Review: The Hating Game

Title: The Hating Game
Series: None
Author: Sally Thorne
Genre: Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: William Morrow
Publication Date: August 9, 2016
Source: Bought

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.

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I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH.  Seriously, this book was just . . . GAH, I CAN'T EVEN EXPLAIN IT.  Okay, so I'm going to try my best not to just fangirl and babble this whole review but I don't know how successful I'll be because this has given me all the feels.  I just finished it and I'm already ready to read it all over again.  It's that good.  

Okay, lets start with the absolutely AMAZING chemistry our two leads had.  Holy crap, the pages sizzled with it.  Joshua and Lucy just worked off of each other so perfectly and I honestly couldn't get enough.  The fact that they start as arch enemies just made it all the better.  Their arguments were so entertaining and so much fun to read about.  Even when they were glaring daggers at each other, I felt like I needed to fan myself or grab a cold glass of water.  They both held their own so well and had such big personalities that when they came together, it was like an explosion.  I love them, okay?  I LOVE THEM SO MUCH.  I want more of their relationship and their bickering!  

So, together, of course, they were absolutely awesome.  But even on their own they still stood out so strongly on the page.  I adore them.  And Lucy was such a fun narrator.  She has such a distinct voice and way of thinking.  Even if the relationship she had with Josh hadn't been interesting, just reading what she was thinking would have been enough for me to thoroughly enjoy this book.  She was just hilarious.

Now I really need to talk about the holy hotness that is Joshua Templeman.  This guy is literally the perfect package.  Just thinking about him is making me want to pick up the book again and read all my favorite Josh parts.  He's easily top three favorite book boyfriends of the year.  Possibly top two (no one can beat Rhysand for that #1 spot).  He was just so clever and funny and the things he said . . . don't mind me, just sitting here fanning myself because he's too hot.  The way he treated Lucy was just . . . I loved that he knew she could deal back what he dealt her.  They were snapping comeback so quickly, it was awesome.  He's my favorite and I love him 5ever.     

I already know after writing this review I'm just going to pick up the book again and start rereading.  This was one of the last books I read of 2016 and it made my top five books of that year easily.  I can't wait to see what else this author comes out with.  I know it's a little early but I see her being an instant buy author for me.  Read this book - you won't regret it!

“What are you imagining? Your expression is filthy."

“Strangling you. Bare hands.” I can barely get the words out. I’m huskier than a phone-sex operator after a double shift.

Five Teapots