I do love a fun but intelligent romance, especially ones set in the Regency. This one did not disappoint! What's a girl to do when she's the not-to-inherit sister of a Viscount who doesn't have two cents to his name? She'd better marry well!

Unfortunately, the heart wants what it wants, even if what it wants is just as poor as she is.

Still, our heroine does her best to withstand the charm of a wholly unsuitable match, a man so mired in debt himself (or so she believes) that he would be a millstone around her neck instead of a prosperous way out of her uncle's house.

Great fun, well-written, authentically voiced, and a really good read!

Sometimes all I need is a good enemies-to-lovers romance story. It's a good sign when the verbal sparring is fun but not mean-spirited, and Waters hits the right balance. Her characters make silly bets, make silly bedroom decisions, and it's fun to read about. Add in an LGBTQ+ subplot and not too much (or too explicit) sex, and you have a good read for a day you're stuck inside.

This was a DNF for me. I read to 30% and did not enjoy the plot or where it seemed to be headed. Thanks for the opportunity to give this book a chance.

Marth Waters does it again! This author made me rediscovered my love for historical romance when I read To Have and to Hoax at the beginning of the year. I have to admit I was a little worried that book 2 wouldn't live up to the hype I had built up in my head, but I shouldn't have doubted one of my new favorite authors. To Love and to Loathe was simply amazing! All of the wittiness from book 1 was alive and well in this book. So many swoon-worthy moments between Diane and Jeremy. I also loved how much Violet and Audley appeared in TLATL. I will read anything and everything from Martha! :)

To Love and to Loathe by Martha Waters is an excellent regency era historical romance that is cute, witty, creative, and entertaining.

This book is a tie-in to the author’s previous book, To Have and to Hoax, however it can easily be enjoyed as a stand-alone. I had not read the previous book, however easily followed along and enjoyed it so much that I have already picked up its predecessor.

This book gives a fun, fresh, and sassy take on the classic enemies to friends to lovers plot. The chemistry, banter, and electricity between Jeremy and Diana. They both have their flaws and faults, but are both realistic and like able as main characters.

The author was impressive in her ability to draw me in to the story and keep me engaged. Even though I had a feeling where things would end up, I really enjoyed the journey to get there.

5/5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this awesome ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR, Bookbub, and Instagram accounts immediately and will post it to my Instagram, Amazon, and B&N accounts upon publication on 4/6/21.

This book was fine. I am pretty surprised that none of the reviews I've read mention that the heroine outs an LQBTQIA+ character to several other people. Hmmm.....

A quick light read and I think contemporary readers might enjoy it even though it's historical.

I would have given this 4 stars if not for some historical inaccuracies and the heroine (who I did not care for).

A cute if forgettable historical romance. It's a mixture of the "friends to lovers" and "enemies to lovers" trope. Long sizzling chemistry between two likeable protagonists = pleasant way to spend an afternoon. Would read again.

I'm always on the hunt for more feminist historical romances (mostly regency and similar time periods). To Love and to Loathe is a mixed bag. I like Diana and Jeremy's bantering, bickering dynamic that blossoms into something more, and the inclusion of queer side characters is always a big plus. The fact the hero isn't presented as immediately perfect during sexual activity is also great, and it's rare to see such open communication between the hero and heroine in terms of their likes and dislikes.

I think the central flaw of this book is its very closed setting, a fornight-long house party where... nothing happens. The memorable overarching events can basically be summed up as, one time they play hide and seek, sometimes they go outside and other times it's rainy. To Love and to Loathe doesn't drag as much as the first book in the series, but like its predecessor, to the extent that it has a plot, it's a convoluted one created entirely by the hero and heroine. Introspection is all well and good, but a bit much as the driving force for an entire novel.

I'll probably still keep an eye out for the next book in the series (especially if it's about Emily and Lord Belfry).

To Love and to Loathe was so delightful! The light, feel good book I need! I honestly couldn't put it down.
Diana, a widow, makes a bet for 1000 pounds with Jeremy,Marquess of Willingham and the man she is constantly at odds with, that he will be married within a year. Along the line, Jeremy has an uncomfortable issue after he was accused of poor performance in the bedroom and they strike up an arrangement.
Its steamy, its fun, its so dang cute! They start to learn about each other and get to know one another and maybe they don't find each other so bad after all?
I totally recommend this book! It's simply delightful!

Cute! Not precisely my regency cup o' tea, but this book did a great job of really convincing me the characters liked each other. Sometimes I read books about the couple that has this crazy, dramatic romance and they're professing deep eternal love for each other and I'm just like...but are you even friends? Jeremy and Diana were the opposite—they had great chemistry, both before and after they were romantically involved. And they're bickering! So much fun.

I loved this book! I fell in love with To Have and To Hoax at the beginning of quarantine, and was thrilled to hear it was the beginning of the series. To Love and To Loathe follows Diana in her quest to find companionship. A botched last night with his mistress leaves Jeremy feeling out of sorts, and so he turns to Diana for a better review. The two embark on a two week country party with a mutually beneficial agreement between them. What they both don't expect is to fall in love along the way.

I absolutely love Diana. She's a strong female protagonist but not your usual one at that. She finds it difficult to deal with emotions and had a harder childhood. The evolution of her relationship with Jeremy was fun to read, and really showed great development of them both as characters. I laughed, I blushed, I loved. What a great book!

There’s so much to love and nothing to loathe in this book!

Diana wagers 100 pounds that Jeremy will be wed within a year (they’re both friends from TO HAVE AND HOAX). He accepts the bet and offers her another deal: a no-strings attached love affair. A recent lover complained about his prowess in the bedroom and he’s eager for an honest opinion. Neither Diana (already widowed) or Jeremy are interested in marriage, but the more they reveal of their true selves to each other, the more they realize that they might not loathe each other as much as they thought.

Sharp sparring with steamy interludes, fun friends, and one very determined spinster make this read a frothy delight. Both characters show beautiful vulnerability that leads to the perfect ending. A must read for historical romance fans.

I had not realized this was the second book in a series. It wasn't exactly necessary to have read that one first, though, although I did wonder why I should care about certain characters who were brought in with little introduction.

Overall, I feel quite neutral about this book. At times, the story felt a bit too contemporary for being set in the Regency era and with such a salacious proposition for a premise, the attempts at suspense were dragged out for all they were worth. I'm also not sure the queer story line really worked for me because it, too, felt run into the ground.

I might read something else by this author, if she were not setting her story in the Regency period.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I would recommend if you're looking for

-m/f frenemies to lovers
-brother's friend
-sex pact/friend's with benefits and a bit of sex education thrown in
-regency romance
-a house party
-a marriage bet
-a hilarious cast of secondary characters
-some amazing and witty banter
-slow burn

I loved this one so much. It turned so many tropes on its head, and had such a feminist plot. While Jeremy was a rake, he still had a lot to learn in the ways of women, and Diana was there to teach him despite her lack of practical experience. Their relationship, banter, flirting, and sweetness with each other was amazing. It was wonderful to see that the sex was not immediately perfect, and Jeremy was willing to listen and learn.

It was also surprising to have a book centering on a sex pact still be a slow burn and it worked so well. I was laughing so much with this book and couldn't put it down. While I have not read the first book in the series and I don't feel you have to, I know am desperate to read it to learn more about these characters and can't wait for the next in the series.

Rating: 5
Steam: 3

I very much enjoyed To Love and to Loathe, an enemies-to-lovers. The undeniable chemistry and clever banter between Diana and Jeremy made this book impossible to put down. It's also a great depiction of sexual communication and learning, as Diana teaches Jeremy how to be a better partner to the women he pursues. But while Diana and Jeremy were wonderful characters to root for, I was frustrated by a the lack of external conflict to keep them apart. I was also frustrated by a plot line surrounding a closeted queer character. Diana promises to keep this character's sexual identity a secret, and then immediately outs this character to several of her friends. This choice is never condemned and Diana suffers no consequences for such a selfish act. It made me uncomfortable as a queer writer and felt like an unnecessary decision on the part of the author. The lack of external conflict and the decision to out the only queer character in the book against their will made this book a three out of five stars for me.

Martha Waters, author of the adorable book "To Have and To Hoax," has crafted yet another wonderfully entertaining storyline in the novel "To Love and to Loathe." Diana, a widowed yet hurting spitfire, and Jeremy, a man totally indifferent to the idea of marriage, have been friends for years. While hurling barbs back and forth, sparks fly and the friendship turns into something else entirely. I really enjoyed the chemistry between the main couple. Waters also includes characters from the previous book, and it was fun to read about them again. I really enjoyed this book!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

To Love and to Loathe is an enemies-to-lovers Regency romance. While it's the second book in a series, I read it without first reading To Have and to Hoax and never felt lost. I don't usually read historical romances but this adorable cover drew me right in.

Diana, Lady Templeton, a young widow remains uninterested in remarrying. Jeremy, Marquess of Willingham, is a confirmed rake who's known Diana before her Debut Season. The two have a well-known antagonistic relationship.

Diana offers him a wager. He marries within a year or she pays him 100 pounds.

And then Jeremy's latest conquest gives him poor marks for his lovemaking skills. So he offers Diana a proposition of his own. They enter into an affair and she gives him an honest critique of his abilities.

As you might expect, hilarity, antics, and feels all ensue.

The main characters and their friends were all well-developed. In some ensemble romances, I end up identifying characters by hair color but not this time.

The constant banter was fast-paced, bubbly, and sparkling. Jeremy's grandmother was imposing, terrifying, and a hoot. Totally transparent in her manipulations to get Jeremy married off to continue the family name.

I appreciated Diana's forward-thinking about women's role in society compared to men's. And the privilege that money gives. Probably not entirely historically accurate but I also enjoyed the frank discussions about grief and mourning.

Medium on the steam scale which felt perfect for the tone of the book. Read this for the banter and characters' relationships with each other not for explicit sex.

This is a perfect read when you need a sweet, clever HEA

Thank you NetGalley and Aeria Books for the ARC.

Lady Diana Templeton is a young widow who flirts incorrigibly, especially with her brother’s longtime friend Jeremy, the Marquess of Willingham. But their flirting is more bite than bark. However, Jeremy knows that despite his embarrassing situation —his previous mistress told him he’s not so great in bed— Diana will tell the truth and actually help him improve his bedroom skills. And so the two agree to a fortnight of liaisons while at a country house party. But feelings are catching for these two have vowed to never we (again)!

Trifling insipid, but the banter is mostly good. Could have done with more “meat”— maybe to do with Jeremy’s dichotomous feelings toward his deceased brother. Either way, all of the plotting for Lady Helen was boring, yet took up too much of the text in the story.

On the chaste to steamy scale, it’s a 5.

To Love and to Loathe was such a fun read! Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I want to start by saying that I have not read Martha’s first book, To Have and to Hoax, but I love that it was not required to do so. Each book in this series follows a different couple, making it easy to start with the book of your choosing and go forward or back if you want. I do think, however, that the series would benefit from being titled and numbered so that it would be easy to figure out the order they were released.

I adore Regency era books and this was no exception. I love seeing how differently society carried on while also seeing how, as people, we’re still fairly similar. And this cast shows you all of that. From a strong group of girlfriends willing to ensure each other knows the ways of the bedroom, to older brothers with horrible timing, and an adorably fierce, absolutely not to be messed with, grandmother who might just have a trick or two still tucked up her sleeve.

In To Love and to Loathe we follow Jeremy, Marquess of Willingham and Lady Diana Templeton. The former a self proclaimed rake and eternal bachelor and the latter a young widow content in her independence with no desire to remarry. Jeremy and Diana have known each other for 10 years already as Jeremy is a friend of Diana’s older brother and they’ve been verbally sparring from the start. Which means we get to be witness to plenty of witty banter full of pointed barbs and constant one-upmanship. Not to mention the undercurrent of sexual tension. It’s always fun to watch these types of relationships unfold.

My one wish was that more attention was paid to the sexual tension in particular. It just could have benefited from more time. More time for the reader to feel the tension and more instances of steamy scenes that went beyond kissing to confuse the minds of our characters as their true feelings unfold. I did love what we did get to see in this regard, which is why I wish for more of it!

Overall, this book was a joy and a great escape from a suboptimal week in real life. It ranks a little low on the steamy scale, but I have every intention of going back to the first book and reading further books in the future! Also, I LOVE this cover! So much more eye catching than the first book.

I don't read a lot of historical romances, but I picked up this one on a whim because the cover was ADORABLE and I thought the premise sounded intriguing. Jeremy, Marquess of Willingham, has recently been criticized by a mistress of his for his rather lackluster skills in the bedroom. Seeking confirmation of his sexual prowess, or worst case, an instruction on how to improve, he takes up a limited-time affair with long-time verbal sparring partner, the widowed Diana, Lady Templeton. Lady Templeton sees this as an opportunity to signal to the menfolk that she's been a widow long enough and is open to take a lover--plus to get Jeremy out of her system, as she's had an attraction to him for years (even though she hates his guts a little bit).

This book was super enjoyable. Diana and Jeremy were excellent, fleshed out characters, and I loved their crop as friends as well. When I picked this up, I hadn't realized it was actually a sequel--you definitely don't need to read the first one to read this one--but now I WANT to go back and read the first one. For a book supposedly about sex education, there's not really much of that here (sex or sex education), so don't be disappointed if you were looking for loads of steam (though there is some), but the plot moves at a steady clip, with constant verbal banter and character development that make excessive steam unnecessary. Diana and her friends are women ahead of their time but determined to figure out how to make a place for themselves in a man's world and, honestly, doing a pretty darn good job of it. The book definitely teed up a third and perhaps fourth book in this series, and I can't wait to read them all! Maybe historicals are my things after all? At least when they have spitfires like Diana as the heroine.

Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for my eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

5 stars - 9/10