Toxicity in Sally Thorne’s The Hating Game
Worth A Read Hard Pass
Length 386
Quick Review A tale as old as time. Who knew the hate being felt from/for someone was just a big misunderstanding and just love in disguise…
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne is not a romantic love story but a cautionary tale. It was stupid, archaic, toxic, and quite frankly set women back seventy years. Part of me wants to be shocked that “love” stories like this are still getting published, but I’m too realistic for that. I don’t know why women read this stuff and what it is they find attractive about a tall asshole. These are not the kind of relationships we should be glorifying. There’s far more interesting and sexy things to read than this troped up, crap novel.
Lucy and Joshua sit next to each other after a merger between two publishing houses. They hate each other and are up for the same promotion. They’re complete opposites. She’s super short, bubbly, and sweet. He’s cold, calculated, and rude. Gasp! Circumstances bring them together, and oh my God, they’re attracted to each other.
By page 50, I was utterly exhausted from reading how short Lucy was in comparison to how tall and masculine Joshua was. It was boring and cliché at the best of times.
The entire premise of The Hating Game rides on the back of the kindergarten playground advice given to young girls: “He’s mean to you because he likes you.” I’m pretty sure we’ve realized how that sets girls up for complicated relationships with attraction at best and abusive and violent relationships at worst.
I kept seeing how great this book was… I don’t get it. It’s kind of funny, but the problematic plot and characters are impossible for me to get passed. The fact the plot is beyond formulaic and predictable almost doesn’t even register due to the toxic relationship between Lucy and Joshua. Honestly, if your friend were to come and tell you all of these things Lucy went through in real time, you would never encourage her to have a relationship with that man. I doubt Joshua’s friends would encourage him to be with Lucy because she wasn’t so great to him either. Love does not and should never wash away the toxic, problematic, or rude interactions leading up to feelings.
Had The Hating Game ended with a good, long visit to a therapist instead of unrealistic sex (I know it’s a novel, no one wants realistic sex in novels) with boring and problematic co-worker, I would have liked it more. If you ever find yourself in Lucy’s position, go to a therapist instead of on a date. You deserve better. Lucy deserves better. Joshua deserves better. These two should never date.
Memorable Quotes
“I’m not about to be ravished. No one boils water before-hand [sex], except maybe in the Middle Ages.”
Originally published at https://onthebl.org on August 12, 2020.
