You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
paragraphsandpages 's review for:
The Hating Game
by Sally Thorne
“The trick is to find that one person who can give it back as good as they can take it.”
Stars (Out of 10): 10/10 Stars
Lemme preface this by saying that romance and contemporary generally isn’t a genre I read a lot of, so I’m often both much easier to please in terms of tropes/plots/romance but also much more way going into the book. But on the recommendation of nearly every single reader in The Book Coven discord, I knew I just had to pick this up. (Link here if you wanna join! We talk all things bookish: https://discord.gg/rmaeNe8 )
Following their advice and recommendation was probably the best idea I had this month. I’ve been slogging through books recently, a mix of both reading too much of one genre and of being overburdened with reading work in uni, but this book seemed to ignore all of that and hook me from page 1. I originally picked this up on a long, tiring trip home from a concert, when my mind was far too sleepy for something as intense as a fantasy, and even in that state, I found the exact book I needed.
Firstly, I must commend Thorne on her pacing. I’m the sort of person who always needs to finish a chapter before putting a book down, but The Hating Game simply doesn’t let me! Most time jumps are planted within the chapters themselves, with the ends and beginnings of chapters lining up so perfectly that you physically cannot stop reading. You just need to know what happens next, and turning that next page to find out is just way too easy. I’ve almost missed my stops on both buses and trains thanks to this amazing, evil book.
The story itself was also just composed of my favorite things. Like most people, I’m weak for the haters to lovers/enemies to lovers trope, and any hint of it within a book gets me hooked almost right away. Additionally, the setting was also one I found interesting. Rather than just some plain office setting, Thorne brings the publishing house setting to life within the story, even though it is far from the focus. And as someone who hopes to work in that industry in the future, it was just an extra thing to love.
Another thing was the layers to the story. It wasn’t just two flat characters who hated each other for no reason that suddenly went to love “just because.” The relationship developed in a pretty realistic way, even if the whole playing games with your rival thing may have been a smidge far-fetched at points (not complaining though, I still loved it). Additionally, both characters had some pretty complicated pasts and family lives, and the connection of this to the main story made it so much more addicting, and that much more amazing.
The Hating Game has blown my admittedly high expectations away, and I cannot wait to see what Thorne writes next.
Stars (Out of 10): 10/10 Stars
Lemme preface this by saying that romance and contemporary generally isn’t a genre I read a lot of, so I’m often both much easier to please in terms of tropes/plots/romance but also much more way going into the book. But on the recommendation of nearly every single reader in The Book Coven discord, I knew I just had to pick this up. (Link here if you wanna join! We talk all things bookish: https://discord.gg/rmaeNe8 )
Following their advice and recommendation was probably the best idea I had this month. I’ve been slogging through books recently, a mix of both reading too much of one genre and of being overburdened with reading work in uni, but this book seemed to ignore all of that and hook me from page 1. I originally picked this up on a long, tiring trip home from a concert, when my mind was far too sleepy for something as intense as a fantasy, and even in that state, I found the exact book I needed.
Firstly, I must commend Thorne on her pacing. I’m the sort of person who always needs to finish a chapter before putting a book down, but The Hating Game simply doesn’t let me! Most time jumps are planted within the chapters themselves, with the ends and beginnings of chapters lining up so perfectly that you physically cannot stop reading. You just need to know what happens next, and turning that next page to find out is just way too easy. I’ve almost missed my stops on both buses and trains thanks to this amazing, evil book.
The story itself was also just composed of my favorite things. Like most people, I’m weak for the haters to lovers/enemies to lovers trope, and any hint of it within a book gets me hooked almost right away. Additionally, the setting was also one I found interesting. Rather than just some plain office setting, Thorne brings the publishing house setting to life within the story, even though it is far from the focus. And as someone who hopes to work in that industry in the future, it was just an extra thing to love.
Another thing was the layers to the story. It wasn’t just two flat characters who hated each other for no reason that suddenly went to love “just because.” The relationship developed in a pretty realistic way, even if the whole playing games with your rival thing may have been a smidge far-fetched at points (not complaining though, I still loved it). Additionally, both characters had some pretty complicated pasts and family lives, and the connection of this to the main story made it so much more addicting, and that much more amazing.
The Hating Game has blown my admittedly high expectations away, and I cannot wait to see what Thorne writes next.