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beeee_reads's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death
Minor: Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexism, and Sexual assault
booksandprosecco's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Stars: 4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
Disclaimer: The amazing humans at HBG Canada were kind enough to send me a copy of The Trouble with Hating You in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions below are my own.
TW/CW: including but not limited to sexual assault (including scenes where the victim is not believed/insulted for “making it up”); loss of a parent.
“I thought love was enough, but the way love broke everything wasn’t worth it.”
“Love is enough. It’s society’s views and old-world thinking that broke everything.”
The Trouble with Hating You was such a fun, powerful, inspiring read, and I literally read it in a day. It is an excellent reminder that you do not have to conform to anyone else’s belief/desire of who you are/should be. You are important and worthy the way you are.
Liya Thakkar has a successful career, a beautiful home, and is happily living the single life. Despite her successes, her parents want one thing – to see her married. During a family dinner, Liya’s parents try to trick her into meeting a suitor, but she has no plans to entertain that and flees out the back door.
Shortly after that fiasco, the same suitor shows up at Liya’s work. It turns out that Jay Shah is the new lawyer hired to save her company from going under. Now, Liya and Jay see each other nearly every single day, and the enemies-to-lovers, slow burn romance that follows is everything!
“The spicy aromas of curried vegetables and buttery roti wafted from the kitchen, rolled through the hallway, and greeted me in the foyer. My mouth instantly watered. Who didn’t melt a little when they smelled their mother’s home cooking?”
Let’s start with ALL the culture that is in this book! Yes please to more books about Indians. Both Liya and Jay are Hindu, and we get everything from regular visits to the mandir to a full-on, big, fat Indian wedding – Bollywood dance number included. There were so many moments – from descriptions of food to family dynamics – that deeply resonated with me.
This is one of those books that reminds you why representation matters – you forget that seeing yourself in a book/movie/etc., can really make you feel seen and valid in our chaotic world.
I love Liya. Yes, she is outspoken, maybe a little bit impulsive, and definitely blunt at times. And I am the exact same way. I know people don’t always love when I argue about feminism and why things need to change in my culture/community, but I do it anyways so that maybe down the road, they will remember that conversation when it matters and also try to change sexist behaviours.
“I’m not going to lie and say I know everything about her, but I do know if you’re nice to her, she will be a good friend to you. If you’re a jerk or start judging her, she’ll probably put you in your place. Liya is opinionated and strong and doesn’t take crap from anyone. Maybe the problem here is you and not her. All that judgmental, sexist shaming you’re doing isn’t reflective of her but defining you.”
Liya is also loyal, thoughtful, and managing the best she can in a community that constantly gossips about her. They talk about her “promiscuous” ways, her drinking and partying, and the fact that she lives on her own. What they don’t care about is that she was sexually assaulted, that she doesn’t know that love can also be kind, and that has a lot of healing to do in a community that won’t let her.
I know this story is also about Jay and the fact that he also needs to heal from his past, but for me, this book was all about Liya and her journey. I appreciated everything she went through with her friends, family, and community. I truly believe that more Indian women need this story, not necessarily to be just like Liya, but to find hope in her strength.
I really loved Liya’s group of friends as well, and they reminded me a lot of my friends. They are supportive, kind, fierce, and so much more. They are there for Liya, even when she can’t explain why she needs them. They push her to be better, and have her back no matter what.
“Me: I thought you were some jackass.
Jay: Because of traditionally approaching you…or…?
Me: That and smiling at me.
Jay: I sort of figured. And noted. Never smile at Liya Thakkar.”
I guess I should mention Jay a little… first of all, for some reason, I kept picturing him as Siddarth Malhotra – not sure why, but I’m definitely not mad about it. Second of all, he was a little bit perfect. Sure, he has his own past to deal with (honestly, my one complaint is that he definitely should have seen a therapist about his past – same with Liya), but he is kind, observant, feminist, and asks for consent! Yes, that is kind of the bare minimum that a person should be, but sadly, it is not.
Jay’s family is also pretty damn awesome. I love his mother and want more “steadfast in their feminist beliefs” Indian mothers in books please!
“I’ve always been taught to keep my opinions to myself, obey my elders and parents, and do nothing that could blemish my name or that of my parents.”
As I briefly mentioned above, this book deals with sexual assault. It deals with the victim being a child when this happens, the assaulter being a person in an authoritative position, and many people not believing the victim. It also deals with pressures from family and society to be absolutely perfect. There are a few really difficult scenes, and one near the end that is completely heart-breaking.
These are all very real situations that, sadly, happen way too often. I really appreciated the way this book handled the situations though, and that it aggressively calls out certain toxic behaviours both within a family unit and the broader community.
Sure, there are a few tropes in this book, and certain things felt slightly unrealistic – the characters are at the mandir a lot, which might be normal, but also seemed a bit much – but in the end, none of that bothered me.
I enjoyed this book so much, and highly recommend it to everyone!
The Trouble with Hating You released in May 2020, so you can grab it now! Thank you again to HBG Canada for sending me this to read and review!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Sexual assault
nemaria's review
medium-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Rape, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, and Grief