Book Review: Hello Stranger by Katherine Center

Hello Stranger - Katherine Center - 4 Stars 

Katherine Center sure can tell a good story ya'll! This was my second Katherine Center book and I just love the way she writes a story with these characters who are very real and relatable. This story gave us such an interesting plot. I have never heard of facial blindness, or “Prosopagnosia”, and this book really gave us an insight into the acquired type. 

Our main character, Sadie, is a portrait artist who must have brain surgery after having a seizure in the grocery story parking lot. She is devastated to learn that she has facial blindness as an after effect from the surgery and can’t see anyone’s face – especially when she is supposed to compete in a major portrait competition in only 6 weeks. She is struggling financially, and this competition means a lot to her for the money it could bring and since it was the same competition her mom was supposed to do before she passed away. There is no guarantee that her condition will resolve, and she sinks into a bit of a depressive state, as expected. 

The only thing keeping her happy is her sweet dog, Peanut, who I LOVED seeing in this story…..until she meets 2 guys along the way and a relatively small love triangle forms. For those who don’t love the “love triangle” trope, I honestly wouldn’t really call this a true “love triangle”, because 1 of the guys is more in the story then the other and really, she was just “originally interested” in the other guy, but nothing pans out there. This entire circumstance of her love life leaves us with many laughs along the way with some witty banter between our main couple here. 

We see Sadie trying to work through so much in this story. She is going through the motions of her diagnosis with her doctor and dealing with trauma from her mother’s death in the past and her evil-step sister. I loved her growth in this story as she went through all of this, and the growth between her, her step-mother and her father. 

Overall, the romance was sweet, the twist was great, and it is SUCH a bingeable read! I read this so fast! There were some parts I rolled my eyes at and didn't always love, but overall really enjoyed it. Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy to honestly read and review. I did listen to the audiobook too, but read most of the ARC e-book so I appreciate that.

Content: Language, 5 “F” words, 10-15 “S” Words and other mild words used. Sexual content was clean for me, just some steamy kisses and discussions of sex.

Goodreads Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5106460936
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3rCRRYQ
YouTube Review Video: https://youtu.be/72VyCcYGEx4