The Hating Game

The Hating Game

By: Sally Thorne

The Deets:

369 pages

Romance

Published August 9, 2016

Review: 

From the Cover:

Nemesis (n.) 1) An opponent or rival whom a person cannot best or overcome.

                       2) A person’s undoing

                       3) Joshua Templeman

Lucy Hutton and Joshua Templeman hate each other. Not dislike. Not begrudgingly tolerate. Hate. And they have no problem displaying their feelings through a series of ritualistic passive aggressive maneuvers as they sit across from each other, executive assistants to co-CEOs of a publishing company. Lucy can’t understand Joshua’s joyless, uptight, meticulous approach to his job. Joshua is clearly baffled by Lucy’s overly bright clothes, quirkiness, and Pollyanna attitude.

Now up for the same promotion, their battle of wills has come to a head and Lucy refuses to back down when their latest game could cost her her dream job…But the tension between Lucy and Joshua has also reached its boiling point, and Lucy is discovering that maybe she doesn’t hate Joshua. And maybe, he doesn’t hate her either. Or maybe this is just another game.

Review

The thing I liked the most about this book was how predictable it was. You can tell just from reading the synopsis pretty much how things are going to go down. If you’re like me and you’ve read your fair share of romance novels, you’ll be able to see right through the plot. What surprised me was how much I enjoyed it.

I usually hate books that are predictable; they seem like a waste of time. However, The Hating Game kept me engaged because I really and truly enjoyed the characters. Yes, they were corny. Yes, they said things that made me embarrassed. However, they felt real and relatable. Lucie and Josh are exactly what you want out of characters in a romance novel. They both have twisty pasts, they both have secrets, and they both are flawed in their own ways. They were far from what I would call perfect, and that made me appreciate the novel so much more.

This is the kind of book that refreshes my palate. It’s light and warm-hearted. The plot is engaging and believable. If you are looking for a perfect beach read, this is it. If you are a lover of romance novels (and you somehow haven’t read this one yet), I highly recommend this book.

P.R.

Another romance? I know, I’ve been reading a lot of romance novels lately. I’ve also been reading a lot of heavy books. No, not in the sense that they are physically heavy. I mean books that are emotionally heavy. Whenever I read a book, I tend to immerse myself in it. I become the characters, I ask myself the same questions the characters ask themselves. When I read emotionally heavy books, I tend to walk away from them feeling drained. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t dislike these books — many of them are the best books I have ever read. But I know my limits, and I know that if these encompassed my entire reading list, reading would no longer become an escape for me. So, I try to find a balance. I layer my reading list with easygoing books like this (many of them just so happen to be romance novels) to keep me refreshed and to keep me reading. If you ever feel yourself dreading the start of a new book, you might need a breath of fresh air.