Katherine Center is one of my favorite authors, and I really enjoyed The Love Haters. The story of Katie and Hutch is sweet and engaging, but what really sold me on this book were the additional storylines. Themes of self-acceptance, found family, deep friendships, and courage resonated deeply with me. I especially loved Aunt Rue and The Gals—exactly the kind of women I hope to be like when I get older!

Living in Texas, I felt an extra connection to the book after the recent flooding and the Coast Guard rescue swimmer who saved so many lives. That real-life event made this story even more meaningful to me.

The ending did feel a bit unbelievable—but then again, this is a romance, and a little suspension of disbelief comes with the territory. 😊 While this isn’t my absolute favorite Katherine Center novel, it’s still a heartfelt, uplifting read with wonderfully likeable characters.

Katherine Center is one of my autobuy authors, but this one missed for me. The whole story was about the heroine's body image issues, and I hate that the story seemed to revolve around a man coming in and telling her she's beautiful and that makes everything better. Just no.

“Every time you have to be brave, you get to be a little braver next time. That’s what life is for.”

This was a cute story. I found Katie a bit silly but also a bit annoying. Her lying and stretching the truth were frustrating but also seemed in line with who she was. I liked that this took place in the Florida Keys. I liked that we learned more about the Coast Guard and escaping a helicopter. I loved a few of the silly moments - the black one-piece, the lack of mirrors, and having to sell the ankle being a favorite feature. The supporting characters of Rue and her friends were absolutely wonderful and I adored their addition to the story. I like that Katie had to deal with image issues and how she found her strength. The audio was also great with a wonderful narrator. Nice and easy read perfect for Summer!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Another great book by Katherine Center! I prefer my rom-coms heavy on the com and this author continues to deliver this novel after novel and the latest was no exception.

The main character, Katie, is quite lovable. In this novel, the author addresses lifelong body shaming and its effects on the recipient. This is done in a way that is respectful, understanding, relatable and to illustrate that the heroine is not a “perfect” body type.

I love the relationship between Katie and her cousin and how supportive they are to each other. I also loved that the definition of “family” takes on many forms as evidenced by the love and care that Blanche has provided to Hutch and Cole over the years and how their relationship came about.

The plot provides great backstory regarding the issues Katie has had with her family, her romantic past and the story of Hutch and Cole’s strained relationship. The plot does progress nicely and keeps the reader entertained throughout and builds to a satisfying ending!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Publishing Group for providing me with an ARC of this novel.

I unfortunately did not enjoy this book as much as I hoped I would. The original storyline was interesting, but I didn't love the execution. I felt like the book went a bit off the rails with the FMC's ever-present body image issues monopolizing the story more than expected. While I appreciated that perspective, I feel like the topic could have been handled better by everyone involved.

The Love Haters by Katherine Center is the perfect beach read for 2025. Set in Key West, Florida, it has so many fun romance tropes all wrapped up in one story: grumpy/sunshine, workplace romance, fake dating, and more. There are some more serious issues woven throughout the story as well, though, including body dysmorphia, unhealthy sibling rivalry, coast guard rescues, and a wonderful theme of found family as well. As with all of Katherine Center's books, the narrative is extremely entertaining and made me laugh out loud numerous times. The premise of the plot was a bit weak for me, and the character of Cole was extremely childish and cartoonish, but I was able to enjoy the book given all of its other positive attributes.

Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the chance to read and review this fun rom-com.

This was a really sweet, deep story that I absolutely loved! I enjoy that Katherine Center writes great love stories that will make you tear up, laugh and no spice. This is an enemies to lovers story with lots of ups and downs, a woman learning to love herself despite her imperfections and a rescued puppy mill dog named George Bailey and a lucky toad.

Katherine Center never ever disappoints! I've loved all of her books and this one is no exception.

Katie Vaughn has been burned by love and has sworn off men forever. In order to save her job as a video producer she takes an assignment documenting the life of Hutch Hutchinson, Coast Guard rescue swimmer. He is, of course, an expert at his job, aloof and easy on the eyes. And frustratingly for Katie very kind to the gaggle of older women in her life. One catch for Katie's new assignment... she can't swim! Not ideal to go out on Coast Guard helicopter rescue missions when you are afraid of the water. Hatch finds out and decides to become her swim instructor, much to her disgust, and the fun begins!

Many thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin's press for this ARC in exchange for my review. Looking forward to the next Katherine Center book!

Katherine Centers books are really hit or miss for me but this was one of the better ones in my opinion. Really good humor without being cringey and enjoyable characters

Thanks to the publisher for the advanced copy!

The Love Haters was a warm and fun story about Katie and Hutch finding their way to each other while figuring out who they each are in this phase of their lives. While I did really enjoy it, I found the relationship between them to be a bit more insta-love than I prefer - I didn't feel like the chemistry built organically as much as I was told it existed.

That said, I was hooked by the story, including some lovely side characters and B-plots.

While not a five star romance for me, still a lovely and enjoyable read.

I really enjoyed reading The Love Haters by @katherinecenter. Despite seeing all the mixed reviews floating around, this one totally worked for me. It was heartfelt, hilarious, romantic, and even a little intense at times. Plus, the fact that it’s set in Florida with a hurricane thrown in? Yes, please.

Katie’s whole enemies-to-lovers journey, especially the way she saw herself, hit really close to home for me. I’ve struggled a lot with accepting myself exactly as I am, my body, my worth, all of it. And the message here? That life’s too short to hate yourself? Yeah… that stuck with me. The book isn’t perfect, the characters aren’t perfect, and that’s exactly why I loved it. It felt real.

Katie’s battle with self-worth—especially after the whirlwind of her ex-fiancé’s rise to fame and the harsh judgment she faced online—ran much deeper than her fear of the water. Not knowing how to swim became a powerful metaphor for everything she was emotionally navigating.

Watching Katie slowly come into her own with the help of Hutch, his awesome aunt and friends, and that chaotic, lovable Great Dane was so heartwarming. I loved how they helped her find her spark again through little moments: dinners, swim lessons, connection, and community. And Hutch? Literal dream man. Supportive, patient, kind.

The Coast Guard angle added a fun dose of action and adventure to it, giving the story some real stakes beyond the romance, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

What stuck with me most was Katie’s path to self-acceptance. She didn’t find love as a way to fix herself; she found it after learning to value who she already was. That kind of transformation, where love grows from self-worth, is the kind that lingers long after the last page.

Big love to George Bailey and the whole crew at Starlite. They added so much charm and heart to the story. And Katherine Center’s author’s note at the end? It was the perfect closing touch.

Thank you so much to @stmartinspress and @netgalley for the advance copy of this!

Another Katherine Center that is a great one! I love reading these because it’s minimal spice but still shows the details of falling in love slowly and then all at once.

The plot was interesting and well written, but where I found it fell flat was the amount of focus on Katie's body image issues. I didn't find there to be a lot of chemistry between Katie & Hutch so I was disappointed in that. The pacing also seemed a bit off. But overall, it kept me interested and Katherine Center is a great author!
Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Katherine Center for the opportunity to read this Advanced Reader Copy!

I loved this book!! I adored the characters. I laughed, I teared up, I couldn't put it down. Another 5 star read by Katherine Center!!!

Unfortunately, this book just didn’t land for me the way I had hoped. Having lived in Key West for a time and even worked on the Coast Guard base there, I was so excited by the premise and eager to be transported back to a place I love so much. While the setting held such promise, I didn’t feel like the writing fully captured the spirit of Key West. I also struggled to connect with the main characters and felt they didn’t quite fit together. While I know Katherine Center has a big following, I don’t think her books are the right fit for me right now.

DNF REVIEW • My experience with Katherine Center's books has been a little hit-or-miss. I've loved a few (including one all-time favorite), enjoyed a couple, and then disliked a few others. I'm always intrigued by her stories and the sense of joy and hopefulness, a bright optimism, that is consistent across all of her books. While some of them worked better for me than others, I can tell when I'm reading a Katherine Center book. The humor is where the books sometimes lose me -- it occasionally feels forced, the characters a little bit slapstick. But I keep coming back to her stories because when I'm in the right mood, when the characters and I click, it can be something magical.

Unfortunately, THE LOVE HATERS was one that did not work for me. I didn't realize how much of the story would involve the heroine's insecurity and body image issues. Although a realistic struggle, it is one of the few topics/themes in a book that I almost completely avoid. If I'd realized it was a focus in this book, I wouldn't even have downloaded it (despite enjoying many of Center's books in the past). It didn't take long for me to decide not to continue reading, but it's more about my own personal preferences than the way Center handled the topic. I wouldn't dissuade someone who was interested in reading this one, though I would give them a bit of a heads up. And I'll try again with her next release!

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this eARC. All opinions are my own.

This was an enjoyable reading experience.

Katherine Center, both as a human and as an author, is just a ray of sunshine! I always look forward to her latest, and this one definitely didn't disappoint. This might even be one of my new favorites by her! I really identified with the female mc, and I love a forced proximity storyline. Bonus points for a loveable dog as a wingman!

“Was the love hater flirting with me?” l am a Katherine Center lover & to no one’s surprise I loved this! The Love Haters was a quick and fun read! Like Centers other books it had a healthy mix of other thought provoking topics including weight/body struggles and previous animal cruelty (puppy mills.) If you are triggered by weight and body struggles this may not be for you but I do feel that it was handled in a respectful way. I had a lot of fun and I highly recommend picking this up.

I am a fan of each and everyone of Katherine Centers novels. Every year when I get an arc from netgalley I literally squeal.

As always, she writes this as a love story, but it is a really coming into self and self love and novel as well . I love a good grumpy sunshine, especially with forced proximity. It was mostly lighthearted with some discussion about grief and loss and growth through that journey. &&&& always love good animals as characters.