𝙂𝙚𝙣𝙧𝙚 🎭: Chick lit/women's fiction
𝙎𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙚: 🚫
𝙋𝙖𝙘𝙚 🏃🏼‍♀️: fast
𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 🖤: surface level humor & light on romance, great side character
⚠️: on page self loathing/body image/ED

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝:
🌸kooky aunt rue & The Gals
🌸writing style/quips and internal dialogue
🌸comedy of events

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞:
✌🏻grating amount of self loathing around past and current eating and body image issues - where most of the plot is spent in a bathing suit
✌🏻lack of actual romance

KC is comfortably moving into the women's fiction/chick lit category in my opinion. This is a very LIGHT on romance book, has some heavier themes, wide variety of side characters, and a couple points of contention. Mostly read like a summer fiction with humor intertwined.

I actually really loved some of the ridiculous scenes that were thrown in for comedic relief - it made for a super fast binge able read. I very much like KC's writing style, even when I'm not sold on the characters or the love components.

Thank you to SMP for the review copy! All opinions are my own.

Katie is sent to the Florida Keys to interview and film Hutch for a Coast Guard video. She's doing it to try to save her job, but she doesn't have the whole story. Immediately, Hutch isn't glad she's there because he was expecting his brother. He quickly changes his mind , though. Cue some misunderstandings (some on purpose), plus their meddling aunt Rue, and Hutch's huge dog. Some scenes are really funny, some are heartfelt, and some are dangerous. This book was worth it in the end, but the start was a bit slow. I still really enjoyed it because I love Katherine Center.

The fmc is just unlikable. All she does is complain without trying to come up with any solution. She got herself into a situation where she KNEW she would have to swim for her JOB, complained the entire time that she couldn’t do it and just kept saying she didn’t want to. That’s not how the world works. Or if you really don’t want to then fine, quit and deal with the consequences of losing your job. Also her entire personality being her struggles with her body image was extremely draining.

Lastly, as someone who was in the military, a lot hod those aspects were very oddly written to the point they came off super cringey. When Katie, a civilian, asked if she needed to salute, it was extremely off putting.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you to Katherine Center, St. Martin’s, and NetGalley for an ARC of The Love Haters! All opinions are my own.

Katherine Center truly cannot help but write bangers. The Love Haters, like her previous work, is both delightfully funny while also heartwarming and so real that I have several quotes and passages marked to share with my therapist.

I think sometimes there are books that come into your life when you really need them the most and this was one of them. Katie‘s journey, along with her changing and developing relationship with her body really did something for me at this point in my life. The emotions and experience of being seen and loved when all you want is to disappear was beautiful, and I’ll be thinking about these characters and this book for a long time.

POV: first person singular

You can expect: forced proximity, opposites attract, longing at first sight, meddling Great Dane, he falls first, self love, filmmaker FMC, Coast Guard rescue swimmer MMC.

Rep: eating disorder, grief, body dysmorphia

Spice: none

CW: past cheating by a partner, eating disorder, death of parents (implied DUI, past)

This was my first Katherine Center book and I thoroughly enjoyed it! It was a cute romance story, which I was expecting, but I was pleasantly surprised by the deeper meanings and messages explored throughout: the difficult task of learning to love yourself, the importance of family, being unapologetically you, and how recovering from trauma is a lifelong journey.

I relate to Katie and found her journey of discovering what she loves about herself and owning it to be inspiring. The journey of loving yourself and getting to a point where you truly believe it.

I really enjoyed the writing style and was looking forward to finding out how all of the events would unfold the whole time I was reading it. I’m excited to read more Katherine Center in the future!

Thank you for the ARC!!

Katie Vaughn is headed to Key West to make a recruiting video for the US Coast Guard. The company Katie works for is suffering big layoffs, so maybe she didn't volunteer some information that might keep her from getting the assignment? Like not knowing how to swim? Cole gives her the assignment with a few puzzling stipulations. Her main contact is Tom "Hutch" Hutcheson, a rescue swimmer, who was described as "A Love Hater" by Cole. Huh?? Hutch is also a prior internet hero who has refused all interviews. She's hoping she can change his mind for her side gig.

Katie isn't sure which fear is bigger: drowning or being seen in a swimsuit (I hear that, Katie!)... then there are the internet trolls. Katie has many opportunities for growth and I enjoyed working through some of those in my own life. George Bailey, the rescued Great Dane, warmed my heart. Aunt Rue and The Gals made me smile. Key West is a gorgeous setting too!

This is a sunny book full of heart and adventure (and romance)! The perfect book for the start of summer!

While I enjoyed this one, I did struggle a bit to really get into it. I am a huge Katherine Center fan, and this brought all the normal vibes of her books. I was hoping for a bit more romance, but this focused more of Katie and her internal struggles.

Looking forward to whatever Katherine writes next!

Life is hard sometimes, and Katherine Center doesn’t shy away from tough themes in her books, which adds real depth to her romance stories. Even though difficult (and often tragic) things happen to her characters, it’s well-balanced with light-hearted and funny moments. The Love Haters is no exception, and it also features a Great Dane named George Bailey, a larger-than-life supporting character with an affinity for toads. I wish I could meet that dog in real life!

The main character, Katie, struggles a lot in terms of her own body image. While it started out really negative, and her personal circumstances weren’t easy for me to relate to, I found her struggles relevant and realistic, particularly in this age of social media. I enjoyed the journey she took, helped along the way by her cousin, who shared that while she knew her own body wasn’t perfect, she loved it and forgave its imperfections because it was all hers. I’m glad that Katie’s journey of self-love wasn’t solely measured in terms of how men saw her, which could have easily been the case in a romance novel.

I enjoyed Katie and Hutch’s dynamic, their banter and working relationship. While I know nothing about the inner-workings of the US Coast Guard, it was apparent that Center did some research, as her descriptions painted a seemingly-realistic picture of Hutch’s day-to-day.

The supporting characters were a fun and eclectic group, especially Hutch’s aunt and her tight-knit group of friends. The relationship that Hutch and his brother had with her was touching and beautiful in spite of their tragic past.

I finished this book with a smile on my face and a wish to see it be adapted for the screen! Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for an egalley of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Funny, and Engaging! The Love Haters by Katherine Center is pure gold.

After an extremely tumultuous failed relationship, Katie put her life back together. Her job as a video producer has been her saving grace, as has her pet project of filming her “A Day in the Life” series for YouTube. After being told that layoffs are imminent, Katie jumps at the chance to produce and be a part of a project for which she’s wholly unqualified, and the results are hilarious.

Enter Hutch, a member of the US Coast Guard who’ll be starring in Katie’s project, and showing her the ropes. Hello Dreamboat! (Too bad you’re a fictional character 😢 who's too young for me anyway, lol!). The moment these two meet, hilarity ensues, and sparks fly. The chemistry between these two fictional characters was so great, that I didn’t want this book to end. When it finally did, I was left wholly satisfied, with a smile on my face.

The Love Haters has it all and is now a new favorite by Katherine Center.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press.

The Love Haters by Katherine Center is sunshine in book form with just the right amount of sass and spark. If you love a romance that feels like a warm hug but still gives you all the juicy tension and snappy dialogue, this one’s calling your name.

Enemies-to-lovers? Check. Forced proximity? Oh yes. A heroine you’ll root for and a love interest who slowly melts? Perfection.

It’s heartfelt, funny, and full of that signature Katherine Center charm that makes you believe in second chances and big, brave love. Definitely a new comfort read.

Thank you very much for giving me the opportunity to read this arc. It's not the first book I've read by the author, I liked it, but I felt that at some point I lost the rhythm, or the book lost it, I don't know.

It's a quick, summer love book, with a trip in the middle, it was light, and I would have liked a bit more humour, but overall, it was good and a good read.

"It doesn't matter what anybody thinks if you're having fun. And all the fun is in color. My wish for you is a vibrant, bright, glorious life. That's why I keep bringing you these vibrant, bright, glorious swimsuits." - Aunt Rue

There's just something wonderful about a book that is more than the love story of the two main characters. Sure, Hutch is a real-life hero with a capital H (who wouldn't fall in love with him!) But, for me, the best part of is Katie learning to love herself-being brave, taking chances, not worrying about what everyone else thinks.

Then there is Beanie, the very best friend love, Aunt Rue and her fellow saucy septuagenarians love, and of course George Bailey doggo love.

This book is absolutely delightful. Put it on your TBR right now for a good dose of up-lit, some summer blockbuster movie level action and more than a few funny bits. You will be seeing this book everywhere this summer.

Also I want to retire to the Starlite Cottages.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advance reader copy. I am required by law to disclose this.

“The Love Haters”, the latest from Katherine Center, one of my favorite authors, is about a filmmaker named Katie who is sent to Key West to film a recruitment video for the Coast Guard. While she’s there she falls in love with Hutch, the subject of her video. And there’s a giant dog, a charming elderly “aunt” (Rue was my favorite character in the book), and many shenanigans.

So like I said, I love Katherine Center. But man, this book did not work for me. First of all, the first 15-20% of the book was about Katie’s body image issues and eating disorder. This topic, handled the right way, could be healing, but the way it was featured in this book was just triggering. Second of all, the plot was just a little too convoluted and trope-y to work. As one other reviewer said, Katherine Center seems to have Katherine Center’d to close to the sun. Usually I love her quirky characters and the adventures they go on and funny situations they find themselves in, but this was just not believable. The characters didn’t feel true to life.

Readers who care less about having their romances feel realistic, and readers who aren’t triggered by a lot of talk of body image might enjoy this book more than I did. I remain a Katherine Center fan, though, and look forward to a redemption arc in the form of her next book.

This one was a much rougher read for me than any of her other books. While Katie and Hutch are cute, their romance is overshadowed by the depths of Katie's body image issues. I really wish this book had come with a warning at the start for the amount of graphic discussion of body image issues. If this hadn't been a Katherine Center book I would've DNFed it for how intensely it focused on her self-hatred. While the aim was to empower women to learn to love their bodies for simply existing, it left me feeling like I would've been worse off in my relationship with my body had I read it just a few years ago.

George Bailey and Rue are the highlights of this book and bring much-needed humor and lightness to the story. Rue and her Gals felt vibrantly real, and I loved the depiction of female friendship through them and how Rue has created a found family out of her grief. I wish we had gotten to see more of Hutch and Katie when things were good between them, it felt like we got to see very little of them on good terms for a romance.

There are a lot of heavy themes in this one, and while I know she typically puts characters through a lot to find their happy endings, this one didn't feel like the same type of light summer read that the previous three I've read did. I'll still continue to pick up her new releases excitedly, but I really wish this one came with some warning of what I was getting into. I appreciated the messaging on the value of having people who believe in you more than you believe in yourself at times. This book is definitely a bit of a roller coaster emotionally, but so is real life.

Definitely a must-read for fans of Katherine Center, just make sure you know what you're in for before reading if body image issues are a sensitive topic for you.

This was the perfect read to kick off my summer reading!

Katie and her career have come to a fork in the road… take on a daunting project that she is absolutely NOT qualified for, or wait to be fired due to her boss downsizing.

Shooting a promo for the Coast Guard it is… even if she can’t swim. Katie packs up her ‘bland’ life and lands smack in the middle of the most colorful cast of characters she could imagine. Cherry on top, her grumpy star of the promo, Hutch, is her coworkers unfairly hot older brother.

Katie finds herself caught up in family drama, a web of lies, an old lady swimming club, training with Coast Guard Rescue Swimmers and actually starts to find herself, her color, again. And even though her and Hutch have been hurt in the past.. they start to questions if they truly are Love Haters after all!

Thank you so much to Katherine Center, NetGalley and St. Martins Press for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

#thelovehaters #booktok #bookstagram #romance #katherinecenter #netgalley #stmartinspress

If there was ever a book I needed at a certain time in my life, it is this one! This book is for anyone that has ever been their harshest critic. The ones who can’t see their true beauty. The ones that let others decide their worth.

This book was so real and beautiful and important. It had me in an emotional tailspin. It broke me down and then built me back up. It was such a cute, funny love story about Hutch, a first responder for the Coast Guard and Katie, a videographer filming a promo video for them while also taking you on this deep journey of self love.

This is the kind of book you want to hug to your chest as soon as you finish. The one that makes you realize how broken you truly are and then heals you. It’s a perfect summer read that will leave you swooning after Hutch and boasting with pride for Katie. I can’t recommend this book enough!

The Love Haters by Katherine Center explores the thin line between love and love-hating. Katie Vaughn has been burned by love, painfully and in public. Now her career is on the line. When she is approached by her co-worker, Cole, she has two choices: say no and wait to be laid off or say yes and produce a video profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. It seems like an easy choice. Oh yeah, Hutch is Cole’s older brother and they haven’t spoken to each other for a long time. What could go wrong in paradise? It turns out a lot can go wrong. Hutch is the most good looking man Katie has ever seen and a love-hater. Throw in his crazy rescue Great Dane and his very colorful Aunt Rue and Katie gets too involved. Will this be her chance to face old fears and truly find the strength to be brave?
Katherine Center is another of my go-to authors! She writes it and I’ll read it. She has the ability to combine humor with deeply emotional situations and characters who come out stronger than ever before. At first, I wasn’t sure if I liked Katie but as she reveals her emotional pain and fears, I found myself softening toward her. I especially enjoyed Katie as she found her voice and refused to be silent anymore. I also loved Hutch as the good looking but grumpy and reluctant subject for a new recruitment video. As Katie and Hutch interact, you can see the sparks fly and the emotional walls come down. There is plenty of action and drama as the weather and family drama comes to a full force. I loved this story and I did not want it to end! If you haven’t discovered Katherine Center’s books, you need to start reading! I highly, highly recommend The Love-Haters!


The Love-Haters is available in hardcover, eBook and audiobook

Overview: Katie agrees to go to Key West and lies about knowing how to swim in order to get the opportunity to film a recruiting video for the Coast Guard in an attempt to save her job. She decides to take some swim lessons right before her assignment, and discovers that her swim teacher is none other than Hutch, the real-life hero who will be the subject of her film.

Thoughts: I haven’t read any books by Katherine Center in a while, so I’ve forgotten how sweet her books are! And I don’t mean sickeningly sweet content with faux grand gestures, but the type of writing that makes you smile without realizing it until your hubby walks by and asks, “what are you smiling about?” Katie and Hutch were so cute together and I totally loved the role Rue and her gals (and George Bailey, the Great Dane!) played in pushing them together.

Take home message: The Love Haters is the perfect romcom for anyone who needs a sweet romance to lift their spirits. Main tropes are forced proximity and a non-traditional enemies to lovers trope, in that it features a female lead who overcomes past trauma to love her own body.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martins for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Many thanks to NetGalley, St Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the latest rom-com by a favorite, Katherine Center, with the audiobook narrated by the wonderful Patti Murin. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars!

Katie has had bad luck in the romance department and now she feels like her career is in trouble as well. She either waits to get laid off as a video producer or take the task of profiling Hutch, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. But, Katie can't swim, which is a necessity. She figures she can fake it long enough. But she may get called out on a few things along the way.

I am not always a huge romance-genre fan, but Katherine Center is always a must read for me. While I may not have loved this one as much as her previous books, I still enjoyed the escape to sunny Key West. Plus I learned some interesting things about our brave Coast Guard personnel! There are some great side characters (mostly Rue, Hutch's aunt, as well as George Bailey, a Great Dane)., and I felt the story was charming and engaging. I'm always a fan of Patti Murin's narration and I ended up mostly listening to this one. Great book to stash in your beach bag for sure!

I think this is the best Katherine Center book I have ever read. And one of the realest books I've read in a while. The messages in this book are so amazing, and I love it. This is definitely a book I will read and re-read many times to come.