I really was not a big fan of this book I wish there was more substance to it and it really fell flat for me. It was cute though and I enjoyed reading this for valentines day

This book was a feel good book, that definitely was cute for valentines day.
I really like that we got the backstory from when they were kids, but I wish their adult relationship was more developed. It's okay, but there doesn't feel to be a lot of sustenance to this.

Unfortunately for me I found this one a little too much. Maybe I just wasn't in the mood to read about Valentines Day. It seemed too predictable. Although, if this is your type of book than please give it a try.

This one was just okay - cute enemies to lovers theme, with a holiday twist. Fun to read, and quick. Nothing groundbreaking, but cute.

The Valentine's Hate by J.L. Beck was an enjoyable read that combined enemies-to-lovers and second chance romance tropes in an interesting way. The chemistry between the main characters was palpable, and I appreciated the author's efforts to delve into their complicated past. The pacing was solid, and the writing was engaging and easy to follow. However, I did have a few issues with the book. Some of the conflict felt a bit contrived, and I found myself wanting more development of certain plot threads. Additionally, while I enjoyed the romance, I felt that the resolution was a bit too rushed and could have been more satisfying. Overall, I would recommend this book to fans of contemporary romance, but with the caveat that it's not without its flaws.

Please add warnings to the front of this book. I DNFed this because I was caught off guard by the loss of a child. Something like this should be warned, especially in a romance novel. This one just wasn't for me.

Ms Halston is a new-to-me author, so I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked this up. The cover is cute, and drew my attention and when I read the blurb, I definitely became interested in reading it. I was not disappointed! The story was cute, fun, and flirty with wonderfully delightful characters. I loved Lizzie's character, she was strong and had a lot of spunk and was not afraid to stand up for herself. Brian initially comes off as a diffibult person, but ultimately his kindness and loyalty shine through. The two grew up living next door to each other and hated one another, and nothing seems to have changed when they run into each other as adults. But each might be able to offer the other some much needed help. The chemistry between them was strong, and they complemented each other well.
The enemies to lovers/fake engagement trope was done well and the this was an enjoyable read and I hope to read more by this author in the future.
I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

I didn't love this book but I also didn't hate it. It took a bit for me to finally get into the story. There were parts where I was like, wow I really like this and others where I contemplated DNFing the book. But I finished and I am glad I did.

One thing I didn't like was the way the male MC talked at times, especially during the "steamy" scenes. The dirty talk felt forced and just didn't flow with the vibe of the book in my opinion.
Along with this, some of the word choice just didn't feel right. There was some open-door language (which I don't feel comfortable using in a review) used in this book that made me cringe and it usually doesn't. This book just gave sweet, wholesome vibes most of the time and then the word choice at times ruined that.

I liked the dual point of view and being able to see Lizzie from Ben's point of view. I really liked their relationship, especially the banter. There were parts during Brian's point of view that made me swoon. It has enemies to lovers and fake dating which are two of my favorite tropes. Overall, not a terrible book especially if you're looking for a quick, sweet read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

💘Book Review:
Title: The Valentine’s Hate
Author: Sidney Halston
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/4 stars

Cute, funny Valentine’s read or really for any time of the year! If you're not a HUGE fan of Valentine’s Day, this book is for you. 💘

Lissette Alonso used to love Valentine’s Day when she was a little girl, but as the years of February 14th have passed, she begins to hate it thanks to Brian Anderson. Brian seemingly made it his mission to destroy that day and others for Lisette with his nonstop pranks towards her.

Heading to her best friends wedding, on Valentine’s Day 😑, she realizes that someone else is coincidentally on the same flight as her. Her nemesis, Brian. He happens to be attending a conference at the exact same resort that she's staying at. Great.....Then to make matters worse, she ends up sharing his huge room with him because of a mix up on the part of the resort.

But, they soon realize they will need each other to get through this stressful situation. Brian poses as her boyfriend to keep her ex off her back and Lisette acts as his girlfriend/assistant to keep a married and horny actress in a film adaptation of his bestselling book away as well. So naturally, this leads to this being the first Valentine’s Day together that they mend fences and maybe a mending of a few other things 😏😉.

Fun book! I enjoyed it! 💘💘

Thank you, @netgalley and @avonbooks, for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

Published December 27th, 2022

I thought this story was really fun and easy to read! I love a good enemies to lovers but maybe we were never really enemies!

I will say I felt the conflict Brian and Lizzie are in regarding the photograph should’ve been handled better on his end and his expectations for her reaction were very unrealistic.

I enjoyed the ending but I really, really needed and epilogue to tie it all together.

3.5 stars

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon books for the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Funny, sexy and heart! I had such a good time reading this it was super fast paced and fun. The fake dating and forced proximity were PERFECT.

The story follows Lizzie and Brian who have known each other and HATED each other since the second grade. They've played mean pranks on one another their whole childhood but Brian has always took it to far on Valentine's Day. They dont see eachother for years until as adults they accidentally run into eachother at a hotel in Mexico where Lizzie's best friend is getting married and where Brian is having an author event for his book series. To keep Brian's fans off his back and to keep from Lizzie's ex thinking shes a loser they decide to start fake dating.

This was a fun and quick read! I hadn't read any Valentine's themed books before this year and I think I might have gone a little overboard since I read a few that ended up being very similar to each other, but still enjoyable!

Lizzie and Brian are both fun characters that I really enjoyed reading about. Their relationship was fun with them being childhood nemesis and their banter was hilarious. I loved that there were flashbacks so we got to see what they were up to and why they were nemesis instead of just being told that they were. They had great chemistry and a good bit of steam as well.

A fun, light and easy read to read each Valentines Day!

Lisette Alonso hates Valentines Day ever since she had the worst one. Her best friend is having a Valentines Day wedding and she is the maid of honor. During the wedding festivities she runs into her childhood enemy Brian Anderson, who is responsible for her hatred of Valentines Day.
I loved this book, Lisette and Brian were such great characters. Most of the other characters were not as well-written in my opinion. That's the main thing I would have improved in the book. Overall it was a great cute read and I definitely recommend it. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

This was such a cute read-- I am a fan! We have my favorite tropes: enemies-to-lovers and fake dating! We have spicy and drama (oh, the drama!), but it's all within reason, and the chemistry between Lizzie and Brian was palpable even when they were being hot-headed toward each other. Can you say tension? And the MMC is a writer, which ads a really fun layer to reading that I enjoyed, especially when the fake-dating is for him and his situation with a famous actress. Put this together, and you have a romance that's re-read worthy. This author is on my radar, and I'm glad for it! Highly recommend.

Read this if you like childhood enemies to lovers and fake dating. Loved the valentines theme. The whole cheating/misunderstanding with violet wasn’t my favorite and wasn’t well fleshed out but it was still a quick read that i really enjoyed.

Sexual chemistry and clever dialog are not mutually exclusive (even though this kind of lacked both)! Authors, you can give us both I encourage you! Thanks to Avon and Netgalley for the eARC but I DNF _*deep sigh*_ if you want something a little messy and steamy go for it. Enemies to lovers and a fake relationship-two of my favorite tropes but I get really bored when the characters have no redeeming qualities and are poorly written. Our lovers are both frustrating - I couldn’t get a good read on Brian’s character. Like I’m supposed to believe in his quiet sincerity but one day into this arrangement he’s done in during a couple’s massage and abandons all propriety to [redacted] in a spa bathroom? There’s something for everyone, but this was not for me. If you prefer a slow burn with a solid build-up, take this one off the shelf completely.

Brian and Lisette's story is fun and engaging. I usually do not like a fake-dating trope but this was a different take and I enjoyed it.

I was pretty worried about this book when I started it. The prologue was written to show the relationship that the two main characters had in their school years and to prove how much Lizzie hates Brian. And honestly, what he did was harsh. I almost put the book down because of the prologue but ended up pushing through it.
This book really moved fast for an enemies to lovers, although the enemies portion was mainly one sided, it really shouldn't have moved this fast. They run into each other some years after high school, start the fake dating charade and then they're actually dating. There was a lot of miscommunication spread throughout the book, between almost all of the characters. Most of these problems could have easily been fixed by having a conversation, not ignoring the other for days to weeks on end.
Other than those things, the book was really cute. Once I took the enemies to lovers plot line out of my head, I really enjoyed the story and Lizzie and Brian's relationship.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon US for an eARC copy of this book.

Personally this wasn't my favorite read and I ended up DNF this read. I had high hopes but it wasn't my cup of tea. I was kinda confused reading it and it didn't live up to the hype in my mind and based off what I had seen from others sharing about it.

Thank you Avon Books and Netgalley for a digital ARC copy of this wonderful rom-com in exchange for my honest review!

Lizzie and Brian are childhood nemesis: he ruins her Valentine's Day everyday, she ruins his every day. Fast forward 15 years and they find themselves staying at the same hotel for two different events, struggling to avoid ex's and a movie star (??). They hatch a plan (read: Brian begs) to solve both their problems and fake a relationship.

This was the best enemies-to-lovers I've read in a long time. It took the childhood comfortability and made it at once sweet and annoying for our two MC's. They remembered things differently (of course) and sorted out a lot of miscommunications from childhood. They also rehashed old pranks and fights. It was funny. It was cute. It was romantic. I loved it!!! And it was PERFECT for Valentine's Day.

Read if you love: childhood friends, enemies-to-lovers, over-protective MMC, and a romantic comedy with an emphasis on comedy!