Thankyou NetGalley for the ARC!
I loved the banter between the FMC and the MMC. The magic system was so cool, and I loved the plot. I adored DMATMOOBIL by Birgette, and this book has the same witty writing that I adored.
HOWEVER, in some ways, this fell flat to me. I felt like the world building and character depth were really lacking.
I think the great thing about fanfic is that your readers love the characters, and they know the complexities of the world building and the background already. It feels like this book is written as though it's a fanfic, in that it's assumed we know all these things.
I just wanted more, though I'm not sure if I expected too much?
Having said that, I really want to know what happens and I did enjoy it! Hence the 4 stars.

What a captivating, memorable and hilarious start to an epic adventure. I was hooked from the start, i was snorting unattractively with laughter almost immediately and i was filled with intrigue as the story unfolded. The world building was vivid and engaging, i really appreciated the way Brigitte incorporated how to pronounce the names of certain things into the story. The writing style is addictive; you understand the personality of the main characters straight away, they immediately become your friends and share all their in-jokes and banter with you. The slow burn keeps you on the edge of your seat and makes you want to yell: 'JUST KISS!'. I loved every second of this marvelously and tantalising story.

I jumped straight into this ARC the moment I was approved and I binged it in less than a day. I liked the blunt, humourous style (sometimes crude but still funny). The chapter titles had that same humour to them, my favourite of which is Chapter 1, starting off strong with 'Irresistible Bastard Meets Immovable Bitch.'

The romance between Aurienne and Osric is a super slow burn and I definitely felt the Emily and Wendell vibes with Aurienne and Osric, but I personally preferred this more adult style and humour for the characters.

What I really enjoyed is that the characters felt like they were leading the story, rather than the plot being a case of playing dot to dot with popular tropes and micro tropes. Similarly, it was nice to have a more emotional revelation as the ending to the first book in the duology rather than a more abrupt cliffhanger for the sake of drama. It just felt like this book was doing its own thing rather than shoehorning things in just because they're popular or commonly done.

The Glossary at the end of the book was really useful for explaining the world but it would have been better placed at the beginning of the book. This might just be an ARC thing, but some of the Orders aren't explained when the names come up in the story, so the extra context would be useful to have at the start rather than the end.

I'm really looking forward to seeing the progression of the plot and the romance in book two and to see more of the world too. It feels like we're going to get much deeper into the Orders and the Tiendoms in book two!

Disclaimer: I received an Advance Reader Copy from NetGalley but this is my voluntary and honest review.

4.5⭐ rounded up to 5⭐

Well this was a nice surprise!!

I got the ARC and immidiately decided to start it and... oh boy, did I enjoy it!

The start was a bit slow but once it picked up I could not stop reading it! It's fun and sassy and the plot was so intriging. I loved the banter between the two main characters, was giggling so many times... this trully was an enemies to lovers and slooooow (super slooow) burn!

I just wish I knew there was a glossary of terms at the end of the book, was a bit confused at the start of the book!


Can't wait for book 2!

Thank you to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK | Orbit for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“ She regarded Osric with a gaze full of wonder. (Such witchery, such witchery in a pair of bright eyes.) “


Rating: 5⭐️

The Irresistable Urge To Fall For Your Enemy was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and i’m so grateful for a chance at reading it early! It was refreshing to read a true enemies to lovers story, Osric and Aurienne were absolutely hilarious together, i found myself laughing so many times between her stoicism and his roguishness. I also enjoyed their many (mis)adventures and their reluctant teamwork to get out of them unscathed.

I was a bit confused at the beginning of the book since there were quite a few vocabularies from Old English and I often had to stop and look up the meaning of words (since english is not my first language), the author’s note at the end of the book gave a reason for this linguistic choice and it’s actually a very interesting!

The second half of the book was definitely my favourite, i loved seeing both main characters in more informal contexts and learning more bits of information about their personal lifes, I’m definitely so very excited to read about them again, i’ll be eagerly awaiting next book!

Thank you Orbit Books UK and Netgalley for an arc, all opinions are my own!

ATE. IT. UP.

This was brilliant, I couldn’t put it down.

Thank you so much for sending me the arc, I literally squealed with excitement.

I had the best time.

This was definitely enjoyable but sadly I wasn’t super invested or in love with the story :(

I think, ultimately, this book is successful for the people who read the original fanfic and I am not one of those people. A lot of worldbuilding really went over my head because it felt rather juvenile and flimsy, but I think if you love the original fanfic, you’d be able to overlook this because you’re just their for the new rendition of your beloved characters. It is not a bad book but sadly not for me.

I adore the cover though! It’s incredibly beautiful.

Unfortunately not for me as a reader. I struggled to connect with the story line, romance and characters. I think fans of slowburn romantasy will enjoy this one, it just wasn't for me.

4.5 stars
This was such a fun and delicious, true enemies-to-lovers slowburn, and I devoured it! The characters actually, truly hate each other and have perfectly valid reasons to, but are forced to work together. Their banter made me laugh out loud a few times, the plot kept me reading well into the night, the worldbuilding feels new and well-fleshed out, and the writing is perfect for the story: witty at times, incredibly poetic at other times. While it does not end on a cliffhanger, the way the plot is being set up, and the push and pull of their relationship had me screaming at the last page because I.need.more! I loved the way Osric and Aurienne’s relationship evolves: their walls are lowered an inch at a time in a way that always feels genuine and never rushed.
Will be recommending this one!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the arc!

This was a very funny and well written enemies to lovers story and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

The protagonists were Aurienne Fairhrim, a magical healer belonging to the Haelan Order and Osric Mordaunt, a magical assassin from the Fyren Order. To say these two don’t get on is a massive understatement. They despise everything about one another and only desperation forces them to co-operate! I won’t go into too much detail about the plot as the book blurb does a great job but I will say that the characters a richly three dimensional, the dialogue is hilarious, the world building has depth and the plot was brilliant and kept me turning the page long past my bedtime!

One important thing to note is that this is the first title in a duology and although it doesn’t end on a full cliffhanger, the plot has shifted up a significant gear and nothing has been resolved in terms of either the character or the plot. It’s going to be a really long wait until the next book is published and I’ll be first in line!!!!!

Highly recommended.

*** Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher ***

This was the first time I was requesting an ARC, I even created this Netgalley account to do it. I just couldn’t wait for July!

Since I read DMATMOOBIL, I’ve been dying to read more of Brigitte Knightley.
This woman could have written something about her last trip to the supermarket and I would have begged for a sequel.
Brigitte is probably the funniest author I’ve ever read. But her writing is not only funny — being funny is easy — it’s cleverly funny. Every joke, pun or witty remark are well thought. And the rest is utterly poetic.

The Irresistible Urge was exactly as I expected, cleverly funny (I laughed more times than I could count) and poetic. The world building is impressive. The slow burn is so slow it’s going backward — but that’s precisely what I expect from an enemies-to-lovers. And oh boy, they can’t stand each other!

The only negative is that I'm extremely frustrated. I need Book 2. NOW.

Merci Netgalley & Little Brown Book!

Oh this book. I wasn't expecting it to be so good as it was! It was a 5 star read for me. So so good. I totally recommend everyone to read this book as fast as they can because it's really good.

i absolutely love this book. it's fun, ironic and sassy, and the plot is so intriguing. i adore the characters, and how for once we actually have enemies that don't fall for each other after two chapters. a new favorite, for sure!

You can tell when someone has had fun writing something and this gives that vibe! I truly laughed out loud at some of the witticisms between A and O.

We jump right into the story without being inundated with exposition, which I greatly appreciated.

The powers and mythology at play is intriguing and a combination of norse/gaelic as far as I can tell, and feels fresh.

The story itself moves forward with purpose, and the focus slowly moves from our central problem into our central relationship. I was sad when this ended so soon!

Definitely recommend for those who enjoy Lemming or Hazelwood or Kingfisher, as this has similar style and/or character building.

Ohh how dare you hook me like this Brigitte Knightley. I was obsessed with this entire read and the whole book was just mwah, delightful. And as I see it’s the first in a (what sounds to be an amazing series) I will be eagerly awaiting the next one!

The world building was amazing and it was so well put together. With the different orders and the magic element giving it a fantasy feel, the romance aspect too was so addicting.

I love a slow burn and all the tropes in this were made to hook me and keep me coming back for more. We have a stab happy dashing scarred hunk and a clever but takes absolutely no bull female MC who I identified with immediately. I seriously loved all the characters and the standoffish banter between them both was both so funny. The way they bounced off each other made for great reading and that coupled with the fab writing made it an easily enjoyable read.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025 and I'm here to - gleefully - tell you, that I was NOT disappointed. I had read Brigitte's work before (DMATMOOBIL, hello) and I had loved every second of it, but she managed to be funnier and wittier in this book (something I genuinely didn't think was possible because I was already giggling and kicking my feet then). The writing is delicious, witty, funny and hilarious (I understand I'm using synonyms, but it is needed). The plot was interesting and it moved on a natural pace, to the point where I finished the book and I'm perfectly happy with how everything turned out (even if, yes, I am foaming at the mouth at the thought of the next book, because I need it. Bad.)

The banter between these two was delicious, their arcs beautifully done (I genuinely can't wait to see what happens to these two as they unravel in the next book), and the chemistry had me BLUSHING. I mean, I am always down for a "MMC fell first AND harder" kind of situation, but Osric really saw it as a challenge. This man is a loser for her, and I am delighted.

All this to say, that if you're looking for a witty, original and funny fantasy read with lots of clashing and pining, please pick up this book. You won't regret it.

Just a little quote that I loved:
"He no longer owned his own heart. The thief was unconscious of her crime. She asked, 'Is something the matter?'"

This book was a lot of fun. The dry, dark humour in this stole the show for me. I laughed out loud multiple times. They were so direct, so blunt and so crude, at times. I really enjoyed it. It felt like a dark satire. The critique crickets were excellent, I only ever wanted more from them!

I loved the dynamic between Osric and Aurienne, how they both needed each other but yet both hated each other. The reluctant growth that Osric starts to go through is great. You can feel the pain it’s causing him to develop any form of feeling.

The storyline was interesting, I’m very much bought into needing to know who is doing what and why! I got used to the terminology and characters quite quickly, which as a novice to the fantasy world, is a definite positive.

The only thing I wanted more of was chemistry and tension between Osric and Aurienne. For me, they go for too long where they only hate each other. I felt like needed more of a push/pull earlier on. I wanted more of a forbidden lust feeling between them to really hit that spot.

This was such a good book and I can’t wait to recommend it!

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read and review this arc.

Brigitte Knightley has absolutelt no business being as witty as she is.

I absolutely adored DMATMOOFBIL so I went into this book with high hopes and was absolutely not disappointed. Brigitte was able to write this story in a way that felt new and fresh but had a lot of nice nods to the original work.

It is the slowest of burns which I am a big fan of and I have seen the main characters described as highly competent idiots which sums them up perfectly.

The story starts with Osric, an assassin from a dark order, learning he has an incurable condition and his only hope is to convince Aurienne an incredibly talented healer to find a cure for him.

I have not chuckled to myself so many times reading a book ever, the humour is dry and just so well done. I often find humour in books can feel forced which was not the case here at all. As I said Brigitte has no business being this witty!


My only (very petty and extremely minor) note is that the chapters are quite long and this is something that I personal struggle with as I tend to have to find a few minutes here and there to read and don't like putting a book down mid chapter. So if you're like me and struggle with longer chapters just something to keep in mind

I had the best time reading this!
A hilarious take on a high stakes dramatic fantasy romance. I was hooked on every sarcastic comment. The wit and humour was brilliant, I’ve never laughed so much reading about death and debauchery.
I didn’t realise how special the experience would be to read a book written in British English, with the typical dry humour and ridiculous choice of insults and swear words which are quintessential of our native way of offering each other. It gave the book such a unique and special quality.
The story itself was addictive and I am desperately hoping there are more to follow after THAT ending!

As this book is inspired (but as I understood it, it’s not the same story; I haven’t read the fanfic, though) by the author’s Dramione fanfiction, I will take this into account for my review because it has affected my reading experience.
Speaking as a long-time Dramione reader, this was a fun story with a lot of nods to this familiar-feeling character dynamic and references to other aspects of the HP world, but twisted to be able to publish this story. Looking at this story from a reader’s perspective that doesn’t have this specific fanfiction-reading background, I’m not sure, they will have as good of a time here.
The thing with fanfiction is that there’s already a world and characters established. The reader already loves both. The writer doesn’t need to endear the reader to the characters or do a lot of explaining of the world.
So the problem with this book is that the characters here work all right as Dramione stand-ins, but they are not fleshed out enough to make one care about them beyond that, in my opinion. The world-building felt more like window-dressing as well, which is okay, I think, because it’s not a fantasy book first.
I got the impression that there was put a lot of focus on making this story as witty and banter-filled as possible. The story doesn’t take itself seriously, which helped me to put into perspective my expectations. It almost read more like a parody than a romantic comedy. I suggest giving the sample a try to see whether you vibe with the humour or not. There’s a certain kind of pattern to how it’s delivered that I can image can come across as repetitive or even annoying after a while when you’re not into that. For me, all the witty-ness, no matter that it sometimes felt forced, was what I enjoyed most about this book. I wanted to know what the author would come up with next.
Unfortunately, the romance and whatever stakes there might have been, got smothered by the comedic elements for me. I wish there had been consequences for Osric as an assassin because of his illness, but it didn’t really cause him any significant problems, so it was hard to feel the urgency for a cure. Maybe that’ll be shown in book 2. Aurienne and Osric also didn’t feel much like enemies because they came across as annoyed with each other rather than full-out hating each other. And while they have opposing ethics as healer and killer, the killing aspect is not really presented in any serious way whatsoever. Quite the opposite, actually.
After having finished the book, I don’t think much has happened after all. There was a bit of mystery surrounding the pox situation that was mildly interesting.
All in all, I think Dramione fans with a love for banter will likely have a good time with this story. It worked as the palate cleanser I wanted it to be. I appreciated the creativity in the comedic writing. I laughed a lot, for sure. I might consider reading the sequel.

Characters: 3.5/10 x4 (Bad-Mediocre)
Relationships: 3/10 x4 (Bad)
Atmosphere/Vibes: 8/10 (Great)
World-building/Setting: 4/10 x2 (Mediocre)
Writing: 8/10 x4 (Great)
Plot/Pacing: 3.5/10 x3 (Bad-Mediocre)
Enjoyment: 7/10 x5 (Good)
Total: ~5.2 = 2.75*

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.