It was so nice to see a main character in a romance novel with ADHD, it was super refreshing. I loved Christopher and Kate, they were so cute, they had the whole love to hate you thing going. I absolutely loved the paint ball scene! It was funny and Kate was so badass in it, I loved everything about that scene. I also loved the bromance between Christopher and Jamie, it was so cute. I loved Jamie and Bea's story and seeing them in this book just made me want to back and reread their love story. If you like feisty heroine, who is honestly all around badass then this is the book for you!

Better Hate Than Never is a hard one for me to rate.
While I love enemies-to-lovers and appreciate the representation (disability, feminism, sex positivity) I just felt unconnected to this story. For me the banter, romance, and even the plot wavered from good to ehhh. Why were they enemies? That felt muddy. Her family is supposed to be supportive and concerned but never cared to find out why they had beef? We're told about her struggles in life, but it just felt disingenuous. And the romance didn't have the build-up to last GENERATIONS. Also, would have loved a more realistic portrayal of MC losing her virginity. Look it's not bad, I just thought it could be better.

There are some authors who never fail to make me feel happy while reading their books and Chloe Liese is one of those authors, as I’ve come to rely on her distinctive sense of humour, charmingly witty characters and ability to pen sexy, light-hearted romances that make me swoon though fits of giggles time and time again, not to mention that she writes sexual tension like a boss

These characters were both so lovely! I really loved the fiery enemies to lovers plot and the chemistry between the two main characters was great. The family and friend relationships with the side characters were a nice addition. The spicy ending was a bit too long for my tastes, but I will definitely recommend to those who I know will appreciate it.

I adore everything Chloe writes, and this did not disappoint. Realistic relationship progressions, disability representation, a diverse cast. Amazing. Loved it.

This was a cute romance novel. I loved the representation as well of ADHD and chronic Migraines. I will say I did enjoy the first book in the series a little more but I loved the enemies to lovers aspect of this.

This was an entertaining read. I did appreciate that there was emphasis on communication in this one which isn't the norm for most romance novels and there isn't a third act break-up although it gives hints at one. So all in al lit was relatively low angst in that regard. The insight into people who have chronic migraines and ADHD was also a good example of disability rep. And the spicy scenes were sizzling.

However, I wasn't as enamored of it like I was the first one which was kind of sad considering I love the source material it's based on and "10 Things I Hate About You". I enjoyed it don't get me wrong but I didn't love it as much as I was planning on. Would highly recommend though because this author is pretty amazing and is fast becoming a favorite.

now this is how you write enemies to lovers!!! Make the tension hot. Make the banter funny. Make him apologetic. Make him emotionally damaged. Make him buy her flowers. Make him cook her dinner. Make him obsessed with her!!! I am going to be thinking about Kate and Christopher forever. Their connection, both in hate and love, felt so genuine. I love how damaged Christopher was. I love how so much of Christopher's hostility toward Kate stemmed from his concern for her safety and his abandonment issues and how he comes to terms with that and reconciles so many of his feelings (hot men go to therapy!!!) and works on himself to be better for Kate. I related so much to Kate's burnout, her wanderlust but desperate need for stability and her family. I love how much she loves her sisters and would do anything for them, even if it means sacrificing her own happiness. I loved the chronic illness rep in Christopher and the neurodivergent rep in Kate. They are just so perfect

3.5 stars.
I enjoyed this book and there wasn't anything specifically wrong with it or things i would change. I just wasn't obsessed, can't put it down in love with it. I liked the characters and their development. I thought the representation of ADHD and someone who suffers with migraines was done well. I like the whole family dynamic and side characters as well. I didn't read the first of this series so maybe I would have been more invested if I'd already been introduced to the world. The characters had good chemistry and I liked seeing their progression over the course of the story.

I thought I liked enemies to lovers but I’m starting to realize that I don’t. It makes it really hard to like either character... which is a must for me in a romance.
Chloe’s writing is of course smart and spot on so I can see why fans of the trope like it. For me personally, it just didn’t work.

Thank you to Netgalley, Chloe Liese, PRHAudio, and Berkley for the ebook and audiobook arcs!

Listen, everything she writes is excellent, that’s just all there is to it. This was an excellent read. I switched between audio and ebook and loved both equally. The narration was wonderful, but the writing itself is witty, quirky and so bingeable.

Absolutely loved Kate and Christopher. Enemies to lovers with some serious chemistry!

- Childhood enemies to lovers
- Age gap (he's 7 years older)
- He falls first
- Opposites attract
- ADHD, demisexuality and chronic migraine rep
- No breakup
- Narrated by Stephen Dexter and Charlotte North
- Dual POV

I feel confident calling Kate and Christopher enemies because damn, they really don’t like each other in the beginning 😅. I also don’t think you can get more opposite than these two. She’s a travelling photojournalist with less than $10 in her bank account. He craves control, never takes a holiday and owns a firm specialising in ethical investments.

But they do say opposites attract! As it turns out, Christopher was just channelling his worry and love for Kate into animosity because he didn’t know how to handle his feelings for her as she always left. “As if anyone could not want you.” 🥺

He was a goner for her and so understanding and patient as Kate revealed she needed an emotional connection before intimacy. Her birthday was his door code! He had a handkerchief she made years ago in his desk drawer! He archived every single photo she published!

Being a wanderer myself, I also resonated with Kate. I just adore how Chloe repeatedly gives us diverse and refreshingly honest characters. I also adore that this series is Shakespeare-inspired. The nods to 10 Things I Hate About You a.k.a my favourite movie? I die. There was a paintball scene, people!

Finally, I appreciated there was no breakup and Kate decided to trust Christopher and not jump to conclusions 👏🏻. The ending made me so happy and I cannot wait to find out where Chloe takes Juliet's story.

I am baffled by how overdone this book is and how strongly I disliked it. This series seems pandering, like it was written for TikTok. I am not at all impressed that characters and their actions were played off as a result of their zodiac signs.

Kate is immature and incredibly judgemental, and Christopher's alter ego player/sex god didn't fit at all! I do not understand why they like each other. I certainly didn't like either of them.

My biggest complaint: I was cringing at how many times Christopher was thinking of how well he could get women off. And then they both act like his not having sex for three weeks is some miracle. He never sleeps with a woman more than once but has sex multiple times a week. Where is he finding all these oodles of interested women?? And his assistant was the one scheduling all these sex dates for him - YUCK. None of this added to the plot, but it was all gross to read.

I won't be continuing with this series.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Okay, this book gave me alllllll the cozy autumn vibes! And that plot.... absolutely brilliant!!! I love this book, more than the first book! Will definitely be talking about this at work and making sure we have a copy on the shelves for patrons!

Chloe Liese stole my heart with Better Hate Than Never.

I can’t put into words how much I enjoyed every second of this book and read it in 24 hours, because I was so hooked. I mean who doesn’t love the childhood enemies, who always actually had feelings for each other but tried to hide it, to adult lovers? Pair that in with incredible characters and amazing chemistry and you have a recipe for a perfect adventure.

One thing I love about all of Liese’s books is the way she explores family relationships. I absolutely love seeing the Wilmot sisters supporting each other at every turn and to also bring in the tough love when needed. Then there’s Christopher who is constantly learning to deal with the grief that comes from the loss of his parents. Even if he’s healed, you can see how grief of losing a loved one never fully disappears and I appreciate Chloe Liese for making sure we see that. Not to mention the way the Wilmot family adopted and made him part of their family dynamic, which was just beautiful to see.

One thing I can always depend on Liese’s stories to do is to remind me everyone deserves love. As someone with ADHD I absolutely adored the way Kat was someone I related to on many levels. Her struggles were similar to ones I face, and I related a lot to her personality as a whole. I mean I also love to use knitting to keep me busy. I really enjoyed the demisexuality rep with her character as it allows people to learn more about demisexuality and reminds demisexuals they are valid and deserve to see themselves represented. Seeing Kat fall in love and have the romance worthy of a romance novel reminds me we are all deserving of love no matter what society may make us feel.

I also really enjoyed seeing a character who suffers from chronic migraines and to see the way they deal with it when it’s a pain others can’t see. While my migraines are not as often, I know how debilitating they are and watching Christopher get to the point of feeling he could trust Kat with his pain was beautiful. He realized he didn’t want it to impact their relationship, so while he usually liked to hide that pain from others, he made sure to tell her just how much he was impacted by them and to communicate with her when it would become an issue. I truly loved seeing him come to terms with this part of himself and learning to tell people in his life when he wasn’t ok.

And of course like a true romance novel I found myself swooning left and right. I will always be a sucker for the couple who thinks they can’t stand each other to realizing they used that to avoid the truth that they love each other. And this case was no different and like always it made me feel those consuming butterflies as I fell in love with their relationship. Plus the spice was amazing as always from Liese.

I also would like to take a moment and say that Chloe Liese writing has a beauty to it and I always find myself in awe of her style and voice. Seeing her take on a retelling/modernization of The Taming of the Shrew was a fun journey and reminded me how much I love her style.

Overall I give this book all the stars and it is on my top reads list for 2023. I don’t think I could have loved it more than I did.

“I look at her and see a tumbleweed who’ll never stay in one safe place, a money-hating hellion who despises what I covet for its stability and power, a fierce, electrifying woman who could send me up in flames if I got too close.”
As if there was any doubt that Chloe Liese’s second book in the Wilmot Sisters series wouldn’t as phenomenal or better than the first, Liese went ahead and surpassed every single expectation I had. With keenly written characters, more than one nod to Shakespeare as well as 10 Things I Hate About You, Better Hate Than Never is engrossing with the tension so expertly expressed on the page between main characters Kate and Christopher.

Kate and Christopher are rivals, neighbors since childhood, full of animosity and ire, but yet so soft and squishy for each other. Better Hate Than Never should be dubbed a mutual grumpy/sunshine as both characters walk that fine line between love and hate in a way that had giggling like a besotted fangirl on more than one occasion. Freshly returned from overseas and between photography jobs due to an injury she told no one about, Kate is struggling to find a place for herself within her family. Whereas Christopher is struggling with Kate being back in his life, and the more time they spend together (whether inadvertent or not) it becomes increasingly more difficult for Christopher to convince himself (and those around him) that his disregard for Kate is based on hated—definitely not love.

“Okay. So, fine. Christopher isn’t a completely evil capitalist. But he’s still definitely a capitalist. With an amazing chest. Who tangos like a fucking god. And smells so damn good.”
Both main characters, Kate and Christopher, are neurospicy with ADHD and chronic migraines (respectively). Chloe Liese has handled their romance and the neurodivergence with such care and that is easily translated to how swept away I was in this story. Picking up almost immediately upon the ending of the first book in there series (Two Wrongs Make a Right), Better Hate Than Never delivers the modern day equivalent of The Taming of the Shrew. As any 90’s baby would know, if there’s a Shakespeare retelling of this beloved play, then surely 10 Things I Hate About You would be mentioned. Rest assured there plenty of references. Chloe Liese’s take on the iconic paintball scene delivers an emotional punch and I think improved upon the cinematic version. Kate and Christopher’s will they or won’t they tango reaches a crescendo during this scene, and I’ll openly admit it lives rent free in my head.

There is so much to love about Chloe Liese. Not only does she create characters that are so well-conceptualized that they easily come to life in my mind, but her writing seamlessly weaves emotion, action, as well as information in such a way that entire chunks of time effortlessly slip by me whenever I read any of her books. Between the romance, the characters that I loved who were flawed and wonderful, and one of the best grovel/wooing from a male character that I’ve read, Better Hate Than Never is a standout novel.

“How do you make things right with someone without making things good between you? How do you set a break without grafting yourselves together in the healing?”
Chloe Liese is easily a Hive favorite. Val and I were lucky enough to be able to interview her in Dallas over the summer at Book Bonanza. Bee sure to watch for when the full interview is available! Better Hate Than Never is surely going to be a favorite amongst readers as this story has it all. Kate and Christopher have a special place in my heart, and I highly recommend that you have your copy preordered so you’re ready for release day!

I'll admit I haven't done a deep dive into Liese's backlist yet, but these Shakespeare reimaginings have really been doing it for me so far. Given how conflict-heavy the first chunk of the story is, it was almost refreshing to have it juxtaposed against a lighter conclusion, something that wasn't going to divide Christopher and Kat for any substantial amount of time. Watching the characters decide to do the mature thing and hear each other out in the moment was thoroughly gratifying, and the initial snarking leading up to their ultimate collision felt like the best rom-com repartee. I couldn't put this one down (evidenced by the fact that I read it in a day, apparently!). Looking forward to what I'm assuming is Juliet's story next!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

In this Taming of the Shrew retelling, BETTER HATE THAN NEVER gives 10 Things I Hate About You vibes mixed with horny sexual tension when childhood enemies to lovers fall for each other. The book has excellent banter which is synonymous with Chloe Liese books, which had me laughing out loud.

Kate is such a strong and quirky heroine, taking crap from no one, yet having a sensitive and empathetic side. With strong ADHD rep, Kate is chaotic and carefree. I loved the relationship she has with her sister Bea, along with her artistic vibes. She had laugh out loud one liners, especially if they’re toward Christopher, which made me smile.

I enjoyed watching Christopher fall for Kate and grow emotionally as he worked through the childhood trauma of losing his parents and what that looks like when it comes to falling in love. My heart hurt for him throughout the book, but his budding relationship with Kate helped him slowly be put back together. He also had very realistic migraine representation.

Better Hate Than Never is an age gap, opposites attract steamy romance where he falls first.

I loved this book so much! I am so obsessed with this book series and I really hope we get to see Juliet's story next. The tension and the angst between Kate and Christopher was so spot on, and as always, Chloe Liese did such a fantastic job with these relatable characters. I loved watching them find their love for each other, and I really appreciated the lack of a third act breakup! Chloe nailed it again!

I had a fantastic time reading about Kate and Christopher falling in love. They are the perfect modern update to Katherina and Petruchio from Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. I never want to leave this world that Chloe Liese is building with each new addition to the series and I am really looking forward to more true love and sexy times in book three.

Recommended for: anyone that wants to read modern Shakespeare retellings with some spice and a whole lot of heart

Content warning: explicit sex scenes

I received a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.