The Hating Game: A Novel

“I want to live inside Sally Thorne’s brain." —Emily Henry

Now a movie starring Lucy Hale and Austin Stowell, USA Today bestselling author Sally Thorne’s 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 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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Published Aug 9, 2016

384 pages

Average rating: 7.26

584 RATINGS

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✨ Summarized by Bookclubs AI

Readers say *The Hating Game* is a charming enemies-to-lovers romance praised for its witty banter, playful games, and adorable chemistry between Lucy...

AbbeyLileTaylor
Aug 29, 2023
8/10 stars
Solid 4.5 stars ❤
abookwanderer
Oct 09, 2025
10/10 stars
Gah! Why have I not read this sooner?! So stinking adorable. Grumpy/sunshine done perfectly.

#popsugarreadingchallenge2022 (prompt #32 - A book with a quote from your favorite author on the cover or Amazon page)
Dia0619
Sep 25, 2025
5/10 stars
I really wanted to like this book but this is one of those rare occasions that the movie was better than the book.
𖹭𝕸𝖆𝖌𝖘𖹭
Jul 08, 2025
10/10 stars
Enemies to lovers books are always the ones that make my heart feel a thousand different feelings at once. Sad, mad, happy, etc

This book is one of the best enemies to lovers books I’ve read and for many good reasons. Throughout the book you learn about the characters and you grow attached to them. Their are plot twists that twist your stomach in knots while you’re reading, scaring you for the next chapter.

All in all this book is a 5/5⭐️ I love it! And I cannot wait for the movie
Vivi
Jul 01, 2025
8/10 stars
This was a cute book. I thought the movie was great until I found this.

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