I really wanted to like this book, but there were so many things that made me cringe, roll my eyes, and just want this book to be done.

1. I didn’t like or feel connected to the FMC or the MMC. Lucy was very childish. While I could connect with her because I am a fellow introvert, she was extremely isolated and had no experience to do her job. Ross was just unlikable (and honest I kept picturing Ross from Friends the whole time).

2. I don’t like when the main characters are with OW/OM. It just ruins the whole story, so chapter 6 ruined everything for me.

3. The plot was so boring. I thought the synopsis of this book sounded great, but it was better than the book.

4. I usually hate when people say this because it is so vague, but the flow was off and didn’t work for me.

I really wished I liked this book. Maybe next time.

*An ARC was received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I had to DNF this book at 54%... was I supposed to like the FMC? Lucy is insufferable, has a strange co-dependency with her sister, and somehow lands a job writing an advice column for men with little to no experience with men? I'm supposed to believe this is a romance, but, at this point, the only romance between Lucy and Ross is one scene where they exchange Sienfield quotes, and then she feels "betrayed" when he kisses another girl at a club. Come on now.

My breaking point was Lucy's cavalier use of AI to write her column. I realized I honestly do not care if she gets caught and sacked, how it comes back to bite her, if it does at all. I don't care about any of these characters, and I simply cannot go on. Honorable mentions to the office mates joking about the bomb scare and the weird Christopher Columbus joke.

3 stars.
Firstly, what a brilliant FMC. Despite a few occasions were I found her reflective episodes irritating and of little addition to the story, I loved her as an individual. She is strong, speaks her mind and is protective of those she loves. Her office romance with Ross takes centre stage, but I feel the focus on this takes away from a really good storyline without the additional romance. I feel that Lucy losing her job, navigating through new job issues and the ‘Agony Adam’ column, protecting her sister and embarking on her own mission to protect her sister/best-friend could’ve really made for a funny story without the need for the workplace romance. That being said, this was a lovely easy read and the romance between Ross and Lucy was sweet and endearing.
The sister character, Amelie, also adds another layer into this book which really has the reader thinking and stirs up emotions, which I also really enjoyed.
I was also very emotionally invested in Astro’s wellbeing throughout.
I’d recommend this book for a chilled, evening read. Thank you for the ARC of this book!

Author: Sophie Ranald
Publisher: Storm Publishing
Publishing Date: June 07 2024

Lucy can’t seem to catch a break. She gets demoted from her job, her dating life is nonexistent and she’s about to lose her best friend, her sister to marriage. She always thinks quickly on her feet though, and leverages an opportunity to run an advice column, Ask Adam.

While writing the column, she uncovers more about men than she had bargained for, including some secrets that could totally hurt those she loved.

Overall a really cute and fun read! Good character development and a sweet story about a woman coming into her own.

Many thanks to NetGalley for the early release copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Lucy lands a new job as Agony Uncle Adam giving out relationship advice to men, when really she hasn’t had a relationship herself in years other than the very loving bond she has with Astro her cat!
Along with the new job, comes her desk buddy Ross who quickly becomes her new secret crush which she is desperate to get over, not only because he’s seeing on of her sisters mates, but also because office relationships have burned her in the past.
This is a cute story with lovely characters & was very easy to get stuck into and read.
I loved where the story took us & didn’t find myself frustrated with a stupid miscommunication tropes, so all in all, im a very happy reader!
Will defo look out for more by Sophie Ranald!
3.5 stars rounded up!

Super cute, fun beach read.

Love the cute, quirky characters, the references (hello, ChatGPT!), and the storyline.

Fast to read and easy to love!

Thank you to Netgalley, Sophie Ranald, and Storm Publishing for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Lucy Masters loses her job when her women’s magazine is merged with a men’s by the publisher. She is forced to take on a new role as the secret voice behind ‘Ask Adam’, a men’s magazine advice column. To make matters worse, the guy who beat her out for original job works right across from her in the office, is very cute, and is dating her friend. And, most importantly, her sister is getting married to a man that may or may not actually be deserving of her.

The good - The story was very funny. When Lucy suspects that her new brother in law is considering an affair she decides to tail him. Instead of actually following him though, Lucy accidentally orders too much food and takes a nap. When she doesn’t know how to answer her advice seekers, she feeds their questions into a ChatGPT style bot and then argues with the bot when it doesn’t give answers she likes. The side characters (of which there are a lot) don’t do much, but everyone who is named does actually serve a purpose.

The bad - honestly I’m not sure this really needed to be a romantic comedy. I think I would have liked it better if Lucy didn’t get the guy at the end. It was important to her development (no spoilers - but it was a ‘previous relationship gone wrong’ story) so I understand why it’s there, but this could have just been a story of Lucy finding her footing in her new role while attempting to spy and also taking care of her sister.

Honestly, I would suggest reading this book, but it’s more of a general women’s fiction novel than a romantic comedy to me.

Lucy tech writer at the magazine Fab! loses her position to redundancy. She embarks on a new journey as romance advice writer “Ask Adam”. In her new job and new environment of all men Lucy is sure she will fail and makes a deal with her sister Amelie to help her out.

The new writing job puts Lucy with a well rounded group of lovable men including Ross who quickly becomes her office crush. With Amelie’s upcoming wedding and disapproving fiance her sister refuses to continue helping. Feeling lost and abandoned Lucy is left to figure out her new job and men all on her own. With the help of AI writing Lucy starts dishing out advice that is well received and the letter start pouring in. Lucy writes one particular advice response that goes viral and then things really start to get messy. Convinced one letter is from Ross, a not single man with feelings for a coworker, Lucy is torn between wanting to do her job and following her heart.

It’s a new take on the classic boy meets girl, they fall in love. I mostly enjoyed the story, Lucy and Ross are well rounded characters, some of the others were less developed and therefore less relatable. In the end it’s a cute quick read. Thank you Storm Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC of The Love Hack, all opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the ARC of this book in exchange of an honest review.

This book was a very light read and easy to get through. It’s perfect for anyone looking for a quick rom-com that’s not heavy or too long. Once I got through the first few chapters, I managed to read the remaining book in less than a day.

I liked it because it was easy to follow; I’ve also been going through a bit of a reading slump so anything too intense was out of the question. The Love Hack was the perfect fit for me at this point in time. Having said that, don’t expect to believe deep into the characters because everything was quite surface level. This is including the story with the romantic interest. The ending was sweet however I’m still confused of how they got there. There was definitely not enough interaction between the two for me to actively root for them. Ross, the love interest, was just…there occasionally. There were also points were it got a bit repetitive, with Lucy continuously repeating that she can never fall for someone she works with ever again only for her to, you guessed it, falling for someone she works with again.

The highlight for me was the protagonist’s relationship with the sister. It’s so clear how much they love and support each other through thick and thin, both giving each other a push when it was needed.

All in all, I would recommend this to whoever wants a light rom-com that doesn’t take long to get through.

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

Generally, I really enjoy reading British rom-coms and women's fiction, but this one didn't really do it for me. The writing was great and the storyline was fresh and unique enough (especially with the inclusion of the AI storyline), but Lucy's unresolved trauma and not-like-other-girls mentality gave me a headache.

What really bothered me was that this book felt like multiple books squeezed into one: Lucy and Ross's story, Lucy and Amelie's (her sister) story, Amelie's relationship with Zack, Ross's background story, and so on.

While The Love Hack had potential with its unique premise and great writing, it ultimately faltered in execution. The mishmash of storylines and frustrating character dynamics detracted from what could have been a great beach read.

To be honest, Astro was the only character whose story I was really invested in.

I went into this thinking it would be a fun rom-com but it was just ok for me. I felt as though some parts of the book were really dragged out with descriptions, while other parts were just skipped over completely. The flashbacks to her previous relationship also threw me off because it just launched into the flashback without much warning. I did like the premise of her giving advice through a magazine column.

I expected this book to be the love story between Lucy & Ross.

The thing is… it wasn’t much of a love story between Lucy and Ross. It was mostly about Lucy, her issues, her insecurities, the relationship with her sister, her new job, her relationship with her ex, her cat and just a bit about Ross.

As the book progressed, I thought it was the slowest-burn romance I’ve ever read but in the end I can’t say it was. I’m not gonna say more because I don’t want to spoil anything. But we read a lot more about her cat and her ex and her sister’s relationship with her husband than about Ross.
I also disliked her sister, like big time.

I guess it could have been better if we had a glimpse from Ross’s perspective. And maybe if he had showed he was interested in her. There was like 0 angst. I didn’t feel like I was reading a typical rom-com because I was slightly annoyed and not particularly happy by the time it finished.
I’m not saying it’s a bad book. I did like the fact that the MCs were normal people. It just wasn’t what I expected it to be.

-Single 1st person POV (FMC)
-Spice: 0.5/5 🌶️

Overall: 2.5/5 ⭐️ for me.

Thank you Storm Publishing for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley.

Enjoyed, read in one sitting. Light and easy to read.. book contains some language and mostly closed door sex scenes. A few brief scenes are described in past memories.
There were turns I didn't expect in this book, which was good.thank you netgallery for this ARC

I really enjoyed this book. It had some deeper topics which I felt were handled with care. The romance was sweet and the plot was original. I recommend for a light, quick, fun read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for providing this book, with my honest review below.

I enjoyed The Love Hack, which went a bit beyond just being usual chick lit fare to explore emotional trauma from past relationships and the mark that leaves.

We are introduced to Lucy, who sees her tech editor role at a women’s targeted magazine being consolidated with that of the brother magazine targeting males. In a bid to keep a job she proposes an Ask Adam column which will act as an agony uncle to the male readership at the magazine. Unfortunately Lucy isn’t very sociable, which extends to her dating life, so she finds herself at a loose end as to how to answer the queries. That’s where her newly married sister, Amelie, comes into play. As Lucy settles into her role (and Amelie no longer feeling comfortable helping her with the column), we meet Ross (the remaining tech editor) and her male coworkers, as well as delve slowly into her past relationship which caused her turtle into herself a bit.

The Love Hack tries to cover a variety of plot points and ground which sometimes means we don’t go very deep into any one, but at its core it’s very entertaining and a little touching. If you have Sophie Ranald’s past books you know she always has unique plots and likes to create an emotional bond with her characters, and I thought she was in her usual form here! This was a 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 for me.

Just finished this book in less than 24 hours! I can honestly say I really liked this one, and I think I’m definitely in my romance era🙃 a fun story with some loveable characters, and a good twist!

London-based Journalist Lucy works as “Ask Adam”, an advice columnist for men who send in their personal and love life questions. 2 problems. 1, she knows nothing about men. 2, her dreamy American co-worker Ross who just so happens to be seeing one of her sister’s best friends. Since her last relationship went up in flames, Lucy’s spent years single and she’s not sure she’s willing to dive back in anytime soon.

Such a cute twist on your typical office romcom! It’s such an easy one-sitting read, with a healthy male love interest and a female MC who doesn’t feel the need to constantly be perfect. Lucy was such a real character, and I loved the way the relationship helped her grow into herself. Incredibly wholesome and perfect for a warm weekend.

The Love Hack - 3.5 ★

A must-read for any fans of ‘The Hating Game’ & ‘Book Lovers’ & ‘He’s Just Not That Into You’

Lucy Masters has found herself in a new job as the brain behind ‘Ask Adam’, a male magazine’s agony uncle column. This is a problem for Lucy for two reasons - one, she categorically does not understand men, and two, she fancies her new colleague Ross. But Ross is currently seeing Lucy’s sister’s friend. Awkward!

And to complicate things even further, Lucy receives an email from a reader admitting to considering cheating on his wife - and she’s 99% certain that the message has come from her sister’s husband. The husband who has just moved himself and Amelie (Lucy’s sister) across the Atlantic to New York. As any normal person would do, Lucy decides to head out to New York to try and catch him cheating so she can break the news to her sister, but it doesn’t go quite to plan!

I liked this book! Lucy wasn’t your typical rom-com heroine and I liked that. She didn’t fit the mould of a typical ‘girls girl’ and I really liked her edge and the quirkiness that she brought with her character. I also loved her relationship with her sister Amelie and how she quite literally flew across the world to be there for her. Lucy and Ross’ relationship, although an important part of the book, wasn’t central to the storyline. I liked how they developed a friendship first and then the feelings came…it felt really natural and realistic. I also liked how modern and current this book was - the references to AI, and the way dating is, it just gave the book such a realistic feel.

Special shoutout to Astro 🐈 we love a furry friend character! Overall, an enjoyable read! 😊

A cute little rom com! This is the story of Lucy and how she navigates the elimination of her job, family drama and falling in love. Can’t help but fall in love with Ross but at times the story felt a little immature. Would recommend for a light, fun read!

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this!
I would give this a solid 2.5 out of 3 stars.
Lucy is a writer who takes on a "Ask Adam" column, advice for men in dating and life. She's able to use AI to get through the questions she really isn't familiar with, which I thought would be a much bigger plot point than in actuality. She works with Ross, a coworker she has a crush on. I didn't think their chemistry was very believable. Their trajectory just didn't have the build up it really needed to make me really invested. There is also a side story about her sister and her husband (whose pretty gross) and a past romantic failure that really hinders Lucy's growth.
Overall...this is ok. Just ok.