This was my third book by Center and as I’ve come to expect with her romances, it was a story filled with love, sweetness, and hope.

“Something quiet and forgotten and quiet and neglected in my soul got an undeniable dose of healing.”

I really loved the premise being Katie, a video producer who profiles Hutch, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer. Any time a romcom can incorporate a unique backdrop like that, I’m all in. You can tell the research that went into getting both sides of their professions just right and it made for such a fun setting for these two to fall in love! And for my closed door romance readers, add this one to your list. There’s plenty of tension and swoon-worthy moments but the rest remains behind closed doors.

“Having someone stand up for you and then kiss you senseless by the water at sunset is a HELL of a thing.”

Much of the plot is also focused on body positivity which was a nice layer in Katie’s story. There’s plenty of charming side characters to round out the plot. And, a major bonus in any rom com for me is that there’s a dog-this one comes with George Bailey, a Great Dane with his own insecurities and equally adorable quirks. I adored him so much and he’s a big part of the storyline which made it all the more sweeter. 🎧 And when it comes to the audio, Murin was absolute perfection. Her voice work with this cast of characters demonstrates why she’s a must-listen narrator. When you need a story that feels like a hug and a pick me up when life gets hard, read this one!

•𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐂𝐚𝐧 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭 •
+ set in key west, FL
+ rom com with deeper messages
+ closed door romance
+ he’s a coast guard rescue swimmer
+ she’s a video producer
+ Hurricanes
+ a rescue dog named George Bailey
+ charming side characters
+ sibling rivalry
+ forced proximity
+ fake dating & famous ex side plot
+ swimming lessons
+ body positivity
+ when he goes by his nickname

𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: May 20, 2025
𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: Romance • RomCom
𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭: 🎧 Audiobook (10h 33m)
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫: Patti Murin
𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ★★★★☆ 𝟒
𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐭: I really enjoyed it!

Thank you NetGalley for my ARC, @stmartines for my beautiful #gifted finished copy and @macmillanaudio for my ALC!

I think I have read enough of Katherine Center books to say that they are either a hit or a miss for me. This one was unfortunately a miss. That being said, I think it could definitely be one of the summer reading books that you bring to the beach to have something to read but don't expect much romance. It's heavy on the self-esteem and confidence building/body positive vibes. However, there is a lot of comedic scenes because Katie just finds herself in many disastrous situations - most with the hunky Coast Guard rescue swimmer as a captive audience.
The characters were more frustrating than they were fun-loving and likable (obviously fan-fave characters are George Bailey and Rue). Katie let herself get into some really questionable situations and most of them were not that easily explained. Why let people lie about you right in front of you. Hutch is borderline annoying because he is awful at communicating. And his brother, Cole, is just the worst. But the setting of Key West and Rue's little village easily won the show. I would love to be part of that crew and spend my time with them in a brightly colored caftan.

This story follows Katie who needs to save her job and by doing that she needs to take Cole’s request to film his brother, Hutch. Katherine Center is a talented writer and she ate up with this book. I enjoyed the storyline and the writing style just made it great. I love how this isn’t your typical rom-com but it goes deeper into it by featuring self-love. I loved the Key West setting and the different conflicts throughout the book. I loved how the writing felt like I was watching a movie in my head and I can see this becoming a film. This book is only written from Katie’s pov.

Katie needs to keep her job and has had a hard time loving her body. I enjoyed seeing her develop throughout the story and finding love along the way. Then we have Hutch, who has a crush on Katie and is so cute and friendly. I loved seeing his love for Katie develop. Katie’s best friend was also amazing and loved seeing her be Katie’s hype woman. The romance is forced proximity, slow burn, and friends to lovers. This book has been promoting the book as kind of enemies to lovers but I wouldn’t exactly say that. The romance was cute but I do have to say that I wish we got more. It felt rushed toward the end and at the end it was about Katie being happy which I am all here for but I wish we got more of them together.

The ending was well done and overall this is a great book. I recommend checking out this book and other of Center’s books. I love the writing style and how quick they are for the summer. This book is perfect for Emily Henry and Abby Jimenez fans.

*this arc was sent to me by the publisher to give an honest review in return*

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy.

Katherine Center is back with another fun romcom just in time for summer reading! I loved the setting, the characters, the romance - it was all so much fun to read. Key West is one of my favorite places, and this book made me want to visit again ASAP.

The characters were my favorite part of this book. The fact that Katie took a job in the keys doing a feature on a coast guard rescue swimmer even though SHE CAN'T SWIM was a little bit questionable, but I loved her determination to learn and that she faced her fears. She's been through quite a bit over the last few years, and I really like her journey and growth throughout this book. Hutch might be my new favorite book boyfriend, as I just adored him. The real winners were the side characters, though. Rue and the other ladies stole the show, along with Hutch's dog George Bailey. I kind of want to find a crew of older ladies to be besties with now.

One thing that I have mixed feelings about is how much Katie's body dysmorphia was mentioned. I don't think it took away from the story, and it didn't impact my rating of the book. It's just mentioned a LOT and there were a couple times I was like, "Ok, we get it". I, too, have issues with how I see myself and how I look in a bathing suit - having to wear a bathing suit in front of people is terrifying for me. It also might be a trigger for some people. I wouldn't say it went that far for me personally, but it did spark my anxiety a bit. (the author addresses this in a note, fyi)

The hurricane scene towards the end is one of my favorite parts of the book. Having lived through many hurricanes, I can only imagine the fear Katie faces for those hours. I felt my heart rate rising during these chapters!

Overall, this is a fun read with lots of tropical summer vibes!

Thank you to netgalley for providing me this arc in exchange for a fair and honest review! All opinions are my own ❤️

I really liked this one! I liked it was a little bit different from a typical beach read and that the fmc was a video producer and was filming profiles of our mmc, Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, who works for the Coast Guard in Key West, Florida. She is taking the videos not necessarily willingly because she will probably lose her job if she doesn’t do this and she is filming her coworker’s BROTHER. She meets his Aunt Rue and his lovable Great Dane, and even forms a deeper relationship with him.

One big part of the book that really turned me off was the fact that she talked about how she was so obsessed with how her body looked and there was legit a whole page of a list of food that she ate with the calories and she made it her whole personality and I just think it was a bit too much for a book that is advertised as a sweet romance. (I am not trying to say that everyone with this is annoying, this is just my opinion of the character)

I think I like The Bodyguard better than this one but I loved how atmospheric it was and I can’t wait to see everyone else’s thoughts on it when it comes out!!

Vibes are giving ☀️👙🍉🛟

I loved this. My 2nd fave of hers (happiness for beginners is my all time fave). The topics and how they were handled light but deep. The self love, the dog, the setting....all great. Highly recommend!

Should you lie about being able to swim when you are asked to video the coast guard? Probably not. Did this start make for a cute story? Yes.

Katie is on the verge of losing her job as a video producer and takes a job for a coworker. This turns into a bit of trouble as she meets Hutch, the main person she is filming, who expects his brother to be the videographer. I love how Katie and Hutch worked through this (grudgingly of course). Hutch and Katie both did a lot of learning and growing throughout the book, which is much appreciated.

However while I enjoyed it, it was missing a bit of the spark that Katherine Center's other books have made me feel.

Katherine Center never fails to make your heart hurt as you read her books! This one, while did not contain the same amount of swoony fall fast romcom-y aspects of her usual books, it still left me with a good feelings!
I did like that this was covering topics that I had no idea about, learning about the coast guard was very entertaining!

How old are these people??? Eleven?? Except Cole that must be seven. I think I'm done with Katherine Center books...

Katie is at a crossroads. She can either go make a video profile of the new viral hero of the moment Hutch that rescued Jennifer Aniston's dog or stay put and be fired. Seems like a pretty obvious choice. When Cole (Hutch's brother who does not like Hutch) offers this lifeline she jumps at the chance of saving her job. Hutch is a Coast Guard rescue swimmer and Katie would have to pass swimming tests. But, Katie doesn't swim. Well, she'll fake it until she makes it.

First, the characters are supposed to be near 30 or over 30, and the way they talk, think, and act it's just like preteens. They are just all so childish and with no social skills at all. They don't talk like real adults; it's just such a stillted and unnatural dialogue. It's like the author wants so badly for her characters to be lovable and quirkys, that they don't feel like human beings talking. Katie's inner monologue is unbearable. But it's better than when she is talking to anyone; she reverts into a child and whoever is talking with does too. Hutch is just a nothing burger of a character; he's there to heal Katie's self steem and be hot I guess. The instalove and instalust are annoying, they don't build a relationship that we can follow and believe in. From the get go, they are so into one another and their interactions don't deepen the connection for the reader to see; we are just told about it.

And now, Cole, Hutch's brother. Oh my god... One of the worst and most irrational characters that I've read about. His lies make no sense: what the lies are about, why he is lying, the pressure he puts on Katie for just go with the lie that makes NO SENSE. Everything about his character makes no sense including his ending. What was that?? Why was he in this book?? Just to create tension because the main characters fell in instalove and in instalust so the author had to fabricate a point of conflict. But it was just so badly done. Cole's a spoiled and bratty child.

The story is paper thin - nothing really happens until Cole appears and when major event happens by the end of the book that was just shoehorned in with no need for it.

I think The Bodyguard is going to remain the only book by Katherine Center that I like and I'm going to stop looking for another one of hers.

Thank you Netgalley, author, and publisher for the ARC.

I love all of Katherine Center's books, and this one was no different. I think I could identify with Katie's body problems, since I have some of them myself. I loved her relationship with Hutch, and I especially loved George Bailey.

Rounding up to 4.5 stars. I adored this story so much! The Key West setting had me dreaming of sun-drenched beaches, I thoroughly enjoyed the characters, the side characters were so lively and fun, and the romance was as sweet as a sun-kissed summer breeze.

Katie is corporate videographer/producer tasked with shooting a promo video of the Coast Guard to help save her job. Her subject in Key West is her boss Cole's older "scientifically perfect" older brother and Coast Guard rescue swimmer Hutch. The catch, Katie doesn't know how to swim. But Hutch is going to teach her enough to be able to join the rescue team on the helicopter.

Hutch and Cole's Aunt Rue is a hoot with her gal pals who care for and watch out for Katie as much as they do for each other. And Hutch's Great Dane George Bailey is absolutely adorable in his immediate attachment to Katie. As the mom of a dog who is terrified of thunderstorms, George's trembling, panting and climbing on top of you behavior is spot on. And yes, I would rescue said dog, in any and all circumstances.

I could relate to Katie in so many ways. I confess I'm a chromophobe, like Katie, leaning into black, gray and blue as my go-to wardrobe colors. I've also seen a few reviews that complain about the emphasis on Katie's body self-image. But as someone who was urged to attend weight watcher meetings and go to Elaine Powers (iykyk) as early as middle school, and has not owned a swimsuit in 15 years, I could completely understand her body image issues. It's a real thing even it isn't relatable to everyone.

Katie and Hutch didn't really spend that much time alone together, but I bought into their relationship anyway and adored each individually and as a couple. Highly recommend this one to anyone looking for a sunbaked and romantic escape.

Let me start off by saying that I love Katherine Center. Her books are usually like cozy hugs. This one, however, missed the mark for me. The story was honestly too convoluted for a rom com, which to me was what this book was trying to be. I appreciated what was trying to come of the body dysmorphia and self confidence struggles with Katie, but it got mixed up in everything else and I just felt like I couldn’t focus. I didn’t feel like there was a ton of chemistry on Hutch’s end, I was sideswiped by the twist with Cole, and the end was just a bit overwhelming.

I was in the mood for a light romance and had seen all the good reviews for this book and that it was on the NYT bestseller list, so I decided to try it. It wound up to be exactly what I was looking for. Katie Vaughn is a video producer at a company that's about to lay off a bunch of the staff. To try to save her job, she agrees to an assignment that could really help her career. The first problem is that the assignment is to profile Tom "Hutch" Hutcheson who's a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. One of the requirements is knowing how to swim, but Katie doesn't know how. The next problem is that Hutch is Katie's co-worker Cole's brother, further complicating the situation. Cole has already described Hutch to Katie as a love hater. When Katie meets Hutch, she finds out that he's devastatingly handsome. She has to overcome her fear of the water and helicopters to try to do her best at this assignment. In the process of trying to produce a great video to save her career, she also learns a lot about herself and what she really wants from life. This is a great beach read for summer and I recommend it. Thanks to #netgalley and #stmartinspress for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This has been my favorite book by Katherine Center! It is a perfect summer read.

You've read the summary already so you have an idea of the story. It makes me sad that so many people were unimpressed by this one, when I so clearly enjoyed the story of Hutch and Katie.

I highly recommend if you want a fun rom-com, grumpy sunshine story.

Thank you to Netgalley for a free review copy of this for an honest review!

This book was a bit of a mixed bag for me. It had moments where I was eating up the romance and tension between the two MCs. Then there were moments where I was hitting my head with the choices that the author was making with the writing.
One thing I want to start off by mentioning, is that this book centers a lot around a negative body image. I didn't like how much of the story focused on this aspect, without any true work to heal by the FMC. The FMC just uses validation from the MMC to feel better about herself.
I also just really disliked the final act of the story. It was over the top dramatic and distracted from everything else that happened in the story. It really pulled me out of the story. I also just felt like it was predictable how everything was going to unfold.
Some of the things I enjoyed about this story were the romance. I liked the slow burn nature, and thought there was a great amount of tension that was built up between them. I really looked forward to all of their scenes together and see their connection continue to grow.
I also really liked the setting of the story. The military, but beachy vibes of the story were top tier. I liked seeing them explore the area as they got to know each other. The side characters that we got to meet and how it was linked to her job was a lot of fun.
Overall I think I am going to be done reading books from this author. They have been a bit hit or miss for me. I didn't hate my time reading this one but I didn't love it either.

I'm starting to find Center's romance novels to be a bit formulaic. The main characters have all been running together in my mind, and nothing particularly sticks out about any of them from her last couple of novels. While this is for sure the case with The Love Haters, I enjoyed this one. I did like Katie and rooted for her, although I felt she made some really dumb choices and ignored her instincts a few too many times. I liked Hutch a lot but, again, nothing super distinguishing about him as compared to the male mains in Center's last few novels. The plot in this one was somewhat realistic and the ending in particular definitely worked for me. Overall, this was fun.

You can always count on Katherine Center for a well written novel with heart.

There are lots of cute rom-com moments and characters (especially by the group collectively known as “the gals”). However, the author prevents the novel from becoming too saccharine with the MC Katie’s arc of personal growth, and loving herself. The plot is interesting, and has a good pace to keep you reading. The slow burn romance between Katie and Hutch is “chefs kiss”.

I recommend this book (and author), to anyone who enjoys rom-coms with a bit of heart.

3.15 ⭐️s

This was definitely surprising. The home slide drama was unexpected. There is a character who is intentionally INFURIATING and it works. He alone made me consider dnfing the book but that is much of his purpose. I found Katie, the FMC, to be in many ways both relatable and a mystery. I want to give her both a hug and my therapist’s number. The highlights of this story were absolutely Rue and George Bailey.

Was I entertained? Yes. Is this my favorite of Katherine Center’s works? No.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Love Haters! It included many of the things that I love about a cute, summery rom com, and as a bonus, it was a clean read. This book made me laugh at some of the scrapes that Katie got herself into, some by her own doing and some based on the circumstances. It also had a sentimental thread with Hutch and his backstory. Most importantly, it had characters that were enjoyable and well written. I loved the growth that Katie had from the beginning of the book to the end. Hutch was the perfect MMC… his character combined with his epic job made him so pleasant to read about. Rue was also a wonderful addition the the story. I loved her excitement for life and color, plus she offered some great wisdom along the way. Cole drove me crazy as the book went on, but I think that was how it was supposed to be. Katherine Center has a way of writing characters that you connect with and enjoy reading about.

Were there things in this book that were a little bit unbelievable at times? Sure. Did I still enjoy it anyway? Absolutely! I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a quick and sweet, summery romance.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Listen, I love Katherine Center, but I fear that this book just was not for me. While there was nothing inherently bad about this book or the writing style, the plot just felt very disjointed and not as refined as a usual Katherine Center book. The setup was great, and very typical of a cute summer rom-com that Katherine Center is known for; however, the execution just didn’t hit the way I would have hoped.

This book follows Katie Vaughn who is facing some struggles in both her personal life and her professional life, and when she gets an opportunity that she simply cannot refuse she finds herself in paradise with a certified “love hater” as she attempts to fake it until she makes it. While I was so excited for this premise, the overall execution just fell flat. The stakes that built the foundation of the whole conflict/premise of the book were not as serious as the description made it sound, and the way everything played out had the book basically wrapped up around 60-70%. While there was the introduction of a secondary conflict, it just felt so late in the story and therefore made the ending feel rushed as it resolved so quickly. Overall, while I still enjoyed my time reading this book, this was unfortunately not my favorite book by this author.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Netgalley, and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!