The Hating Game Author: Sally Thorne
Published by: William Morrow
Publication Date: August 9, 2016
Format: eARC
Pages: 384
Source: Publisher for Review
Nemesis (n.) 1) An opponent or rival whom a person cannot best or overcome.
2) A person’s undoing
3) Joshua TemplemanLucy Hutton has always been certain that the nice girl can get the corner office. She’s charming and accommodating and prides herself on being loved by everyone at Bexley & Gamin. Everyone except for coldly efficient, impeccably attired, physically intimidating Joshua Templeman. And the feeling is mutual.
Trapped in a shared office together 40 (OK, 50 or 60) hours a week, they’ve become entrenched in an addictive, ridiculous never-ending game of one-upmanship. There’s the Staring Game. The Mirror Game. The HR Game. Lucy can’t let Joshua beat her at anything—especially when a huge new promotion goes up for the taking.
If Lucy wins this game, she’ll be Joshua’s boss. If she loses, she’ll resign. So why is she suddenly having steamy dreams about Joshua, and dressing for work like she’s got a hot date? After a perfectly innocent elevator ride ends with an earth shattering kiss, Lucy starts to wonder whether she’s got Joshua Templeman all wrong.
Maybe Lucy Hutton doesn’t hate Joshua Templeman. And maybe, he doesn’t hate her either. Or maybe this is just another game.
My love for The Hating Game runs very deep! It easily became a heavy-weight contender for the ‘top reads’ category within 20%, and continued to steal me heart with every page.
Every once in a while we find a book that hits all the right spots, as if it were made for us. The Hating Game has some of my favorite tropes, but it also has that unexplainable something that just does it for me. It’s such a fun, witty, smile inducing read that I couldn’t get enough of.
Lucy and Joshua are executive assistants to the co-CEOs of a recently merged publishing company, but they are complete opposites. Lucy is a ball of sunshine who takes the time to get to know the employees, where Joshua is stoic and runs things like a machine. These two loath each other and keep the HR department on their toes. They’re also super competitive, so things really heat up when a coveted position they both want becomes available. Oh, is it ever entertaining!
I adore them immensely! Lucy is a wonderful protagonist that cracks me up. She’s such a little weirdo sometimes! I say that with nothing but affection because the things she says, thinks and does made me laugh throughout the book. It’s also hard not to fall for Joshua, especially as he and Lucy spend more time together. There’s actually a lot of depth and humor under all that aloofness.
They constantly play the most random games where only they know what’s going on. It’s hilarious! They may hate each other, but they sure do play off each other extremely well. The chemistry simmering beneath all that hostility is undeniable.
This book is humorous and the feels are very much real, people! I may have even shed a tear or two (shhhh!). Thankfully the drama is low, and what does transpire feels true to the story.
The Hating Game is just an all-around delightful read that I now consider a favorite. This is Sally Thorne’s debut novel and she knocked it out of the park!