Loathe at First Sight audiobook

I actually really enjoyed this! I will say don’t go into this book expecting it to be fully romance & a hate to love story because honestly I don’t think it is. It’s more about a woman working in a field dominated by men & having to prove herself time and time again. It’s got a ton of misogyny in it and honestly horrible men but you will root for the main character, Melody to stick it to these men over and over. It does have some romance in it but it’s not the forefront of the book at all, I think if you know that you’ll like the book much more.

This is the kind of romance novel that I need more of! It does a great job at balancing out the story to where the romance doesn't overtake every aspect of the plot. I really enjoyed following Melody's journey despite all the hardships she had to face at the workplace. It was nice seeing her fight for herself and for other women within her industry. I feel like Suzanne Park is a *severely* underrated author and I'm going to need people to stop sleeping on her books. WAKE UP FAM!

3.5 starsI think reading a few reviews before I started this one helped as I had a heads up this book wasn't going to be a strong enemies to lovers romance so I was able to change my expectations a bit. And while there were some definite issues, overall my feelings are more positive than negative about the book.Melody Joo has recently landed a job as a video game producer. This is her first time working in the industry and her job is even more difficult given how sexism runs rampant at the company. Melody is joking around one day with a female co-worker about a video game concept she came up with involving male strippers fighting for survival in a post-apocalyptic world. Well, the boss overhears the conversation and decides the video game concept should be a top priority project for the studio and puts Melody in charge. The project could make or break her career. Assigned to Melody's team is Nolan MacKenzie, an intern who just happens to be the CEO's nephew. There's a lot going on in this story to the point in which it is overwhelming. At times it felt like the story meandered from one thing to the next without a clear focus. Good intentions by the author to bring substance with some relevant issues but it left some aspects underdeveloped. Eliminating some of the minor plot points like the ride share dilemma that was pointless or anything to do with the wedding might have helped a bit. And to be honest the interactions with her Korean American parents didn't seem to work well either in the story. So while I do have some complaints, I thought the video game aspect made this book unique. And even though the plot wasn't heavy on the romance, at least there was some chemistry between the two characters. I think this makes a better fiction read than romance. I always appreciate the chance to read something different and at least the writer mixed things up a bit. Just because the end result wasn't perfect doesn't mean I didn't find value in reading the book.I received a free copy of this book from the publisher but was not obligated to post a review here. All views expressed are my honest opinion.

I LOVE THIS BOOK!

So much to love about this book. I loved Melody so much, who works her butt off to prove herself in a profession dominated by white males: the gaming industry. It was easy to share all of the emotions of frustration and anger of the racist, misogynistic environment of Melody's workplace because it was all spot on. And then, those victory moments came when I wanted to high five Melody because she is all kinds of smart, savvy, and funny. TBH, I think the title is misleading because while there is definitely a good story thread featuring a romantic interest (well-paced, too), I felt like this book was all about Melody and I was 100% behind her the whole way.

Besides being funny and romantic, which it absolutely is, LOATHE AT FIRST SIGHT gives us a smart heroine who's easy to love. Melody Joo is a video game producer new to her job at Seventeen Studios. Early on, she jokes with a female coworker about fighting the patriarchy by making a video game about male strippers in a post-apocalyptic world. Although she was only kidding, before she knows it, the idea's been passed to the board of Seventeen Studios, and it's quickly named their next big thing. Melody should feel ecstatic to be running such a high-profile project as a junior producer (and of course, she is deservedly happy), but it's not an easy road. As a woman and Korean-American in an industry known for its bro culture, she never gets the same level of support that her white, male counterparts on other projects get. Everything she accomplishes is through grit, smarts, and savvy thinking on her feet. I absolutely loved her blend of toughness and vulnerability and think readers will really relate to this wonderful character.The story is hilarious and well-written. Plus Melody's blossoming romance with the office intern is all kinds of sweet. I can't wait for LOATHE AT FIRST SIGHT to hit shelves!

I read an early version of this book and loved it! It’s an empowering read with charming characters and a lot of comedy! I couldn’t help but root for Melody as she tackled creating a video game in her male-dominated workplace. Suzanne Park does a great job of creating a realistic character anyone can identify with, and she kept me laughing the entire time. I can’t wait for this to hit shelves so I can read it again!

I was so excited to receive an early copy of this book and it did not disappoint! I laughed...a LOT. Suzanne Park's novel is effortlessly funny and entertaining, while also fully immersing readers in the world of tech & gaming (the good and the terrible). I couldn't help but root for Melody, who was brave and messy and wonderful. My heart ached reading about the alarming sexism and racism she experienced simply by trying to do her job. There were some turns at the end I didn't see coming. I look forward to seeing what this author writes next!

*Huge thanks to Books Forward PR for the eARC! All opinions are my own.*Suzanne Park has officially become one of my favorite contemporary authors, I loved reading Loathe At First Sight! ❤️✨ It was funny, witty, feminist, nerdy and just absolutely amazing. I had recently read The Perfect Escape (also from Suzanne) and I enjoyed reading it so much that I was thrilled to find out about her next work: Loathe At First Sight.Omg, where do I begin?!! Melody is so cool, a true inspiration. When she nails a job in the video game industry, she finds herself with several obstacles including a very obnoxious co-worker and a privilege work team member. However the way she manages every situation is so clever, she constantly had me laughing! But I was equally frustrated of the injustices she had to suffer in a work environment of mostly men employees that had little respect for "women opinions". Ugh, the unfairness!!! My feminist heart loved how this story progressed though. 🥰And can we talk about Nolan?! He is so cute and smart and a very nice guy! I loved how he supported Melody and even ended up doing a crazy marketing plan alongside her. I LOVED that part! 😂 My second favorite scenes where whenever Melody's parents appear. They are hilarious!!!Anyway, you must all read this book! I promise it does not disappoint. It is now one of my favorite contemporary reads! 📚❤️✨

Yes, there is a romance here, but more than that, this is a story of a woman fighting to succeed in a male-dominated career. Melody Joo is a Korean-American woman employed by a video game company. When a game idea that starts as a joke is taken seriously, she finds herself leading a team in the creation of a new, female-centric first person shooter game featuring male strippers and female warriors fighting zombies, vampires, and aliens. It only takes a bit of leaked intel to the online gaming community to set off a firestorm of vitriol directed at Melody, most of it heavily misogynistic and racist. Melody weathers personal and professional attacks with the help of the women - and men - who support her. I love that this is a book about finding and creating support systems, fighting against stereotypes, and finding success on your own terms.

It was fun reading about a gamer girl. I feel like this book was more about female empowerment than the rom-com aspect. I'm totally down for that, especially as a gamer girl. Melody Joo was a fascinating character who had her flaws throughout the book. It was great getting to see her rise above everything and show everyone her badassery. Also, Nolan was a precious ray of sunshine. You could never hate that adorable puppy.

Deep down I knew who the love interest would be before he was even introduced, but part of me was hoping it was someone else simply because the hate didn't last long enough. I greatly enjoyed this book, though the title feels a bit misleading. I was expecting a full blown hate to love trope, and instead got more of a workplace/friends to lovers vibe. Slow burn! The characters were well developed and enjoyable, the gaming/tech environment was fun for me as a female that enjoys gaming. I particularly loved the cosplay portion and I would play the crap out of the game that Melody inadvertently imagines and then brings to fruition.

LOATHE AT FIRST SIGHT is a character-driven exploration of the racism and misogyny within the gaming community and industry. Melody Joo is deeply human character who I found myself rooting for as she battled obstacle after obstacle with resilience and humor. The inclusion of the relationship with her friends and parents provided balance to heavier topics and humor. Though readers should be prepared for the extent of harassment the character experiences including threats, stalking, doxing, and workplace harassment, as a non-gamer, I felt almost part of the community—Park weaves together a vivid setting and characters. Thank you to the author for an advanced copy of this book.

This was the first book I read by Suzanne Parks and I have to say, the experience was amazing. I went into reading Loathe at First Sight thinking it was focused mainly on romance due to the cover but no, it wasn’t really and I can’t say I’m mad at all. We find Melody Joo getting the job of her dreams as a video game producer but the instant she starts her job, her predominately male coworkers give her crap. She’s a female and of Korean heritage working in a corporate that is supposedly for “white males only” and to her, it’s frustrating. Especially since she knows she’s just as good as them, if not even better. It doesn’t help that once she produces her own mobile game, Zombie Apocalypse, the racist and sexist harassment she’s already getting, becomes worse. As she’s struggling from harassment from both online and work, she also can’t help but feel a growing connection with the cute MBA intern Nolan MacKenzie, even if she finds him exasperating. First off, this book is really funny and I found myself laughing at some scenes or lines quite often. Knowing the book had humor early on made me excited to open up the book and read more. I was really intrigued and found out Parks herself is a comedian so it started to click on why she was so good at injecting humor in the dialogues and such.Now onto Melody herself, I really grew to love and admire her as the story progressed. She’s so strong and unashamedly herself despite what the industry she works in tries to categorize and stereotype her as. It was infuriating to see the way the men viewed women at Melody’s work and how easily they doubted her skills or used her. The reality is that this type of behavior still occurs in a lot of workforce’s and is something women go through (sadly) when some (not all) men feel threatened by their intelligence. Melody here shows her haters that it’s the world that has to change, not her and I loved her for that. Romance wise it was really cute but it didn’t play a big part in the story and understandably so. I was okay with that but the romance fanatic in me would have also loved more Nolan and Melody moments. All things considered, this book was important, powerful, and a story that was well needed to be told.

I wasn't expecting to enjoy this book as much, but Melody's adventure to release her game actually kept me turning the pages.3.5, rounded up to 4 stars.Melody finally gets a chance to prove herself in her new job, producing the game she pitched herself. But the news leak too soon and that makes her the target of cyberbullying. Without support from her boss, she needs to gather her allies and never give up, and the new intern she hated at first sight may be a bigger help than she could imagine.I've read another Suzanne Park book before but it was a YA and, although with time I could identify points in common (more obviously, the Korean parents), in the beginning, it make me feel like checking again if they're really the same person. I enjoyed both stories, but this one felt much more solid. So if you've read The Perfect Escape and are feeling iffy (not sure why you would, because it was still a good, refreshing YA), just give this a chance.Nolan is really perfect as book boyfriend and I think the title may be misleading. Of course Melody didn't like him at first but that didn't last enough for us to even put the book in the from-enemies-to-lovers trope. He's super cute and supportive, and what gets in the way of them being an item is the fact that he is her intern, working directly under her thanks to the game project. Despite the word intern, he's actually some months older and he's just started in the company, so it's not as awkward in practice and it seems to be. It's still unlucky for Melody, because he seems to hot and charming.The book discusses a lot prejudice against women in gaming, to a point the police are involved (and not helpful at all). I can't say if all the backslash on Melody creating the game is credible because I definitely don't know the industry, but cyberbullying sure sounded scary. I loved how this was written. The vigilantes part, though, made me frown a bit, but it was still exciting.Although this book felt more controlled than The Perfect Escape, I still think there was something wrong with the rhythm. The read doesn't drag, don't worry, but sometimes we'll get some time skips, at others, loose ends. For example, Melody signs a contract that she's not to reveal anything about how her company ratio of men and women is uneven. Some chapters later, she's giving a statement joking about the few women existing in the company. The jokes were hilarious but this bleep on her part goes unnoticed. To be honest, that whole scene existed only for her to make those jokes. Funny, but also useless. That is one example of what is recurring in the book, things happening without repercussion. Those loose ends and the way the narration dealt with the passage of time made the book seem a little rushed, but didn't get in the way of the fun or of the main plot.I recommend this book to those who like reading about strong women but who didn't think they were strong until they have to be. Of course, there's romance too, and it's cute. Honest review based on an ARC provided by Edelweiss. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.