Hello Stranger by Katherine Center
Sadie Montgomery has had good breaks and bad breaks in her life, but as a struggling artist, all she needs is one lucky break. Things seem to be going her way when she lands one of the coveted finalist spots in a portrait competition. It happens to coincide with a surgery she needs to have. Minor, they say. Less than a week in the hospital they say. Nothing about you will change, they say. Upon recovery, it begins to dawn on Sadie that she can see everything around her, but she can no longer see faces.
Temporary, they say. Lots of people deal with this, they say. As she struggles to cope—and hang onto her artistic dreams—she finds solace in her fourteen-year-old dog, Peanut. Thankfully, she can still see animal faces. When Peanut gets sick, she rushes him to the emergency vet nearby. That’s when she meets veterinarian Dr. Addison. And she’s pleasantly surprised when he asks her on a date. But she doesn't want anyone to know about her face blindness. Least of all Joe, her obnoxious neighbor who always wears a bowling jacket and seems to know everyone in the building. He’s always there at the most embarrassing but convenient times, and soon, they develop a sort of friendship. But could it be something more?
As Sadie tries to save her career, confront her haunting past, and handle falling in love with two different guys she realizes that happiness can be found in the places—and people— you least expect.
Review: Sadie is a struggling artist who finally has a chance at a big break: she is a finalist in a portrait competition. However, her painting is interrupted when she unexpectedly finds out she has to have a "minor" brain surgery. All goes well until Sadie realizes she can see everything - except everyone's faces. She has bruising in the brain that has led to her developing prosopagnosia or face blindness, which is a very big deal when you make a living as a portrait artist! But Sadie is determined to carry on with life as usual, including caring for her beloved dog, Peanut. She is pleasantly surprised to be asked out on a date by her veterinarian Dr. Addison. Despite mentally planning her wedding to the vet, she is surprised when she starts to get to know her obnoxious neighbor Joe. Sadie is navigating a lot! Her career, her past and her mother's early death, and falling for two people at once.
This was so cute. Katherine Center does such a wonderful job at writing romances with substance. There is so much romantic tension and chemistry in this book without being explicit in any way. I also loved that it included a rare but real medical condition. I thought she did a great job imagining how horrible it would feel not being able to recognize anyone's faces and having to rely on conversation, outfits, and gait to try to puzzle out who is talking to you. And of course, it is this face blindness that props up the plot of Sadie's huge case of mistaken identity.
Of course, there are parts of this that are wildly improbable. Would no one really have connected the dots about the overlap between the vet and Joe? Would she really never have learned the full name of the person she was spending so much time with? Or get the vet's phone number if she was going on dates with him?? But also - does it matter? This was so cute that I was willing to let it slide. Perhaps more egregious is that Sadie is a little annoying. She's our leading lady, she's a bit spacy, but apparently very kind. But she is also totally oblivious and despite being so nice, was not particularly kind to Joe prior to her surgery and face blindness. But we love to see the growth in her character as the novel progresses.
Stars: 4
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