Is it possible to hate a book's main character and still be completely hooked on her story? Because that's where I landed with this one, and I'm still not sure how I feel about it.
I started Hate during one of Sophie's miraculous two-hour naps — the kind where you tiptoe away from the crib like you're defusing a bomb — and I fully intended to just sample the first chapter. Four hours later I was folding laundry with one earbud in, whispering "what is WRONG with you, Madison Kate" at my basket of tiny socks.
Madison Kate Is A Lot (And I Mean A LOT)
So here's the thing nobody warns you about: Madison Kate Danvers is not your typical likeable heroine. She's sharp, she's angry, and she makes choices that had me doing that thing where you pull one earbud out and stare into the middle distance like "girl, NO." But Tate James writes her fury in a way that makes you get it, even when you don't agree with it. She's been framed, her own father threw her under the bus for political optics, and now three guys have moved into her house. Her rage isn't cute or quirky — it's messy and real and occasionally self-destructive.
The reverse harem setup means you've got Archer D'Ath and his crew circling Madison Kate like predators, and the enemies-to-lovers tension is genuinely electric. Not sweet slow-burn electric. More like "these people might actually hurt each other" electric. This is NOT my usual comfort read territory. My library is full of small-town bakers falling for grumpy veterinarians. This was... darker. Spicier. The last time I felt this far outside my comfort zone was with Seduced by the Sea Lord, which also has that "I cannot believe I am invested in this" energy — though honestly Hate took it somewhere even more intense. The kind of book where I kept checking to make sure my Bluetooth wasn't accidentally connected to the kitchen speaker while Emma was doing homework.
The Duet Narration — Almost Perfect, One Weird Hiccup
Brooke Daniels and Lucas Webley do the dual narration thing, and when it works, it really works. Daniels nails Madison Kate's emotional scenes — there's this moment where MK is confronting what happened to her and Daniels's voice actually cracks in a way that doesn't feel performed. It feels like she's IN it. And Webley brings this low, gravelly energy to the male POV sections that made me understand why people simp for fictional bad boys.
The duet format means dialogue scenes feel like you're eavesdropping on actual conversations, which is great. The phone call scenes even have voice effects — slightly tinny audio quality — that pulled me deeper into the moment instead of jolting me out.
BUT. And this is a real but. There's a noticeable difference in microphone quality between the two narrators, especially in the first couple of hours. Daniels sounds crisp and close, Webley sounds like he's recording in a slightly different room. My brain adjusted after a while, but during car time — where I'm already straining to hear over the engine cooling down and the occasional neighborhood dog — it was distracting. It evened out or I just stopped noticing, but fair warning.
The Pacing Problem (And That Ending)
At 9 hours and 25 minutes, this is a totally reasonable length for a week of mom-listening. I finished it in about five days of stolen moments, which is high praise from me. But — and some listeners agree with me here — the middle section drags. There's a stretch where the plot kind of circles the same tensions without pushing forward, and I caught myself checking how much time was left. Not a great sign.
Then the ending hit and I literally said "WHAT" out loud in my parked car at 10:47 PM. It's a cliffhanger. A real one. The kind that makes you immediately open Audible and search for book two. I should've known — it's book one of a series — but I was still unprepared. If cliffhangers make you rage, you've been warned. If cliffhangers make you immediately spend another credit, welcome to the club.
Who's This Actually For?
This is for the mom who's read every sweet romance on her shelf and wants something with teeth. If you like dark romance, enemies-to-lovers with actual bite, and you're unbothered by explicit content (and I do mean explicit — content warnings for violence, language, sexual content, and abuse themes are all earned here), you'll eat this up. If you need a clean, wrapped-up-in-a-bow ending, this is not your book. If your kids can read and might pick up your phone, lock your Audible app.
Survived 47 pauses and still made sense, which given the mystery elements woven through, is genuinely impressive. The setup is clear enough that coming back after a toddler interruption didn't require rewinding.
Adding Book Two to My Cart at Midnight Like a Responsible Adult
Not groundbreaking, but sometimes you don't need groundbreaking — sometimes you need a book that makes you feel something other than exhaustion. This made me feel furious on behalf of a fictional 20-year-old and weirdly attracted to characters I should not be attracted to. The narration is good with one fixable flaw. The story hooks you even when it stumbles. And that cliffhanger? Rude. Absolutely rude. Car time approved — just maybe not with your windows down.
