Loved it. It may help that I have been to Key West as that is where most of the action takes place. I had empathy for the characters. Their back stories were unusual and heartbreaking. Good story that kept me turning the pages. Some exciting moments and several fun ones. Lots of personal growth. Rue and the Gals were terrific. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

The Love Haters is romance author Katherine Center’s brand-new 2025 release. Have I read any of her previous books? Well…no. But what a great place to start!

We follow Katie, a video producer who has to go film a video with a Coast Guard man nicknamed HUTCH who is also a hero. Her job is at stake, she is struggling with self-doubt, and worst of all…she can’t swim. As she heads to Florida. To work on an ocean. Did I mention that she can’t swim*?

Katie as a character suffers a lot of self-doubt. However, I appreciated her calls to her best friend Beanie, who continually reminded her of her worth, and helped guide Katie into loving herself. The setting of Key West is a perfect backdrop for this rom-com/self-discovery tale. It’s full of tropical delights! Bright colors, the ocean, coconuts…the works*. It works well for the plot too: there’s several engaging plot points that work really well because of the tropical setting and keep you turning the pages!

Hutch and Katie’s relationship blossomed very naturally. It was genuine, and sweet, and founded on real conversation. However, I think that the side characters were the best part of the book for me. Hutch has a difficult family dynamic that ends up causing some drama, but I was really touched by a lot of the moments in this story that arose from it. I appreciated the focus on Katie developing a sense of body-positivity outside of Hutch, and them his own efforts to reinforce it. It was a great choice by the author! Hutch also has a Great Dane named George Bailey that I know will steal almost as many hearts as Hutch!

I will say that although I loved the setting and the plot, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the actual romance. I just didn’t have a great sense of the chemistry between the two leads. Hutch is a super nice, strong guy, but I never really got to know him well. I also felt that Katie’s whole deal with swimming was played up to be a big deal, but that more or less faded about a quarter of the way through the book.

So that’s it! Definitely a great summer read. This is a Book of the Month May Add-On if you’re wondering! Also, a huge thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A guaranteed hit! This is one of Katherine Center’s best books. It’s beautifully written, charming, engaging,, overflowing with real-life relationships, and then there’s a handsome Coast Guard pilot. Readers dash off to Key West for round-the-clock actions and mishaps. There’s always an underlying truth to KC’s books. This one has several, but I loved the emphasis to face your fears. Now, I want to see the movie!

✨𝒜𝑅𝒞 𝑅𝑒𝓋𝒾𝑒𝓌✨
📖: The Love Haters

In a bid to save her job, Katie Vaughn tells a little white lie to snag a campaign to profile an allusive Coast Guard rescue swimmer who also happens to have made household waves after footage of him saving a celebrity’s dog and nicknamed “Pup Daddy.” According to her coworker, who happens to be Hutch’s brother, Hutch is a love hater.

Now bounding off to Key West, Katie must carefully navigate the waters of her secrets. What started as a mission to save her job may be exactly what she needs to save herself.

Tropes:
🎥Video producer FMC
🛟Coast Guard MMC
🫂Forced proximity
🏊🏻Swim lessons
🐾Great Dane side kick
⛑️Daring rescues
🛌Just one bed on a houseboat
🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒Found family
🔥Slow burn

Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson is objectively perfect. He’s dreamy and has a sunny disposition and a heart of pure gold. Katie, like Hutch, doesn’t want to be in the public eye. She’s talented and hilarious but self-deprecating, having been conditioned to focus on her flaws. Katie never truly embraced herself or her body, not until Hutch makes her feel seen and worthy.

As they grow closer, they share their deepest insecurities and fears and I loved seeing the sparks between them turn into something more. What I enjoyed the most was Katie’s evolving relationship with herself.

The Love Haters is a wondrous balance of humor and heart and a poignant reminder about the significance of self-love and self-forgiveness.

I am so grateful to the author and St. Martin's Press for the review copy. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Katie's job is on the line and she may just be saved by bailing out her coworker Cole and producing a video of this guy Hutch, a Coast Guard hero that lives in Florida that once saved Jennifer Anniston's dog. Doesn't sound like a hard gig. Cole doesn't want the job because he's Hutch's brother and it's hard being the other brother to a handsome hero.


Once Katie arrives in Florida she meets the boys Aunt Rue and she's got answers for all of Katie's problems. Soon Katie is ditching her standard black clothes for rainbow outfits provided by Aunt Rue and Rue's found a possible solution for her biggest problem - Katie can't swim. It's hard to record a day in the life of a Coast Guard if you can't swim.

The Love Haters is a great story that I would highly recommend to fans of Emily Henry's novels. It's funny, has romance and even adventure. Once you've finished this one I suggest you read all of Katherine Center's books as they are all great reads.

⭐️ 4.25 /5
This book was such a comforting, feel-good read! Firstly, we all need a Beanie in our lives—someone who reminds us we’re worth cheering for! 🥰

Let’s talk MMC, Hutch. He is just so dreamy! So responsible and caring. I seriously want his POV—I crossed my fingers til the end (Katherine, I’m begging!) Also, I trust FMC’s judgment and wouldn’t mind a kiss from him, just saying. I liked that he was straightforward… ish.
I thought Katie was a likable and engaging main character—someone you want to root for.
Meanwhile, Cole is that character you love to hate, and I was fully entertained by the chaos he brought.

One of my favourite parts was the message around loving and being kind to your body. It wasn’t preachy—it was empowering. Lastly, don’t skip the Author’s Note. Love the message about love stories and their importance

Overall, The Love Haters is a light, sweet, and uplifting read with the perfect balance of humour and heart.

Thank you to St. Martin's Publishing Group, St. Martins Press for the free copy. This is my honest review.

ɱყ 5 🌟 ωเรɦ ℓเรƭ:
* I really loved the epilogue, but I found myself wanting more insight into Hutch and Katie’s relationship afterward. I especially enjoy getting a glimpse into Hutch’s thoughts, so I’m craving more moments that show how he expresses his love and affection. (I’m sure I can imagine but I bet it won’t ever be as good as the author’s lol)

Katherine Center always hits it out of the park for me, but The Love Haters fell a bit flat, unfortunately.

There was a lot to love with this book: the wonderfully developed MCs Hutch and Katie, the fact that Hutch is a very serious Coast Guard rescue swimmer, the humor and wit Katherine Center always incorporates into her stories. And, of course, George Bailey, Hutch's Great Dane rescue dog.

The book started off strong. I was really into the plot: Katie needs to save her career as a video producer and is coerced into filming a recruiting video for the Coast Guard. She gets sent to the Florida Keys to film Hutch, falls in love, and learns to swim (yep, Katie can't swim and is responsible for filming a rescue swimmer).

But things fell apart for me when Cole, Hutch's younger brother and Katie's boss, comes in and gets Katie swept up in his lies. It all felt so...forced and immature? I really couldn't get into the reasoning behind this part of the plot and felt there could have been so many other way to introduce conflict.

Katherine Center, being the fabulous author she is, wrapped up everything in a great way and overall I did enjoy the book, but it definitely isn't my favorite of hers. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

There are some great themes and commentary on body acceptance in this book that I think are really important and really hit home with me. I think those messages are really important and the author's note at the end was touching.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the digital ARC. My review is honest and voluntary.

⭐️ 5.0 ⭐️

Ok so this is my favorite by Katherine Center ever! Oh my gosh the characters are amazing and I love them!

I am so lucky to have met Katherine Center twice now, once for a panel and once for a release party! She is truly one of the sweetest people I have ever met and her writing is amazing!!!

This isn’t just a romcom book it’s a book about a girl learning to love herself while also falling in love with a guy!

<i> The idea had come to me at a time when I was feeling, shall we say, just so disappointed in humanity. A time when I really needed to hear stories like that: of kindness and heroism and sacrifice. Of people doing good. </i>

Katie is a video producer for a company in Dallas who works on a personal project of interviewing women she sees as local hero’s and their everyday lives. She’s given an opportunity to interview the man who rescued Jennifer Aniston’s dog and is a rescue diver/swimmer for the Coast Guard, Hutch! Only issue is she doesn’t know how to swim which is needed to ensure her safety if the helicopter she rides were to crash.

There were so many fun side characters in this book like Rue, Beanie, and Hutch’s dog George!

<i> I rubbed my eyes. “What’s the assignment again?”
“You’re making a list of things you genuinely love about your body. Things you think are beautiful. Not things that you think other people would see as beautiful. You”
“Right,” I said, still scanning. </i>

The main thing I loved about this one was Katie’s struggle with her self image and seeing her view about herself change. Like I said this isn’t just a romcom it’s a girl falling in love with herself with some help from a guy who sees her as she is!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for digital ARC of this book! I will most definitely be purchasing a copy to read again over the summer!

If I had to pick a favourite author, I’d say Katherine Center! This was everything I hoped for. Incredibly heartfelt, hilarious (I legit giggled multiple times), and ok, a little over the top. But in that theatrical, charmingly silly sort of way, you know? I love that her stories never feel formulaic, and beneath all the fun, there’s always a deeply meaningful emotional core. Her writing scratches an itch in my brain every single time!

I loved seeing two really unique careers in action! Katie is a video producer begrudgingly tasked with documenting the life of Hutch, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer. It was so romantic, adventurous, and unexpectedly thrilling. And Hutch was an absolute 10/10. I will say, the whole storyline from an HR standpoint is ... questionable. But do I care? No. I'm happy to suspend a little disbelief for a Katherine Center book. They are pure joy!

I felt Katie's journey through body image struggles and self-doubt was written with such compassion and realness. Seeing her recognize the damage of her own inner critic and slowly learn to love herself was so touching. Katherine Center always hits me in the feels with her signature message of positivity and hope. Once again, I was left with happy tears and a little emotionally lighter than before. All the stars!

4.5 stars!!!

Katherine Center is an amazingly talented author, and that talent shines through with The Love Haters, which was one of my most anticipated new romance books of 2025, and it did not disappoint.

Katie is a mid-level video productionist who finds her job on the possible chopping block until she’s offered an opportunity to make a recruiting video about Coast Guard rescue swimmers. This gig puts her front and center before Hutch, a rescue swimmer who’s already “famous” for rescuing a celebrity’s dog and who truly appears to be the most perfect hero in the flesh.

Their forced proximity at work and at the cottages where Katie ends up staying created the sweetest tension as these two came to know and fall for each other. But while I adored Hutch and became obsessed with his job, this story is truly about Katie’s transformation.

Katherine took a topic that probably resonates with many women (and even men) – body image – and approached it with care, love and a happy ending that felt real and hopeful.

Hurtful comments can impact anyone, but to have a ton of internet trolls spew hate about your body and looks totally derailed Katie to the point she spiraled into an eating disorder (calorie restriction – trigger warning). Now she is someone who still hides from the world in her black clothes, and is someone who really struggles to find the love for her own body.

You don’t know how badly I wanted to reach into the pages and give her stepmother a piece of my mind. But while body image and lack of self-love is a major theme, I didn’t feel hit over the head with it but really enjoyed her journey toward more self-acceptance.

Hutch was a fabulous book boyfriend, and how could he not, as someone who rescues people for a living, has a rescue dog, and who doesn’t ever react negatively or let his emotions get the better of him. How refreshing. I loved how he noticed Katie and got upset that she would let strangers’ opinions influence her.

He also didn’t hesitate to give her swim lessons. If anything, I just wish we got more of their actual lessons, which were prime opportunities for innocent touching that would have made their connection burn even brighter.

Was I annoyed with Cole’s character and irritated by (and slightly confused with) his role in the third act drama, yes, hence I didn’t give this 5 stars but I understand how Katherine was using him to flush out the overall theme of the untenable strive for perfection and impossible standards and how it’s our own perceptions that ultimately need to be changed when we feel like we don’t measure up.

Rue and the Gals were a fun addition as side characters to enjoy. Oh, how I would love to find my tribe like that one day.

I also loved references to the Gottmans and their relationship advice. So good.

As someone who’s read many of Katherine’s books, I’ve become obsessed with reading her acknowledgements because I often feel like they are these super special little life lessons to remember (she needs to put them all together in a book of short stories explaining why love stories can save the world!).

In this book, she writes that the best stories are those that make you feel like you’re a part of it, in it, and I absolutely felt “in” this story. For one, I became obsessed with Coast Guard rescue swimmers and kept trying to envision their training, the missions and how it all worked. I also really wondered if Katherine had to go through her own helicopter training since she flew with them for research which she shared with us last year in the She Reads Romance Books Book Club (you are a brave badass!).

The takeaways that I so loved this round:
“Every time you have to be brave, you get to be a little braver next time.”

Appreciate your life as you live it – without needing a life-altering event to snap some sense into you. It’s best just to really let yourself go 😊.

Katherine is an auto-read for me, and I highly recommend The Love Haters.

*I received an advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.

I so enjoy K Center books . This story was no different in that respect, although the appearance of Cole frustrated me to no end. I love that the author explored the love/hate relationship many women have with their self esteem when it comes to looks, confidence etc. The characters were fun and watching the MC's journey to discover herself and love made for an enjoyable read.

3.75 Stars

Katherine Center delivers another heartwarming and witty story in The Love Haters. While it’s not my favorite of her books, it’s still a worthwhile and enjoyable read.

One of the highlights for me was the unique perspective of the main characters—a rescue diver and a filmmaker. Their professions added a fresh, engaging dynamic to the story. I also really appreciated the comedic elements and snappy dialogue, which kept the tone light and fun throughout.

The themes of body positivity and self-acceptance were front and center, however, there were moments where the focus on body insecurity felt a bit overdone and started to slow the momentum. Still, it’s clear Center had an important message to share, and it resonated in many places.

The secondary characters, especially Rue and George Bailey, almost stole the show. I would read a story centering around Rue, can we make that happen?

I did wish for a bit more romantic tension between the main characters. Their connection felt a little underdeveloped at times.

Overall, The Love Haters is a sweet, feel-good romance that fans of Katherine Center will likely enjoy. It may not have reached the emotional heights of some of her other novels for me, but it still offered a refreshing take on love, identity, and learning to embrace yourself.

***Thank you to the publisher for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review***

Katherine Center is the queen of funny and uplifting rom-coms! I always pick up her books when I need a mood boost, as I know that I can get wrapped up in an engaging story and not have to think about the real world for a little while.

Center’s newest edition, The Love Haters, takes us to the Florida Keys, making this the perfect summer beach read! Videographer Katie Vaughn is in a love-hate relationship … with herself. She loves her career choice of creating video content for the wider world, but can’t quite get over lingering body image issues from her younger days when she was the fiancé of a musician and was dragged on the internet for her looks. So when she learns that she will be headed to the Keys to create a promotional video for the US Coast Guard, she is both excited and nervous. For one, she has never worked on a project quite like this one, but when she learns that she will have to get in the water (she can’t swim), and wear a bathing suit (oh, the horror!), she starts to question whether or not this is such a good idea.

To make matters worse (or perhaps better?), the subject of her video is Coast Guard rescue swimmer Hutch Hutcheson, a hot hottie who went viral for saving Jennifer Aniston’s dog. Hutch is all business, no play, and Katie has to find creative ways to get him to open up and loosen up for the camera … all while maintaining her facade that she can swim, is perfectly qualified for this job, and believes she feels confident in a swimsuit. Not to mention finding a way to conceal her growing feelings for Hutch …

The Love Haters is for all of the, well, love haters out there! For those who have been jaded in relationships, whether with others or themselves. With a fun & flirty tropical environment, and lots of time in the water, The Love Haters is a quintessential summer read. There’s even a lovable Great Dane and a life-threatening hurricane in this book … both of which come together in the most inconvenient of ways at this story’s conclusion! If you are looking for an amusing read to while away the hot, summer days, pick up this book!

Katherine Center’s The Love Haters is a solid 3.5 stars for me! When you have an author who writes as prolifically well as Center, the bar is set pretty high, so while I certainly enjoyed The Love Haters, it falls just under some of her other novels that I have rated at 4 stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Love Haters is a perfect summer rom-com! It is a fun and warm story with just the right amount of emotional depth, making it the perfect beach read and just in time for MDW. Plus there's an adorable Great Dane that steals the show.

The true love story of TLH is between Katie and herself. If I can emotionally connect to a character, I enjoy the story so much more, and I really saw myself in her. As someone who struggles with body image and self-acceptance, I felt like Katie's mental battle over her body was the most accurate depiction of these two things that I've seen written in a contemporary romcom. It was like Katie's thoughts mirrored my own.

But despite this I did have to take off a star because while Katie's growth shone, I found Hutch and the romance to be a little lacking, even though it was very sweet. I wanted this story to be longer, to give more time for Katie and Hutch's friendship to develop and for a slow-burn romance to happen. It was a little too insta-love for me.

Is this book a big ball of fluff? Yes of course. Is there some amazingly special love connection that we feel to our toes? Well that’s a no but it’s ok because this book does exactly what we expect it to. It visits a ton of tropes and then happily ever after. As a person who has not had a ton of amazing reads lately, it was exactly what I needed.
Ultimately had to go with 4 stars.
I received an ARC of this title, all opinions are my own.

I need to learn how to DNF a book that I'm just not into. I ended up skimming through this to finish it because it was not my cup of tea. I love rom-coms. This wasn't comedic to me at all. The FMC was insufferable and I get body dysmorphia and not feeling good enough but whew it was just too much. Thanks St. Martin's Press & Netgalley for this ARC.

I’d like to thank Katherine Center, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 ⭐

In The Love Haters we follow our hilarious anxiety filled main character Katie who is about to get fired, so she omits a few details in order to be given a job. Cole, her supervisor chooses her to go in his place to film a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West for a promo to get more people to sign up for their job. The reason he didn't choose someone else? They couldn't swim. Fun fact, Katie can't either but that's fine, right?

Another detail she learns, is the Coast Guard rescue swimmer they'll be filming is internet famous for saving Jennifer Anniston's dog, referred to as Pup Daddy. He's also Cole's brother, and his name is Tom "Hutch" Hutcheson. And according to Cole, he's a love hater, but that's fine. Katie is too. While in Key West she meets their Aunt Rue, a very colorful woman, and Hutch's Great Dane, and ends up trapped in several lies Cole tells.

The Love Haters is a beautiful book, but it's also going to be very hard to read for some people. It was hard to read for me. This book is not just a romance. It's about a woman with an eating disorder learning to love herself for the first time, facing her fears and falling in love with someone who notices all these little things about her nobody else ever cared to. She never realized they mattered, making her feel seen without the fear of being too vulnerable, giving her the opportunity to be herself for the first time.

The Love Haters is body positive in a way that is respectful and careful to those who are still learning to love their bodies. I've been in recovery from an eating disorder for years, and this book still lightly triggered me and made me cry in some sections, so I want people to be cautious when entering the book. That's not to say its a dark and dreary book, its fun and funny and Katie has a great relationship with both Hutch, and his aunt, and her best friend and cousin Beanie who she calls everyday. The romance is very realistically paced, and fun to watch unfold. There's a lot of substance to this book, more so than just the romance, which if you know Katherine Center's books will not be a surprise to you. She's a women's fiction author first, wanting the reader to see themselves in the characters and as they learn to love themselves, hope you in the process of reading, learn to love yourself as well.

Trigger Warnings I Gathered: cyber bullying, body shaming, depictions of eating disorder, sexual harassment, car accident, parent death, grief, infidelity

As always Katherine Center does it again with all the feels. I laughed, I cried, I had a blast.

Katherine has always been an auto read author for me and I love how she's always able to so elegantly approach topics that are on the heavier side, especially in the romcom genre.

Pre-Read notes

I'm a long-time and unabashed Katherine Center fan. My favorite from her is Hello Stranger (my review!). It brims with adorable people, animals, and scenarios, and made me feel like cotton candy on the inside. But most importantly, it just bursts with positive disability rep.

Katherine Center writes about what matters, including love. She's the romance writer for non-tomance readers who love love and other stuff that matters lol!

Seriously, she's fun and smart, check her out.

Final Review

I stood up for myself. “Don’t act like this is ridiculous.” Softly, hoping not to hurt my feelings , Beanie said, “It is ridiculous.”“Hey,” I said, “I don’t need your judgment.” p51

I'm shocked to say this...but I didn't think this was a good book, which is unusual for Katherine Center, in my experience. And as it turns out, I'm not an outlier. A lot of readers were uncomfortable with the same elements I was (though, to be fair, sometimes others weighed in on different points of the same issue). I really didn't like how she managed the theme of body dysmorphia and eating disorders, as these are serious conditions and they were treated very much as a plot device here. But if this sort of thing doesn't bug you, you'll probably like it, as otherwise it's silly and pretty cute.

My three favorite things:

🪙 The penny thing! You'll see!

🐕 George Bailey was my favorite comedic element in an entire romcom! He engineered all my lol moments.

👖 Love an independent woman in black jeans!

TW: ED, disordered e*ting, diet culture, anorexia, binge e*ting, stigmatizing, bullying, gaslighting, armchair psychology, objectification, animal injury, open water.

Thank you to the author Katherine Center, publishers St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for an accessible digital arc of THE LOVE HATERS. All views are mine.

4🌟 so lucky to have received an ARC of this book!! I really love katherine center’s writing, so I was super excited about this one. katie travels to key west to try to save her job by filming a video for the coast guard (cue tom!!). their romance is really sweet, and there were also themes of loss, learning to love yourself and your body, and a found family vibe!! this is such a cute spring / summer read, and the action aspects with tom and the coast guard were super cute! and the best part of the book was a supporting character, tom’s dog george bailey 🫶🏼