A wonderful adaptation! This book was SOOOO funny, I couldn't stop highlighting phrases while I was reading. I loved the banter and the dynamic between Osric and Aurienne, and thought that they had the perfect blend of humor and romance in their relationship. I thought that the stakes were built up well in this book, and I am eagerly awaiting the next installment! My only critique was that the medical jargon was a bit too heavy-handed throughout the book. I understand that it was fantasy medical jargon, but there was still a lot of it, and clogged up the narrative at points.

The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley was a fun read. As a fan of the author’s fanfic Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Being in Love, I was beyond excited to get my hands on this one.

I really enjoyed the protagonists, Aurienne and Osric—especially Osric. The witty banter between the two was absolutely perfect. I was literally laughing out loud at some of their exchanges. I also thought the dual POV was a great choice; the perspective of both characters was definitely needed.

The slow-burn romance was, well, very slow. I enjoy a good slow burn, but this one took its time—there’s very little romance or spice in this first installment. I’m eager to see how their relationship develops in the next book.

The pacing felt a bit slow in the beginning, but by the halfway point, the story really started to pick up. Honestly, I think this book would have worked better as a single novel rather than being split into two parts. The ending felt a little abrupt. Additionally, the heavy use of medical terminology throughout felt unnecessary at times.

Overall, Knightley’s debut novel did have issues with pacing, but it was still an enjoyable read, and I can’t wait for the next one.

If you are a fan of books that tackle serious plots in the most unserious way (think of the tone of Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries) and/or you love a handsome, self-interested antihero who falls for the girl a la Flynn Rider, then you're going to love this book.

The Irresistable Urge to Fall for your Enemy is an absolute delight. Osric is a member of an order of assassins who is forced to team up with a member of an order of magical healers in order to hopefully save his life from a degenerative condition that threatens his ability to use magic. The twist? He has to get her help in secret, because if his order finds out he has this condition, they will kill him.

Aurienne is a highly capable healer who takes her order's creed of "harm to none" very seriously, and she is incredibly torn about using her skills to help Osric, who is basically harm for hire.

The tone and the dialogue of this book are both so funny. Osric and Aurienne.are both incredibly smart, so their banter is both intelligent and hilarious. I love them both, and the slow burn build up of tension between them is fantastic.

I would not call this book enemies to lovers. I can imagine that being the arc of the overall series, but this book itself is more enemies to reluctant allies to maybe friends-ish.

The one thing that I didn't love about this book is that the story arc feels more like a "part 1" than a "book 1." I don't feel like there is a specific in-book story arc that comes to a satisfactory close by the end of the book. It feels like the entire book is the setup for a bigger story, which it is, but I prefer for each book in a series to have a dedicated arc that comes to a close within that book, and this book doesn't do that for me.

Even so, I greatly enjoyed it and I think you will, too.

If you love smart humor, strong worldbuilding, and the slowest of slow burn romances, you'll love The Irresistable Urge to Fall for your Enemy.

Wickedly funny at every turn, even in the minutiae. I found the magic system to be incredibly well developed and totally absorbing. The vocabulary is stunning (did you know an abattoir is a slaughterhouse? I didn’t) and, generally, the whole book is whip smart. I want every romance I read to be like this.

The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy is in fact an irresistible read with a slow burn romance that will leave readers clinging on every word said between the two main characters.

Ermahgerd! What is this amazingly fun, unique joyride?!! I hate that I now have to wait for a continuation. Such torture! The world building, the characters, the witty banter…chef’s kiss. Iso happy that reading devices have their own dictionary because I’ve never had to look up so many words. Did I have fun while doing it? Yes.

If you like enemies to loves with banter and yearning, then this one is for you. There is also humor in spades.

The world building could use more fleshing out. It often felt like I was just supposed to "know" things.

All in all a fun fantasy that definitely has a market.

The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley is an utterly captivating slow-burn romantasy that hooked me from the very first page. Tension crackles between Osric, the dangerously skilled assassin, and Aurienne, the sharp-witted healer, as they are forced into an uneasy alliance. With a fatal disease, political intrigue, and deeply ingrained rivalries standing between them, their dynamic is the perfect blend of enemies-to-lovers angst and undeniable chemistry.

Aurienne’s dedication to her work and her unwillingness to back down make her an incredible protagonist. She’s compassionate yet fierce, standing her ground against Osric’s brooding intensity. And Osric? He’s the kind of morally gray, reluctant antihero that keeps you flipping pages, wanting to unravel every layer of his past and motivations. Their reluctant partnership is packed with tension—both in the life-or-death stakes they face and the growing attraction they desperately try to resist.

The worldbuilding is immersive, with the tension between the assassin and healer factions adding so much depth to the story. The stakes feel real, the mystery surrounding the resurgence of the Pox is gripping, and the slow unraveling of trust between Osric and Aurienne is perfection.

This book gave me the same rush as Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Being in Love—not in the sense of being a direct comparison, but in that deeply satisfying, tension-filled, can’t-put-it-down way. Brigitte Knightley is now an auto-buy author for me. I’m already counting down the days until the next one.

Thank you NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group, and Ace for this arc!

4/5 stars

Ok, first things first. If you decide to read this, explanations for what the Orders are are listed AT THE END OF THE BOOK. I hope they'll change that, or at least have a note at the beginning, when it gets published, as I was so annoyed with the lack of world building and any sort of info that I nearly dnf'd this until I was like 35% of the way through. There's no explanation whatsoever what their Orders are other than one is Good and one is Bad and that's so annoying lol BUT NOT AS ANNOYING AS FINISHING THE BOOK AND FINALLY GETTING THE EXPLANATIONS I NEEDED 🫠🫠🫠🫠

ANYWAY. This was a super fun book lol, I LOVE the slow burn he falls first touch her and die tropes in this. Excellent. Top notch. Osric is funny, charming, and lethal, and Aurienne rigid, proud, and a stickler for The Rules. He has a fatal disease that only she can maybe possibly potentially cure, so they're stuck with each other for the time being whether they like it or not. Their banter is funny, and watching it slowly erode Aurienne's haughty personality and Osric's pride was so fun. This doesn't end on a plot cliffhanger, more a yearning romantic one that I absolutely love. Their slow burn romance was just so, so good.

Now, the worldbuilding? Pretty much non existent. This really could have used some more time being written and edited so that it has a better, more solid world. Eventually you understand some things, but I'm still in the dark about others. But, I'm here for a good time not a peer-reviewed essay, and this was highly entertaining and I will absolutely be reading the next one.

I went into this already a fan of the author. Let me tell you about this book. It absolutely wrecked me in the best possible way. The deliciously slow burn, the tension, the YEARNING—pure perfection. *The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy* is the kind of slow burn that makes you want to scream into a pillow because the tension is just *that* good.

Osric, our charming yet lethal assassin, and Aurienne, the no-nonsense healer with zero patience for his antics, are forced to work together—and ohhh, the bickering, the longing, the *barely accidental* touches had me screaming, crying, and kicking my feet.

And that ending??? I am *unwell.* Please, I beg you, release the next book *immediately.*

Thank you NetGalley and Orbit Books for an early copy! All these thoughts are my own.

I’m pretty sure I actually INHALED this book and didn’t take a breath until I finished! It was absolutely addicting!

This is a dark romance (check the content warnings) between a healer and assassin. Brigitte wrote a TRUE enemies to lovers with the slowest of burns and YEARNING. Absolutely delicious.

Osric (our assassin) has an illness that is threatening his magic and requires the only healer that might have a chance of helping him. The problem? Their orders HATE each other so he comes up with a plan she can’t refuse…or kidnap her. Whatever it takes.

This is filled with SO much banter, snark and dry humor. The writing style is so quirky and can see where it might not be for everyone but it absolutely was for me.

It was dark but humorous-I can’t believe how much I was honestly giggling and kicking my feet while they were doing some very questionable, murder(y) things.

I do wish we had more in depth world building but I was still able to understand the basics of the orders, magic and politics.

Final thoughts: I won’t know peace until the next book is in my hands 🥲

This book had me SWOONING. The banter!! The actual enemies to lovers!! The intrigue!! The syntax!! It's so gorgeously and hilariously written, I was practically kicking my feet and giggling the whole time. I'm bereft knowing I not only have to wait for THIS book to come out but also the NEXT one. This will be one I read over and over for sure. Dramione girlies NEED it.

I was READY to read this after I saw B.K. Borison post about it, and I would trust her judgement with pretty much anything.
I had such a good time! I haven’t read a ton of fanfic, and I feel so lucky that all the ones I have read feel fresh and invigorating instead of repetitive. This was so unique and captivating. I’m excited for the release later this year!!

Hands down the funniest book with the most LOL moments I've read in a hot minute! Factor in the 2.5/5 spice and this is a marvelous and entertaining read you absolutely can't miss. Highly recommend and can't wait for the next! Please make me a BETA reader for Knightley for life. I volunteer as tribute!!!
If this book is not on every readers TBR list, then we can't be friends. JK! But seriously, this book has something for everyone: a bit of mystery, enemies to lovers (me thinks), snark, sexual humor, regular humor, dark gothic castles (think Mr. Rochester from "Jane Eyre", if he were also a bad a$$ assassin and didn't have a secret wife hidden upstairs...just saying that WOULD be hell of a plot twist). I also got or a Heathcliff from "Wuthering Heights" vibes. Sorry, I do digress!

In all seriousness, add this book to your reading list for when it releases, or heck pre-order if the option is available. You will not be disappointed!

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, & Berkley Publishing Group for the eARC in return for an honest review.

No Regrets!!!!
5/5 stars

I'm a fanfic girlie and especially a lover of the OG story. I ready to HATE this especially since I loved the original so much, but by about one-third of the way through the book, I was in it. I couldn't wait to read what would happen next and I finally stopped waiting for all the beats from the fanfic and started to appreciate the story on its own. It's a little rude because it's a duology and I want the second one RIGHT NOW!

This is written like a fanatic in a complimentary sort of way. Knowing the book originated as one makes a lot of sense though I have not read it as I refuse to touch a certain boy wizard based franchise with a ten foot pole.

It is really funny even if it most definitely gives the energy of British people being written by an American.

The worldbuilding starts off running far too fast, so while it is interesting it's integration and explanation to an unknowing audience is heavy and frustrating at first. I also don't necessarily mind the anachronistic style of humor since it is well executed. I can excuse a lot of nonsense so long as it is funny.

I think some readers will be confused and overwhelmed by this read. It almost felt improv-ed how elements of the world get thrown in for either a joke or plot.

Words and concepts are flung at the reader far too fast in the initial chapter which makes it difficult to be hooked once the narrative sets in though it eases up and allows readers to be more invested.

The characters and humor are the shining stars of this read. People will definitely have fun with it, as it uses the medium well to have comedic moments only possible through text.

I’m obsessed! This book has officially taken the top spot as my favorite enemies to lovers book this year! The slow-burn romance, the banter, and the chemistry between Osric and Aurienne is perfection. Osric is swoony, sarcastic, and impossible not to love. Aurienne is everything I love in a heroine she’s strong and brilliant. If you’re into enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, and two sworn enemies battling their attraction, this is an absolute must-read!

This was perfection. I loved every minute of it and it fast became my favourite book of the year so far. It has everything I wanted from a enemies to lovers and the banter is perfect! I cannot wait for the second book to find out what happens next.

As always, thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read this early. All the good tropes in this one. Enemies to lovers and touch her and die (with a fork!). It was just so fun and them working together was very sweet. Was NOT expecting for this to be the set up for another book but that's OK, I'll read it too. 3.5 if that were possible.

The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy is a captivating novel full of magic, humor, and wit.

When the assassin Osric Mordaunt falls ill with an incurable illness, he realizes his only hope for survival is to employ the finest healer in all the Tiendoms, Aurienne Fairhrim of the Haelan Order. Unfortunately for Osric, convincing Aurienne to heal him may be even more challenging than curing his incurable illness, as the two are members of enemy factions.

When Osric comes knocking on Aurienne’s door, she is absolute in her refusal to work with someone of the depraved Fyren Order. However, when Osric makes an offer Aurienne cannot refuse, she is forced to oblige…Aurienne and her fellow Haelan have been overwhelmed trying to heal sick children suffering from the Pox, and sadly they have been unable to secure the funding needed to develop an immunization. Osric is not above a little bribery, so he offers a sizable donation to the Haelan Order in exchange for Aurienne’s expert healing services. Unable to refuse his “donation,” Aurienne begrudgingly agrees to treat Osric.

What ensues is a laugh-out-loud funny narrative full of witty, biting banter and simmering tension as the assassin and the healer work together to cure a fatal disease and fight the urge to fall in love—as long as they don’t kill each other first.
*******************************************************************
I really enjoyed this book. The main characters were well-developed and I loved their ever-changing relationship. Aurienne and Osric had great banter and although this slow burn was much slower than I usually prefer, I really appreciated how the author did not rush their growing attraction. This novel was a true enemies-to-lovers, and I enjoyed seeing their relationship transform over time from one of pure hatred to one of love/hate.

The reason I did not rate this book five stars is because I found the world-building confusing at times. Especially in the beginning, I found it difficult to follow along with the explanations of the magic systems and the divisions of the factions. The magical world of this novel seems very complex, but I felt that it was not explained in enough detail for readers to fully grasp. I also found the language a bit difficult to follow at times, which affected the pacing. It seemed the writing was trying to replicate an older style of English, making the text feel a bit dense and slow-paced.

Overall, I found this title to be a fun read and I am looking forward to the sequel!

Thank you to NetGalley for the free digital copy of this book!