I think this had a lot of potential but slightly missed the mark. The characters were not likeable and I am still trying to figure out how the title became the title. I think that Melody hated Asher a lot more than Nolan, so I kept seeing if they would get together. For an enemies to lovers, it was a but thin. Miscommunication or forced proxity (office) would have been a little better.
To the unlikeable characters, I think Melody's friend June was the top, right next to Ian. Just so self absorbed and it was hard to find any connection with them.
I think the message of women in the gaming community was definitely seen and the dangers they face from trolls, but Melody was so whiny and I just didn't care after a while. This may just not have been the book for me or maybe the narrator on the audiobook was just not for me.

This book had a likable protagonist and was a fast read. But I read to escape and while I have no doubt this treatment of women in gaming is accurate, it was a bit of a bummer. That being said, the story was believable and I was pleased by the outcome and resolution of the story.

An enemies to lovers rom com read!! What I absolutely love!! This was such a cute, quick read! Recommend for someone who loves a cute rom com read!!

*Thank you @williammorrowbooks for the copy in exchange for an honest review.*

I'll preface this by saying I am not usually a rom-com reader and might not be the right audience for this type of story.

Let's start with the pros:
1 - This book is an Own Voices novel by a Korean-American author. I love that!
2 - The story is centered on a woman working in the video game industry, a field typically dominated by white men, and succeeding.
3- This book does not shy away from calling attention to the horrible treatment of women in the gaming industry, or any tech industry really. It is well-known that women in tech receive unwarranted harassment and threatening language from both male colleagues and tech users/gamers. I like that the author chose to shine a spotlight on this aspect of the tech world.
4 - It was a quick, easy read.

Now, the cons:
1 - Melody, the main character is SO annoying! As the heroine, we're meant to root for her, a non-white woman making her mark in a traditionally male-focused industry. However, she is so completely unlikeable that it was really hard for me to care about her. She throws childish temper tantrums, and is completely dismissive of her coworkers and peers. But before you think she is the only problem with the story, there is con #2.
2 - The blatant sexism and misogyny. Obviously, as this story takes place in the video game industry you have your typical "tech-bros" who treat Melody like crap. While I'm glad that the topic, which is a very real thing that exists in this industry, is not glossed over, it could have been handled better. The reader is continuously beaten over the head with it when it is something that could have been handled with more nuance in this particular genre. I feel it would fit better in a more serious genre, not a rom-com.
3 - A rom-com with no chemistry between the MC and the love interest. Their attraction feels very forced and it's difficult to understand what draws them to each other.

The book was well-written and had a lot of potential, but I think the ideas needed a bit more polishing. And as a rom-com, the romance aspect could have been better developed. Overall, this was a good book, not a great one. I'm glad I had an opportunity to read it, but I don't think it's one I would return to again. I would give this 3.5 stars.

This is a fantastic example of a good enemies to lovers romance. There is real animosity between the characters in the beginning of the book. The way they begin to slowly change their minds about one another is entertaining and different than other books. I like the pace of the book, and I like in general how the relationship progressed. It’s a book I really enjoyed. this is the type of book that you could reread which means I would recommend it to most people

I enjoyed the opportunity to read this light-hearted enemies to lovers rom-com. I especially like how well the main character navigated the mail dominated video game world.

Thank you to Avon/William Morrow Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read And review this book.

I was expecting this to be more of a romance based on the title but it was really far from that! Being a woman myself in a male dominated industry (very different industry) I enjoyed that aspect of the book. The male characters were very easy to dislike and the harassment they showed was toxic. I thought there was a bit too much of the toxicity but maybe the write felt that was needed to portray her point? Some of the writing was odd to me too with the mixture of oddly placed humor along with the harassment issues. Overall it was a good read for me and I felt the overall message about sexism in the workplace was met.

A enemies to lovers rom com, set in a gaming world. This novel was light, cute, funny, and perfect for fans of Helen Hoang.

For fans of enemies to lovers this is a great one. It starts a little slow and builds. The story is based on a Korean gamer girl that has designed her own game and is now working to produce it. She is one of just a few women in the office and the sexism abounds. The sexism and racism aspect could have been toned down a lot and more of a background aspect than a main theme. However, her banter with the intern and other office members feels real if not extreme. A great story with a strong female character.

Melody Joo has just gotten her dream job as a video game producer, but as one of the few females in the industry it has some challenges. But when her “joke” feminist pitch of a game where male strippers fight to survive in a post-apocalyptic world takes off, she finally has a chance to run the show. One of the people assigned to her team is the new intern, Nolan, who Melody finds very attractive, which could complicate things.

I’ve become a huge fan of Suzanne Park this year, so I wanted to make my way through her backlist books and was so happy to get a copy of Loathe at First Sight. I LOVED the girl power in this one. Melody’s experiences as a woman in a male dominated field were tough, but seeing her THRIVE despite the obstacles was so empowering and a huge highlight of the book. The romance was cute, but felt secondary compared to Melody’s journey. That being said I loved this book and felt the romance focus was not missing. I loved this book and can’t wait to see what Park comes up with next!

Thanks to Avon Books and NetGalley for the gifted copy!

Loathe at First Sight had me cheering for Melody Joo, all the while laughing and cringing right along with her. This was a well written rom-com and I am so glad I changed up my genre to read this one! I chugged right along through it and learned all the way through about all sorts of things gaming that I never knew about. I also really enjoyed the point of view of Melody knowing that it was authentic.

Thank you to the Book Club Girls, Avon/William Morrow Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest opinion.

Melody Joo lands her dream job of being a video game producer but can not imagine the amount of sexism and discrimination she will be facing. While joking to a friend about making a game about male strippers trying to survive an apocalypse, she's overheard and it becomes the studio's most high profile project. She's assigned the intern, Nolan, who at the start she's annoyed by, but ends up attracted to. With the game about to launch, she ends up in an awful trolling scandal and is wondering whether it was all worth it...

This was a light and easy read, perfect for the summer. While it was light, it still addressed some deeper topics, like workplace discrimination, trolling, and misogyny in the gaming community. Melody was a strong female lead, always a pleasure to read about them - who although uncertain at times, always pushed through and did the right thing. Women like her break glass ceilings to make room for others and are an inspiration to all. I absolutely loved her relationship with her parents, and their conversations always gave me a good chuckle. The love story was sweet, and started with them being a great team at work.

Thank you to Book Club Girl for the review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

Loathe at First Sight follows Melody Joo as she takes on a new role developing a video game - seeing from her perspective the 'boys club', nepotism, sexism, racist stereotypes and other environmental challenges a woman in tech can live through. She continues to be thrown challenge and roadblock while also navigating family relationships, and supporting friends with their life milestones.

What she doesn't expect is to get close to someone with a very negative first impression. It was enjoyable read - commiserating with Melody during some extremely frustrating and challenging times, and seeing how she adapted.

CW: workplace harassment; racism; sexism; threats; personal safety

Thank you to William Morrow and Custom House, as well as Netgalley, for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

When Melody Joo, a Korean American woman, is brought on staff as a production assistant at Seventeen Studios, a video gaming developer, she didn’t expect to be treated as an outsider. But with the majority of employees at the company being White men, that’s what she is. When she’s in line to grab a beverage and is fooling around with a coworker, the boss happens to overhear their conversation. Next thing Melody knows, she’s suddenly in charge of design production for a new video game aimed at women.

This is a cute story, and I don’t doubt for a moment that Melody would have been treated as badly as she was. Tech industries aren’t always known for their diversity or acceptance of those who are not White men. That Melody suffered from racism, misogyny, and betrayal isn’t surprising. This book highlights how men support men and try to prevent smart women from reaching success.

Never fear though, for Melody is not to be stymied. She steps up and meets the challenges presented to her. She deals with team betrayal, hate attacks via email and social media, even death threats. She’s determined to stand up for herself and make her game a success.

I loved her parents. I could see them perfectly. As immigrants to the US, they want what’s best for their daughter: a husband. Melody shows them that while a man in her life would be nice, she’s perfectly capable of standing up for herself.

This book kept me guessing. I would think I knew what was going to happen, but then something else developed that I hadn’t seen coming. That was nice. The writing and characters were good and well-developed. In other words, I enjoyed this book about a strong woman and her desire to achieve all she knew she could.

I recommend this book to those who enjoy tales of strong women doing the right things.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley. I thank all involved for their generosity, but it had no effect on this review. All opinions in this review reflect my true and honest reaction to reading this book.

Melody has to prove herself time and time again at her gaming job. When is asked to produce a game based on a conversation she had on a whim, she is faced with roadblock after roadblock.

The book gave great insight to the challenges people, especially women and minorities, face while working at a stereotypical male dominated profession.

Most of the characters are very unlikable and the antics they pull are very cringe worthy. There are certain characters that you will loathe and very few that you will like.

It's a quick read which saved me from hating it completely

Loathe At First was a fun, light hearted and enjoyable read! I was rooting for Melody throughout the book, as she being a video game producer was such aninspiring lead to work in an industry dominated by male colleagues.
This book had me smiling all the while and I look forward to read more from Suzzanne Park,

Thank you Bookclub girls, William morrow books and NetGalley for this gifted galley in exchange of my honest review!

I'm pretty sure that I enjoyed this book. It was an engaging story. I liked the main character. I liked the setting in the gaming world (new to me!). I liked that this was a story about a Korean American woman.

I really didn't like all the misogyny and racism that our poor main character had to endure. But, man, she managed to tackle that! Go, Melody!

I was expecting this to be more of an enemies-to-lovers romance. I don't think that I'm mad that it wasn't; it just was different from what I expected.

Overall, this is a solid three stars. I would certainly read more that the author has to offer.

After the initial pages, I found myself not connecting with the story or characters, so I decided to pass on this book. Did not finish

A light breezy read, but one that I enjoyed. What I liked most about it was that the main character was a female minority navigating her way through a white male dominated industry. As someone who has worked in a few of those myself, I could relate to a lot of what she goes through. Then you add the additional prejudices she received of being a person of color as well! Melody Joo is a character that you root for all the way. You cheer when she prevails, feel sad when she's sad, feel mad when she's harassed, blown off, and treated unfairly. It was fun to take the journey with her as she learns to not only believe in herself and her own abilities, but finds a way through the b.s. on her way to the top.

Received this as a Book Club Girls bonus pick and promptly forgot to download it in time. Library to the rescue at least, because it sounded like a fun light read.

It definitely was a cute little rom-com, set in the tech world, and featuring a great cast of characters.