A sharp, witty contemporary novel about ambition, relationships, and self-sabotage. Smart, funny, and painfully relatable at times. Perfect for fans of messy, complicated heroines.

My Own Worst Enemy by Lily Lindon is a witty and relatable exploration of self-sabotage and personal growth. The protagonist’s journey is both humorous and emotional, with sharp writing that balances lightheartedness with deeper themes of self-acceptance. While the book could have explored secondary characters more, the focus on the main character's development keeps the story engaging. It’s an enjoyable, character-driven read that blends humor and meaningful reflection.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. For more reviews, check out my bookstagram @blondesbooknook

A witty and engaging exploration of self-doubt, love, and personal growth. The story follows the protagonist, who grapples with the challenges of navigating her relationships while confronting her inner insecurities. Lindon's writing is sharp, funny, and insightful, capturing the complexities of modern life and the pressures of trying to live up to one's own expectations. The book balances humor with emotional depth, making it an enjoyable yet thought-provoking read.

My Own Worst Enemy is a book in large part filled with fun and silliness and deeply unserious situations being experienced by an MC who is very serious about all things. Everything is a competition and an opportunity to get it right. Wherever 'it' is. The constant study and comparison to others and performing both on stage and off has led Emmy to see everyone else in her profession as a threat. But no one more so than the girl whose arrival turns her world on its head.

Their toilet meet cute at an audition sours fast when Emmy realises Mae is infuriately not only her exact casting type... but her romantic type too. This is of course far too many feelings. Becoming friends with fellow actors? Sounds fake. The only rational solution?

Immediately inform this girl that you are now mortal enemies. Ignore the attraction. Cause havoc in each other's lives.

Naturally, messiness galore ensues.

But there's also family and friendship and pizza and masc women falling in love with each other! There's theatre and backstage drama and trying hard to be a Real Adult.

I don't know how I could ever not enjoy a rom-com with that premise!

I thought this was a very quirky and unique book as not many queer books I’ve read focus on “butch” lesbians as the main character. I adored the references to Shakespeare and the relationship between Mae and Emmy

Did I love it.....no, did I hate it.....also no.

This was a middle of the road love story 'enemies to lovers' (although I was never convinced on the enemies - the spark was there from day one), and although I enjoyed the read it was also predictable which I struggled with.

I think the author had great fun writing this, and it shows - although it isn't my top book of the year, its certainly not dwindling at the bottom of the list either so thank you Netgalley for the copy, I am glad I read it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC copy.

Lily Lindon is a new author but, since reading their first book, I’ve been looking forward to what’s next.

What’s next is another sapphic romance but with a twist…they are rivals.

It was an interesting look at the drama scene and, whilst both characters do create moments where you’re tearing your hair out, it is a good read just like Lindon’s debut.

It could have gone into more depth in some parts but this did not spoil the reading experience.

I wanted to love a queer romcom but it just didnt quite hit the spot for me. While romcoms are inherently predictable this one felt absurdly so, the interactions between the main characters were a bit childish and I didnt really love the style of humour. 2.5/5

while i get the idea behind this book i just absolutely could not get into it, (hence the late review). i couldn’t stand the main character which i’m sad about as i really wanted to like this. would possibly read from the author again tho as there’s potential there !! ty for the arc netgalley

Excited to read this, pitched as a butch/butch queer romance set in the theatre world, sounded interesting and unusual. If you like an enemies to friends romance with a main character that makes many mistakes, which make her miserable until the end of the book, then this is the book for you. I found it difficult to enjoy especially half way through the book when the 'rivalry' between the two main 'enemies' descends from banter with sexual tension into meanness. The character of Emmy is very much written as Autistic but whether she is aware of that or not is unclear and worse she is often treated terribly by her 'enemy' and exploited by another character who manipulates her into being her girlfriend. I kept reading because I wanted to see how it was going to end and was hoping for a happier ending, which does happen, thankfully. I really enjoyed the passion, knowledge and skills Emmy has for acting, whilst also wishing that the final chapters recognition of that would come a bit earlier. There is the skeleton of a really great book in here showing how women/AFAB with autism are often under diagnosed and the impact of that, one that is less painful to read, especially when presented as a light-hearted romance. Particularly, at times it felt like it was refreshing the trope of someone being mean to you, means they like you, which can lead to controlling relationships, that I thought we were past.

With thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, I did not finish this book as I found the beginning did not immerse me into it's world as much as I would have liked.

A good and enjoyable queer romance, although you're almost tearing your hair out at Emmy, but there's plenty of rivalry, character-development, banter etc to get your teeth stuck into. Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read and review the eARC

Unfortunately this wasn't for me.OTT. too much!! If you're like me and don't enjoy ott queer LGBTQ reads then this is not for you. This is in no way discrimtory. Just a view of it being ott for me.

It's so nice to see genderqueer representation in lesbian fiction! I wish there had been more discussion of gender and butchness, and identity in general - this was more silly romps than considerate identity introspection, which is what I'd been wanting - but otherwise it was truly lovely.

Really fun and entertaining just like Lily’s debut. I found the characters more relatable in this one than the first, but did find myself wanting a bit more depth in some places. A super quick and easy read though!

What is cool about this book is the background info, the way being an actor/ress is depicted. Of course, there are lots of clichés, I think, but still. I guess not everyone would care for the side stories, but I liked them. The love story building continuously over the book was well exectued. A bit enemy to lover, and not in a basic way.

"My Own Worst Enemy" by Lindon presents a personal journey. The narrative explores inner conflicts and growth, though pacing can feel uneven. Lindon's introspective writing carries a sense of authenticity, yet some sections might lack the depth to fully resonate. The book offers moments of self-discovery, making for a contemplative read that navigates the complexities of personal struggle, but its execution might not consistently captivate all readers.

Thank you to Aria for providing a copy of this book via NetGalley – views remain my own.

This is one of those books that feel like it could have been a whole lot better if it was just that bit shorter. It’s partly due to the MC – she’s not one of those characters who is particularly a lot of fun to spend time around. It’s great for a while, but Emmy often shows herself to be selfish, judgemental, and self-obsessed. She instantly judges Mae and decides they must be rivals/professional enemies as they’re both the same casting type. Emmy has a tendency to get ideas fixed in her head, and an unwillingness to consider further information when it’s in front of her.

These could all be interesting aspects to the character, if we witnessed any growth/self-realisation a little earlier in the book. Instead, it feels like so much is crammed in right towards the end, and oh everything is fine now let’s skip off into the sunset. It doesn’t feel like any of Emmy’s relationships – with friends, family or others – aren’t in some way toxic. It’s a huge shame, because some of the book is actually really good, and when Emmy and Mae are more lightly sparring with each other, it works really well, and you can feel the chemistry between them.

At other times, both are frustrating and downright cruel to one another. There are some parts where I felt incredibly sad for Emmy, and it didn’t seem like she actually had anyone she could properly talk to. I really thought part of this was going to end up being Emmy actually confiding in Mae, and the pair offering each other real help and advice, but when it edges towards that it all kind of blows up instead.

Emmy is, evidently, kind of stubborn, and more than once goes down the “cut your nose off” route without actually seeming to learn from it. Most of this book had things I liked, but all come with a kind of ‘at times’ disclaimer. I liked her roommates, at times, until they were dismissive about the issues Emmy was facing in her clearly unhealthy toxic relationship. Her dad could have been a really sweet character, but he’s so dismissive about Emmy’s actual dreams and it goes beyond “I’m just trying to be realistic” and enters more “you have to learn the family business” controlling territory.

I was really looking forward to this book – a queer, sapphic romcom set in the world of theatre should be something I adored, but there wasn’t enough of the actual romance and actually quite little theatre stuff compared to my expectations, and overall this book could have done with being shorter and allowing the MC a bit more growth instead.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a sweet and compelling storyline and I loved our main characters. Would definitely recommend.

It took a while to get going for me but it was a lot of fun in the end. These two are a real slow burn, going back and forward between detesting each other and attraction. Centring it around a play was a great way to create structure and force Emmy and Mae into proximity. Overall it's a sweet read and I'd pick up something else by the same author.