Title: The Love HatersAuthor: Katherine Center
Publication Date: May 20, 2025
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Genres: Fiction / Romance / Contemporary
Synopsis:
It’s a thin line between love and love-hating.
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 fakes it that she can.
Plus: Cole is Hutch’s brother. 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 also 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.
This blog uses affiliate links for some book recommendations, and if you purchase through them, I may earn a small commission. Thanks for supporting this little bookish corner of the internet!
Katherine Center is one of my go-to authors for a feel-good, emotional, swoony escape, and she absolutely delivered with this one. I adored the story!
Katie is such a relatable main character. She’s dealing with the aftermath of a public breakup, her career is on shaky ground, and she struggles with some pretty raw body image issues. The job in Key West is a defining moment for her professional career, but Katie doesn’t expect it to change her life in the multitude of ways that it does. From the moment she lands in the vibrant and sunny Key West, her journey becomes one of growth, romance, and discovering her confidence.
Tall, ridiculously handsome, and emotionally layered, Hutch is a walking rom-com dream. A member of the Coast Guard, Hutch also teaches geriatric swimming lessons. He’s super swoon-worthy and very different from how his brother described him.
His romance with Katie had me grinning, swooning, and even tearing up a little. The chemistry between them was fantastic, and I loved their banter. You could tell their feelings for each other were strong. I loved seeing their connection grow, and some of the things Hutch says to Katie melted my heart. Even when he’s cranky, he’s so swoon-worthy! lol Though they seem very different, this grumpy/sunshine pair complements each other so well.
The found family vibe is also excellent. Aunt Rue and her squad of feisty senior swimmers (aka The Gals) are just the kind of quirky, heartwarming crew I love in a book. Frankly, I was sold when they mentioned doing a conga line to Barry Manilow’s Copacabana. I love me some Copacabana! And George Bailey! That sweet, slobbery Great Dane completely stole the show.
The story weaves powerful messages about body shaming, self-worth, and learning to love the body you’re in. I could easily relate to Katie’s struggles with body confidence. When you’re body shamed as a kid or teen, it sticks with you, as we see with Katie. I love her transformation and how this wonderful group of people who befriend her give her the confidence to shine.
The Love Haters is fun, romantic, and just a bit suspenseful as Hutch’s job with the Coast Guard can be dangerous, and many characters face a terrifying storm. The Key West setting (excluding the storm lol) is dreamy, the writing is engrossing, and the characters (human and canine) are fabulous! Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.
- grumpy/sunshine
- forced proximity
- found family
- small town charm
BookPage calls Katherine Center “the reigning queen of comfort reads.” She’s the New York Times bestselling author of eleven novels, including The Bodyguard, Hello Stranger, Things You Save in a Fire, and her summer 2024 book, The Rom-Commers.
Katherine writes laugh-and-cry books: bittersweet romantic comedies about how life knocks us down—and how we get back up. She’s been compared to both Jane Austen and Nora Ephron, and the Dallas Morning News calls her stories, “satisfying in the most soul-nourishing way.” The Netflix movie adaptation of her novel Happiness for Beginners—starring Ellie Kemper and Luke Grimes—just hit the Global Top Ten in 81 countries, and the movie of her novel The Lost Husband was a surprise Netflix sensation in 2020, hitting number one and landing in their top 25 movies for the year. Her books have made countless Best-Of lists—at Audible, BookBub, and Book of the Month, as well as Goodreads’ Best Books of the Year, and Amazon’s yearly Top 100 books.
Emily Henry calls The Bodyguard “my perfect 10 of a book,” and Jodi Picoult says of Things You Save in a Fire, “Just read it, and thank me later.” Katherine lives in her hometown of Houston, Texas, with her husband, two almost-grown teenagers, and their fluffy-but-fierce dog.
I loved George Bailey so much! I enjoyed this book – great review!
He was THE BEST!!
Wonderful review! I really enjoyed this book (the gals are awesome!) and the setting, and really liked the main characters’ chemistry and how Katie’s body issues were addressed. Katherine Center’s books are always so good!
Yes, this was such a good one! She is so solid at these formulas, and always finds new elements to make each story feel special in its own way. And my god THAT ENDING, hoo boy was not expecting that. Some extremely good visuals there, very cinematic!
Yes! I wasn’t expecting the ending either. Definitely cinematic!
Great review!! I’m so glad we were able to buddy read this one together!! <3
Me too! We’ve had such a mixed bag lately. lol
For real! I am sooo proud of us for that quick DNF though!!