Review by Ronny
The Love Haters is a fun and fabulous romance that is so easy to love.
Favourite Quote:
“You’ve got that—mouth and those… lips. And you’ve got this—I don’t know—brightness that radiated out, and this effect on people.” Hutch was closer now. “I can’t figure out what it is, but it’s something about the way you laugh, or maybe the curve or your neck, or..” He paused, just inches away now, and took in the sight of me. “It’s just a fact. It’s just reality. You’re just… You’re like a human hot fudge sundae or something.”
Book 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.
Review:
Katherine Center is one of my insta-buy authors; her stories are always so much fun to read. Overall, I enjoyed this book, it has this interesting and unique plot that sucked me in and had me needing to turn the page because I wanted to know what would happen next. There are a lot of fabulous things about this story. It’s hard to figure out what I want to gush about first.
Let’s start with the setting and secondary characters. I love it when an author transports me to a gorgeous location that just comes alive on the book’s pages. The Florida Keys have been on my bucket list to visit, and this book had me wishing I could pack my bags and soak up that Florida sun. It was a lot of fun hanging out with Katie and The Gals at the Starlite Cottages. Rue, who is Cole and Hutch’s aunt, is an absolute delight and just a joy to be around. Rue has that larger-than-life, sunshine, quirky personality that makes you feel loved and seen. Rue instantly took Katie under her wing and showered her with love, bright bathing suits, and beach dresses. She is just one of those characters who brightens the scene whenever she is on the page. Her friends, aka The Gals, are also a hoot and a half added that fun charm and humour that made reading this book that much more fun.
The story was really interesting in the sense that you get to take a deeper look at the life of a coast guard. There are stretches of fossil, aka work talk, in the story, but Hutch’s job is so different and interesting that I just soaked it all up. But if you aren’t a fan of fossil talk, it is really easy to skim over those sections. The pacing is pretty steady until you get to the last bit when Katherine takes her readers on an unexpected and nail-biting twist. I like being surprised when I read a book, so the unexpected twist was right up my alley. This is a great book, for those who don’t want to read something that is overly romantic or spicy. There is a budding romance between Katie and Hutch, and yes, Katherine works in a bunch of different tropes into this story, but you aren’t beaten over the head with romance.
Katie is an interesting character, and I think people will love or hate her. Katie has a problematic and toxic relationship with her body. Without giving too much away, Katie was criticized, harassed, and made to feel like the way she looks is something to be ashamed of. This led Katie to adopt unhealthy eating habits and had her so obsessed with her weight that it consumed her life. Fast forward to the beginning of this book, Katie has healed, grown, and adopted a healthier lifestyle, but those fears and that self-insecurity still linger. When Katie realized that she would have to wear a bathing suit for this new job, her negative feelings came crashing back. I liked her character, and I think it’s because I can relate to what Katie is going through and feeling. That dread I feel when I realize I have to put a bathing suit on is so strong that oftentimes, I just avoid any situations where wearing a bathing suit may pop up. That unhealthy relationship many of us have with our bodies and our weight is a real struggle. Katie’s growth in this book is one of self-love. With help from her cousin Beanie, Katie works hard at learning to love who she is and accept that she is pretty damn fabulous and screw anyone who says otherwise. I do think some bookworms may find Katie’s obsession and her struggles with her looks and her weight to be too much. This issue does consume a lot of the story and Katie’s inner dialogue.
The romance is great, and I enjoyed watching it unfold on the pages. Hutch reminds me of Reacher, which had me sighing oh so happily. He is this gorgeous specimen of a man who is considered to be perfect by those around him. He is career-driven and doesn’t say much to anyone… well, that is, until Katie enters his world. I really liked that tentative back-and-forth chemistry between these two. Their chemistry isn’t explosive; instead, you get this quiet chemistry that slowly unfolds on the pages and just has you hooked in. Katie utterly bewitches Hutch. He thinks she is the most gorgeous woman he has ever seen and cannot believe that she would ever think she is ugly or fat. He is just smitten with her. The relationship between Kate and Hutch has its rocky patches, which are because of our forces, aka Hutch’s brother Cole. These two brothers have a rocky relationship, and Katie finds herself in the middle of what is happening between them. That tension between the two brothers creates a lot of drama and plenty of miscommunication.
The Love Haters is another great rom-com by the talented Katherine Center.
Thank you, St. Martin’s Press, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
