The Love Hack

What started as a story about losing your job and doing the next best thing; being an agony aunt, in this case uncle, turned out to be much more than that. When I started this book, I wasn't really convinced whether the subject of the book was going to be enough to fill up to 300 pages. What was I wrong.

The book revolves around Lucy, who started a new job at a men's magazine and, you guessed it, has a thing for her new colleague. While this is the main storyline, the book has a few side stories that in my opinion make it more than worth your time reading. It is multilayered and focuses on standing up for yourself, accepting yourself and others, but also coming to terms with the past. Another major theme was sisterhood, which was really hearth warming.

“Denial’s not just a river in Egypt, right?”

In my opinion, the book does start out a bit slow, but it picks up really fast. It is well written, and especially the references to ChatGPT make it really fun and easy to read. However, the ending did feel a bit rushed to me which contributes to it not being a five star read for me. Another plus is that most of the chapters start out with a 'ask Adam' submission and it is really nice to see how Lucy not only tries to answer these in each chapter but also learns from them.

A major thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a delightful read, filled with sweetness and fun. I enjoyed the writing, the storyline, and the characters. Lucy and Amelie were portrayed brilliantly, although I was surprised by the direction Amelie's story took—it caught me off guard in a good way.

The romance between Lucy and Ross was adorable, and I appreciated having a genuinely funny and down-to-earth male lead instead of the typical alpha male. Sophie's writing style is something I really admire; it's gentle, expressive, and calming. After reading this book, I felt uplifted and in a great mood. I also loved how the story celebrated sisterhood and sibling love.

The Love Hack is a rom com novel by Sophie Ranald.
I really enjoyed this easy to follow rom com novel. It was easy to follow and had a great cast of characters. I kept wanting the main characters to get together. A great novel that I'm sure other readers will love.
❤️ Thank you to storm publishing, netgalley and the author for my arc ebook copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Cute, fast-paced, rom-com that just keeps going. Multiple plots intertwining, love lost, buried but not forgotten, new love blooming in the dark. Insecurities, self doubt and painful memories to be faced head on with a bit of self aweness growing. Who will end up with whom, and boy there are some surprises. An entertaining read.

4* A fluffy romantic comedy.

Due to a drop in sales, the magazine where Lucy works as Technology Editor, will be combined with online magazine Max, leaving Lucy facing redundancy. With no possibility of job sharing, rent to pay and a cat to feed, she needs to find a reason for the magazine to continue to employ her. Lucy comes up with the idea of being an Agony Aunt, or rather Agony Uncle, to offer relationship advice for the male readers. Ask Adam is born, even though Lucy’s understanding of men is limited.

I particularly loved the idea of a woman, in the guise of a man, giving advice to men, who would actually take notice thinking they were corresponding with another man.

eARC generously supplied by Storm Publishing and NetGalley, this review is my personal, unbiased opinion.

Thank you to Storm Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC of The Love Hack in exchange for an honest and independent review.

Lucy has found herself in over her head as the new online advice columnist, "Ask Adam," for men who have various sorts of relationship questions or personal problems. Her first hurdle, she happens to know absolutely nothing about men. Her second hurdle, her overly handsome coworker named Ross who cannot stop making her blush with his subtle gazes over his computer screen. Lucy hasn't found herself interested in a relationship in years, ever since her last coworker turned boyfriend betrayed her and she stands resolute that she has absolutely no intention of pursing a relationship anytime soon.

On top of the new job and her hunky coworker, her sister and best friend is getting married to a man that Lucy finds a tad pretentious and very controlling. No matter the vibes she's getting from their relationship, Lucy works hard to be there for her sister and support her during all the pre-wedding festivities. It was during the late night bachelorette party when Lucy see's Ross out at a club, making out with one of her fellow bridesmaids. Was she reading Ross's vibes all wrong this entire time? She must have been, otherwise why would he hook up with a random girl at the bar?

At this, Lucy decides to try to keep her distance from Ross in order to protect her heart from devastation, yet again. However, being that he works directly across from her makes this more difficult than originally anticipated. As the weeks pass, Lucy grows into her role as Ask Adam and progressively starts to better understand the male species and how they processes various emotions and situations. In doing so, her relationship/friendship with Ross also starts to deepen. Unfortunately, he is still casually seeing the bridesmaid from the party, which puts a serious damper on Lucy's romantic life.

How will Lucy navigate her relationship with Ross when she wants it to be so much more than friendship? Can she really be successful in her new Ask Adam role? Will people find out she's a fraud? Will she be able to save her sister from her own potentially disastrous relationship?

There were so many entertaining components to this book that make it so enjoyable. I loved how clueless Lucy was when it came to men and even her own self esteem. Over time, Ask Adam helped her grow into a positive and self confident person who was slowly learning what it took to be a good partner and be supportive, all the while standing up for and maintaining your own boundaries. I really enjoyed the dynamic between Ross and Lucy and the chemistry they very clearly had as well as Lucy's relationship with her younger sister. The Love Hack is an adorably wholesome book that actually has some pretty great relationship take away's built in. Perfect weekend read for this summer!

Firstly I love the cover it drew me in and I instantly wanted to read it it gave me hating game vibes. On reading this I feel like I have read this story so many times it has vibes from every popular romcom but almost doesn't always seamlessly transition throughout. It was definitely a cute curl up on the sofa story that I can slowly read overtime but I was hoping for a little more.

I recieved the love hack as an ARC from NetGalley for my honest review.

This easy-to-read novel is perfect if you are looking for a quick, cute story that will hold your interest. While this book does have the typical rom-com elements, there are also the family dynamics and sibling relationships issues thrown in. The characters are likable and the story line was good enough to keep me engaged and wanting to read - so much so that I finished the book in 2 days. This story is not deep or complicated but if you are looking for a light, fun, happy read — this is for you. I will read other novels from
Sophie Ranald after reading Love Hack.

4/5⭐️

A very fun Rom-com!

This book was short, sweet and fun. I loved the writing, the plot and the characters. Lucy and Amelie were written well although I did not expect Amelie’s story to take the arc it did. That caught me off guard.
Lucy and Ross were definitely cute together and it was refreshing to see a real, funny, goofy man in the romantic role as opposed to the usual alpha types. I have to say that I am a big fan of Sophie’s writing style. It seemed very gentle, expressive and calming. This book put me in a very good mood after. It was also an ode to sisterhood and sibling love which I loved as well.

I did think that Lucy was a bit too naive for her age. Same reflected in her equation with Kieran, especially towards the end. Even so, her character growth was very promising.

Overall, a really fast, fun rom-com with minimal to no spice, a guaranteed good time. I will be definitely picking up other books by the author.

I received an ARC of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Thank you to Netgalley, the Author and the Publisher for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This story could have been cute but I sadly didn’t like the main character Lucy - I was more interested in her sister’s story. I felt like there could have been more details on the interactions between Lucy and Ross instead of blushing, their relationship didn’t make any sense to me and I wasn’t rooting for them.

A cute story about love and sisterhood! This book really wanted to be a rom com movie, but I think it fell a bit short for me. I was honestly way more invested in the side plots! Definite gems of this book were the humor and modern references because that's what kept me reading.

A big hug to Netgalley and Storm publishing for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

"The Love Hack" by Sophie Ranald took me on an emotional rollercoaster ride, evoking feelings of happiness, sadness, and even anger as I delved into Lucy's world. The story unfolds through Lucy's perspective as she navigates her job working for Max, featuring an intriguing Ask Adam feature where Lucy answers questions about love and relationships, masquerading as a male perspective. With her coworker Ross by her side, whom she harbors a secret crush on despite his relationship status, Lucy's journey is both captivating and relatable. As she grapples with the complexities of relationships and the male psyche, Lucy's use of AI adds a fascinating twist to the narrative. When she stumbles upon a suspicious Ask Adam question, Lucy's determination to uncover the truth leads to an engaging investigation. Alongside the dynamic between Lucy and Ross, the touching bond between Lucy and her sister Amelie adds depth to the story, highlighting the power of sisterhood. "The Love Hack" is a compelling read that keeps you glued to the pages from start to finish.
Thanks to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Coming in, I was really intrigued by the plot summary. But the book was really more about sisterhood. Lucy saves her job by starting an "Ask Adam" column at a men's magazine, where she answers questions men have about love, relationships, and life. One day, she gets a shocking submission from who she suspects to be her sister's husband. Lucy finds herself in a dilemma of when/how she would warn her sister without completely ruining the relationship between the sisters. Lucy also finds herself getting closer to Ross, her new co-worker who has been dating her sister's friend. She has been traumatized by her relationship with a previous co-worker that ended disastrously, and is unsure of her growing feelings for Ross, who is totally unavailable.

This was 3.5 stars rounded up to a 4. I found the ending between Lucy and Ross to be kind of anticlimactic. All the action happens in the course of 5 days with her sister and Ross and some of the plotlines felt kind of rushed. I did like Lucy's dedication to and love for her sister and their relationship was really the focus of the story with the romance happening in the background.

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Perfect for fans of 'The Hating Game'. A feel good laugh out loud rom com!
Lucy is feeling the aftermath of covid and working for a womens magazine. The dreaded redundancy. Unless of course, she can show her bosses that her male counterpart across at Max- Ross isn't right for the role of technology editor...
This book has so many tropes I love in a rom com book. Great characters, witty banter, enemies to lover office romance and a cat.
Perfect read for a miserable wet Saturday with a cup of tea.

Thank you @netgalley and @stormbooks_co for the eARC of The Love Hack by @sophieranld in exchange for an honest review!

📖📖 Book Review 📖📖 Lucy might be in over her head at her new job as an advice columnist, especially when it comes to love. After a workplace romance went wrong, the closest thing she has to love is being maid of honor in her sister’s upcoming wedding. But here’s the thing, her columnist job is top secret and she is under the alias of a man, Adam. The Love Hack is an endearing story about a young woman finding her voice in a man’s world (even if it means writing in a man’s voice) and trying her best to overcome past hurdles and heartbreak through enduring optimism.. The Love Hack is a heartwarming tale that touches on some really deep subjects but maintains a light and feel good attitude throughout.

Review is posted on Goodreads and will be on Instagram ahead of the publication date!

The love hack is a typical rom com that will hit familiar notes in an expected way. It's not bad but it won't do anything earth shattering... but that's what people read romance foe comfort... stability

I absolutely adore Sophie Ranald and am so excited to share my feedback on her upcoming latest release. Please watch thus solace for further updates.

This was so unbelievably bad. The only “good” thing I got out of it was learning British slang. If I were to break this book down it would be:
50% Lucie complaining and being in complete and utter delusional state
20% cringy modern anecdotes
10% Amelie and Zack’s questionable relationship
10% Lucie’s codependent relationship with her cat
10% Lucie and Ross

“An intelligent, thoughtful, serious man, possibly with deep emotional scars that only I could heal.”
- okay Handy Manny go on and fix a man. Btw, this is Lucie thinking about meeting her dream man.

“I’d thought we were beginning to be friends and even allowed myself to imagine that there could be something more there. I’d thought I could trust him – thought he might be different from other men.”
- TrUsT him?!?!? All you’ve done is exchange Seinfeld quotes and made coffee and tea together. At this point their relationship is more akin to a barista and a customer than whatever Lucie has made herself believe.
- crying about a coworker you’ve known for a couple of weeks kissing another girl??

Lucie is so immature for her age, it’s wild.

I had quite a few emotions go through me reading this book. Happy, sad, angry, etc. It is told in Lucy's POV. She works for Max! and has an Ask Adam feature. It is mainly med writing in asking questions about love, relationships and so on but it is actually Lucy answering them, not a male. Ross is her coworker who she shares close desks with. Lucy has a massive crush on him but unfortunately Ross isn't single. It is fun to see how Lucy answers these questions that come her way, try to understand the male gender. When it becomes some what overwhelming for her she starts using AI. When Lucy gets an Ask Adam question that makes her suspicious, she feels it is best for her to investigate. I enjoyed both Ross and Lucy, both great characters. I felt for Lucy's sister Amelie along the way. It was great to see how close sisters are and what they do for each other.
This is a good read, hard to put down once you start!

"But to me he looked like a movie star... Even standing still, there was a grace about him, an air of calm that seemed to dampen the murmur of the voices around me and the hum of the city beyond into silence."

Lucy has just landed a new job as an online men's relationship advice columnist. After her last office romance failed, she swore off coworkers forever... That is, until she met Ross. He's charming and cute, but there's one problem -- he isn't exactly single. As Lucy's advice column becomes more and more popular, she feels overwhelmed by the workload and turns to AI to help her answer their requests, as well as how to navigate her feelings for Ross. Will Lucy find love, or will her office love life continue to become more complicated?

"The Love Hack" was a very sweet story. Reading about Lucy's admiration for Ross reminded me of old childhood crushes and the feeling of butterflies for the first time. I was surprised by the side-adventure we went on regarding her sister, but to keep this review spoiler-free, I'll let you experience it on your own. If you enjoy tropes including office romance, miscommunication, and love triangles, this novel is definitely for you!