from Katherine Center.

Katie wouldn’t consider herself a “love hater” would she? Previously scorned by her now famous ex, she’s now facing a layoff of her position as a video producer. But her coworker Cole has a plan, all she has to do is profile Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a cost guard rescue swimmer in Key West. The only problem is Katie can’t swim, but she tells them that she can. The other catch is the Hutch is Cole’s brother and is a love hater. But she decides to fake it till you make it and jumps in feet first, what she doesn’t expect is to find love along the way.

One thing is for sure, anything that Katherine Center writes, I’m going to read! I love every book more than the next. I loved this book with its cast of characters. But what I loved most was the message of this book about loving yourself. We are the hardest on ourselves, our bodies and I loved that although of course there was a love story and a HEA the real love story was Katie learned to love herself and her body and there’s power in that message.

Okay guys please don’t come at me. 🫣
I’m the hater here. It’s me.
But this just felt so…. Fluffy? None of it felt real. I think the goal was for it to feel funny but it just didn’t hit for me.
I also didn’t care for The Rom-Commers.
So truly I think it’s just me! If you like this author’s other books then you might like this one!!

This was the first book I have read by Katherine Center and I loved it. There were so many funny parts and a lot of unexpected things happening: Katie gets suckered into helping film her manager’s brother in order to try to save her job, except the brother isn’t aware it is her who is coming to do it. She has many insecurities in the book and one is being in a bathing suit and on top of that she can’t swim. She also was in a relationship where her fiancé cheated on her, which didn’t help. Katie gets herself into a pickle once she goes to Florida to do the task to try to save her job.

4.5⭐️

the love haters is a book that is more about the importance of self-love. you have to love your body and don’t look in the media at the models for what the perfect body should be. everyBODY is perfect in its own way.

Katie learned, Hutch helped.

While there was little to no romance in this book I did rather enjoy the plot and characters of The Love Haters. This story opened my eyes to what I might be also going through with my body.

this was an arc I received on NetGalley, I thank them for giving me the opportunity to read this early and express my feelings and thoughts about this book.

while this is my first Katherine Center book, I enjoyed her writing style and her characters. If you needed anything from this story it would be the story of selflove written through Katie’s journey.

I’ve read and liked a few of Center’s books so I was so excited to receive this ARC from Netgalley. This one was just ok though and fell short of my expectations unfortunately.

While it’s a quick “beach read,” I found the plot a bit boring and it lacked character development. I wanted to love these characters but their chemistry was lacking so their romance felt off.

There are so many great reviews out there for this one though so maybe it’ll work for you…

The Love Haters hits bookstores on May 20th.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

The Love Haters follows Katie, a struggling videographer as she is tasked with filming a video of a member of the coast guard, Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson who had recently risen to fame on social media after rescuing Jennifer Aniston's dog. The problem is that Katie and Hutch are both self proclaimed "love haters" and are now tasked with spending all day every day together in order to film this video.

Overall, I thought the book was a nice, pleasant diversion. It would make a good light summer read. The cast of characters surrounding Katie and Hutch were colorful and eccentric and were a good offset to the main "love haters" in the story.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the early copy to review.