The Hating Game: A Novel by Sally Thorne

(Thank you to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book!)

about book:

Debut author Sally Thorne bursts on the scene with a hilarious and sexy workplace comedy all about that thin, fine line between hate and love.

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.


my thoughts:

Talk about the perfect beach read! A funny rom-com about two co-workers (Lucy and Joshua) competing for the same job.  They keep track of each others' innocuous offenses and try to out-do one another in an effort to win favor.  However, along the way, their interests in each other turn romantic and raises the question - will this job come between their love?

Written from Lucy's perspective we get the inside track to what she really thinks of Joshua and about falling in love with him. Plus, we get to know her family and friends - did I mention that both Lucy and Joshua have some family situations to deal with. Definitely more drama to add to the mix. I would have enjoyed reading from Joshua's perspective as well, but I did enjoy getting to know him via Lucy. Plus, I found Thorne's writing to be terrific - it was filled with rich, vivid descriptions; clever banter between Lucy and Johsua; and some great LOL moments. And I just loved this idea of  'office rivals' falling in love. How crazy to be competing with someone for a job, then suddenly finding yourself romanticizing them?  Makes one wonder whether 'falling in love' was a trick to win the promotion, or if it genuinely happened as a result of spending so much time obsessing over each other at work? Either way, emotions abound - complicated, messy, and confused as Lucy and Joshua try to figure out what they really want from each other and work.

The Hating Game is a charming, sweet read that truly entertains.  I absolutely loved it! And I would happily recommend it to fans of chick lit and fans of romance novels - you will LOVE this book!!

Here's the link to the TLC Book Tour schedule for: The Hating Game

Thank you to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book!