Reviews with content warning for Alcohol - The Hating Game

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The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

19 reviews

lazybooklover's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

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rensreading's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

i read this in one sitting (5hrs and 19mins according to libby). i loved that the spice was sprinkled in so soon, it kept me interested and invested in the will-they-wont-they feeling going on for the first half of the book.

oh man so many people said josh should’ve had a restraining order put against him for how creepy and stalkerish he was, but everyone absolutely failed to mentioned that lucy matched his energy tit for tat. they’re insane4insane in such a good way too lol

idk which book came out first but since it was the last book i finished reading, i kept comparing this to the spanish love deception. the fact both books are an office rivals to lovers story where they

get together after attending a wedding

and mention their size difference so much while the woman is battling crippling loneliness on top of all that? that’s a little too on the nose. i will say though, the hating game did the spice scenes a lot better than the spanish love deception. definitely a 3🌶 rating from me, so pretty mild in general terms

i like that there was no third act breakup like every other rom com seems to have at the moment. i hate those with a passion. the plot was pretty good too. i liked lucy but she showed her obsessive tendencies by page 3 so josh isn’t the only weird one in their relationship and that should definitely be mentioned more. their banter was funny and natural and the flirting in the office? *chef’s kiss*

all in all, i’d rate this a 3.75 star rating (:

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sharebear431's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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writtenbydnicole's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

2.5

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udari's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted relaxing

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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mommarex1221's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Perfect for stans of the (very) slow burn enemies to lovers trope. I spent the first 7 chapters disliking both characters and the rest of the book falling for them. Pretty damn fitting.

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nickoliver's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Temporarily, I've lowered the rating from my original 4 stars to 3.75, because unfortunately, upon re-reading it, I haven't enjoyed it the same way anymore? But I'm not sure what I do want to rate it, but 3.75 stars sounds reasonable, so it'll stay this way for now.

Anyways, the reasons why I didn't have quite the same joy reading this book that I had back in 2018 were:
1. I didn't really like the characters. Josh was mean (I know it was said that he was actually just ~shy~, but personally, that doesn't really excuse treating other people like shit and making them scared to come to work and talk to you) and oftentimes just ignored what Lucy wanted, and his jealousy really got on my freaking nerves. Like, the way he acted around Danny drove me insane. And Lucy's horniness made me honestly just exhausted. I'm a sex-indifferent asexual, so I'm usually completely fine with people being horny (even if I can't fathom feeling that way myself), but her attitude reminded me of that time period in my life when I thought I was sex-repulsed, and overly horny people made me want to bash my head in with a tire iron. Go to horny jail, Lucy.
2. I didn't enjoy the romance as much as I thought I would. I didn't like the way both Lucy and Josh treated Danny and used him, and especially the beginning of the relationship just ... didn't sit right with me. Josh didn't apologise for his shitty behaviour until literally the end, and while I'm glad they got that out of the way, I wished that happened sooner. Lucy basically just let Josh treat her kind of badly (he wasn't abusive per se, but very dismissive and cruel at times) and accepted it because of her own feelings or him. In turn, she objectified the crap out of Josh, even after she learnt that a lot of his exes were only with him because of his looks and didn't actually like his personality.
3. Lucy, for some reason, seemed to come to the same conclusions several times? Like, there were two separate times when she realised that Josh didn't actually hate her. I found that a bit annoying and repetitive. It stalled the plot sometimes, which always confused me, because I thought we'd already been over that at that point.
4. Speaking of repetitiveness, the way Thorne hammered home that Lucy and Josh were obsessed with each other's eyes was way too much.
5. The book was focusing a lot on masculinity, and calling things masculine that weren't actually inherently so, and using feminine as an almost negative descriptor? Coming from Lucy, it was just weird. If it came from Josh, I'd just assume he had a fragile masculinity and was afraid to be seen as anything but, but since everything was in Lucy's POV, it was just ... weird.
6. The hetero- and allonormativity of it all made me tired. Like, no, Thorne, not every single woman who has and will ever meet Josh will want to climb him like a tree. And no, just because two people had dated for a year doesn't automatically mean they'd had sex. And why do straight people always act like cavemen the moment their crush or significant other has someone from the opposite sex obviously fawning over them?
7. I know Mr. Bexley wasn't exactly the best person, but you can talk about what a useless CEO he is without constantly making fun of his weight and that he likes to eat. Like, maybe concentrate on how creepy and gross he was for constantly looking down Lucy's shirt, which was the way bigger issue in my opinion.

What I did enjoy, however, was Thorne's writing. It felt really out of control, and she phrased things in a way that both fit Lucy's personality perfectly and sometimes made me laugh incredulously, just because they gave me really funny visuals. I also didn't mind the smut (though I would've preferred a bit more of it if it meant I got a bit less of horny Lucy). There were definitely a lot of funny scenes that made me crack up, though I think it wasn't quite as many as on my first read.

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readerette's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Fun, predictable, will-they/won't-they, office romance romp. At times the story leaned too far into the trope of a "little lady" wanting to be protected by a "big, strapping man" for my personal taste, but it wasn't egregious enough for me to want to stop reading. The pacing and writing was good, though there were a few little comments dropped in that I found distasteful for a book written in the 2010s, that also seemed out of character (and therefore unnecessary). The chemistry between the two romantic interests is cute, if a little overdramatic at times (it is a romance novel, after all).

If you're not in the mood for a romance where you'll find yourself thinking "just TALK to one another, you dopes," don't read this one. Otherwise, The Hating Game is an easy recommendation from my perspective.

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readwithde's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I was sorely disappointed by what many claim to be the pinnacle of enemies-to-lovers romance.

First, there is not a single minute where they seem to be true enemies. They annoy each other, play games like The Staring Game and other elementary school variations on flirting. They may both be guarded and competitive, but not enemies. Their early interactions walk the line of flirting and annoyance, and the backdrop of the office and co-workers make it work.

When Lucy gets sick, we see chemistry and connection between the two, especially as Josh does so much to care for her. His protectiveness and possessiveness is obvious, as well as his interest and jealousy.

They really could have moved into a friends-with-benefits situation, or even a decision to just be friends, but they continue to ride the line between sexual tension and indecision.

Lucy stalks him, and at one point literally throws herself at him, constantly asking for kisses and sex. Then, when it is time for them to go away for his brother's wedding, she is nervous and upset about the possibility of sex. Which she then tries to have as soon as they arrive. Josh is just as hot and cold, claiming to need days and weeks for their "one time only" while waiting until the last minute and constantly putting her off.

There are so many red flags -- like him admitting women have used him for his body, then her bringing up his looks repeatedly. While some of these are marginally addressed, it is hard to believe Lucy is in love when she spends most of the book trying to learn about him. It just feels fake and unreal.

On top of all this, there is no plot climax, just a series of emotional speed bumps. The entire narrative spins around the promotion they are fighting for, but that is resolved in a few sentences at the very end of the book.

Josh's plan doesn't even make sense -- he has all the time in the world to get her to love him without the promotion and HR between them.

The steamy scenes were excellent, but not enough to distract me from the narrative train wreck. Everything else worth reading was skipped over in the epilogue.

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