A hilarious enemies to lovers romcom with a side of magical science and folklore.

This book was such a good time! A confident, no-nonsense healer, and a cocky, ever-optimistic assassin reluctantly team up for the most ridiculous quest - hunting for an impossible cure for a deadly magical nerve injury using nothing but folklore and "thin places" that may or may not actually work.

The whole thing is chaotic in the best way, packed with wit, snark, and banter that had me constantly grinning and laughing out loud. Aurienne’s cool, collected attitude is such a breath of fresh air, and Osric’s relentless charm makes him the most loveable murderous rogue I've ever had the pleasure of reading about.

The world was just as enjoyable, set in a magical-and-not-quite-modern-day version of the British Isles, with enough familiar names to get a sense of place without needing a map. I especially loved watching the characters wrestle with the clash between evidence-based, scientific magic and the wild unpredictability of folklore magic.

It's very slow burn, and so worth it - watching Aurienne and Osric go from squabbling and screaming insults at each other every chance they get to somewhat trusting (and maybe even needing) each other was utterly heartwarming, and exactly what I needed. I don't know how I'm going to survive waiting for book two!

I absolutely adored this book! It was the perfect rewrite of one of my favourite fan fictions and I couldn’t have asked for more! Brigitte truly understands how to write a slow burn romance with the perfect amount of yearning and longing, not to mention the absolute top tier banter!

ARC Review: The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️|🔥🔥

You want slow-burn, high tension enemies to lovers? Babes, you’ve got them. …well maybe not full on lovers, it is a slow burn… Still, *swoon*.

This story is a comedic fantasy and romance that felt unique to most romantasy books I have read of late (read: many). Our main characters are members of opposing Orders in the Tiendoms they call home. We have Osric, an assassin who is dying, and the only healer who can help him, Aurienne. Despite their differing opinions and world views on basically everything, both are smart, confident, and highly competent people with a shared sense of humor. However, they mutually agree the other is the Worst. So, when Osric forces Aurienne’s hand in helping heal him by “funding” her Order’s research on the deadly and mysterious Pox plaguing the land, it is unsurprising both feel having to work together to unravel their problems is unfortunate, even catastrophic.

The wit and banter between these two is exquisite, with no shortage of hilarious and sometimes immature barbs thrown at each other. I was giggling on repeat. They do develop a mutual sense of understanding and respect (not agreement) for how each other navigates and views the world, and I appreciated the pacing of their growing relationship and the payoff at the end.

There was murder, very stabby murder, using a rather funny instrument of demise. Those who aren’t comfortable with on-page killing and lighthearted gore (making that a thing) should be aware. There is some ambiguity in the world building. As a visual reader who tends to fill in the details my brain needs, I wasn’t bothered, but thought it worth a mention.

Last, I was obsessed with the badass STEM representation in this book. I am an academic scientist who studies the brain. Why is this relevant? The magic (seith) system runs along side the central nervous system. It was amazing, it was nerdy, it was just plain cool.

I look forward to seeing how the story (and burn) proceeds in the second half of this duology.

Thank you Brigitte Knightley, Orbit Books UK, and NetGalley for the eARC.

The romance in this book is absolute perfection!

Osaric and Aurienne are such good characters as well. Besides the obvious dramione vibes, the banter is another level!

The ‘Britishness’ of this book has me laughing out loud and kicking my feet - never have I seen the word ‘naughty’ in a fantasy book 🤣

I very much appreciated the different fantasy alternatives e.g. patronuses, orders, etc

I was extremely confused throughout the book though. There was definitely a lot to take in and I feel as the world was very new to me it was an overwhelming amount of information crammed into a 300 page book.

I was here for the vibes but my brain had to do a factory reset a few times to comprehend what was happening and how was involved.

However there’s no doubt that I am obsessed with our two main characters and their snarky, foul mouthed personalities!

I've seen a lot online about this one, so I had really high hopes, but sadly I just didn't vibe with this one. It read too much like fanfiction, and I found it quite difficult to read as I didn't feel any connection to the characters, so it was a real drag to push myself through. The characters felt underdeveloped as themselves, however I guess it's forgivable if you know it's meant to be based on Hermonie and Draco. The worldbuilding, much like the character development, just isn't there.
I found the MMC to be unlikable and downright creepy. I don't mind a morally grey MMC, however the predatory behaviour is just an ick for me. I guess I can forgive it in romance books when the relationship is established... but this just seemed like too much boundary crossing for me.
I'm disappointed I didn't enjoy this more, as like I said, I had high hopes as bookstagram is acting like this is one of the best upcoming books, and it just fell flat for me.

I'll admit, I ended up skim reading this, as I just got to a point I didn't want to read it anymore, and was trying to find the masterpiece that bookstagram had told me was here....

"The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy" is written by Brigitte Knightley, AKA isthisselfcare, author of the famous fanfiction "Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Being in Love". Right from the cover, the reference to the characters is crystal clear, and throughout the story, there are many similarities with the magic world.
The problem, in my opinion, is that, since it is no longer based on a well-established magical/historical system like Harry Potter, the plot falls into great confusion and somewhat clumsy explanations. This results in the reader struggling to grasp the dynamics of the narrative universe, spending more time trying to understand the logic behind the various powers than getting immersed in the story itself.
The main characters of the story are Osric and Aurienne—an assassin and a healer, respectively—members of two opposing magical orders, mortal enemies by definition. The two are forced to collaborate because Osric is dying, and only Aurienne’s peculiar knowledge can save him—or at least try. So far, so good. The story has great potential, but unfortunately, it quickly gets lost in filler scenes with no real purpose, subplots that start but then fade into the background, and characters who appear only to force a weak chuckle before being completely forgotten.
The writing style didn’t convince me. In many parts, it’s just a sequence of "he says, she says, he replies, she retorts," without actually writing out the conversations. It felt like the summary of a story told by a 12-year-old rather than a book written by an adult. At times, it seemed like it was written by three different people at once: a wannabe comedian who makes you laugh once every three attempts, an ambitious poet weaving elaborate metaphors with elements of nature, and an author genuinely trying to piece together a coherent plot.
As for the much-acclaimed enemies-to-lovers trope? It’s barely there. The two don’t really hate each other; they just poorly tolerate each other, bicker like kids, and wish death upon one another without even truly meaning it. Hate feels like too strong a word. Aurienne hates Osric for what he represents as a member of an assassin sect, but she doesn’t have a deep, personal hatred toward him. Osric, on the other hand, doesn’t even hold a grudge against Aurienne—he just comes across as a flirt who embarrasses himself more often than not. I would have liked something more substantial to justify their supposed hatred beyond just "they belong to opposing factions."
Now, what did I like? Well, the idea is interesting. I like the world (for the little we actually get to understand about it), and the main plot has the potential to develop into something enjoyable. The banter between the protagonists is amusing and makes you smile, but it does become repetitive over time. Lastly, I liked some of the secondary characters, but I would love to see more depth from them instead of just their stock phrases and one-dimensional presence.
Ultimately, this book feels like a huge missed opportunity. I had very high expectations, but I was left quite disappointed.
The cover, though? Absolutely stunning—truly, truly gorgeous.

To begin with, the positives. This romantasy is written in a lively, arch and extremely humorous voice. Barely a page went by that didn't amuse me. The magic system and world building are fun and readily believable, if not super well developed. The dialogue and snark in this enemies-to-lovers story are extremely well done.

The negative for me was how often the humour devolved to the scatalogical, and I found myself feeling rather repulsed fairly regularly. There was also minimal character development. Worst of all, the ending was disappointingly limp. It basically wasn't an ending at all, only a trailing off ready for continuation of the story in a sequel, with no resolution at all in the meantime. Reluctantly, I'm not sure I'd come back for more, for fear of the severe pacing and (lack of) characterisation issues continuing.

★★★.✫
- complex fantasy world
- forbidden romance
- banter & dry humour
- he falls first
- bad boy x good girl

I absolutely loved DMATMOOBIL, and I was so incredibly excited when I learned Brigitte Knightley was writing a trad published novel inspired by our favourite fan fic characters.

In The Irresistible Urge, morally black assassin Osric is dying, so he blackmails healer Aurienne into trying to cure him. Aurienne & Osric are sworn enemies, with polar opposite morals, and cannot stand to be in the other’s presence.

The best part of this book is the impeccable dry wit - Aurienne & Osric’s banter and quips are so so good, they will have you laughing out loud (even when very often it’s very black humour and you really think you shouldn’t be 😅)

Also I’m a word nerd and the range of vocabulary employed by Brigitte in this book is really so impressive, I loved it 👏🏼 (fair warning though, you will absolutely need to look some up 😂)

Sadly for me the rest of the book just didn’t live up to my (admittedly high) expectations. The world Brigitte has created is extremely impressive, but she doesn’t really build it, so much as drop you into it with a glossary. It takes quite a while to feel immersed, and understand what’s going on.

And Aurienne & Osric are unfortunately just less likeable versions of the Hermione & Draco characters that they have been adapted from. It took me a very long time to feel invested in their story, just because I didn’t like them 😕

The book definitely builds though, and in the last 50 or so pages I was starting to enjoy it a lot more! Buut unfortunately then it ends 😂 This does make me excited for the second though - I think now we know the world and the characters, it has the potential to be great (it does make me wish it hadn’t been split up though, we needed more meat in this one!)

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0 STARS

By the end of the first chapter, I new this was going to be a 5 star read. Y'all need to read this ASAP.

I'm not totally interested in Dramione fanfiction and that fandom but had to read this because of that book description. Amazing slow burn romance, he falls first, enemies to lovers and evisceration as a love language. I'm sat.

I fear I'm going to have to read this several more times.

Started off slow but ultimately this was fun and fresh and charmingly written! It was a nice and familiar foray into a magical version of UK while still maintaining its allure. It’s not quite fanfiction but it had all the callbacks and was really easy to read. I loved the tropes and the banter and oh, the slow BURN!!!! The finger brush’s! Osric’s gentle yearning? Aurienne’s contemplation! Delicious. Will be reading book two as soon as I can. I hope there is more fork related death in that one too.

Oh how much fun this book was to read and I loved every moment, enemies to lovers will always be my favourite thing to read about and wow did this one deliver.

This gave me everything it was promised it would, banter and dry humour, amazing world building and two characters who gave as good as they got and especially my favourite thing ever slow burn and this was the slowest of slow burn but the delivery was worth it. While the beginning felt slower paced and it took me a little while to fully get into but once I did and it picked up story wise I couldn't stop reading, it completely had me hooked.

I can't wait for the sequel and to see what it brings after that ending and even more so with the romance between these two characters.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review this book before publication, these are my honest thoughts and opinions.

I am so conflicted about this one. When I heard the characters were inspired by Draco and Hermione I was immediately hyped, but apperently I was expecting something different from this book?
I found the writing to be a bit difficult (maybe because english is not my first language) and the worldbuilting a little too intricate. Otherwise, i actually liked it! I loved the settings and the plot, and i really loved the dynamics between the two MCs. Even if i'm not 100% into this book I'm still super curious about what will happen next, so I will definetly read the second one.

Brigitte Knightley has written an absolute gem! Aurienne, a dedicated healer, and Osric, a morally grey assassin, had me grinning, laughing, and swooning all the way through. Their dynamic is filled with sharp exchanges, top tier banter and undeniable chemistry that evolves throughout the story. The slow burn, enemies to lovers tropes were troping to perfection!

The story is set against a cleverly crafted fantasy backdrop (the pub names were brilliant), the novel introduces a unique magic system that enhances the narrative nicely without over complicating things.

The tension? Immaculate. The humour? On point. The romance? Utterly irresistible.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC—I adored every second of this fun, witty, and heartwarming read!

3.75 stars.


I really enjoyed this book. Knightley has a way with words which made it more fun to read. I loved the duel POV and how both main characters views were seen. The magic in this is something I never seen or heard before which I really enjoyed. I would love her to go into it abit more 🥹

I loved the idea of the world building Knightley envisioned but I feel like it just needs abit more of it 🥰
I loved the idea of the plot and how it turned out however this is very long slow burn so you have to be committed for this 😂

I hope the second book will bring more information about the magic and more of the plot of the pox.

This is exactly what I mean when I say that I like slow burn enemies to lovers. There's yearning and banter and all that good stuff. They don't even find each other attractive until way past 50% — it's amazing.

This book is also super funny (every other sentence will have you chuckling) and has an interesting plot (a mystery) that will keep you flipping the pages. The world is interesting too, quite unique.

All in all, I wholeheartedly recommend this to anyone who loves romance and fantasy!

I was so excited to read this one but sadly it's not for me. I dnfed at 10%.

I found the character interactions a bit childish and cringe. I really tried to push through but it wasn't working for me.

The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy completely lived up to the hype, and yet somehow also surpassed my expectations. I knew what to expect - a fun, enemies-to-lovers romance, but what I got was something deeper, more layered, and genuinely moving. The emotional stakes were higher than I anticipated, and the characters felt so real, flawed, and lovable at the same time. This book is an unadulterated JOY to read.

Having followed the author for a while, I was already a fan of their voice and storytelling style, but this book took things to a new level. The banter was sharp, the chemistry was off the charts, and yet there were also these beautiful, quiet moments of vulnerability that caught me off guard.... Drawing me in so subtly then stabbing me right in the feels.

It's a book about trust, forgiveness, and finding common ground with someone you never thought you could connect with. If you're into swoony tension, emotional payoff, and characters who feel like they leap off the page, this one is definitely worth the read. Clever, funny and original. I am in love with her writing!

I barely had a clue what the book was about before reading. I commuted the cardinal sin and judged a book by its cover. God am I glad I did.

Osric and Arienne are now two of my favourite characters of all time. I love Osric for all his arrogance and killing included. I mean, he’s such a uniquely written character. Arienne was also hilarious and a brilliant FMC.

I love the writing style used and it’s unlike anything I’ve read before. It made it such an interesting read. Be sure to read to glossary for pronunciations also!

Not normally a fan of a slow burn, but this one was perfection and the ending. Jesus the ending. I need the second book NOW. I’m waiting on bated breath, hoping the wait isn’t too long.

Thank you netgalley for this arc.
Now I'll start off holding my hands up that I have never read a fanfic however I was of the understanding that this wasn't a fanfic and traditional publishing. For me i felt like I was just dropped into a story where I didn't know anything about the world, characters or magic system and the author didn't feel the need to build on that.

The two main characters for me had no depth and were one dimensional. The banter was also just a bit over the top for me and I felt the story just wasn't developed enough for me to have any emotional connection. I wasn't sure where the story was going for most of the book.

I'm sure romantasy readers will eat this up if they are already fans of the fanfic.

📚 review 📚

the irresistible urge to fall for your enemy - brigitte knightley

after a wave of reylo fanfic being turned into traditionally published books, it was about time dramione got their time to shine. this is based on a popular fic - draco malfoy and the mortifying ordeal of being in love with- you can tell but in the best way. this is gloriously bantery and i loved it.
brigitte knightley saw enemies to lovers and really understood the assignment - if you like slow burn, enemies to reluctant allies to crushing this needs to go on your tbr immediately, even if you’re not usually into fanfic.
from that ending i need book two yesterday.

the irresistible urge to fall for your enemy is out in july. thank you @netgalley for the early copy
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