I DNF’d this title due to the repeated and unapologetic internalized fatphobia. The book had promise, but I was taken out of the love story because of the fatphobic rhetoric.

Every time I pick up a Katherine Center book, I’m chasing the high from Happiness for Beginners. When I read Everyone is Beautiful earlier this year, that one came the closest to giving me the same feels — I think I’ve learned that it’s Katherine’s deeper books that resonate with me as a reader more than her romcoms, but that’s okay! As a rom com, this was still a solid read.

I really enjoyed that this book was set in Key West because this was such a fun summertime read! Katie our main character is the epitome of it can go wrong, it will. Hutch our MMC is a Coast Guard rescue swimmer, which was really interesting to see depicted in the story. I also really enjoyed Hutch's aunt and her fun friends!

Thank you, NetGalley & St. Martin's Press, for this eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was everything you want in a rom com. The mmc was such a cinnamon roll and I loved the fmc’s confidence and growth throughout. The side characters were so fun too.. I was screaming at the end.

Katherine Center does it again! The Love Haters is witty, heartfelt, and full of charm. A perfect mix of humor and heart, with characters you’ll root for until the very last page.

This started off a little slow for me, but once Katie and Hutch met, i was totally engaged. There was so much chemistry between these two that even Hutch’s dog could feel it. This one has it all - heart, heat and humor. I actually laughed out loud a few times. Such a great story and romance!

I loved this book!! I really think i will listen to all of her books via audio!! i had such a great time. This book is super light hearted and fun read, very low spice but it also does handled harder topics giref and also body image issues. I thought this book was super unique and a very enagging and quick read. i thin think this might be a new favorite.

I originally got this as an ARC and just didn’t have the time to read it and after being disappointed by a different book I was hesitant on reading it. However, I wish I would’ve read it so much sooner! I probably enjoyed it more given that I have my own rescue swimmer boyfriend (who wanted to know all the coast guard stuff to fact check) and even he was impressed!

I’m a Katherine Center fan, even though not all of her books are big hits for me. I love Happiness for Beginners and am always hoping to find another one of hers that captures those same feelings. While The Love Haters didn’t quite get there, it was still an enjoyable read.

I enjoyed the enemies-to-lovers tension between Katie and Hutch, though they moved to lovers a bit too quickly for my taste. I wanted more build up. The Key West setting was perfect and I loved the supporting characters, especially Hutch’s dog George Bailey. That said, I want to provide a trigger warning for body dysmorphia and disordered eating. Katie’s body image issues are a recurring theme throughout the book and those parts were difficult to read at times.

Overall this was a fun, if predictable, rom-com. I will continue to read Katherine Center’s new releases while making my way through her backlist.

Reading a Katherine Center book is like a warm hug. A warm, sweet, funny, and sometimes teary hug that makes you believe in love and happy ever afters. Her books just just FEEL GOOD, all the way down to your toes! And that’s how I felt reading The Love Haters! I loved our grumpy-ish MMC Hutch, a swoony Coast Guard rescue swimmer. Our FMC Katie feels so authentic and her body image issues were so relatable to me! The best part of this book is not only did they both learn to love love, but Katie learned to love herself too. The cast of supporting characters is charming and well-drawn, with Aunt Rue and pupper George Bailey stealing the show!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me an advance copy of this book.

3.5 stars

This was my first time reading Katherin Center, and it was a fun romcom. I will say that the most entertaining parts of the book were Aunt Rue and all of her friends. They were a hoot, and I would get excited any time they would appear on the page.

The premise of the story was really interesting, and I appreciated the conversations had about Katie and her body image. It definitely made her relatable, but it seemed to take up a lot of the story, to the point where I felt the development of the connection between her and Hutch. suffered.

Overall, the story was enjoyable, but I would definitely only recommend it for people who are okay with body image discussions playing a large part of a story. Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

Katherine Center is one of my favorite authors because of the strong female characters she writes. Something about this story felt forced, though. Katie is a very deeply hurt, insecure woman. The message of body positivity is there, but I didn’t feel like it was handled appropriately. It felt like half the book was spent talking about how she loathes wearing bathing suits rather than the main storyline. We get it, Katie is insecure about her body…who isn’t? I just wish we had gotten to see a little more substance.

Usually Katherine Center is a good match for me. Hutch is a cool dude. George bAiley is a dream boat. I even like the gang of senior ladies. It’s the main character that I have no connection with. DNF.

Loved this! The Love Haters is a grumpy-ish main male lead and a female lead who is relatable in ways I was not expecting. I loved the side characters, the setting, and the story. I read this in one sitting and I am a huge fan of the author and the writing style.

Katherine Center always delivers when it comes to warm, heartfelt storytelling, and The Love Haters was no different. I enjoyed the blend of romantic tension with a thoughtful look at vulnerability and resilience. Some beats felt predictable, but honestly, that’s part of the comfort with her books. It’s a charming read that fans of contemporary romance will enjoy.

I couldn't get over the body image portrayal in this book.
As a woman who has suffered from it all my life. This book was too much and if only Katie could have realized her worth and beauty without the help of a man...
Girl, it was too much.
Two stars only for some of the quirky fun in the book.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Whenever I see Katherine Center has a new book I get so excited, especially since she gives her characters such fun jobs. I wasn't that familiar with Coast Guard rescue swimmers so I enjoyed learning more about that role. A major theme was body image and overcoming body image issues, important but became too much over time. The ended also got a little nuts. Overall, an enjoyable read even if it is not my favorite book by Katherine Center

This book is exactly as fun as you would expect from Katherine Center. I’ve actually reread this one because it was so sweet and fun. I loved the setting with the rescue swimmers and even though you expect the HOA, the plot is full of surprises and frustrations. :-)

⭐ (Story) 4.5
⭐ (Narrator) 4.5
🌶️ 0
📚 Tropes/Themes: Force proximity, workplace romance, rescue swimmer x documentary producer, healing
👀 Single POV 1st person
🎙️ Single narration (Patti Murrin)
⏰ Approx 6.5 hours
💔 Triggers: lots of discussion/descriptions of an eating disorder, parental death, discussions/descriptions of a car accident
🛍️ Available: Now

💬 Well I have a confession to make 🫣. One of the reasons it took me so long to review this book is I made the cardinal mistake of looking at reviews before I read it. I tryyyyy to go into books blind so that I can be a blank slate for reviews. (Obviously if I've read an author before, it's not totally without preconceived notions, but I've never read a Katherine Center book.)

Anyway, the reviews were mixed which made me a little nervous to read it. But I've been trying really hard to get through all of my netgalley arcs and this was available on Spotify so I just went for it.

I'm so glad I did! This is more of a women's fiction/chick lit than romance but I like those stories too. I like the depth to them and how they make me think. I will mention there were a lot of times the narrator broke the fourth wall though. I didn't hate it but I'm sort of torn how I feel. To be honest. I think this is probably the first book that I have read where it's so apparent and frequent and that it for sure made Katie more relatable as a character.

Also I think this is one of the few times when I actually preferred it to be single POV and not dual. I loved Katie's character. She's funny and honest and real and even though I've never been engaged to a famous singer, I think that the emotions and struggle's that she dealt with are fairly universal. I think center did a really good job of highlighting those struggles in an honest and relatable way.

Honestly the whole cast was fabulous. Even Cole 😤 If I knew that I could moved to the Florida keys and find my own Bea + co friend group I'd move in a heartbeat.

The romance was also wonderful. And gave me all the warm gooey feelings that I love when reading fluffy romance books. I mean I wouldn't call this fluffy but it was sweet 😂 I know I'm sort of rambling here, this stream of consciousness review is unique I'm sure hahaha.

I also wanted to give a special shout out to George Bailey. I didn't expect to love him so much and I'm going to leave it at that because I want to keep the mystery alive in this relationship 🤣

Anyway, all that to say, I definitely recommend this book and I'm sad that I took so long to get around to reading it. I'm going to be adding her other books to my TBR.

Another Katherine Center book that was 5 stars for me. When Katie has to learn how to swim in order to make a video featuring Hutch, for the Coast Guard promo, she is stuck tackling her own insecurities while managing a flirtatious friendship with “the love hater.” I absolutely loved these characters and the banter that they had. Watching them fall for one another as they tackled the video project, and watching Katie overcome the insecurities she had with her body, while learning to be open and honest about it, was really moving. As well as the way Hutch challenged her to see herself and her past in a better light. I thought this story had a unique plot and a great cast of characters that made it so much fun to read. Rue and The Gals were such an entertaining addition and made for a really well rounded story.