This was my first Katherine Center book and while I've heard glowing reviews for her previous novels, this one really wasn't for me.

The Pros:
-Light read
-Interesting setting (Florida Keys x Coast Guard)
-Great humor
-Lovable side characters (Rue and George Bailey!)
-Exploration of trauma and grief

The Cons:
-Poor plot development (the beginning of this book was so rushed that the romance became totally unbelievable and created no basis for the reader. The tension from the initial lies Katie told to get the job were immediately revealed but had little consequence - again, not believable! And the MMC was fine with that and immediately ok with giving her a ride to work every day? Giving her swim lessons? By the 75% mark I wondered if I had accidentally skipped chapters because it felt like whole parts of the plot I needed were skimmed over?
-Insta-love (I don't always mind this, but as before, the plot skimmed so briefly over the development needed for this romance that I had no concept of what these characters actually felt or drew them to each other.)
-Poor character development (the author spent a lot of time on Katie's inner monologue about her body image issues, to the exclusion of developing any other outward relationships. Because of this, I felt even the title for this book became a total stretch based on nothing.)
-The ending with regard to Katie's career rendered all the miscommunication and conflict up to that point irrelevant. I wished there was more reflection on what she decided she wanted out of life or context for who she was to reach that decision.

Overall, this is an easy, quick read with some lovely humor, but many missed opportunities in what could've been a cool story.

I definitely skipped over some house chores in order to have more time to read this story! I could not put it down!

Katie is in a battle with herself and her fears. As she is sent to film a video for an everyday hero (Hutch), she has to face those fears. The hero is her bosses big brother and she's been warned that Hutch hates love. As Katie learns to battle her fears, can Hutch learn to love love?

This book is a battle of the stubborn, learning to love oneself for who they truly are, and friendship. The kind of friendship that I think we all dream of having if we don't already. The story felt action packed, and by the end, I wanted to see Katie's videos in real life - I almost felt like I expected to find a link at the end of the story so we could see how amazing they were.

For some reason while reading, I felt a bit disconnected from the main character - like sometimes I would forget their names. While the other characters in this book are named often, Katie is not named very often and I sometimes lost sight of who she was, even though she is telling the the story. She also broke the 4th wall at one point and that was a bit discombobulating.

All in all, this was another rom com that hits some hard topics with just the right amount of levity and keeps you coming back for more!

Publication Date May 20th, 2025

I went into this after reading The Bodyguard and was thinking it would be a light fun read with a different spin and location. I wasn't expecting all the body insecurities with the FMC. I think there should be a warning beforehand because I was caught off guard and found parts at the beginning, especially, quite triggering, and I had to fight to push past it. Thankfully, the storyline eventually steers away from that discussion, I don't think I would have continued reading it otherwise. Once our FMC gets to her job posting at the Keys things picked up. I would have like to have seen more of what happened to the MCs story in the end. It almost seemed unfinished. There were some likeable side characters and an adorable dog that helped with the redeeming qualities, and overall, not a terrible read, but it wasn't what I was expecting going into it.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Katherine Center does it again! I read this book in 1 day!! I loved it!!

Especially Katie! I just wanted to give her a hug. I felt she was so relatable with her body image struggles and journey to love herself.

Hutch was such a charming MMC. I loved their easy comradery.

The side characters really shine in this book - Rue, Beanie, The Gals, and, of course, George Bailey.

I loved learning more about the Coast Guard, particularly the search and rescue aspect.

Thank you, Katherine Center, for not only writing a wonderful story about romantic love, but also self-love and found family 💛

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC.

i’m not kidding when i say that miss katherine center is one of the absolute QUEENS of feel-good stories. the way she infuses her books with so much love, soul, and realness is always one of my favorite parts of enjoying her work.

i personally feel like this story is a testament to the importance of self-love and having a strong support system, and feels a lot like women’s fiction with a side of rom-com. i loved the themes of friendship, found/created family, and of course— romance! i loved the characters, the setting, and the dialogue and banter. lots of character growth too!! i will say, i wasn’t as *emotionally* connected with this story as i have been with past KC books i’ve read, but enjoyed nonetheless based on everything else mentioned here, and loved the vibes! this book debuts in may- if you love katherine center, don’t miss this one!! 🚁🐶🌺🍷🩷👙🏖️

thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback!!

I liked this book and how it talked about self esteem and confidence. I enjoyed the plot. I felt like the love story could have had more tension and been a bit better but overall it was good.

3.5. I loved the setting and the MMC and the side characters. The backstory was heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. The FMC got a little bit on my nerves. I just wanted a little more from her and I wanted more of their relationship development. Overall I enjoyed it.

Summary:
Already down on her luck, Katie is tasked with either losing her job or convincing a reclusive Coast Guard rescuer to be profiled on air. Having gone viral before for rescuing a celebrity and their dog, Hutch has turned down previous offers on a human-interest piece, so the chances of him caving are slim. Down on love and needing a change, Katie travels to meet Hutch and his quirky aunt, all while trying to convince him to share more about his life. Little does Katie know, the person who assigned her the job is Hutch's brother, who just so happens to be acting as an a-hole behind the scenes.

Rating: 3/5
Spice 1/5

Tropes:
Grumpy/Grumpy
Workplace Romance
Quirky Relatives

Triggers:
Natural Disasters
Break Up (not between MCs)
Boat Rescue

My Thoughts:
I love Katherine Center, I really do, and I have never given a rating to one of her books that is less than four stars, so it pains me to leave a less than stellar review here. I really missed the chemistry between the two romantic main characters in this book and felt more attached to the side characters. I didn't see the character growth that Katherine excels at writing and the female main character makes some infuriating bad decisions with her safety. Will I read more of this author? Absolutely! This one was just a miss for me.

I adore this book! It’s absolutely relatable and gave me all the warm and fuzzy feelings. The plot mostly light and fun given that the premise is a bit high stakes—Katie’s job is on the line if she doesn’t deliver a top notch recruiting video for work. When she meets the man her work is centered around, Hutch, an easy and natural chemistry develops.

The book delves into some heavier themes that I wish had been explored more, but I don’t think that takes away from the plot overall.

Thank you again to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a chance to read an advanced copy and give an honest review of this book!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the digital ARC of this book.

"Every time you have to be brave, you get to be a little braver next time."

Another Katherine Center book I absolutely adored and devoured!

There were many things I loved about this book, but one of them being something that some people didn't enjoy: her insecurities around her appearance. I felt the way that Katie's insecurities surrounding her looks were extremely raw and authentic to the experience many women have thanks to the digital age we live in. I felt like I was looking in the mirror when Katie would discuss her feelings about herself, and parts of this book helped heal those part of me as well.

I also loved seeing Katie's and Hutch's love story unfold; The pacing was perfect!


I also really enjoyed reading about Rue and The Gals, and the development between Cole and Hutch.

This book is the perfect beach read, pre-order it now!

Katie’s job is at risk. She takes an assignment she is unqualified for as a last stitch effort to save her career. During her assignment she is met with the ‘love hater’- Hutch who is strangely related to her co-worker. While Katie is video producing Hutch and the national coast guard, family secrets and dynamics are spilled- way more than she bargained for when agreeing to take this job.

Another great Katherine Center book! I loved the setting of this book especially. The FMC and MMC were both enjoyable and relatable. Also loved the side characters.

This was my first Katherine Center book and it did not disappoint! I was in a reading slump and this story pulled me out of it. I laughed. I cried. I fell in love with Hutch and Katie and Rue and The Gals and George Bailey. They became more than words on a page. I felt like I was in the Keys and part of the story.

Katie is a video producer for a company that is downsizing. To save her skin, her boss offers her a chance to show her chops by filming a recruitment video for the Coast Guard. She jumps at the opportunity but leaves out one minor detail - she can't swim.

You are immediately drawn in by a few key factors that keep the narrative feeling hip and current. First, the Coast Guardsman that Katie is assigned to film is semi-internet famous. He rescued Jennifer Aniston's dog. (The interwebs calls him Pup Daddy!) Next, Katie has her own YouTube documentary Day in The Life series where she spends a day filming heroes going about their normal life. Lastly, her ex fiancé became a music sensation overnight because of a viral video. They broke up last year when he cheated on her with a pop star.

When Katie arrives in the Keys, the first order of business is to learn to swim. After some majors nerves about being in a bathing suit, she arrives at the pool. As it turns out, Hutch is the instructor. Before she has more than a moment to feel self conscious, George Bailey (Hutch's rescue Great Dane) full out runs to Katie and knocks her on her butt on the dock. The wooden dock, her exposed flesh and tweezers all make a vivid appearance in this part. I'm telling you, it feels like you're there.

Hutch's brother Cole is Katie's boss. Cole finagled Katie into filming the video because he wanted to avoid Hutch. Katies shows up to the base on Monday to start creating the promotion. Hutch is spitting mad when he realizes his brother gave him the shaft. He is mildly assuaged by Katie's quid pro quo to help him reconnect with Cole.

They start filming the video and the self assured, easy going Hutch becomes monosyllabic in front of the camera. Hutch and how great he looks in his aviators won't save this project. Katie is gonna have to get him to open up. When he does finally loosen up & forgets the camera, he becomes a compelling selling point for the Guard.

Lucas, the ex, comes out with a new song about Katie. He misquotes Lennon by saying "Love is what happens to you while you're busy making plans." Love instead of life. Her reaction is HILARIOUS and on point.

What else? I don't want to rewrite the whole novel, but here are some things to look out for - the cute old lady cheering squad (The Gals), Hutch & Cole's Aunt Rue and how they came to live with her, Hutch's dead mother and the penny story, what Hutch calls Katie after the internet tries to tear her down. AND Beanie, the totally relatable cousin-bestie.

Thank you to NetGalley, Katherine Center & St Martin's Press for the advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. I'm so excited for this book to come out. May it bring you out of your next reading slump!

I was so exited to read this early!! All of the Katherine Center books l've read so far have been un-put-down able for me. This one took me the longest to get through. Not sure if it was the book or the plot or my personal life but I wasn't as hooked to this one as some of her others.
I loved everything overall but I feel like parts of the "I hate myself and my body" trope didn't feel real or believable. I've been there and still struggle w a lot of the things she does and it just felt not super real at times. And it felt like she got over it with external validation or faking in love with someone else so then she could love herself. I did however like the enemies to lovers with herself trope that was really best. But I won't like I didn't get it until I read the author's note.
The romance and the story was super cute, there were even some turns that I didn't see coming. Wrapped up happy and well.

I really liked all the family relationships and friendships, lots of the side characters were memorable and added to the story. Could have seen a bit more of them though.
I always love her author's notes. They make me so warm and fuzzy and not feel silly for reading romances. She makes me remember love in the world at a time when we really need it.
Overall I liked it and don't regret reading it, but not my favorite of hers!

Thank you netgalley for an ARC of this book

I always love Katherine Center's books. They are always the correct women's fiction to romance ratio for me. This one was no different. A huge dog named George Bailey, and Hutch are a great duo. Hutch is a great book boyfriend. He was really kind and patient with her.
There are some trigger warnings so make sure you check those before jumping in. She struggles with her self confidence. But she never let it get in the way when respecting and loving Hutch.

This book isn’t so much a romance as it is a love story - one about how to love yourself. It has the romance element, but it doesn’t really develop very far. The real story is the journey that the Katie takes to get to a place where she can find happiness and contentment. Sometimes the story feels rushed, like there is too much for the characters to do to get to where they are going, but it is a charming story nonetheless. This book is a little salty and a lot sweet, like the best Key West cocktails!

As someone who thoroughly enjoyed Katherine Center’s <i>The Rom-Commers</i> and <i>The Bodyguard</i>, I was actually pretty eager to dive into <i>The Love Haters</i>. My goodness, I did not expect to feel so incredibly MEH about this book overall. From contrived and recycled plot elements that didn't quite seem to fit into the story to unfortunate character dynamics and unnecessary miscommunication (or I guess this is omission, more so) to create conflict, I found it exceedingly difficult to connect with this story.

It is inherently unfortunate that Katie, from the start, felt deeply unlikable and her actions throughout the book only exacerbated this. The subplot involving Beanie, Katie’s friend, felt uncomfortable every step of the way, involving friend "therapy" sessions about body dysmorphia, which seemed insensitive at best and problematic at worst. Readers get precious little time with the lead couple, Hutch and Katie, getting to know each other before Center just throws us into a left-field "twist" with the fake dating trope. This plot seemed to exist solely to create unnecessary drama, something that could have been easily resolved with reasonable communication and therefore did nothing but create frustration. In a book where we have been introduced to a main character's integral desire to resolve a disconnect between himself and his brother, creating a situation in which he feels so betrayed by both his brother and Katie at best and views them each as insensitive, horrible people at worst was honestly horrifying.

It's difficult to root for any protagonist who acts in such an emotionally detached manner, which makes the whole thing even worse when everything is finally revealed and Katie, for some reason, seems to just expect that Hutch will immediately come to her all thrilled that she's single, actually! My goodness, could she be any <i>less</i> self-absorbed?? Not to mention the fact that Katie’s supposed promise to help Hutch and Cole reconcile was never fully realized, and instead, we were left with a chaotic fight that, somehow, managed to resolve everything between the two? As if that makes any sense at all. And since we've got to tie everything up with a bow, let's also add in the deus ex machina of a sudden and implausible romantic development of Katie and Cole's boss with the man, himself, coming out of nowhere and adding to the overall disjointed nature of the story.

There seems to be a recurring theme in Center’s works involving a character’s fear of or struggles with water, which I ironically enjoyed in both <i>The Rom-Commers</i> and <i>The Bodyguard</i>. However, in <i>The Love Haters</i>, this felt more like a recycled plot device than an interesting development for Katie’s character. Katie, who can't swim, takes a job that requires her to be in the water—but I couldn’t quite understand why swimming was a necessary part of her job or the stakes of this particular quirk of hers, especially when it only seemed to serve as an excuse for her to attend swimming lessons with Hutch. The swimming scenes themselves felt awkward and unnecessary, and the moment where Hutch had to “medically” attend to Katie’s injury was both bizarre and completely out of place.

Ultimately, this book was just a frustrating amalgamation of meandering plot that juggled multiple themes which probably should have been explored separately. In the end, it didn’t feel like a cohesive narrative but rather a collection of three half-baked ideas stitched together with minimal or contrived resolution. While <i>The Love Haters</i> had its moments, it fell short of delivering a satisfying or believable storyline and struggled with pacing, character development, and plot structure.

This book gave me all the feels. It was full of sweet moments that kept you wrapped up in the story, and made you want to read more. I was in a major reading slump before this book and it cured it. I loved the characters and their development, the focus on self-love, and the notes of grief. The story itself is one that I couldn’t help but binge, I’d recommend this book not only to someone else in a reading slump, but also to someone who needs the good, kick-your-feet-in-the-air, heartwarming, life-bringing love story that this one provides.

Rating: 3.5 stars rounded up
Katie works at a video production studio that’s downsizing. Fortunately, her boss, Cole, offers her a lifeline — an assignment with his brother, Hutch, and the US Coast Guard that could save her job. Her task is to head to Florida and produce a recruitment promo video for rescue swimmers. The catch? She has to wear a swimsuit and announce her weight before boarding the helicopter.

Katie’s severe body image issues make the assignment feel like a nightmare. But with her career on the line, she’s determined to push through. As she spends more time with Hutch, unexpected feelings begin to grow. However, when Cole spins a web of lies, Katie finds herself caught in the middle, facing even more challenges.

Overall, this story was pretty charming. While the self-deprecating tendencies of the FMC grew a bit frustrating at times, the romantic chemistry and the found-family dynamic Katie experiences by the end made it all worthwhile. Once I got into the book, the plot really picked up and kept me engaged.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC to review!

There was a lot of character growth and unexpected relationships. This book was very cute, but I found it a little far fetched. There are aspects of grief/loss that I found a bit triggering which made it a little hard for me to read.