A review by alliery15
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

2.75

Oh god, how I wanted to love this book. I had heard such good things about it, but I was left somewhat disappointed. Lucy is yet another quirky main character who has trouble making friends and Joshua is a tall dark and handsome asshole to the extreme. His jealousy and cruelty make him hard to sympathize with (until about 80% through the book). I also think it's fair to say I'm tired of reading books where the main character works in publishing. How many times am I going to have to read about a girl "who just knew she wanted to work in the magical world of publishing". Also, the amount of cringing I did while reading this was insane (see: "le sigh."). The ending of this book also seemed a bit rushed.

promotion (which takes up about 30% of the book and is the main conflict) is resolved in one paragraph, which felt very unsatisfying.

Now for the good parts. The end of this book made up for a lot of the aforementioned complaints. Josh is redeemed in the final chapters and Lucy's inner monologue becomes a lot more bearable. The tenderness exhibited in this book is also unmatched.