When you look at my list of all-time favourite tropes, you can be sure to find “rivals-to-lovers” somewhere on that list. I am all for the banter, the slow-burn and everything in-between.
That’s by ‘The Hating Game’ by Sally was one of the most recommended books of the year from my online fellow bookworms and friends. Throughout the year I have been asking for romance book recommendations, and this book always seems to sneak its way onto the list.
That being said, I’ve been putting this book aside and always dismissing it simply because I wanted to be in the right “mood” when I read it. I didn’t want to read it when I’m on a thriller novel binge, nor did I feel like reading it when I was mainly enjoying fantasy books for days on end.
Now you could be asking yourself; “what made you decide to pick up the book and read it, Alyssa?”
The answer is: the movie adaptation.
I wanted to read the book before I watched the movie adaptation that literally everyone and their mother has watched and been talking about for days.
The Hating Game
by Sally Thorne

Edition: ebook, 2nd Edition, 387 pages
Published August 9th 2016 by William Morrow Paperbacks
Literary Awards: Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award (RT Award) for Mainstream Fiction (2016), Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Romance (2016)
Goodreads blurb:
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 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.
This was a really enjoyable book. It had a trope that I enjoyed reading about, a fairly likeable set of characters, solid plot and low angst. I loved the banter between Lucy and Joshua– I thought the author did a good job of mixing humour, annoyance and a hint of flirting within their banter. It was fun reading the dialogue between the two main characters because underneath all the rivalry, you could tell that there was a romance brewing. It also helped that the one-liners were actually funny, and weren’t repetitive.
Even though I don’t rate this book 5 stars, I struggle to point out what I didn’t enjoy in this book. I will pin it down to the fact that this book wasn’t anything new that has not already been done in the romance genre. That being said, this book did use those predictable tropes in a way that made me want to continue on reading. I thought the author did a great job writing this book overall, so well that I flew through the book and finished it in two days.
Goodreads review:
I read this book just so I can watch the new movie adaptation. It wasn’t anything new, but I enjoyed it. I love the rival-to-lovers trope so I really enjoyed the constant banter between Lucy and Josh. It was quite predictable, but who doesn’t want an easy, fluffy romance to get you through the day?
3.5 stars.
p.s fingers crossed that the movie is just as good.
3.5 stars
Do you read Romance novels? Any recommendations?
Let me know in the comments below!

Find me on social media and let’s talk books:
Read More:
- The One About A Girl In A Satellite: Cress by Marissa Meyer | Book ReviewHi everyone! I’m back with another book review! This is the third instalment to the Lunar Chronicles, and it is just as good as the first two! There are some spoilers coming up, so if you don’t want to know the details then please stop reading here and come back when you’ve read it. Cress… Continue reading The One About A Girl In A Satellite: Cress by Marissa Meyer | Book Review
- A Disrupted Reading Week | Weekly Reading Update (20/6/22-27/6/22)Happy Monday, friends! My week was pretty much spent doing everything BUT reading. I did not finish any book this week, so this reading update will be pretty much bare for the most part. However, I did start one book as I am writing this blog post, and have yet to finish it. Instead, I… Continue reading A Disrupted Reading Week | Weekly Reading Update (20/6/22-27/6/22)
- 5 Star Predictions #2 | On the ShelfThe more books I add to my tbr, the more 5 stars predictions! As such, I thought it would be fitting to add another post to this new series! As the title implies, I’ll be listing a couple tbr books that I predict are going to be 5-star reads. This could be because it’s a… Continue reading 5 Star Predictions #2 | On the Shelf
- June 22: Worth the Hype | Top 5 WednesdayTop 5 Wednesday was started in November 2013 and is a very much active group on Goodreads, so head over to Goodreads to join the group and keep up with all the topics for the month. I thought it was such a fun idea to have weekly books related prompts that I could answer and… Continue reading June 22: Worth the Hype | Top 5 Wednesday
- FairyLoot May 2022 YA Box Unboxing | Bookish ReviewHey, friends. It’s that time of the month again. Another month, another Fairyloot box review! I have been so excited to receive this book ever since the spoiler was posted on their official account. FairyLoot’s theme for May 2022 is CLOAK & DAGGER! Here’s what they say about what this month’s box features: “We are… Continue reading FairyLoot May 2022 YA Box Unboxing | Bookish Review
[…] one of her more well-known novels titled ‘The Hating Game’. I have read and review this book (check out the book review here!), and unfortunately it was a miss for me too. Spoiler alert from my book review of ’The Hating […]
LikeLike