The Collegio Pittsburg's student voice since 1916
Alyssa Tyler editor in chief
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne, as I saw this was going to become a movie, I was excited to read it. However, my expectations were a little too high.
The novel opens with Lucy, who is so tiny (as mentioned on every other page). She has thick black hair (which is always a disaster) and wears the brightest red lipstick known too man. While her co-worker (or arch nemesis) Josh, is so tall (as mentioned every other page.)
The two works for a publication company that went through a merger so they both did not fall by the wayside in the new age of e-readers and e-books. The two companies or the exact opposite. Lucy’s company is fun and light, with a calm but upbeat atmosphere. While Josh’s company is cold and collected. Everything is perfectly organized and only focused on one thing, profit.
The two are executive assistants to the CEOs of each respective company. And of course, the two are placed in the same office away from the rest of the staff. So, in the past year, they have begun new games to get through the day without fighting each other. There is the staring game, the no talking game, and the mirror game.
As you may have guessed, this is a classic enemies to lover’s book. I love this trope as much as the next reader, and it was extremely well done for a contemporary romance. However, it didn’t feel realistic. Josh was almost too perfect, he apologized way too quickly, was too nice, and didn’t seem human.
However, Lucy somehow was the opposite of that, she was angry for reasons that did not make sense, couldn’t forgive people for small slights, and would fail to accept the obvious right in front of her.
I am always a sucker for contemporary romances, but this one just fell flat. The dynamic was well written, but the third act near breakup did not make any sense, as did the ending. When I read a standalone novel, I like having the entirety of the plot wrapped up in a pretty bow. Then I can move on to my next book without wondering what happened to that one side character who I liked more than the main character.
Overall, I gave this 2.5/5 stars. The book isn’t awful by any means, however, it’s just not special. However, I am curious to see how this will be portrayed as a movie. Most of the hate seems to be one-sided and can really only be understood when you’re in Lucys head.