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ptstewart's review against another edition
4.0
Okay, this had no business being as fun as it is. Full disclosure: I only read this because I watched the movie first (no fewer than four times) and I entirely skipped the first fifth of the book to pick up pretty much right when she’s about to go out with Danny. You know the reasons why I made this choice.
Look. Look. The Hating Game? What is it really? And how dumb is it really (in relation to how dumb it should be by all the laws of bad romance)?
Structurally, the novel is the same as the movie in this sense: it’s really kind of actually terrible until they stop pretending they hate each other (and they never actually do hate each other; they’re just dumb. It’s not enemies to lovers. It’s mild inconvenience to lovers). That’s a big chunk of the book though, and part of why it doesn’t work is because the loathing isn’t overly believable and the action/events are rather boring.
From a writing standpoint, we should acknowledge that sometimes characters kind of get from one place to another without actually going there (this is a tactic early 20th century writers used, too, and it was just as awful then). Like, she’s at the office, and then she’s at the car, but she never actually got to the car. (It should also be noted that I pulled and all nighter to read this like some idiotic college student instead of an adult with a job. Which is to say, I might have been tired and missed this). The biggest issue in terms of writing is genuinely that Lucy’s logic doesn’t always track. Not that it’s faulty (it is, but that’s okay in fiction. That’s how stories work), but that sometimes we jump from A to D without explaining B and C, which is a problem. Therefore, she sometimes functions off what I call “fictional logic,” which is to say not just faulty but seemingly completely unrealistic logic.
We should note that of The Hating Game’s other weak points, the choice by the filmmakers to remove book-Josh’s occasional angry outbursts and bouts of jealousy was a good one; book-Josh displays periodic spells of rage that are on the border between unbecoming and problematic. He also shows a rather impressive capacity for patience, communication, and empathy in his relationship, making such outbursts either ungodly concerning or just inconsistent with his character.
Here’s the thing, here’s why it works, here’s why I love it: they’re fucking cute. And not cute in Talia Hibbert way or an Emily Henry way, which is a to say a way where the balance between sex and actually relationship teeters only inches above the ground in the favor of sex while actual relationship sways ominously six stories up. Is sex part of it? Yes. The tension is—whew. A lot. But! It is built in part by a ~manly man~ revealing he is soft, attentive, accepting, and supportive. Give Thorne eight hundred stars for understanding the difference between “I’m not going to have sex with you until I force you to fall in love with me because I’m ~obsessed~ with you” and “I’m not ready to have sex with you because I want more than that with you and it’s important to me that we only take that step when you seem to be in a place to feel safe and relaxed and familiar enough to consider it.” THESE ARE DIFFERENT. They’re the difference between the fictional bad boy (who, in retrospect, has many abusive behaviors) we all grew up on and the fictional powerful man who sometimes fucks up but largely does not need to have a personality implant in order to make generally empathic and just choices.
The language here also works. There are moments when I think the writing fails, especially in terms of repetitions of many niche phrases or words, or just, realistically based conversation. But can we JUST:
I sit on my heels and look at his bedroom. He's put the Smurf I gave him beside his bed. There's also white roses, petals unfurled and loose. He didn't have a vase, so he used a jar. I close my eyes. I can't move for a bit.
I love him so much it's like a thread piercing me. Punching holes. Dragging through. Stitching love into me. I'll never be able to untangle myself from this feeling. The color of love is surely this robin's egg blue.
Count me a bitch for thinking this was supposed to be Wattpad-standard romance. Excuse the fuck outta me. This is beautiful. It’s simple; it’s quiet. It feels like all the things you feel for someone you’re discovering you love. This mundane thing? Incredible. Roses? The toy I gave them that they didn’t throw away? I’m rioting. And Thorne uses this kind of language a lot, especially during sex scenes (which does dull them down a bit), and sometimes the writing becomes out of rhythm because the diction is floral and the character conceptions are rather bumbling.
I want to clarify that book-Josh has problematic behavior, and both display some problematic perspectives. For me though, I was already sold on Lucy and Josh. So I was in this, expecting it to be terrible, expecting to not be able to read it, and loving it. This was great. It has no fucking business making me think or feel these things. Should’ve been awful. Love it.
Look. Look. The Hating Game? What is it really? And how dumb is it really (in relation to how dumb it should be by all the laws of bad romance)?
Structurally, the novel is the same as the movie in this sense: it’s really kind of actually terrible until they stop pretending they hate each other (and they never actually do hate each other; they’re just dumb. It’s not enemies to lovers. It’s mild inconvenience to lovers). That’s a big chunk of the book though, and part of why it doesn’t work is because the loathing isn’t overly believable and the action/events are rather boring.
From a writing standpoint, we should acknowledge that sometimes characters kind of get from one place to another without actually going there (this is a tactic early 20th century writers used, too, and it was just as awful then). Like, she’s at the office, and then she’s at the car, but she never actually got to the car. (It should also be noted that I pulled and all nighter to read this like some idiotic college student instead of an adult with a job. Which is to say, I might have been tired and missed this). The biggest issue in terms of writing is genuinely that Lucy’s logic doesn’t always track. Not that it’s faulty (it is, but that’s okay in fiction. That’s how stories work), but that sometimes we jump from A to D without explaining B and C, which is a problem. Therefore, she sometimes functions off what I call “fictional logic,” which is to say not just faulty but seemingly completely unrealistic logic.
We should note that of The Hating Game’s other weak points, the choice by the filmmakers to remove book-Josh’s occasional angry outbursts and bouts of jealousy was a good one; book-Josh displays periodic spells of rage that are on the border between unbecoming and problematic. He also shows a rather impressive capacity for patience, communication, and empathy in his relationship, making such outbursts either ungodly concerning or just inconsistent with his character.
Here’s the thing, here’s why it works, here’s why I love it: they’re fucking cute. And not cute in Talia Hibbert way or an Emily Henry way, which is a to say a way where the balance between sex and actually relationship teeters only inches above the ground in the favor of sex while actual relationship sways ominously six stories up. Is sex part of it? Yes. The tension is—whew. A lot. But! It is built in part by a ~manly man~ revealing he is soft, attentive, accepting, and supportive. Give Thorne eight hundred stars for understanding the difference between “I’m not going to have sex with you until I force you to fall in love with me because I’m ~obsessed~ with you” and “I’m not ready to have sex with you because I want more than that with you and it’s important to me that we only take that step when you seem to be in a place to feel safe and relaxed and familiar enough to consider it.” THESE ARE DIFFERENT. They’re the difference between the fictional bad boy (who, in retrospect, has many abusive behaviors) we all grew up on and the fictional powerful man who sometimes fucks up but largely does not need to have a personality implant in order to make generally empathic and just choices.
The language here also works. There are moments when I think the writing fails, especially in terms of repetitions of many niche phrases or words, or just, realistically based conversation. But can we JUST:
I sit on my heels and look at his bedroom. He's put the Smurf I gave him beside his bed. There's also white roses, petals unfurled and loose. He didn't have a vase, so he used a jar. I close my eyes. I can't move for a bit.
I love him so much it's like a thread piercing me. Punching holes. Dragging through. Stitching love into me. I'll never be able to untangle myself from this feeling. The color of love is surely this robin's egg blue.
Count me a bitch for thinking this was supposed to be Wattpad-standard romance. Excuse the fuck outta me. This is beautiful. It’s simple; it’s quiet. It feels like all the things you feel for someone you’re discovering you love. This mundane thing? Incredible. Roses? The toy I gave them that they didn’t throw away? I’m rioting. And Thorne uses this kind of language a lot, especially during sex scenes (which does dull them down a bit), and sometimes the writing becomes out of rhythm because the diction is floral and the character conceptions are rather bumbling.
I want to clarify that book-Josh has problematic behavior, and both display some problematic perspectives. For me though, I was already sold on Lucy and Josh. So I was in this, expecting it to be terrible, expecting to not be able to read it, and loving it. This was great. It has no fucking business making me think or feel these things. Should’ve been awful. Love it.
wucaterina's review against another edition
3.0
A book I would describe as a modern classic, one that has become the talk of the town when it first came out and has somehow become a staple in contemporary pop culture that many would redeem as enough for it to be considered a good book. And it was, truly, there being nothing majorly concerning I would feel like discussing in displeasure regarding the story. Yet, somehow, I still find myself hesitant to give it more than three stars.
I don't know what it is, if it is the blandness of the characters of the lack in depth in their chemistry, but I just can't seem to fall in love with it. I like it, I absolutely would recommend it to anyone and have only great words to say regarding the story, it was just... not my cup of tea I suppose.
I don't know what it is, if it is the blandness of the characters of the lack in depth in their chemistry, but I just can't seem to fall in love with it. I like it, I absolutely would recommend it to anyone and have only great words to say regarding the story, it was just... not my cup of tea I suppose.
lidialosada's review against another edition
5.0
Estaba dudando en si darle 4 o 5 estrellas… Pero es que este libro… Ha conseguido mantenerme enganchada durante 3 días seguidos, mi cliché favorito plasmado de una manera que me ha encantado. Y ese final… ¡Quiero un Joshua Templeman para mi solita!
tarterburn's review against another edition
5.0
Fell in love with this book the first time I read it, and it's now a comfort read/listen right up there with Harry Potter and Pride and Prejudice!
It's still just as good on the third re-read!
It's still just as good on the third re-read!
miriki's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
cindymajor's review against another edition
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.25
kaileemichelle's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
3.5
mfajax's review against another edition
3.0
Oh my fucking god we get it, she's short and he's tall GIVE IT A BREAK
blubear00's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
Rival coworkers desperately hide their attraction through quips and biting remarks.