Unfortunately I had to dnf this at the 45% mark. I think the excessive 'quirky' humour just wasn't for me and I felt like the author was trying too hard to be funny where it ended up feeling really silly.

I also just felt like there was no chemistry between the two characters, considering this is meant to be a romance. I'm here for a slow burn but by the 45% mark I expected at least more than one passing moment between them at this point. I understand that they're enemies but I think this would have benefitted from being first person or dual POV so we got some inner monologue.

I was also pretty frustrated with the world building, or lack of it, I guess? I understand that it was inspired originally by the Harry Potter world as a Dramione fanfic but we should get a better setup and depth than we did in my opinion and not rely on an already established world and the reader knowing it. I have not read the original fanfic to confirm too so I expected to be told or shown more than we were and I was pretty confused at times with names of things or places.

I hope others enjoy it more than I did as it's not a terrible book I just hoped for more and didn't want to continue at the 45% mark.

If you loved Butcher and Blackbird, this book will definitely scratch that same itch. The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy delivers a compelling enemies-to-lovers romance with a slow burn that keeps you hooked. The opening was fantastic—sharp, witty, and full of tension—but the middle did lose a bit of momentum. Still, the chemistry between the leads made it worth pushing through. What really threw me was not realizing this was the first in a series, so the ending left me completely hanging. If you’re okay with a cliffhanger, this is a great read, but be prepared to wait for the next instalment!

4.5*

Thank you LittleBrownBookGroup_UK and Netgalley for approving my NetGalley request of an e-book in exchange for my honest review

Ostrc and Arienne belong to two different Orders. He’s Fyren - assasin who is dying and only one healer can save him. Arienne who belongs to opposite Order and WOULD NEVER heal Fyren finds herself in situation where she basically has no other choice.

It’s forced proximity slow burn fantasy romcom. At the beginning they both despise each other and there’s no romantic tension - they both have their own beliefs and values that are completely different. It is new thing to me in romantasy to watch the tension slowly grow and I loved it.

Pacing was great, there was a lot of interactions between characters, I liked them. There was no clear direction - they followed the clues and whole book felt like adventure.

It was funny, Ostric’s casualty when speaking about his profession made me smile. I felt enamored by his absurd innocence while performing morraly grey acts. Arienne was strong, smart and definitely too stubborn for her own good. The banter and contrast between them was perfect.

At the beginning I’ve found it hard to understand the universe/worldbuilding. Even after reading the glossary at the start I was thrown into the world I didn’t understood. I have to mention that I didn’t read the fanfic and I felt intimidated while reading first chapters. The worldbuilding was thoughtful, well arranged and magical but we only get small pieces of it in this book. In my opinion it wasn’t enough and I was left with many questions. I hope second book will provide more.

Alright, we're talking about The Irresistible Urge to Fall in Love with Your Enemy—a fanfiction, so you already know what kind of emotional rollercoaster to expect.
Overall, the story has great potential. There are a lot of names and important details to keep track of, so you'll need to stay focused while reading. I really enjoyed the irony between the two main characters—it adds a fun dynamic to the story. What I liked less, though, was the slow pace and some repetitive moments that made certain parts feel drawn out.
I'd especially recommend this if you love books with an intense slow burn romance— because this one takes its time!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for gifting me an early copy of this book.

The Irresistible Urge to Fall for your Enemy is a novel that features a healer- Aurienne- who must work with an assassin- Osric as they both need each other. One for money and one for medical reasons. Each interaction between them is an exchange of sarcastic remarks.

I had an amazing time reading this book. I loved the concept! Even though the magic system/ world was hard to understand at the very beginning because of the different terms, it was still well-written and understandable after a few chapters.
The humour and sarcasm were an incredible feature of the book and made me smile/laugh a few times.
I also enjoyed that it felt like a real enemies-to-lovers in the sense that you could really feel the hatred between them- especially on Aurienne’s part.

This book was absolutely hilarious!
The writing style was so full of humour, I really enjoyed the banter and dynamic between Aurienne and Osric. Their constant bickering and name calling was so amusing throughout.

I really enjoyed Osrics cheeky yet murderous personality. I loved how he could be completely charming one minute and then contemplating assassination the next.

Aurienne was a little too sanctimonious for my liking. Everything was very black and white and if you didn’t fit her version of being a good person she would write you off, which became very frustrating but did make for some great interactions between her and Osric.
From place names, to characters names, to the ways people were unalived I was laughing out loud numerous times.

The magic system is very unique, I liked the combination of magic and modern day technology and progress.
I would have loved to seen more from the deofols. They really I intrigued me.

The book ends right in the middle of a plot line which was absolutely gutting but I will very much be looking forward to book 2.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

THIS is what the people want and need!!! I was almost ready to retire from romantasy because I was so fed up with trope checklists, poor writing, and little-to-no plot or world building. This book was an absolute breath of fresh air! True yearning, properly witty banter, all set in a rich fantasy world and a plot that makes sense and drives forward the story. I can’t remember the last time I actually laughed out loud while reading before picking this up!

Aurienne and Osric come from rival orders and couldn’t be more morally opposed. When Osric bribes Aurienne with critical research funding in exchange for healing, they find themselves in the middle of a much larger political scheme.

Ms Knightley, I have absolutely no notes. I’ll be hibernating, please wake me up for the next one.

A warm thank you to Little, Brown Book Group, Orbit, and NetGalley for sending me an Advanced Reader Copy of this book for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with the ARC for this!

I enjoyed every single second of this and need the second like right now!
Incredibly funny and an ominous ending.
Osric is being added to the book boyfriends list ❤️‍🔥

Huge thank you to Netgalley and LittleBrownBookGroup for the ARC!

In this slow-burn romantasy by Brigitte Knightley, we follow Aurienne and Oscric, a healer and an assassin from two rival orders, who are forced to work together, even though they absolutely can’t stand each other.

The number of times I snorted out loud reading their banter and the constant back-and-forth between these two maniacs! And on top of that: this is the first time I actually wanted the protagonists to stay enemies for as long as possible because the exchanges between these two were so full of witty comebacks and dry humor. I adore them so much!

The plot was just so intriguing and exciting, the side characters were awesome, and just thinking about it now makes me laugh all over again. Honestly, I wish I could dive right back in.

Another favorite part of mine: every chapter actually has a title! Why did we ever stop doing that? It’s so cool, and I had a great time guessing what might happen next based just on the chapter title.

Also: the glossary is very important. The story is packed with world-building and cool little details. I loved every bit of it, but I was definitely grateful to have a place where everything was explained.

I am in love with these two idiots and cannot WAIT for book two. I need it like yesterday.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy was brilliant! Right from the opening line, I enjoyed every moment. It was ridiculous, it was fun, there was intrigue, murder, stealth and game playing, the characters mocked each other relentlessly, while also building a strong foundation of friendship, and eventually something more. Brilliant, I tell you brilliant!

Sure, there isn't much in the way of world building, this is really focused on Osric and Aurienne and the actions they take. I'd have liked to have explored the world more. But, this is more than made up for by all the other elements which make this such a joyous package.

This is absolutely the slowest of very slow, super slow, tortoiselike, slow burns. Nothing happens...and yet, you know they're building up to something. The foundations have been set, the hatred that they started with has given way to something more profound. They care. And that makes me want to read Dearly Beloathed #2, SO much more.

Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for the ARC, this is my honest opinion.

I loved this book!.

I'm aware it was originally a Dramoine fanfic, but that's not a world I delved into. So, for me it was a fresh story and fantastic debut. I had such a fun time reading this story. The banter, bickering and tension was superb. I really enjoyed the writing style. The foundations set and seeds planted have me very excited for the next book to see how the story progresses, especially the romance because I was definitely let craving more.

I did have some little grievances with some elements of the story, but not enough to take away from my overall enjoyment and reading experience.

A more thorough review is to come soon. I just need to gather more of my thoughts.

I’ve been in a huge reading slump bc two weeks ago, I read my fav book of the year so far & I haven’t stopped thinking about it since. I lost count of how many times I laughed throughout this book - Irresistible really had me losing my mind! We’re talking thigh stares, sweet knuckle kisses & the kind of slow-burning yearning that leaves you absolutely FERAL. The writing was phenomenal & the characters were perfection.

@brigitteknightley you’ve delivered an ♾️ ⭐️ worthy slow burning romantasy & now my everyday thoughts are consumed with longing glances, a specific assassin’s black gloved hand, forks, thighs, his haelan & a cat (iykyk). If there’s one book you need on your radar, it’s definitely this one!!💖

🗡️ enemies to lovers w/ banter
🗡️ super slow burning
🗡️ touch her & die
🗡️ he falls first!!!!!! (MY HEARTTT)
🗡️ she can’t stand him

Title: The irresistible Urge to Fall for your Enemy
Author: Bridgitte Knightly
Rating: 3 1/2 ⭐️

Okay let me start by saying this was one of my most anticipated reads of the year.
And I love the authors previous work (ie her FanFiction) like LOVE.
I did also know going into this, that it wouldn’t be a trad publish off Draco Malfoy and the ordeal of falling in love, I knew that.
So I went in with high expectations but also knowing it wouldn’t be the same story just similar vibes.

All that being said, I genuinely enjoyed the book…but I was a bit disappointed.

Let’s start with the positives:

The writing:
Like I said I really enjoyed the authors previous work. I genuinely enjoy her writing style, with lots of dialogue and witty banter. And I also liked it in this book. At some parts it did start to feel like it was a bit too much dialogue but personally I will always chose dialogue over endless descriptions of the environment.
Knightley made me laugh and giggle so I has definitely happy while reading.
I ate this shit up within like 2 days. It feels like a Rom-com set in a fantasy world and I am here for it!
However, there was maybe one or two too many jokes about dicks for my taste. It started to feel a tad juvenile.
And most of all I just didn’t feel all of the emotions I know this author can make me feel
Now all the Pub names and their little word plays? Brilliant. Pub owners should take inspiration and use some ideas in the real world.

The setting:
This is clearly still our world but an alternative universe where there is magic and somehow it’s all still very medieval but they’ve got electricity. Oh and there’s no UK.
Overall it was so so clear that a lot of thought and research went into the world building, I just think it was a bit poorly introduced and there’s a lot (a LOT) of information thrust on you with lots of fancy words that I don’t know and it just made it a bit less fun to read.
It also sometimes made it hard to understand how smart aurienne is meant to be. As I didn’t understand the world enough to comprehend what she’s actually deducting and figuring out.
That all being said I still highly appreciate the amount of effort that went into the world and think it has immense potential.

As for the characters:
We don’t get much here. I liked both our main characters and they’re decently fleshed out but aside from them? Not much and that was disappointing. There were some side characters mentioned but we barely got to see them and actually get to know them.
I also felt like Osric was weirdly useless? Like he had one or two moments where he came in handy. Other than that eh Aurienne did all the work (which fair she’s the helean) but I’d have enjoyed it a bit more if we got to see how brilliant Osric actually is at his work! Like come one let the man show off some more (yes there was one scene but it just urgh I wanted more!). He just came across a tad pathetic this way.
One thing this book made me realise, is how blatantly okay I am with murder (under the right circumstances mind you).

The romance:
The banter the hatred, yes. Chefs kiss! Brilliant loved it.
The actual romance though, while it had the banter, the flirting and the tension it felt a bit one dimensional making the shift from enemies to something more feel a bit abrupt. Yes there was a lot of great banter but it still went from zero to 100 in the last 50ish pages. Given how this is only book 1 of two I’m hoping for some more intense yearning in the sequel and think this was just the warm up.

Overall I think it’s clear Knightley came from the world of fanfiction. She still shines in the things she was already good at, but when it’s her own world and her own characters some things can become a bit too Mitch. like it was totally okay to throw a ton of medical terms at me while we were in a world that I already understood and was familiar with but in an all new world with all new words and concepts it just becomes too much.
I feel like (and I really hate to say this) the book would have been better if she had stuck a tad closer to her original fanfiction. AND I KNOW, I KNOW this is not a reworking of Draco Malfoy and the mortifying ordeal of being in love and I don’t need it to be, but it had the bones this book was missing. Her characterisations of Hermione and Malfoy were already far enough away from the original to use them for this story. I feel like it would have helped a lot to have that little bit.

The wit and hilarity of Oscric's inner monologue makes this book worthy of a 5 star automatically - I LOVED this. The magic system is so unique, the enemies to lovers is elite, and I LOVED the banter. Their first meeting had me in stitches with the onions (iykyk) and I recommend this to anyone who loves a bit of magic mixed in with their banter!

Thank you netgalley for the ARC, I will definitely be getting a trophy for my shelf and rereading this!

I have been absolutely frothing at the mouth for this book since it was announced and I'm ecstatic to say that it was everything I ever hoped for and more.

The banter. The snark. The infuriatingly slow burn. The tension. I cannot get enough of all of it. Like many others, I first discovered the author via Archive of our Own and was really excited to read an original version of her writing - Osric and Aurienne were perfect. I loved their dynamic and it was enjoyable that while I could see where inspiration was taken from the fanfic, they still felt like they were their own characters overall which is really nice.

My only complaint would be that some of the pacing wasn't the best, I did have a hard time at certain points but honestly it was worth it and I have no regrets and this will remain in my reread rotation for....well, ever lol.

I truly loved that the author actually understands how to properly write enemies to lovers and slow burns - I feel like those tropes get slapped onto so many books and its just not accurate. Knightley takes them and RUNS. The mystery element is fantastic and it's great in that it works in tandem with the romance but neither overshadows the other, they work well together and each have their moments in the spotlight.

I am so so glad I got to read this book but now I have to wait for the sequel and I'm not sure I'll be able to make it. I NEED it right now.

[first of all thank you so much to netgalley & the publisher for letting me read this early in exchange for an honest review]

for me this book had both pros and cons aplenty, so I did find the star rating a little difficult, but I’ll try to explain with as little spoilers as possible.

to begin with I want to say this book did actually have me giggling out loud at points, I’m a suck for enemies-to-lovers with delicious banter and we got plenty of bickering banter. And if VERY VERY slow burn is your jam then you’ll be all over this (unfortunately not one of my fav tropes).

one thing that I found I struggled with the entire book though was the writing style, the author used unnecessarily complicated vocabulary alongside made up words which I found confusing and I don’t remember that being the case with the original fanfic.

overall this was a fun read and I’m glad I read it, but the fanfic will still reign supreme.

The story started off a bit slow for me, I must admit. There are lots of fantasy words that I had no idea what they meant. I felt like the world and magic isn't explained too much but the story IS good and I eventually got wrapped up into it.

There was good humour the whole way through, very british, which I appreciate.

I do like the language used and then other times I dont know what they are talking about. It made me feel a little bit thick that so many big words I have never come across before were used.

There is an interesting style of writing the author uses where instead of using speech marks to show a discussion, sometimes when they are arguing they just describe in a paragraph what the back and forth is (I hope that makes some kind of sense) and I liked that.

Also, I have crazy respect for this author originating on AO3!

I loved this one!
The banter and snark and sarcasm where ON POINT!
Might be excessive for some readers but it was exactly what I was in the mood for so it worked for me. It was also quite funny, which I was not expecting!
I would have appreciate a bit more depth when it comes to the worldbuilding.
I liked the slow burn between the characters, how their feelings kind of sneaked on them. The spice was hot.
Overall I had a great time and I can't wait for book two!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an arc in Exchange for my honest opinion.

This was one of my most anticipated books of the year. The title and the synopsis had me desperate to read it. Unfortunately it just wasn't really for me.

It was almost a DNF at 34% in but then I heard that it picks up, which it did to be fair, so I kept going.

So for the positives:

- I did feel like the book was genuinely funny at times. The scene when they talked about the fork and there was occasional banter between the love interests that did make me at least smile.
- I also liked the deofals, particularly Cíele's scathing criticism of Osric whenever they crossed paths.

But unfortunately I just didn't really find Osric or Aurienne very likeable and so I didn't really find myself caring about them or the romance. I found the writing overcomplicated, so I wasn't able to fully immerse myself in the story - it almost felt like the author threw in every complex word they knew into the story, which okay fine, but it didn't flow very well for me. And while the story was funny at times, there was definitely a lot of times where I felt it was trying TOO hard to be funny.
There were also two points where the story was telling rather than showing, where I wanted to read dialogue between characters rather than just be told about the discussion, and I found that frustrating.

I know there's a lot of love for this book and I can see why, it just wasn't personally one that I enjoyed.

Thank you to Netgalley, Little, Brown Book Group UK, Orbit and the author for the review copy, provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

This was so fun! The humour was amazing, I found myself giggling at least once a page. Brigitte has such a fun and fresh voice, I cannot wait to read what's next! It took a little bit for the story to pick up, but it was worth it. Now I am going to be sad while I wait for part 2. Will have to go read her fanfiction and this over and over in the meantime.