This was such a fun summer read!! I loved how it read like a rom-com. The setting being in key west was also so fun and summery. The mental health representation was a great addition to the story, it added some depth to Katie and it was fun to see her growth throughout the book. Truly such a fun read! 🌺

In a desperate plea to keep her job, Katie agrees to go film a video about the Coast Guard. Turns out the man supposed to be profiled, Hutch, is grouchy and hates love. You can see where this is going! This also has impeccable summer rom com vibes.

The characterization was great. Katie is so relatable being a chromophobe and struggling with her perception of herself. I love that the book took her on a journey to accepting and loving herself as she is. It’s a really wholesome message. Hutch was everything I would ever want in a fictional man. The only thing I didn’t love about Hutch was that he was so hot-and-cold, and Katie even calls him that at one point. That’s more of a personal preference to me, but he was still hot-and-cold even after the plot was more explained later on.

Katherine Center knows what’s she’s doing when she is putting together her stories. They always seem so concise and little things that get referenced come back later on as callbacks. Center also doesn’t shy away from tough topics, and this book covers the main character’s past eating disorder/weight insecurity.

The characters make a huge deal about not dating anyone for a year and that making them “love haters” which is a little ridiculous. I don’t think it fully makes sense other than that being the book title.

I LOVE a book with a dog that has a good story and interesting name. George Bailey sounds so cute, and I loved that he is such a big part of the book.

The ending was so good! I think the more I read, the more I liked the book. Things got pretty intricate and tense at the end.

A very small thing that bugged me was the name “Beanie” for a side character. I don’t know why it bugged me, but I really couldn’t get over it while reading because it is a weird name.

The book offers plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, but it also has a lot of heart. It’s not just about finding love; it’s about personal bravery and learning to navigate the messiness of life.

The Love Haters
⭐️2/5
Pub Date: May 20, 2025

From the blurb, I was expecting this to be a book about two people who, burned by love, were adverse to it now, with an FMC taking a job she was unqualified for to avoid getting fired and an MMC who was not gonna fall in love, no sir. I was expecting there to be some lying about her qualifications and that that would likely be the primary conflict.

This book felt nothing like the blurb. The points it highlighted feel like such small aspects of the book in my opinion. There is a lot of body image discussion with the main character (which I’m not opposed to in books of course), but I do think it should’ve been called out in the blurb for how prominent it is to the plot of the book. I was also expecting swimming to be a huge point in this book and it felt barely mentioned. The reasoning for taking on this job and for going along with the coworkers lying felt very weak and not well developed. Their motivations didn’t really make sense to me. I didn’t understand why Katie would be inclined to go along with Cole’s lying. I know on paper it was for the Aunt‘s sake, but it really did not feel like a strong enough reason in execution. Unfortunately, this one just wasn’t for me.

Such a cute romance! A film maker who cannot swim is sent to get footage of the Coast Guard and in particular one man who does not want to be on camera. What could go wrong! I loved that both characters were likable but not perfect. And there’s a dog, who doesn’t love a great dog owned by a man who seemingly hates love. It was an easy read and while I felt like r the middle went a bit slow, the HEA was adorable.


I really enjoyed The Bodyguard and I will say something about this book just didn’t hit that same mark. I feel like the characters leaned a little too hard into their tropes/stereotypes which made them feel a little less real and a little less easy to connect to.

I’ve enjoyed every book I’ve read from Katherine Center, but this might just be my all time favorite. I absolutely ADORED every page.

Starting with the relationship between Katie and Hutch, there was incredible banter, chemistry, tension - it had all the things that you want in a romance.

What really took this book to a whole other level though was the relationship Katie had with herself and how that developed throughout the book. Truly healing to read and I love that Katherine Center included that in this story.

The Love Haters was one of my most anticpated reads of 2025 and let me just say -- Katherine Center doesn't disappoint!

This book is so smart, handling body issues and self-love with such care and consideration. "If you don't reject the harsh things that people say to you, then I guess, at some point, than means you accept them."

I was so immersed in this version of Key West. Katherine Center is excellent at setting us in a place and making us feel like we are the ones in a helicopter or diving into the ocean. There was the perfefct balance of drama and comedy.

And the romance!! Let's just say I understand the appeal of a US Coast Guard rescue swimmer who teaches you how to swim. "Hutch tightened his arms around me in a way that felt like a rescue."

*Sobs*

So I got to meet Katherine at one of her book signings and I absolutely love her. Her personality is magnetic and charming so when I received an ARC for this book I was ecstatic.
Needless to say this book was not one of my favorites.
The story is about a romance between a film maker and a Coast Guard rescue swimmer. Katie's boss Cole assigns her to Hutch who happens to be his brother and doesn't have a good relationship with. Even though the story emerges you into a fluffy love story, l'm not a fan of the main characters. I did enjoy learning about the Coast Guard and the setting in the Keys.
Katie has severe body image issues and low self esteem. And the ending was way over the top unrealistic. Overall the book fell flat for me.
Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Katherine Center for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Katherine Center’s books never fail to keep me captivated the entire read. I loved the self love/discovery character arc that Katie goes through throughout the story. I found her character very relatable and also loved her friendship with Beanie. I cried laughed and read it all in one sitting. This story made me remember how much I enjoy Katherine’s writing and I will definitely be reading anything coming out by her in the future,



Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Katherine Center is one of my favorite authors. (Swoon) I was so anxious to read her next novel The Love Haters. Since this book isn't due to be released until May 2025, it might be a good time to make sure you haven't missed any of her prior novels. (With the list of her other works at the end of this book, I think I have a couple to track down.)

Katie works with a team that produces films, her company (in the midst of corporate cuts) is contracted to do a recruiting film for the Coast Guard Rescue Swimmers. A coworker enlists her to do the assignment.

(A great "buddy" book to The Love Haters would be Calm in the Chaos: True Tales from Elite U.S. Navy Aviation Rescue Swimmers by Brian Dickinson.)

The Love Haters is a very fun, quick read. I loved several characters, especially, Katie and her relationship with her (self-help guru) cousin and Rue.

Many, many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read The Love Haters in exchange for an honest review. Approx 320 pages. Publication date is May 20, 2025.

Going into this book, I expected of course romance and the awkwardness surrounding it, especially given the title. What we got instead was a love story between not only a woman and a man but also a woman and herself, which is probably the hardest but yet the most profound kind of love to experience. This story was a fun, easy read with a loving aunt, a sexy rescue swimmer, an adorable rescue dog and his pet toad.

I’ve read other Katherine Center books and this one was just as enjoyable. I always feel happy after reading them.

I was at first concerned about the self-talk by the main character in this book, but as someone who grew up in the diet-culture time of the 90’s I found myself connecting more with Katie and her journey of love and self-love. As the book went on I really liked the way she was written as well as the rest of the characters. I really found myself rooting for each of them (even Cole) and wanted the HEA for all of them. I liked this book a lot.

Somehow Katherine Center's books always find a way to sink their claws into me and keep me sat in my comfy reading chair for HOURS while I finish them in one sitting. This one's probably my new favorite, surpassing The Bodyguard. I ADORED Hutch and his grumpy personality, and the fact that he's a rescue swimmer for the coast guard?? Yes please. The book also deals a lot with body image issues and family trauma, both of which I thought were handled very well. I will say there was one thing in the second half that got a little frustrating as far as the decision making went, but I was able to look past it cause the rest of the book was just so freaking sweet. Also Rue has my whole heart.

I was so excited to see this as an option to review. I truly enjoy Katherine Center books! The Love Haters did not disappoint. The characters and their interactions truly held so much depth and connection. From the first interactions between Katie and Hutch, I was hooked and ran through a gambit of emotions. The story and the lessons in this book are great and left me with a lot of joy.

I'm a huge Katherine Center fan and was excited to get an early read of this book. I really enjoyed it. With the title you can predict how the books going to go but there was more to it then that and I really enjoyed the details put into this book. Especially towards the end you felt like you are in the rxact situation being written.


Thanks to NetGallery for this Arc!

4.5 stars! I really enjoyed the journey the main character went on. I didn’t want to put this book down! My favorite quote: That longing to be looked at lovingly? That longing to be lovable…that’s really also so much about wanting to be connected and safe and just deeply, fundamentally okay? Maybe we didn’t have to outsource that. Maybe we could fill that longing for ourselves. 💛

The Love Haters features Katie, who finds herself on the verge of a lay off from the video production company she works at when producer Cole offers her a job that he doesn’t want to take in the Florida Keys. Despite Katie not being able to swim and having a phobia of bathing suits, she signs up for the job which is a recruitment video documenting the US coast guard featuring Cole’s estranged brother, Hutch. As always with Katherine Center’s books, there are lots of laugh out loud scenes mixed in with touching moments.

The Love Haters is as much a rom-com as it is a book of self-reflection on learning to love yourself. The theme of body positivity was handled so well with humour and compassion. I found Cole’s motivations a bit far fetched but I understand that his story line was driving the conflict. I’m a big fan of Katherine Center’s work, and while this wasn’t my fave book of hers (Happiness for Beginners holds that spot!), it was still better than a lot of rom-coms I have read recently! I definitely will be buying a hard copy when it’s released and would recommend for your next beach vacation!

Thank you St. Martin’s Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley.

She’s back!! The Queen of the Rom com! This is classic Katherine Center and after her last two books didn’t strike me the same way as The Bodyguard did, I’m so glad she’s back with this perfect love story. Is it a little unbelievable? Of course! But I still enjoyed it wholeheartedly. It is sweet, funny and even a tad suspenseful!!

Pick this up for a heroic romantic comedy delight.

3.5 ⭐

I enjoyed this book, but I wanted a little more from it. I think it’s my least favorite Katherine Center book so far, but it won’t stop me from reading more of her work. The characters and story were still enjoyable, and I might reread this later to see if my thoughts or rating change!

I read this book in one day and loved every bit of it. I love when I get lost in a book and the characters and this was pure perfection for me. I am sad it’s over.