I've read and enjoyed just about all of Katherine Center's backlist, and I can't say this one was my favorite.

Things I LOVED: Honestly, our side character Rue (and The Gals), and MMC Hutch's aunt, tops the list for lovable characters in this book. Her love of life and color very much painted the vibe that goes with the cover of this book. I wanted to stay in her Key West Motor Court cottages, swim and share sangrias and dinner with her friends around the pool. I'd gladly chat life with her while touring her beachy apparel shop. She was generous, quirky, and made some really sticky situations feel so much better. George Bailey, the Great Dane, also tops my list, but let's face it any dog written into a romance is going to be one of my favorites. I enjoyed the setting and learning a bit about the Coast Guard and video production along the way.

The actual romance between the grumpy (maybe?)/sunshine pair of Katie and Hutch felt like it was hidden between the lines. I wanted more scenes of actual interaction and chemistry. They spent weeks together getting to know each other with interviews and car rides, and we only get a scene or two of that actual dialogue. Cole, the MMCs brother, was pretty insufferable throughout the book, and interrupted one of the few cute scenes we got.

While I did appreciate Katie's growth in the story, her body image insecurities and inability to swim painted so much of her identity. Even during moments of peril, Katie was face to face with her body image and self love journey--which felt like a stretch.

For those looking for closed door romances, this one had very little, if any, spice.

I stuck through for the whole ride, and wanted to love it, but I don't think I'd read this one a second time. The author's note at the end about story and romance in general may have been my favorite part in the book-- I wanted to highlight the whole thing!

A great big thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I really enjoyed this book. It was my favorite February read. This book not only is about a story of a girl falling in love but learning how to fall in love with herself which a lot of women struggle with due to body image.

The story is about Katie who is trying to put her life back together after her famous singer fiancé cheated on her. Katie loves her job but everyone there is on the chopping block. Her boss gives her a job to go to FL to make a recruitment video for the coast guard. She thinks she only has one problem she doesn’t know how to swim…but little did she know she’d be put in the middle of her boss’s family drama and meet his brother Hutch who is part of the US Coast guard and way different than how his brother described him a love hater.

This book had everything I wanted and more. It was serious at times and then light hearted and fun. This book was so much more than just your normal love story. Definitely a book I’ll be recommending to all my friends!!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This one really didn’t do it for me - 2.5 stars rounded up, because the ingredients were there for a really good story, but I felt like it missed the mark.

There were some redeemable qualities - aunt Rue and her group of friends, in particular. I would have loved more time devoted to developing their characters more. Plus, the setting is really nice and made me feel like I was on vacation. All good things.

However, there were a few things in the book I couldn’t get over, which is a shame, because I really enjoyed some of the author’s previous titles, like The Bodyguard and The Rom-Commers.

First, the whole situation with Cole. He was incredibly unlikeable. And not in the “flawed character”, quirky way. I groaned every time I had to listen to this character speak. I could have completely done without him.

Second, everyone in this book just needs therapy. We could have solved a ton of problems just by being honest with each other.

Third, I do think the characters were a bit one dimensional. I think there was a lot of room to go beyond just the body image issues and the parental loss trauma.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martins for an advance copy of The Love Haters. The book is due out May 20th - opinions are my own.

Somehow, Katherine Center seems to squeeze (maybe sneak is a better term?) life lessons into books that from the more casual read seem to be simple rom-coms. But, there is always more. In The Love Haters, she proposes the idea of radical acceptance of ourselves and our bodies. What a great concept and one that gave me a lot to think about. So, other reviews of this book will talk about how great both the main and ancillary characters are, how interesting it is to read about Coast Guard rescue swimmers, how Rue and The Gals give the most inspiring and charming view of getting older and the warm colorful descriptions of life in Key West (all these things are true about the book!) but what I found the most inspiring was the opportunity to see Katie change from someone who wasn't sure of herself to someone learning to accept herself. It's a beautiful story of life, growth, self-acceptance and learning to "be where you are". But- don't we all want a friend/cousin/sister like Beanie?? And for those of us who don't have one- may we all channel our inner Beanie in times when we need that kind of loving support.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an ebook ARC for me to read and review.

Alright, so this book is about Katie. Katie was jilted by her fiancée and on the edge of losing her job filming documentaries. To save her job, she omits some truths and signs up to do a promo for the Coast Guard - mainly on one of their rescue swimmers, Hutch. Tom (“Hutch”) is a serious, broody and perfect specimen of a rescue swimmer. Not interested in fame or being filmed, he is hesitant to Katie. But with a meddling aunt and her gals, a large dog and some bad weather - the tide starts to turn. Until someone comes to town who turns everything on its head. Will two “love haters” become believers?

This book took me a little longer to get into. I appreciated the insight and perspective on someone who is struggling with body insecurity as this is an important topic in our society. This was not my favorite book of Katherine Center's, however still a good read.

Such a great easy read. A hopeful romance story that ties into the body image struggle so many people struggle with. I didn't want the book to end and I love that by telling the story of the character it actually tied in some useful self acceptance tips!

Katherine Center does it again. Another fabulous rom-com that had me turning pages at all hours. I love that she is able to get to the point of a story quickly, and is still able to toss in a couple twists and turns that I didn't expect. I will continue to read and sing the praises of her work, because she absolutely crushes this genre. Thank you to the author, publisher, & NetGalley for allowing me to read this book! Y'all better be in line on May 20th, because this one doesn't disappoint!

Is Katherine Center even capable of writing a bad book? I certainly don't think so.
The Love Haters had everything I love about a KC book: characters I can root for, settings that are familiar yet completely new; secondary characters that made me laugh, and a romance that had me swooning.
The first kiss was a chef's kiss and the epilogue was everything I wanted and more. I stayed up late to finish this book and I don't regret the loss of sleep at all.

*I received a complimentary copy from the publisher. My review was not required nor influenced. I'm definitely buying this one in paperback to go on my keeper shelf.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book was close to a 5 star for me up until a little over 50%, I didn’t like the slight twist that was given to the reader I think it drew out the book. The main character’s past relationship seemed irrelevant to the book whenever it was brought up.
I did however enjoy the Florida retirement setting and Rue and her group of friends. Rue owns a beach apparel shop in Florida with bright colors and prints which our main character wouldn’t have touched with a 12 foot pole if it wasn’t for Rue.
Overall I did enjoy this book and would recommend to other readers!

Thank you so much to St. Martin's Press for an early copy of The Love Haters! 💖

I am a big fan of Katherine Center's "cartoon cover books" as I like to call them. I've read and loved many of her books and this one is in that group! This is a gorgeous story of romance but also personal growth and personal love. Katie, the FMC, is clumsy and quirky and has a past + some body negativity that she overcomes in this story but she also gets to fall in love with a hot Coast Guard rescue swimmer but the whole situation is very complicated and complex 👀 So many of the sentiments in this story are so meaningful and powerful and I loved that there was a beautiful balance of women's fiction vibes since this book has some very sweet and powerful sentiments but there is also an adorable romance that flows throughout the story! 🤩 I cannot wait for more Katherine Center books! 🥳

Thank you @stmartinspress for the free copy of The Love Haters by Katherine Center which releases May 20th.

Katie Vaughn takes a job profiling Coast Guard rescue swimmer Hutch Hutcheson, even though she can’t swim. As she spends time with Hutch and his family, she faces her fears, gets caught in a few lies, and starts to fall for him.

The Love Haters had such an intriguing plot. I ended up really enjoying it! The real standout in this book was the amount of research and thought Katherine Center put into the Coast Guard details. I enjoyed the slow burn, the banter, and the quirky side characters as well. Rue, George Bailey, and The Gals were a hoot! Beanie was an interesting best friend and cousin to Katie. Though I didn’t agree with all of her advice and some of it felt harsh, I appreciated that Katie had someone in her corner. The character dynamics in the book were interesting. I loved how Katherine built the connection between Katie and Hutch while also focusing on Katie’s journey of self-healing and self-love. For Hutch, the story centered on healing his relationships. Katie was an interesting main character and I can see how readers might either connect with her or find her frustrating. She tends to overthink and get stuck in her head, but considering her journey, her struggles made sense. Hutch occasionally felt a little too perfect or seemed to act hot and cold, but by the end, I understood why he was the way he was. I really wish we had gotten Hutch’s perspective because it would have been fascinating to see some of the resolutions from his point of view. The last half of the book took some unexpected twists which made things even more compelling. Overall, this was a solid four-star read.

Another enjoyable book by Katherine Center. I loved the setting in Key West and learning about the US coast guard swimmer rescue. The slow burn relationship of Katie and Hutch kept the story moving and of course a wrapped up ending is always a plus for me.

While I didn’t love Cole or the bar scene where he was making Katie a “prize”, overall the book was worth the read.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the advanced digital copy.

KATHERINE CENTER TAKE ALL MY MONIES.

I freaking loved this book so much. The enemies to lovers (read it and you will know the real MCs here) and all the mental health nuggets had my therapist heart beaming.

As always, blessed to have gotten an ARC. I highly recommend The Love Haters.

I am usually a big Katherine Center fan! This one did miss the mark for me - the ending was a bit unrealistic for me, although I do love a happily ever after!

"It wasn't a hate kiss. It was a love kiss. In case you couldn't tell." 🌺🌴🍹🚁👙
the lover haters ARC 4/5⭐️
My first and definitely not my last book by Katherine Center! I loved this book so much. This book literally had me laughing out loud throughout the whole book! I really enjoyed this book and could not stop reading it!! This book is about Katie and Hutch aka the love hater. Katie goes to the Florida keys for her job. She has to film Hutch doing his job as a coast guard rescue swimmer. I loved the plot twist with Hutch’s brother Cole. I cannot wait to read more by Katherine Center! Definitely read this if you like rom coms, clean romance, and a summer read!

I really enjoyed this book. It was one that was hard to put down to keep up on my daily life. I felt like Katie's insecurities with her body really resonated with me and I could feel what she was feeling.

There were parts that I wanted to scream at -- like in most books -- but I realize it was necessary for how the author wanted to continue the story.

I liked the relationship between Katie and Hutch and George Bailey.

This isn't my favorite book by Katherine Center but it was a sweet, easy read.

Such a sweet book. FMC has unbelievable personal growth. Seems to me that was more the plot than falling in love. Didn’t really feel the chemistry in the two main characters but loved seeing how the story unfolded. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this arc!

Warning: Chromophobes need not pick this book up. This novel is light, sweet and as colorful as the cover - the perfect afternoon read, preferably by the pool in the Florida Keys. Videographer Katie, worried about being fired from her day job, agrees to take an assignment filming a promotional video for the Coast Guard, despite one teeny, tiny problem. After all, how big of a deal is it really if she can't swim? Will the hunky Coast Guard reluctant hero Hutch open up to her enough to make the video that will save her job? As per the genre, the novel has it all - tension you can cut with a knife, a few misunderstandings and a few grand gestures too.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC.

I'm so sad to write this review because I had great expectations from this book, but unfortunately, it wasn't for me.

I do think it has some valid points, but the main characters had the personality of a pillow, the couple had zero chemistry, the plot seemed rushed, and the climax was "meh".

The only thing that kept me going was my curiosity to see how it was going to end, but I confess that I considered DNFing many, many, many times.

Well, it was worth the try. Thanks NetGalley for the arc!