Title: The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy
Author: Brigitte Knightley
Series: Dearly Beloathed, #1
Publisher: Ace
Publication Date: July 8th, 2025

Synopsis:

Loyalties are tested in this slow burn, enemies-to-lovers romantasy following an assassin and a healer forced to work together to cure a fatal disease, all while resisting the urge to kill each other—or, worse, fall in love.

When Osric Mordaunt, member of the Fyren Order of assassins, falls ill, he realizes he needs the expertise of a very specific healer. As fate would have it, that healer belongs to an enemy faction, the Haelan Order.

Aurienne Fairhrim and her fellow Haelan are inundated by sick children suffering from an outbreak of a long-forgotten Pox. Unable to get the funding needed to launch an immunization program, the Haelan Order is desperate for money – so desperate that when Osric breaks into their headquarters to bribe Aurienne to heal him, she is forced to accept.

As Osric and Aurienne work together to solve not only his illness but the mysterious reoccurrence of the Pox, they find themselves ardently denying their attraction which only fuels the tension between them.

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Sonja’s Review:

I have been dying to read The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy ever since I heard about it! First off, the cover is gorgeous — Aurienne and Osric look amazing, the added details are so fun and cute, and the colors are so pretty and just make everything pop — I love it so flipping much! It also doesn’t hurt that I’m familiar with some of Brigitte Knightley’s other work and am a huge fan, so really it was no question of me reading this book, only when. I was lucky enough to get it really fast from my library and the only reason I didn’t pick it up immediately was because I had started another book that I was really enjoying, but you best believe that I started The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy as soon as I was able!

Since it was kind of a given that I was going to read The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy, I didn’t really pay too much attention to the synopsis, so I didn’t know exactly what I was getting into, but I had high expectations for this book and Ms. Knightley did not disappoint! The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy was so fun, it was a little campy, it made me laugh constantly and put many a smile on my face. I utterly adored Aurienne and Osric, their banter and just they themselves were highly amusing — I had the best time watching all the shenanigans and hijinks they got up to!

The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy was so entertaining and full of action and adventure and while there is a lot of lightness to it, it has its serious, sad beats to it too. It has heart and while the romance between Aurienne and Osric takes the whole book to develop, you can already feel the yearning between them, especially Osric and I just have a feeling that in the next book we’re going to see such a deep, meaningful love between these two that’s so beautiful and true — I can’t wait to see it!

The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy was absolutely wonderful from the characters to this fascinating world that Brigitte Knightley has created! It’s so rich and well thought out — I’m excited to visit it again and learn even more. I am a little bummed out that we have to wait for the next book to conclude Aurienne and Osric’s story, although I will say that I’m glad that Ms. Knightley didn’t make this cliffhanger a painful one. I mean, I’m still chomping at the bit for book two, but I can be more lowkey about it. Anyway, I loved this book, it was awesome, and more than I could have hoped for!

~ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Stars

About the Author:

Brigitte Knightley’s modus operandi is to write what she wants to read: enemies-to-lovers romances that put the unresolved back in “unresolved sexual tension.” Her work is enjoyed by fans of slow burns, tongue-in-cheek rom-coms, and suffering. The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy is her debut novel.