Hello Stranger by Katherine Center: Book Review

Hello Stranger is an engaging and heartwarming story of an aspiring artist trying to adjust to a world where she cannot see faces.

Acknowledgments:

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the ARC of this book. The thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.

From The Publisher:

Love isn’t blind, it’s just little blurry.

Sadie Montgomery never saw what was coming . . . Literally! One minute she’s celebrating the biggest achievement of her life—placing as a finalist in the North American Portrait Society competition—the next, she’s lying in a hospital bed diagnosed with a “probably temporary” condition known as face blindness. She can see, but every face she looks at is now a jumbled puzzle of disconnected features. Imagine trying to read a book upside down and in another language. This is Sadie’s new reality with every face she sees.

But, as she struggles to cope, hang on to her artistic dream, work through major family issues, and take care of her beloved dog, Peanut, she falls into—love? Lust? A temporary obsession to distract from the real problems in her life?—with not one man but two very different ones. The timing couldn’t be worse.

If only her life were a little more in focus, Sadie might be able to find her way. But perceiving anything clearly right now seems impossible. Even though there are things we can only find when we aren’t looking. And there are people who show up when we least expect them. And there are always, always other ways of seeing.

My Thoughts:

Katherine Center never disappoints! Her ability to write emotional stories laced with humour has made her an auto-read author for me. Hello Stranger might just be my favourite of her books.

Portrait artist Sadie Montgomery has just learned of the big break she’s been looking for – she’s a finalist in an upcoming competition that will give her the exposure she’s been waiting for. But then life changes in a minute.

Following brain surgery to correct a recently discovered congenital anomaly, Sadie is no longer able to recognize faces. Faces look like something from a Picasso painting. She’s told this condition may be temporary, but the competition is only six weeks away. Will her ability to see faces correctly return in time?

To make matters worse, her senior dog is ill which forces her out in the real world to the veterinarian where she meets the good-looking new Dr. Of course she can’t see his face, but the rest of him looks great and his gait is fantastic. Then there is Joe a man who lives in her building who initially seems to be a womanizer – could her initial impressions of this man be wrong?

There are some very beautiful moments in this book and a twist I didn’t see coming. The characters are well-developed and highly-likeable. Sadie’s backstory is compelling and the reader cannot help but root for her.

I highly recommend this book to those readers who enjoy contemporary romance. I cannot wait to read the author’s next book.

Another Book I’ve Reviewed From Katherine Center:

The Bodyguard