The concept of this book was so good! But sadly it wasn’t executed well enough. An enemies-to-lovers romcom where I never got the enemies part? Although it’s called Hate at first sight, that isn’t actually the case. I wanted to love this book but there were too many plot holes and sadly not enough romance for this to be considered a romcom.

Who doesn't love a good hate at first site book. you know it will be good. a good read and enjoyed this story. really liked it a lot and the love between this couple. i will read more of her books.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

Hate at First Sight is what you would expect from an enemies to lovers trope, and reads it would suit a rom-com movie. An enjoyable, easy read with elements of witty banter, and a relatable FMC. I liked the premise and thought it was executed well, and whilst I appreciate the slow burn nature of the story, the end was a little too rushed. Alas, it wrapped up nicely.

Probably could relate a little too much to the FMC and her "thrive by thirty" aim and how life doesn't always pan out as planned or hoped.

Would read further books by O'Hagan for sure.

An advanced copy but not an ad.

I LOVED this. It read like a rom com movie - in fact, I'd love to see this made as a movie. Very the devil wears Prada/the set up vibes about it.

I think I'm a little bit in love in Harry as a character, well I loved all of the characters but Harry especially. The book did have a few typos but I'll forgive it because I just loved the story so much.

Unfortunately a slightly disappointing romantic read that I finished in pretty much one sitting with a movie break in the middle. I had hoped that this would give off The Kiss Quotient/The Hating Game vibes but it fell a little flat and I didn't particularly like any of the characters.

Hate at First Sight is a workplace romcom when our main character Kate is forced to work with coworker Harry, who almost kissed her five years prior. They are teamed up to create a new microsite for the fashion company they work for to help rake in a new demographic of consumer.

While not uniquely different than other workplace romcoms, there are some highlights between Kate and Harry. Their banter is quick and witty, exactly what you want in a story like this. The romance in this is cute, but tame.

Kate is also a relatable FMC as millennial in the workplace working towards a well earned, but delayed promotion. This had all the pieces to become a favorite, but I fell out of love towards the end of the book. While this wraps up nicely, there is a lot of blamed passed and the real message of the empowerment gets a little lost. I appreciate that there is a recognition of importance for female friendships. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

A fun enemies-to=lovers story following Kate and Harry. A bit formulaic but I liked the flashes of insights - the need for forgiveness in friendships, pressing through to authenticity in relationships, breaking through the masks we don. London the perfect setting for this work-based story. This author has great dialogue.

Kate is a data analyst for the upmarket clothing brand Poster, she's detail-orientated, always prepared, and obsessed by the data. She and her fellow back-office nerds/geeks hang out in the basement while the beautiful people work on the tenth floor. Until the company needs to downsize and the geeks are forced to come up to the tenth floor. To add insult to injury, there's a promotions freeze and Kate is way overdue for promotion to Director. Her only hope is a new project for which she has been volunteered, a microsite to widen the brand's appeal to zoomers. The only downside (well TBH there is no upside) is that Kate will be forced to work with the stunningly good-looking, happy-go-lucky, Harry, who almost kissed her at the office party five years ago, and Cally, a social media influencer, the firm's new Innovation Director who just happens to be the daughter of one of the CEO's best friends, nepotism is at work people.

Kate, Harry and Cally have very different ideas for how to develop the microsite and bicker constantly, but beneath the bickering are Harry and Kate rekindling their feelings?

I was enjoying this, it was a very typical romance with the mean pretty girls, a normal slightly geeky girl and the hot guy. Nothing amazing, but a fun read. Harry was the weak link for me, all the way through he seemed to want to keep the relationship with Kate on the downlow and generally seems a bit wet. Also, while I understand why Kate was angry about their near-kiss, I didn't understand why he was.

Anyway, it all degenerated for me towards the end when it suddenly all became Kate's fault, Cally trying to exclude her from the project - Kate's fault, Kate having to go to France for work on her friend's birthday - Kate's fault, Kate being royally shafted by Harry and Cally - Kate's fault, Kate being passed over for promotion time and time again - Kate's fault, all the catty comments and being ignored - all in Kate's imagination. Over and over again. No-one else was at fault for anything, no-one else had to go round begging for other peoples forgiveness. When an author does this it leaves a bad taste in my mouth, like they dislike their main character, or indeed women in general. I think for this to work both parties need to have been at fault in some way and this was all Kate.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Lizzie O’Hagan is a new author find for me and I’m so glad I did, the writing style reads like a great rom com and I was instantly hooked. This book is an excellent example of an enemies to lovers workplace romance and I loved the stark differences between the characters and the constant back and forth and witty remarks.

The story follows data analyst Kate as she fights for a promotion at a trendy luxury clothing company. Forced to work with trendy creative ‘Harry’. The chemistry was instant at a work party 5 years ago, however Kate is left in tears after a misunderstanding leads to a broken heart. Now forced to work together whilst competing for a promotion, Kate struggles to balance her career goals and the growing tension between her and her nemesis.

I loved the first 70%, the slow burn element was great and I loved seeing the interactions. However, I really struggled to like Harry, and the way he treated Kate was not acceptable. Whilst the book challenges the concept of beauty in an ever connected world where we present the best versions of ourselves, I feel like it slightly misses its mark. I much preferred Kate with Wolf! I found Kate’s constant insecurity so fitting, further demonstrating her struggle to fully integrate in a company whose values didn’t align with hers. These moments were conveyed well and were neatly tied up at the end (albeit a little rushed)

Hate at First Sight by Lizzie O’Hagan is a pretty straightforward workplace enemies to lovers story. Kate and Harry met at a party five years ago - the chemistry was immediate and palpable, but a misunderstanding leads to hurt feelings and their paths don’t cross again. Now, five years later, they’re teamed up to launch a microsite for the fashion website they both work for.

There’s a lot of what you’d expect from a story like this. Banter, slow-burn, secret keeping, and then as always a huge miscommunication that sends everything off track.

I liked where the author was going with the idea of an It Woman vs an Every Woman, but it never really landed as a concrete idea here. And I felt the ending was very rushed. But a fun, easy read for someone looking for this kind of thing.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.