Review: The Love Hack

The Love Hack by Sophie Ranald
My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The Love Hack instantly jumped out at me as my kind of book. As both a fan of romance novels and a bit of a geek I figured that this would be right up my street, however, the book I found myself reading had little to do with love and much less to do with hacking.

The protagonist, Lucy, is a journalist for a women's magazine tech column who finds herself in a bind when her magazine decides to downsize. To save her job, she pitches an 'agony uncle' column and finds herself navigating a new office environment with a group of male colleagues. Settling into her new role Lucy grapples with an avalanche of readers' dilemmas with no idea how to deal with either them or her new co-workers.

Sophie Ranald has a great writing style and this book reflects that, although there are a few quirks. Lucy appears to be written as a stereotypical 'geek'—glasses, a penchant for technology, video gaming, and somewhat terrible interpersonal skills, which border on social anxiety all tied with a lack of relationship experience. Although it's not abundantly clear that this is actually the intention and the lack of clarity often makes her come across as immature rather than just awkward. Her counterpart, Ross, doesn’t fare much better being, at best, emotionally stunted.

The interactions between Lucy and Ross resemble a comedy of errors largely due to their disastrously poor communication skills. This dynamic, while frustrating, does add a relatable and humorous touch to the story. The lack of close friends would normally feel off but in the case of these two characters, actually feels like it tracks.

However, the title The Love Hack suggests to me a fusion of romance and clever technological twists, something which the book doesn’t fully deliver. The actual 'hack' element involves using an AI chatbot to help write answers for Lucy's column—a premise ripe for hilarity that sadly wasn’t fully explored. Moreover, the romantic element is extremely thin, mostly focusing on non-romantic relationships such as family and pets.

A side note that might concern some readers is the casual and occasionally comedic mention of terrorism, which might feel out of place for those who prefer to keep real-life events out of their reading escapades.

Overall, The Love Hack is an easy read, though it falls short of its promising premise. It might aim for a slice-of-life feel—though Lucy managing on a single journalist's salary in London is a stretch even for fiction. Tech enthusiasts might also find certain portrayals anywhere from a bit oversimplified to downright inaccurate, yet it still offers some enjoyable moments for those looking for a story of personal growth amidst workplace challenges or a downright awkward protagonist.

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for providing me with an e-arc - all opinions are my own