Katherine Center's THE LOVE HATERS

Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of Katherine Center's The Love Haters, which will be out on Tuesday!

Is The Love Haters my favorite book by Katherine Center? It is not. It was still, however, a good read, and I continue to be infatuated with Center's ability to tell a story, to create compelling characters.

Here's the synopsis: "Katie Vaughn has been burned by love in the past—now she may be lighting her career on fire. She has two choices: wait to get laid off from her job as a video producer or, at her coworker Cole’s request, take a career-making gig profiling Tom 'Hutch' Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. The catch? Katie’s not exactly qualified. She can’t swim—but pretends that she can.

"Plus, Cole and Hutch are brothers. And they don’t get along. Next stop: paradise! But paradise is messier than it seems. As Katie gets entangled with Hutch (the most scientifically good-looking man she has ever seen . . . but maybe a bit of a love hater), along with his colorful aunt Rue and his rescue Great Dane, she gets trapped in a lie. Or two. Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines, drinking contests, hurricanes, and stolen kisses ensue—along with chances to tell the truth, to face old fears, and to be truly brave at last.

"Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines, drinking contests, hurricanes, and stolen kisses ensue—along with chances to tell the truth, to face old fears, and to be truly brave at last."

Parts of this one stretched my credulity in ways I didn't love, and I've seen other reviews point out that this one should probably come with content warnings about body image issues. I thought Center worked through Katie's process of coming to accept herself well, but I do agree that, for some readers, parts of this might be very tough to read.

I did enjoy the awkwardness of Katie and Hutch's early meetings, and Aunt Rue and her friends are a delight. And I'm always a sucker for the complications a dog (in this case, a BIG dog) brings to a romance.

Overall, this one is a fun, summer read . . . and I'll definitely keep reading whatever Center writes. (I'm almost a completionist!)

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