I freaking loved this book so much! To start it takes place in Michigan, written by a Michigander! I rarely see books set in Michigan so that was amazing! This book has enemies to lovers AND fake dating. That is absolute perfection! It was done really well too. The banter was everything! There was so much chemistry between these two. I get why their friends shipped them haha. The side characters were great too. Jonah’s sisters were adorable and Jonah’s bromance with his BFF. Loved that! I also liked that there was more to the story besides the romance. Both main characters have trauma and baggage that we get to see then work through with the support of the other. Great addition. So overall, highly recommend checking this one out. Now is the perfect time to read it with it being pride month but remember to read queer all year.

Content warning: alcoholism, child neglect, ptsd and panic attacks, mentions of eating habits and body image, minor non graphic sexual harassment by employer, discussions of physical abuse (flashes in nightmares/invasive images)

I absolutely LOVE Amanda’s writing style and I’m so thankful for the arc I received . I loved They Hate Each Other and the book has an incredible romance.

If High School Musical is the pinnacle of televised overdramatized juvenile drama, then They Hate Each Other by Amanda Woody must be its equally exaggerated counterpart.
In They Hate Each Other, the well-intentioned but overbearing-in-practice friend circle of Jonah Collins and Dylan Ramírez ships them, as the only two out bisexual guys in their school, with such an intense ferocity that I started to wonder why they had such a nosy friend circle in the first place. Putting aside the absurd premise that somehow every student in their rural town adores them, Jonah and Dylan express the type of immature hatred you might witness a third grader feuding with their best friend at recess demonstrate. After agreeing to fake date to get their friends off their back - instead of just communicating their feelings to them - their relationship blossoms from unadulterated rudeness to restrained civility, before eventually becoming attraction and love.
The fatal flaw of this book is that there is no reason - at least, none with substance - for Jonah and Dylan to hate each other. The crux of one of their hot-headed arguments is centered around Jonah’s resentment towards Dylan’s socioeconomic status, and Dylan’s irritation at Jonah’s stubborn personality. While it is realistic that people can just hate each other based on clashing personalities, this type of exasperation is not even a little proportionate to the raging hatred they perpetrate towards each other; at a certain point, it felt like they were just hating each other out of a fixed mindset rather than having real reasons to hate each other that were then overcome. It seemed to me that the author was just set on writing in the “enemies to lovers trope”, and it was forced into a plot where it didn’t really fit.
That being said, Jonah and Dylan as individual characters are extremely likable - and this is Woody’s biggest strength, to construct complex, well written characters. Even the side best friends, Andre and Hanna, who are rarely mentioned throughout the book, stole the show in every scene they appeared in. Jonah’s arc with his sisters and Mrs. Davis sold me on a sense of solidarity and understanding with him, and I have to commend the author on seeding a deep sense of mistrust towards Mrs. Davis. Woody had me rooting for Jonah and his endearing sisters every step of the way - and I appreciate the thoughtful inclusivity the author had of trans kids in this book. Mik and Lily’s dynamic with Jonah added so much depth to the overall story, and they didn’t come off to me as an afterthought, which is a common fallacy many similar books fall into.
While I do wish Dylan’s arc had had more depth and less Wattpad-esque references to “Him”, I thoroughly enjoyed learning about his and his father’s talents in preparing Afro-Brazilian cuisine - it’s clear that the author did their research, and it made me hungry for the types of food and desserts vividly described in the book. Even though more substance could’ve been added to his arc, the author did a fantastic job at pacing it throughout the story. His raw frustration was a constant of his character, but it never defined him or overtook his narrative - I admire how the author toed that line perfectly.
I can describe Jonah and Dylan’s relationship as surface level attraction at best, and I don’t find myself thinking about the book very often. Although the plot needed work, I liked how Woody paced this book, and I like their writing style as well. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for their next novel. I’m rating this one a three because the book got significantly better in the second half after the ridiculous premises of the novel became less prevalent and the character arcs advanced much more. If you’re looking for a light novel with endearing characters, and you’re not as skeptical a reader as I am, this might be the book for you!

This book was a good quick read for me. It could’ve potentially been 5 stars however in mostly all of the book Jonah was really had to read. He didn’t want to take any help. He was doing more harm than good honestly and it kinda turned me off too him and partially the book. However getting through it it was a good read and the ending was a little unfinished but all in all it was a good read

Also I wouldn’t say this was a romance that was very misleading it was more so a enemies to lovers book

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝙅𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙝 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝘿𝙮𝙡𝙖𝙣 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙤𝙞𝙡 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧. 𝙐𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙡 𝙖 𝙛𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙡𝙤𝙮 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙯𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 “𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙢𝙮” 𝙞𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙖𝙨 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙖𝙨 𝙞𝙩 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙢𝙨.

📍 Read if you like:
• Enemies To Lovers
• Fake Dating
• YA Queer Stories
• Character Development

I’m quite surprised by how much I ended up enjoying this book. It has enemies-to-lovers, which is one of my all-time favorite tropes in romances.

While there was a romantic aspect, the story had so much more depth to it. I loved the character - both Dylan and Jonah. The queer representation was so beautifully done in this book, and the character development was also great.

There’s also a fake dating trope when rumors are spread about them. It was so entertaining reading about them fake dating while the whole time they were disliking each other.

While some of the characters made some choices I didn’t agree with, they were always so likable and fleshed out. There was also miscommunication at times that was not my fav.

Overall, this was a fun and adorable YA queer story! It has romance (enemies to lovers + fake dating). The characters were very well written, and the trauma they each had was so well portrayed. This was a great story!

Thank you so much NetGalley and Penguin Teen for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

•𝗧𝗪/𝗖𝗪: Panic attacks/disorders, alcohol, addiction, alcoholism, child abuse, sexual content

4.5 stars. thank you to netgalley and penguinteen for an eARC of this book, all opinions are my own.

trigger warnings from the author: alcoholism in a parent, recurring theme of child neglect, multiple instances of underage drinking, a character copes with PTSD and panic attacks, multiple mentions of eating habits and body image, a minor is sexually harrassed by his employer (not graphic), use or abrasive language and explicit sexual language/innuendos, discussion of physical abuse (some flashes in nightmares/invasive images)

review:
you ever read a book because of the trope-y hook and then get hit with hard-hitting characters and a plot that makes you rethink everything? because that's what my experience with THEY HATE EACH OTHER was. i picked it up for the fake dating, and stayed for the amazingly written conflicts and character development.

jonah collins is the life of the party, the class clown, the local bisexual it boy of his school, but at home he struggles to care for his two younger sisters after the death of his mother and his father's subsequent descent into alcoholism. dylan ramirez is cool, calm, and collected at school, but leaves school every day for an empty house due to his parents' busy schedules and dylan's own reluctance about contacting his brother after a traumatic childhood event. the two hate each other, though their friends are convinced they have chemistry. when they wake up in the same bed after homecoming and a dating rumor spreads throughout the school, the two decide to fake date to get their friends to stop nagging them. but the more they learn about each other, the more they learn their initial perceptions were wrong– and that they might have chemistry after all.

god. this book wins on every count: characters, tropes, plot, conflict, all of it is perfect. learning more about jonah and dylan's struggles was heartbreaking, but made the resolutions to their stories so satisfying. jonah's character in particular was so well-written to me; he was so dynamic, but never to the point of unreality. it made perfect sense why he acted the way he did given his circumstances. likewise, dylan's reactions to his surroundings were amazing, and i just loved how real the two felt. my only nitpick is that the last 10ish% of this book was basically plotless and unnecessary, but it was still sweet and well-written. the first 85ish% of this book is airtight otherwise, and i loved watching jonah's and dylan's characters unravel only to come back together in the end.

however, i would definitely heed the trigger warnings. while none of it is in super graphic detail, all the trigger warnings are there for a reason. if you have issues with any of the triggers, this book will not be pleasant for you.

Oh my goodness, I loved this! I loved the rivalry between the two characters. Just from the first chapter you can get the tension, and I was all for it, I really enjoyed the writing and dialogue between these two characters!

Book Review of They Hate Each Other by Amanda Woody

Cover Story: Peek-A-Boo
BFF Charms: Big Sister x2
Talky Talk: Rom-Com
Bonus Factors: Tasty Business, LGBTQ+ representation, Mental Health
Anti-Bonus Factor: Dan Scott Award for Awful Parenting
Relationship Status: Third Wheel

Content Warning: Woody includes the following warnings in the front of the book: alcoholism in a parent; recurring theme of child neglect; multiple instances of underage drinking; a character copes with PTSD and panic attacks; multiple mentions of eating habits and body image; a minor is sexually harassed by his employer (not graphic); use of abrasive language and explicit sexual language/innuendos; discussion of physical abuse (some flashes in nightmares/invasive images).

Cover Story: Peek-A-Boo
Maybe it’s because I’m the mother of a one-year-old whose favorite game to play is “Where’s Olly?” (a variation on the classic peek-a-boo), but this cover 100% looks like Jonah’s playing peek-a-boo with Dylan. And Dylan, true to form, has to pretend like he hates the idea. There are so many illustrated covers out there these days, but this one stands out with its use of the large illustrated title, too.

Side note: I typically detest the addition of “a novel” and the like on covers, because obviously, but I love the cheeky “a romance” parenthetical here. Particularly because of the title.

The Deal:
Dylan Ramírez and Jonah Collins have been enemies since the two were eleven. They’re in the same friend group, but never friendly. And though most of their friends think they’re perfect for each other, the idea of being together makes them feel physically ill.

But then they spend the night together—innocently—after the homecoming dance, and no one believes them when they say they didn’t give in to the sexual tension that hovers around them like a black cloud. So they decide to lean into it, try fake dating, if only to get everyone off their backs …

BFF Charms: Big Sister x2
Jonah is known for being loud and boisterous—the life of the party. But he’s so much more than that, and a lot of his outgoing nature is hiding a lot of grief and struggle underneath the surface. He’s doing way more than he should be, as a seventeen-year-old kid, and has a lot resting on his slim shoulders. He’s a truly amazing older brother to his two sisters, but he needs someone to take care of him some, too.

Dylan is Jonah’s opposite in almost every way, but he, too, has a lot going on behind the scenes. He’s reserved and comes off as aloof—he’s the stereotypical tall, dark, and handsome man, much to Jonah’s annoyance—but that aloofness is often confused for disinterest or coldness, and it’s not.

Both of these guys could use a positive adult influence in their lives, both to help them through difficult situations and help them get their heads out of their, um, bums.

Swoonworthy Scale: 8
Their friends were correct: Jonah and Dylan have some serious chemistry. Is it hotter because they’re so against the idea at first? Probably.

Talky Talk: Rom-Com
I adored both Jonah and Dylan from the word go; Woody does an amazing job of creating two very different and very realistic characters who immediately become important people to the reader. (Are they good depictions of actual teenage boys? I have no clue. But I hope so!) Their writing is appropriately casual, and the dialogue is witty, ranging from crass to complex as the situation calls for.

And Jonah’s love of space, but the realization that he’s not cut out to be an astronaut, really resonated with me, a fellow former astronaut-wannabe.

Bonus Factor: Tasty Business
Dylan uses baking as a coping method, and the things he makes—often Mexican desserts—sound amazing. I don’t really have a “friend who bakes” in my close friends group, and this is a crying shame. On the flip side, his father is the head chef at a churrascaria (Brazilian steakhouse), and the dishes they serve are literally mouth-watering.

Bonus Factor: LGBTQ+ representation
Jonah and Dylan are both bisexuals and very open about their sexuality. It’s nice to see bisexuality portrayed so “easily” in a YA novel, particularly that of two cis boys. It’s also nice to see that the people in their lives are good with it, too.

Additionally, there is an asexual character in They Hate Each Other, and one of Jonah’s sisters is trans. (At first, it seemed a little like Woody was checking boxes more than being inclusive, but I checked myself in thinking that—I would never say that an author “checked boxes” by including a variety of straight people. So good on Woody for making me reassess my own biases.)

Bonus Factor: Mental Health
Multiple characters in They Hate Each Other also deal with various mental health issues, the most prominent of which is trauma-induced panic attacks. How they deal, or how others help them through the attacks, is a great guide for people who might be experiencing this type of thing in their own lives. Woody doesn’t claim to be a therapist, mind you, but they obviously did some research into therapeutic tactics.

Anti-Bonus Factor: Dan Scott Award for Awful Parenting
After Jonah’s mother died, his father completely checked out. To the point where Jonah runs himself ragged trying to make sure that his sisters have a good life. He’s awful.

Dylan’s mother, too, seems completely checked out of his life. There are reasons that I won’t dive into, because spoilers, but those don’t fully excuse her behavior. (Although, as an actual adult, her character does have an interesting “parents are fallible humans, too” aspect to it.)

Relationship Status: Third Wheel
You’d deny it with every fiber of your being, Book, but I was a third wheel for our entire time together. I’m cool with it, but really do wish you’d listen a bit more to your feelings rather than your stubborn preconceived notions. People change—and you’re allowed to change your mind.

Jonah can’t stand Dylan. He finds him arrogant and spoiled. Dylan thinks Jonah is a suck up who gossips too much. But those around them think that they truly like each other and use the hate as a cover up. After an accident and them waking up together after homecoming, the rumors spread even more, so they have no choice but to fake date. But we all know fake dating leads to real emotions.

I loved this book! Ugh give me fake dating any day. Give me fake dating with two people who can’t stand each other but realize they do!! This book has that and more. The characters were engaging and enjoyable and the book just had me laughing and gushing.

There is a lot this book processes other than the two main characters love. Theirs real life situations like alcoholic parents, PTSD, abuse, sexual harassment. It touches on a lot of things but wraps up into a story of finding yourself as well.

I can’t wait for the authors next book!

Now this was a knock out ya book full of heart and a powerful message. I won’t stop thinking about these characters for a long time.

i know this has and will continue to be marketed as a enemies-to-lovers who fake date romance. but really, it’s so much more. it’s about two grumpy(ish?), bisexual teen boys, figuring their way out in a world that’s been more than a bit unkind to them. it’s about them growing beyond, developing their support groups, and also happening to find love along the way.

if it wasn’t already obvious, i adore this book. i adore dylan and jonah, their friends, their families, found and sometimes biological too. i'm beyond invested in these two himbos, who for some reason think that fake dating to eventually break up to prove a point to your friends is the best option for your love life. honestly, they share a single (often angry) braincell and it’s totally, absolutely, iconic of them.

like i mentioned, this book is about a lot more than just their fake dating ploy, it’s about their respective traumas and working through it together and apart. while, of course there are a lot of moments that will make you genuinely laugh out loud, this book will pull even more delicately at your heartstrings. and god, do your best to prepare because, oh boy, oh man, will you want to reach into these pages and give these boys the biggest bone-crushing hug.

anyways, i think i’m genuinely at a loss for any more words, or maybe that’s jet-lag brain after zooming through the latter half of this book on a plane. BUT, what i can say is that i cannot believe that this is just a debut. and i cannot wait for woody’s next release. okay, yeah that’s all my brain can currently handle apparently. i love this book. please consider reading it…

but also, as with all books, but especially with this book, please check a detailed list of content warnings before deciding to read this one if you’re worried. as much as i praise this book for handling the delicate subject matters well, i want everyone to stay safe first and foremost.

I have just started reading this book yesterday, but I’m already having so much fun and laughter reading it. So I know for a fact that I will be bighly rating and recommending this book.

Tropey-goodness

Look, I've never read or watched a setup for fake dating that felt plausible or realistic. It's just something you roll with and get past when enjoying romantic fiction. Though this premise was flimsier than most, I also bought into it more easily because one) teenagers and two) profoundly traumatized teenagers. 

But if you have no suspension of disbelief, Amanda Woody's They Hate Each Other may not be the book for you. 

Wha-bam!

That book summary is a bait and switch. They Hate Each Other is deeply disturbing in many ways, and you should definitely read the content/trigger warnings before picking it up. This is not a light, swoony romance, which is to the novel's benefit. The book would have been paint-by-numbers and shallow had Jonah's and Dylan's lives been less complicated. Instead, as much as we can see them making poor decisions, we understand that each is backed by years of pain (and abuse). Nor does being in a relationship magically heal each other; it just helps.


Amanda Woody writes the tough stuff with brutal honesty and clarity. There's no mincing of words, but neither is there gratuitous wallowing. It's an outstanding -- and appropriate -- balance. 

But, I swear if I have to read one more book where penetration is equated to virginity, my head will 🤯. It's bad enough that virginity is even still a thing. I get that both these concepts are so ingrained culturally, but for a book where characters are enlightened enough to realize that even kissing requires enthusiastic consent, I couldn't even.  

Should you read it?

Is there a higher compliment than "I stayed up all night to the detriment of my health to finish this book?" You should absolutely read this book. It's so good. However, please read the content warnings below (as well as Amanda Woody's in the book's intro). 

They Hate Each Other is out on May 09, 2023. Pick up a copy at your local indie bookstore or library. 📚💔❤️‍🩹

This was so cute! The home lives of Jonah and Dylan broke my heart. This was a story of healing AND love. I cried a little bit during this book due to the backstories and past trauma. This had enemies to lovers, fake dating, opposites attract, and more. This was a very emotional book, and I really do recommend it. I'm so happy to have picked this one up!

this book was so good wow I could not put it down and I feel like I say this every book I review but I honestly can't help it if the book is just THAT good. it was a queer enemies to lovers with fake dating, and PRACTICE kissing that's let's be honest...it definitely wasn't practice and not to mention it was heavy on the opposites attract trope Jonah being the wild and energetic one and Dylan being the quiet and type to sit back in the distance. I loved Jonah and Dylan, the friend group was amazing and Jonah's little sisters were the sweetest little girls ever my heart melted. I couldn't say a single negative thing about this book, if you're looking for a sweet book to start off summer break please pick this one up it turned me to MUSH.

Thank you penguin teen for providing me with an e-arc! all opinions are my own!

I dnf’ed on page 86.

Honestly… just both of the boys’ personalities irk me. Neither is particularly likable. Though I do pity both of them for their shitty home lives.

Though, given their friends and even frenemies are oblivious to their home lives, it makes me wonder if everyone in this book has their heads buried in the sand.

I was also semi distressed by the fact that the entire school wanted them to get together seemingly because they were both bi. It felt creepy that so many people wanted them together for that reason.

I also have a slight issue with Lily. I liked that she was diverse and suffered from anxiety. But a 9 year old transitioning… that was a bit tough to swallow. Especially also when the family appeared to be so poor (I’m basing this on what feels like the need for Lily to have medical assistance transition and nothing else).

Completely unexpected. I devoured this book!

With a title like 'They Hate Each Other', you can pretty much guess how the story starts. It's quite obvious Dylan and Jonah hate each other.
Initially it was hard to get a feel of who Dylan and Jonah are. They apparently have a history of being "archenemies", but it's kind of glazed over in the beginning and, for me, it was a challenge connecting to them.

BUT as the story progressed and I learned about Jonah's and Dylan's home life, the plot took a turn and I was invested. It was so much deeper than I ever anticipated. I mean, two bi high school guys decide to fake date...sounds pretty rom-com esque, right? Yeah, not so much. Both MCs deal with some pretty heavy topics and while the romance is quite present throughout, I wouldn't consider it the most important part of the story.

Going into this book, I definitely felt the YA vibes, but once I connected to both Dylan and Jonah, I was pleasantly surprised by how they handled their situations. Everything that happened felt like it needed to, nothing was conveniently placed just for the sake of the plot.

Overall, They Hate Each Other is a deep dive into two teenagers lives and how they come out of their situations happier and healthier. It's both heartwarming and heart wrenching.

I highly recommend giving this book a read if you love...
Bi rep
Archenemies to lovers
Fake dating
One bed (a few times!)
Dual POVs



Huge thank you PenguinTeen for the e-ARC to read and honestly review!

They Hate Each Other follows Jonah and Dylan who get along like oil and water. While Jonah thinks Dylan is an arrogant, spoiled golden boy, Dylan knows Jonah is an attention-seeking asshat who never shuts up. Despite them not being able to share the same air for longer than a second before they start to bicker, their friends are under the impression that Jonah and Dylan are a match made in heaven. So when a disastrous end to a party turns into people hearing the rumour that Jonah and Dylan are now together, the boys come up with a plan: pretend that they’re dating to appease their friends only to then break up and make them feel horribly guilty for pushing them together in the first place, which means Jonah and Dylan will finally be rid of all their nagging to just “try” to like each other. Sounds easy, right? But the more time they spend together to keep up the fake dating narrative, and the more they practice handholding and…kisses for the sake of making it look real in front of their friends, the more they see what lies beneath all the assumptions they made about each other until their scheme might just turn into more.

Falling for your enemy has never been this entertaining. Honestly, everything from the amazing protagonists Jonah and Dylan to the compulsively readable writing had me cheering.

Speaking of Jonah and Dylan, they have such distinct personalities and life journeys that kept me flipping the pages but when they were together on the page? Sparks flew, every single time. They had the kind of chemistry you can’t really put into words because it just felt so natural. Their banter was just so engaging and their respective humour meshed so well together. I loved that we got to see them be actual enemies-in-cahoots for a hot second there and then saw their dislike for each other slowly unravel. It’s so magical seeing Jonah and Dylan slowly open up to each other and no longer seeing the other as the enemy but instead as someone who could really care for them and become a safety net. The climax of the story made me shed more than a tear because you could tell that they cared so deeply for each other but that sometimes that means ostensibly hurting your relationship to make sure that the other party gets what they need to survive and thrive on their own.

Lest you think this is just a romance, nuh-uh. The romance and comedy parts are expertly balanced with more sobering topics such as trauma, poverty, loneliness, and anxiety. Both Jonah and Dylan deal with quite a lot of challenges and issues at home. Their relationships with their respective siblings is so important to the plot and who they are as young men and I absolutely adored it. While Dylan’s history is more of a mystery and is slowly unravelled, we get to see Jonah as the caretaker for his younger siblings and the strain this puts on him. Yet despite that, he never fails to make them smile and care for them in whichever way he can. Dylan, meanwhile, is shown to have a whole different side to him through his introspection and painfully relatable anxiety.

Honestly, this book was a complete home-run for me. Woody manages to take amazing tropes and make them even better, all on top of offering fully fleshed-out characters that will steal your heart from the very first page. I can’t wait to see what this new voice comes up with in the future.

Taking on beloved tropes such as fake dating, enemies-to-lovers and grumpy/sunshine and making them shine in new glory, Woody’s They Hate Each Other is an irresistible, delightfully funny, and emotionally heartwrenching debut that’s not to be missed!

Maybe I’m just not the target audience for this book, but I was annoyed from the beginning. The poor file formatting on Kindle may have contributed to this, but I think even without the weird line breaks and lack of indents, I wouldn’t enjoy this book. I couldn’t connect much with the characters, and I often dislike when white authors write from POC points of view.

I adored the story, the world building was amazing. I love meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it. The writing was also really nice. I couldn't put the book down and I can't wait for others to read and enjoy this story as well.