4.5 Stars

If you took Veep & tossed it in a blender with some enemies-to-lovers + fake dating MM romance, you'd get Liz Bowery's Love, Hate & Clickbait, a hilarious debut from an author you'll want to keep an eye on!

For all of ya'll who like your MCs in enemies-to-lovers romances to truly hate one another, look no further than Thom & Clay - these two DESPISE one another at the start of the book. I wasn't sure how Bowery was going to have the two of them come together, even with the fake dating trope thrown in. Neither Thom nor Clay was particularly likable at first, Thom a raging, narcissistic asshole & Clay a douchey tech bro with a chip on his shoulder - but the more I read, the more charming the both of them became in their own separate ways, & by the end I found myself really rooting for the two of them to get together. Having dual POVs really worked here, getting to see both through each other's eyes provided a lot of context into why they acted the way they did & made them all the more endearing.

Spoiler

Thom being the kid in his family who was always there but never seen really struck a chord with me. All of the discussion around him being so good at faking emotions because that's what he had to do to make his own dreams come true & get away from home & his parent's dreams just hit home so hard. Thom definitely had a lot of negative qualities, but I saw a lot of myself in him at the same time, really allowing me to empathize with his character as a whole.

Their banter was fantastic, there were some really sweet & tender moments, & I was pleasantly surprised by how steamy this ended up being! I thought the queer rep was great in general, but I was particularly impressed with the bi rep & how Bowery handled that situation as a whole.

Spoiler

It was so, SO refreshing to not have a character have an entire identity crisis over the fact that they might like someone of the same gender - coming out doesn't necessarily have to be a huge deal for everyone, & Thom's nonchalant attitude about being sexually attracted to Clay was really nice to see.

& Bowery really nailed how cutthroat & ruthless politics can be, trust me when I say this book is filled to the brim with biting reads & sarcasm - this is your warning if unlikeable characters aren't your thing!

All in all, I had a blast reading this & I can't wait to get myself a finished copy! & thank you so much Liz Bowery & Harlequin Trade Publishing for sending me an ARC in exchange for a honest review!