Thank you for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book. I didn’t finish it before it was published but I still want to share my thoughts. I loved the story. It was so entertaining. I loved the side characters. Rue is my new favorite person and I love how caring and loving she is. Hutch just reminds me of all the guys in romcom movies and I absolutely loved it. Cole obviously had his issues. I don’t think he’s done growing but at least he’s working through them. My only issue is I had trouble connecting with the main character, Katie. Don’t get me wrong, I was rooting for her but I don’t think she’s my girl and that’s okay. I loved the storyline, overall.

All of Katherine Center’s books are like a warm hug- and I can never get enough of them.

The Love Haters follows the story of Katie, a woman getting over a very public breakup, who is now trying her best to hold on to her video production job.

In desperation, she agrees to take a job profiling , Tom “Hutch” Hutchinson, despite not exactly having all the requirements for said job.

In typical Center book fashion, Katie learns along the way many life lessons about what it means to love and to live and how nobody can really hate love.

Katherine Center books always lift up my spirits and brighten my day, and this one is no different. George Bailey is THE best, I love him so much, and I am usually a cat person, but it’s crazy how much animals know just what we need.

This book is perfect for a cozy weekend in and will leave you smiling from ear to ear.

Enemies to Lovers plus this adorable cover? You had me hook, line, and sinker!

When video producer Katie Vaughn is offered a last-chance assignment profiling a heroic Coast Guard swimmer in Key West, she jumps at the chance to save her job. Despite having one (tiny) issue...she doesn't know how to swim. Thrown into a vibrant, chaotic world, Katie quickly becomes tangled in a web of secrets. Did I mention the Coast Guard is her boss's brother? Katie finds herself at a crossroads: will she finally face her fears, tell the truth, and take a leap into love? You'll have to read to find out!

Rounded down from a 3.5! This book had some great moments, but ultimately left me wanting more. Let's start with the good: the banter was incredible, the mishaps were hilarious (especially George Bailey, IYKYK), and Rue was an absolute gem. But what fell short for me was the lack of chemistry between the two main characters. Insta-love doesn't work for me, and this one sometimes felt a little rushed. There were also a few side plots and characters that felt completely unnecessary - did we really need the day-by-day drinking schedule of the crazy boss? And while the ending went with the plot, I was hoping for a callback to the Burma-Shave reference at the beginning, maybe with Hutch giving Katie her own rhyme?! Sigh - still cute and easy read!

Be sure to check trigger warnings, as there are themes of body image insecurity, losing family members, and illnesses.

Thanks to Net Galley, St. Martin's Press, and Katherine Center for granting me access to this book. All opinions are my own.

Katherine Center is the first contemporary style romance author I read in over 15 years. I thought I was solely a mystery/thriller genre girl until I stumbled on The Bodyguard and my perspective changed entirely. Since then I have loved getting my hands on any Katherine Center book and I was thrilled to get an ARC of The Love Haters.

This book was a slow burn with all kinds of feels for me. I loved the main character, Katie's, quest to find stuff to love about her self (all thanks to her bestie) and deep backstory between Hutch and his brother.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the arc!

I know I’m in for a treat when it’s time for a new Katherine Center book, and The Love Haters did not disappoint! We went on a journey with Katie, from an unlucky in love monochromatic water-phobe to…. well, you’ll have to stick around to see! The characters in The Love Haters are likable and easy to root for (most of them, anyway!). Though being a Center novel, I knew a happily ever after was about guaranteed, the journey there was joy, largely based in Katie’s transformation.

What a wonderful, feel-good, light-hearted, funny read! The Love Haters is the perfect summer romance read. I love all the characters in the book, especially the somewhat meddling older ladies pushing our FMC to our MMC. I love the body positivity in this book, our FMC is struggling with poor self esteem and body image issues. It is not until our FMC has a close call with death that she finally get's it, that her body should be appreciated and is grateful for just simply being alive. Their is humor and romantic tension all throughout this book and a few good twists! I love Katherine Center and this is one more book I recommend adding to your list! Thank you Netgalley for an ARC of this book.

Sweet moments, but not her strongest
I’m usually a big fan of Katherine Center’s uplifting and heartfelt storytelling, but The Love Haters didn’t quite hit the mark for me. The premise was fun and had potential, and there were definitely a few charming and emotional moments that reminded me why I enjoy her books. However, the pacing felt uneven, and the characters—while likable—didn’t have the depth or spark I’ve come to expect. It’s a light, easy read, but it lacked the emotional resonance and staying power of some of her earlier novels.

3.5-4 stars. Katie is in a bit of a bind and her life depends on her keeping her job, to the point where she’ll stretch her limits to remain employed, even if it means exaggerating her abilities (she can’t swim and will need to be proficient at it). Her boss, Cole, is sending her out to film Hutch, one of the Coast Guard members to obtain footage.

Katie is endearing, but she has some major self image issues. On the one hand, it’s very relatable, but on the other hand, it’s a bit overstated in the book. I thought Hutch was going to be this impassive, rugged guy devoid of humor and emotion, but that wasn’t the case at all. He’s just very, very focused on his job and takes it seriously. Despite the two of them seeming so different from one another, all the time they spend together eases them into a natural friendship where two seemingly solitary people enjoy each other’s company and more.

I liked many aspects of this story like Hutch and his dog, Aunt Rue and watching Katie flex out of her comfort zone. But there are things that didn’t work for me like Cole’s involvement in creating some facade for his supervisor Sullivan which ended up being a bit far fetched, and how that relationship went further off the rails. Cole was a bit too self absorbed in how he had little regard for others, especially Hutch, who is his brother. He was depicted like a cartoon character because it seemed like he couldn’t be real in the context of the story (even if it is fiction). This wouldn’t be my favorite Katherine Center novel, but I can appreciate how she always injects a strong sense of humanity in her stories and the sacrifices Katie makes for Hutch’s dog towards the end really speaks volumes for Katie as a character who is worth her own starring role rather than thinking she is some forgettable side character trying to blend in the background.

Did I enjoy the story? Yes.
Was I hooked? Eh.

As someone who has struggled with body image and counting calories, I completely understood where the fmc was coming from. The FMC does have a healing arc, but I can see how a reader could find this triggering. It didn’t bother me, but I also am not totally sure it was necessary for the plot?

This was very much an instalove storyline, and that’s not my favorite. It didn’t help that Hutch’s only personality trait was that he smiled more when she was around.

Cole needs to be put in a time out.

TLDR;: George Bailey is the saving grace. He deserves the world.

Katherine Center has done it again! The Love Haters is a must read for contemporary romance lovers. I laughed, I cried, I swooned. And when I say laughed, I mean cackled several times.

The story follows Katie who is a video producer about to create a profile of a hot coast guard rescue swimmer named Hutch who just so happens to be her coworker Cole’s older brother.
There is a lot at stake here, and Katie’s job is on the line, so this project that takes place in Key West needs to go well. Katie has a rocky relationship history and it was so heartwarming to watch her learn to find love again — self love and romantic love.

There was a fun cast of side characters as well. I absolutely adored Aunt Rue, who welcomed Katie with open arms and rented a property to her while she was working on Hutch’s profile. I also loved rescue Great Dane George Bailey. Dogs make everything better 🐾. I found Cole to be slightly unlikable, but he redeemed himself at the end.

While this is a romantic comedy, the book included some heavy themes including grief, online bullying, and body image issues.

The Love Haters was a quick and funny read. Katherine Center always delivers a charming story. I loved the fun adventure we embarked on with this book.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I finished The Love Haters in just one day - and while the story had a bit of a slow start, once it got going, I was hooked! Set in sunny Key West, this rom-com is full of charm, humor, and heart.

Katie Vaughn is a video producer who’s faking it till she makes it - literally. When she’s offered a career-changing opportunity to film a profile on Hutch, a broody and ridiculously attractive Coast Guard rescue swimmer (who just so happens to be her coworker’s estranged brother), she says yes. The only problem? She can’t swim. Cue the lies, the chaos, and the flirtatious banter!

I loved the banter between Katie and Hutch - it was adorable and had me over here grinning. That kind of slow-burn, flirty tension is my jam. Hutch is 100% book boyfriend material.

That said, I really wish we got a dual POV. I wanted to know what Hutch was thinking throughout! And while the story is cute and cozy (no spice, for those wondering!), there was a lot of repetitive body image talk that became a bit much after a while. It definitely could’ve been dialed down without losing impact.

Overall, this was a fun, feel-good listen that mixes heartfelt moments with lighthearted humor. If you’re in the mood for sunshine, a swoony hero, and a heroine learning to brave the truth, this one’s worth adding to your TBR!

3.75 ✨ for this breathtaking, refreshing novel. I read this book in one sitting, and it really was such a unique book.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC of this book.

Katherine Center takes us into a world where our FMC Katie is unwillingly thrust by her producer Cole into shooting a USCG promo in Key West. On the verge of being laid off by the company she works for, Katie allows Cole to send her to cover the promo, which just so happens to involve his brother, Hutch. It also involves deceiving his Aunt Rue about why she’s there while allowing her to stay in her little village of mini trailers while she’s in town. She also happens to be trying to do a mini docuseries for her YouTube channel on Hutch, who happened to become famous for rescuing and Jennifer Aniston‘s dog.

Along the way, there are so many laughs, so many good lessons to learn, and some certainly frustrating moments when Cole shows up later on and and makes up a ton of lies that sets into motion, some detrimental effects. I was loving this book so much, up until this point, but that just really felt terrible amongst everything else that was so good and joyful and positive in this book. There’s always the third act conflict that gets thrown in there, but I just really feel like this book could’ve been so much more without it at all. Or even just taking the part of lying, and shortening that whole bit up and breathing more life into Cole and Hutch’s relationship. It was just really frustrating as a reader who had her heart and soul into Katie and Hutch’s blossoming friendship/crush.

Don’t get me wrong, at the end when we get the beautiful mission, impossible style rescue it really was incredible. George Bailey was the most hilarious sidekick, and truly the epitome of a dog‘s intentions that are purely selfish that just somehow benefit everybody around them. I loved this book, I just really hated the third act bomb.

4⭐️
ARC read
Pub date: 5/20/25

Ok so I actually enjoyed this way more than I thought I would! 2 of my friends dnf’d this, so my expectations were in hell😂 despite me enjoying this book, let me get a couple things out of the way first:

1. This book really should have some content warnings for the extreme body dysmorphia and disordered eating that is discussed in detail during the first few chapters. I’m glad that Katie was able to grow so much throughout this story, but I think readers should probably be formally made aware of the contents at the beginning of this book. Like, there is actually a snippet of the food journal she used to keep….this is not just a casual gloss over. Keep in mind, this review is based on an ARC copy! Hopefully an extra author’s note was added in the final published version.

2. Calling this book a rom com is honestly kind of a reach, since the romance between Katie and Hutch honestly felt like a sub plot to me. Katie’s relationship with herself was a much bigger focus in my opinion.

Ok other than those things, I did actually have a good time reading this! As stated, the beginning was a little rough. It was frustrating to read about an eating disorder in more detail than expected. It did become less of a focus though, and the rest of the characters (besides COLE😡) redeemed this book for me. My favorite pair is Katie and George Bailey tbh🥺

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy to read and review!

Katie Vaughn's colleague, Cole, gets her a job filming a Coast Guard promo video in Key West. It's either pretend to be an expert in a field she knows nothing about or lose her job. It so happens that Katie will be making a documentary about the Coast Guard featuring Cole's brother, Hutch, a rescue swimmer.

This one is chock full of tropical settings, unexpected adventure, quirky characters, and a hero who is averse to love. There's adventure, drama, danger, and a larger-than-life aunt. There's also a wonderful four-legged character, George Bailey the Great Dane and Vaughn's good boy who lives in a place prone to hurricanes and is afraid of thunder.

One of the things I love most about Katie is her false bravado and the humorous situations she gets herself into by not being completely honest. The girl has grit and fumbles her way through getting the job done. This also provides for so many sweet moments, a lot of them between Katie and herself as she discovers gratitude and learns unconditional acceptance and appreciation of herself.

Katie also comes to realize that she's stronger than she ever imagined, and her romance with Vaughn is humorous, charming, heartfelt, and inspiring. Center's romances are always at the top of my TBR, but Katie, Hutch, and good-boy George have a special place in my heart.

Loved that. Katie was such a good leading character, relatable and such a funny inner voice. Her journey in this was very real, a little heartbreaking, hopeful and heart warming. I loved so much that she learnt to see herself and love herself. Hutch was such a good leading man and I just loved watching him and Katie ‘hating’ each other. Cracking chemistry which made me giddy in that way that romance does. Also really liked the supporting characters in Beanie, Rue, the Gals and George Bailey. A really enjoyable read that left me with a smile on my face and warmth in my heart. 5⭐️

I loved the depth to this story! Katherine Center has a way of writing witty romance books that are meaty. Katie's story was vulernable and relatable. I loved reading her journey with her body and seeing how far she came. Hutch and her story was just so fun!

Every Katherine Center book I've read so far is one that's meaningful and I always look forward to how she spins her love stories that hold so much to them. This one was intriguing at first and I really liked the concepts and storyline the author was going about with The Love Haters. What fell flat for me was the romance. At best, it felt like it was a friendship that kind of evolved to romantic feelings but it never had a spark or flourish to it. I always wanted more development between Katie and Hutch but it was like a flame that never built on. There's so many good things about this book but maybe it was a me thing, because I just liked it for what it was.

The usual KC romcom factor was in this one and I liked everything that helped shape Katie to grow her confidence with her body image issues, especially side characters like Beanie and Rue. Cole was that much needed 'antagonist but grows to be good' type of guy and good ol' George Bailey. When a dog has a full name consisting of two first names, kinda cool kinda cool. Again, the romance felt botched in this one and then the natural disaster at the end that should've solidified the romance but made me twist my face when I was reading, yeah no. I love Katherine Center for her storytelling but this one wasn't one I loved, and that's okay!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing a digital copy to review in exchange for my rambly opinions.

Katherine Center writes such cute closed door summer romances. Was this anything groundbreaking? No, definitely not. That being said, I did have such a smile on my face while reading this book. It is a perfect light hearted beach read. The setting of Key West could not be any more ideal. I fear I have to visit simply by getting the vibes from this book. Our main character obviously had body image issues, and it is a bit knocked over your head by the end, but I did appreciate the author's note and how it related to her and helped her write this book. Sometimes the insta-love troupe makes me want to cringe into oblivion, but this one was done well. The premise was a bit unique, kind of got a bit clunky in the middle, but ended up satisfactory. I did very much enjoy learning more about the Coast Guard, and found the rescue aspect to be quite interesting and created a perfect amount of tension. Overall, while the story was far from perfect, I did enjoy my time reading and found it to be a great summer book! 3.75/5 stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced reader copy of this book. All opinions within this review are my own.

Unfortunately the further I got into this book, the less I enjoyed it. I really had to force myself to finish. The FMC was so immature and annoying. Her inner dialogue had me physically rolling my eyes. I know most books are far fetched, but I just couldn't buy into her story. I was rooting against her by the end.

Videographer Katie Vaughn’s boss is looking to downsize her staff. Co-worker Cole believes in her talent and has an idea to save her job. The Coast Guard wants a new promotional video to recruit members and he wants her to film it. He just forgot to mention the featured Coast Guard rescue swimmer is his ridiculously good-looking older brother Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson who he’s trying to avoid, and she “forgot” to mention that she can’t swim!

As the ‘80’s band The Thompson Twins sang: 🎶 Lies, lies, lies … yeah 🎶. This book is full of them. In fact, Cole lies like it’s his full-time job, while Katie’s are more of the omission type. Whatever the reason, those lies predictably cause some problems! That, and the fact that Katie is struggling with body image issues that make her want to avoid a bathing suit like it’s poison.

It’s trademark feel-good Katherine Center featuring two likeable opposites attract MCs, a delightful cast of side characters including Cole and Hutch’s very colorful “aunt” Rue and her posse of friends in Key West, Florida, a hilarious thunder-phobic Great Dane named George Bailey and Katie’s biggest cheerleader, no-nonsense cousin/bestie Beanie.

I didn’t feel as much chemistry with last year’s MCs in The Rom-Commers, so for me this was a return to characters I felt more invested in. It was fun to see all-business Hutch loosen up a little and color-phobic, insecure Katie learn to see herself and the world with more adventurous eyes. Their banter was top-notch. Honestly though - I think George Bailey may have stolen the show!

I always admire Center’s ability to take what could be heavy issues and find the joy and light in the situation. Hutch and Cole’s backstory with Rue was quite poignant (no spoilers), but never went dark, and Katie’s struggles with body image are something that most of us can relate to on some level. It’s nice to see a romance show characters with vulnerability and depth.

If you want good clean fun with a splash of adventure … this one should do the trick! I read and listened to the audio by the amazing Patti Murin, who once again doubled the enjoyment. She and Center make a great team!

★★★★ ½