This book is absolutely filled to the brim with witty banter between two “enemies” forced to work together, so you already know I was hooked from the get go! An unexpected gift came in the form of a lot of biological medical terminology, which satisfiably itched an area of my brain that has sat dormant since I finished my degree. I can already tell that this is going to be a duology that I will love, because every critique I would have about this book is counteracted by the fact that honestly I would have read a whole other book of nothing but the two of them just hurling banter at each other at weird clinics.

The book is written in a split POV style between the FMC Aurienne Fairhrim, a highly professional and proficient medical scientist committed to saving the people, and the MMC Osric Mordaunt, a handsome yet feared member of what I can only refer to as “the dark side” whose days are numbered. The world is set in a magical alternate version of Britain and does well to paint the scene. The magic system and inclusion of the Orders was very interesting, and I especially enjoyed the biological origins of one’s power, deofols and the use of ley lines as a means of transportation. The supporting cast of characters were fun and well represented, but all of them melt into the background when it comes to our impossible pair as the banter between the two that fuels the tormentous slow burn is just so entertaining. Be prepared though, the structure of this book means that the chapters are quite long, though I personally didn’t find this a deterrent at all. Bonus points for our favourite minor character appearance: an Axolotl!

Thank you to Brigitte Knightley and the publishing/NetGalley team for allowing me the opportunity to give an advance review of this book. This was such a fun read and I am aching to read the final instalment, earning a tantalising 4/5 stars ✨

DNF 71% in (literally couldn’t keep going)
Thank you NetGalley for the e-arc in exchange of an honest review.

Another highly anticipated book of the year that ended up being a huge disappointment, and not in the way that I thought this was just not for me. I genuinely believe this book was terrible.
Just to name a few things:
-this felt like a middle grade book trying poorly to be an adult one. We get it, you can say d*ck and make a thousand jokes about it. I didn’t find it funny, nor was I entertained. The same can be said about the supposedly banter between the characters.
-there was absolutely no world building. Everything was thrown at you without much introduction or explanation (so much dialogue without any substance), so you end up not knowing how the magic works, nor the location of the characters, nor the political context. I can’t even tell you the timeline they are in. They sometimes speak like they are in modern day, but then you feel like this could be happening 300 years ago; and you won’t be able to find the answer to any of these questions.
-I was so bored. I won’t lie, I’ve been able to enjoy a book in the past even if I can recognize it’s not the best writing or world building, as long as it’s funny and entertaining. But I was seriously struggling to pick this up.

Right now I can’t find one single positive thing to say about this book. Still happy some people could enjoy it and had a better experience.

Osric Mordaunt, a Fyren (an assassin who kills for money) is in desperate need of a healer. Unfortunately for him (or is it? 😏), that means he needs a Haelan (healer). Most specifically, Aurienne as she is the best chance he has at survival. As much as she hates the Fyren's, she agrees to help Osric once he sends them the money they need to continue their research for a deadly pox disease. Together the two try to figure out a way to heal Osric and investigate the reasons for the pox outbreak.

This book was fun and had me laughing out loud whenever Osric and Aurienne interacted. The things they came out with were so random. They were opposites of the same coin which is why they clashed so much. I loved their bickering and looked forward to all their scenes together. The slow-burn was torturous but i loved it. It's nice that their relationship wasn't rushed and i can't wait to see where they go in book 2.

The names of places were so hilarious and i liked that it was based in London. The plot was nicely paced and a great start point. I'm excited to see more crazy things happen in the next book. It was a quick, easy read and one of those types of stories to dive into when you don't want something heavy.

This book comes out on july 8th in the UK so make sure to grab your copy. Thank you so much Little Brown Book Group and Netgalley for allowing me to read an e-arc of this book for an honest review.

There are a couple of key things everyone should know before diving into this:

1. This is not supposed to be representative of the Dramione ship. They might look the part, and Aurienne kind of resembles Hermione's attitude a bit, but Osric and Draco (no matter what canon or fanon version we are discussing) have NOTHING in common.

2. You are not supposed to take the book seriously. Don't even try. It's a weird, fun, witty, quite vulgar adventure, so if you go looking for anything but that you enjoy it a lot less. So sit tight and enjoy the chaos.

3. It is incredibly sex-positive. Expect a lot of over-the-top sex-related humour and situations, but stay aware that it's still definitely a slow burn, so much more to be explored there later on.

Once those ideas and expectations are clear, one's enjoyment of the book gets elevated exponentially. There are so many fun and swoon-worthy moments, from denial to longing, to frustration. It has taken me quite a while to immerse myself in the story due to the writing style and tone of voice, but once I was in, I WAS IN.

The familiar-like creatures were incredible, I need more art of them ASAP.

I know a lot of people who have rated the book a solid 5 stars, calling it perfection, an all-time fave, or a religious experience. I might not have felt the same, but I surely enjoyed it and wish we'll be able to dive into Book 2 soon, as I'm sure it'll be even better than this.

Okay see I am so torn about the rating. I’ll give it 4 for now but I’m also leaning towards 3.5 solely because the ending disappointed me a little bit.

But first; amazing fun characters. Their banter between them had giggling and kicking my feet especially because c’mon we all know attractive both of them are and I myself am particularly drawn to characters like Osric. I adore how strong and bold Aurienne is, she basically screams female empowerment in every way. And Osric, god he can be annoying but like in a good way if it makes sense? It’s the way a bestfriend can be annoying but it still makes you laugh kind of thing. Plus he’s such a charmer, very skilled and obviously very loyal to what he likes. Multiple things implied here.

Whatever is happening between them is VERY slow burn so please don’t go into this book with expecting a lot of you know things to happen between them. Still the plot, their banter and side characters make up for it. Especially their defoedels (if i’m spelling this right?), it made me want one myself.

Now to the ending. I can see why it ends this way but also it feels extremely abrupt like as if it shouldn’t end that way and accidentally did? I understand it’s suppose to be a cliffhanger but it feels more like suddenly my subscription to reading this specific book ended. It made me a bit sad because I genuinely was so into this book and would have easily read another 200 pages. I really hope we’ll get a 2nd book or I might cry

THE IRRESISTIBLE URGE TO FALL FOR YOUR ENEMY  - BRIGITTE KNIGHTLEY

There aren't many books that actually make me laugh out loud, but The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy (or TIUTFFYE from here on) is the real deal. Packed with witty banter, bickering, ridiculous situations and the most competent-yet-idiotic characters, I had an immensely good time reading this book. How could you not?

Aurienne, a scholarly healer, is forced to work with Osric, an assassin with a degenerative condition. As she attempts to heal him, they get caught up in all sorts of side missions, each one indicating that something sinister is at work in their world.

While I initially struggled to connect to either of the main characters, this swiftly changed over time as I let myself lean into everything that makes this book so unique. For those who love character-focused romantasies full of wit and unexpected situations, you'll adore TIUTFFYE as much as I did.

Thank you to Brigitte Knightley, the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC.

Release date: 8 July 2025

Review score: 4.5/5

TWs: injury detail, d*ath, s*xual content

This was such a disappointment. I had so many problems with this book, many of which I can pin down to the notion that it felt like it missed critical steps in the developmental editing process. But I’m going to list them all anyway, because I want it to be clear that I truly, deeply wanted to love this and hate that I absolutely hated it:

1. The world-building is abysmal—and by abysmal, I mean actually nonexistent. Anything I learned about anything in this world came from the glossary. The only thing I CAN be certain of after finishing this book is that these two are, despite the title, not “enemies.” Aurienne just looks down on Osric’s Order as soulless and immoral. She helps him because her boss makes her. There is not a single element of their circumstances that would classify as enemies to me.

2. I don’t even know how to touch the humor in this. I’d define it as: your friend’s weird dad who is a gastroenterologist? You cannot turn 3 pages without some sort of penis/ball/merkin/fart joke. I cannot emphasize enough how little I laughed and how hard I cringed throughout reading.

3. These characters hardly possessed personalities, so you can’t really develop on what’s not there. Osric is… broody and cynical, I suppose? Aurienne’s only personality trait and/or flaw is that she, idk, cares too much about her job?

4. … was the chemistry in the room with us? The problem with a slow burn is that it does, in fact, HAVE TO LIGHT AT SOME POINT. At the literal 70% mark, I had to triple-check my location in the book. It did not improve by the end, and you should not expect ANY tension in this book. The banter did not hit.

5. This is the first book I’ve ever read (as someone with a Ph.D.) where I actually thought the author genuinely wanted me to feel like a f*cking idiot. There are entirely random, unnecessary uses of French. There is medical jargon. There are SO MANY words that felt like thesaurus searches for the least common synonym. There are flat-out made-up words that aren’t officially defined anywhere. Half of the book is Randomly Capitalized for reasons I am still trying to interpret.

6. This shouldn’t have been a duology and the fact that it is feels like a cash grab to me. This book ended what felt like mid-scene. I thought my ARC might’ve had an error until I realized that was simply the ending.

I seriously tried so hard to find even a moment of joy in this book, and the closest I came was one nice dance scene. It took me a solid 3 weeks to actually get through this.

Oh I absolutely loved this. The world building, the enemies to lovers and the banter were just so so good! I cannot wait for book 2 and I’m so glad I will be getting a special edition of this one!

I really enjoyed this book, loved the witty banter between the FMC and MMC! There were some areas of the book it felt like they needed a bit more detail and felt rushed, but the ending was amazing and I can’t wait to read the next one

Aurienne & Osric
Enemies to lovers
High interaction slow burn
He falls first
Opposites attract
Healer x Assassin

Osric is an assassin with an illness threatening his magic & Aurienne is a healer, possibly the only one who can help him.

This one is the true definition of enemies to lovers!!

I do feel like we needed some more explanation of the magic system and world building though, I did feel a little lost because of this.

Overall great book and I'm excited for the next!

DNF at 20%

I really wanted to love this book. I enjoy romantasy, enemies to lovers, banter, all the things I thought I would find here. Unfortunately it fell flat for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Little Brown Book Group UK for an ARC of this book.

I'm a huge fan of Brigitte's fanfiction so I was immediately so excited to read this book. I manifested receiving the arc for weeks after hearing the announcement and apparently during a bout of fever and the flu, I mumbled about the book in my sleep for a week!

I have been rationing the book since February, treating myself to a chapter at time, trying to drag it out and savour it, but alas, I got half way through and could not put it down again.

Firstly, Brigitte's world building. Phenomenal. Don't get me wrong, it was confusing and felt rushed at times but I fear that is how all fantasy books make me feel. Yet, she was able to explain sufficiently enough the details needed for the plot and not do so in an overwhelming way. It was really smooth. I did not feel too confused to comprehend but enough to wonder and want to read more.
I feel the magical system and the different Order's was a really interesting concept. The book felt new and yet familiar at the same time.

Secondly, the writing. God it was so beautiful. A mixture of crass, blunt snips of humour and beautiful prose. I loved the style of writing - it definitely made me crack open the dictionary a few times - and I do not think it will be for everyone, but I really enjoyed it. The way Brigitte describes inexplicable things genuinely tugs at my soppy little heart.

Most importantly, the BANTER. As always Brigitte's writing is so freaking witty. I NEVER laugh out loud at books, or tv or most media, but I was repressing giggles and bursts of laughter at work... which is inconvenient seeing as I work in a library. The humour in this book is un-paralleled and I genuinely loved the relationship between Aurienne and Osric. It was definitely toxic and a perfect enemies-to-lovers but it was so bloody funny and I found myself excited for more interactions between them, just to see what weird situations they find themselves in and how hilarious they will be.

The romance was SLOW. Yet it felt natural for the characters. When I say they are enemies, I mean genuine hatred. So anything faster than was was written would have felt strange for the characters. I would have liked a few more tense moment throughout but if anything it made me more excited to see how they relationship progresses in the next book. The ending did feel a bit abrupt but again it made me want to read more so I'm not too mad about it.

I will be thinking about this book for a long time to come and I may have to re-read some parts to fill the void inside. I definitely recommend to everyone who loved hilarious, witty, enemies-to-lovers set in a unique fantasy world.



(Will post on Amazon on release day)

The most anticipated book of the year and the world building and magic system was not it unfortunately. It was overly complicated with the terminology and it left me so confused on the first 3 pages.

The interactions with both MCs was lacking I couldn’t really feel any sort of connection and the inner dialogue with the brackets was so painfully annoying.

It might just be a me thing but I couldn’t help but keep comparing them to the HP world, and sad to say I did prefer the original.

I was expecting a different kind of book when I started reading this; there was way more humor than I was prepared for. That said, I could still see the potential for a great story.

The beginning was very tough to get into; barely any world-building was present. The only things I know are that we are in England and there are different types of orders on the light pad and the dark pad. I know there is a war brewing somewhere, but where and why I don't really know.

It felt like I was expected to know the lore of this world. I haven't read the original Dramione fic, but I could kind of fit the pieces together.

The male main character was a bit jarring; I don't really know what to make of him. He is clearly depicted as morally dark and a murderer in one of the dark pads. Though why our main female character likes him, I never really figured out. She is depicted as very smart, the best healer in her field, and morally good; little else about her is said.

The ending was very abrupt; I was convinced I missed a couple of pages. So maybe a second book is coming, and I haven't heard of it yet.

I did have a fun time reading this on my vacation, don't really know if it's what the romantasy girlies are expecting.

Thank vou netgallev for the arc of this book.

Didn't have high expectations for this one but I was still really excited because Emily Wilde is one of my favorite series and Love Hypothesis was a great book in my opinion. When a book is being marketed as something Emily Wilde and TLH readers would like.... of course I'm intrigued.

However, this was definitely not the same as those two books. I could see where the marketing is coming from because of the similar topics but execution and writing style, are definitely not the same. The writing is very "immature" for an adult romantasy, pacing was a bit weird and the characters were very two dimensional so it was really hard to be able to connect at all with the story. I didn't want to DNF this book without trying a few times so I did in fact started this multiple times only to still end up being pretty disconnected each time. Maybe this just isn't my style, but I really hope the book finds its audience (which I'm sure there's going to be lots!!)

If you ask me to recommend an enemies-to-lovers, my choice would certainly fall on The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy!

Osric is an assassin, Aurienne a healer. The former needs a cure for the degenerative disease that has befallen him, while the latter's order desperately needs funds to develop a vaccine for a disease that is affecting slum children.

Aurienne never deviates from the solid principles of her order and loves the rules. She is also a person who cares a lot about others and is always trying to improve herself, at the cost of appearing arrogant in the eyes of others.

Osric, on the other hand, is the complete opposite: he destroys lives instead of saving them, he his a little unhinged, has no rules and the few he does follow he is willing to circumvent.

Both represent the exact opposite of all the principles the other follows. That's why they hate each other's guts and don't spend a second without insulting each other and bickering, resulting in fantastic chemistry and jokes full of British humour that made me laugh several times. Gradually, however, Aurienne begins to loosen up, Osric begins to think less of himself and they both begin to contemplate the ‘what if...?’ Without really seriously contemplating that possibility, however, a phenomenal slow burn ensued.

Basically this was one of those books that on the one hand I was looking forward to reading , on the other hand I was afraid it wouldn't live up to the hype... well , I have to tell you it turned out to be a surprise in the end ! It's totally character driven , it kept me glued to the pages and entertained me in a way that hasn't happened in a long time !

Osric and Aurienne are amazing 😍

This book is hilarious and heart-warming at the same time. I am besotted with the characters and what they are going though both separately and together.

I love the slow burn romance! It's everything and now I'm annoyed I have to wait for book 2 as I need more of these two in my life. I could read about them verbally sparring with each other all day.

That ending has got me craving more, the yearning is palpable 🥰

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Okay this was a lot of fun!

I loved the humour in this, it was witty, sarcastic banter that actually made me laugh out loud at points.
Our mmc seeks the help of our fmc and her healing powers, which she reluctantly agrees to in exchange for a hefty donation made anonymously to their research in finding a cure for the pox. In their quest to try and save our mmc they discover something else is going on in regards to someone wanting to find out who made the donation and why, which we see towards the end of the book.

I enjoyed the back and forth between our fmc and mmc, and I think this was enemies to lovers done really well. At times I did have to try and remember exactly what was going on by going back and rereading some parts, however it wasn’t a huge issue for me.

This is definitely one for you if you’re a vibes / mood reader like me, it’s light-hearted and fun and will have you giggling all the way through. I can’t wait to see what happens in the next book.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First, I am incredibly grateful for this ARC as it was such an unexpected and pleasant surprise.
I believe with this particular book it is more of a me problem. Personally, I didn't find the world building and the characters lacking even though I know it is adapted from a fanfiction.
However, I am just not a fan of the humorous/comedic tone it was utilized, that is the major reason I did not finish Villains and Virtues as well. For me it lessens the stakes and I lovey books to have tension and darkness.
So, I would very much recommend this one if you are not like me and prefer funnier and cozier reads.

I did not really like this book.
The premise sounded intriguing which is why i wanted to read it but i did not really feel a connexion to the characters.
I also really felt the lack of world building, because we had all of those different type of class of people but didn't really know who or what they were.
I knew it was a slow burn but the romance was so slow, we had to wait until more than half of the bppk for them to kind of realised that they liked each other.
It's not a book for me but there will probably will be people that will like it.