Early Review – The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy (Dearly Beloathed Duology, Book 1) by Brigitte Knightley (5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 383 pages
Publisher: Ace
Release Date: July 8, 2025
ASIN: B0DJCSPGCW
Stand Alone or Series: 1st book in the Dearly Beloathed Duology
Source: eGalley from NetGalley
Rating: 5/5 stars
“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.”
Series Info/Source: This is the first book in the Dearly Beloathed Duology. I got this ebook for review from NetGalley.
Thoughts: This was very well done and I enjoyed it a lot. This book tells you exactly what it is going to be, a slow burn enemies to lovers story. What I didn’t expect was the intricate world, the complex characters, and how engaging I found both the story and the characters.
Aurienne is a Haelen (healer) and is struggling with the other Haelen to stop a horrible Pox that is killing the poor children of the city. Meanwhile, Osric belongs to one of the dusk orders, he is a Fryen (assassin) and is falling ill. Aurienne is the only Haelen specialist with the power to help him with his magic ailment, but Aurienne would rather see a Fryen die than help him. Fortunately for Osric, the Haelen order desperately needs funding to discover a vaccine for the Pox. If he provides that funding Aurienne will work to provide a cure for his incurable illness. The two hate working together but end up strangely drawn to each other as they spend more time together.
This is definitely a slow burn romance, but that isn’t all there is to the story. I enjoyed learning about both Aurienne’s and Osric’s trades. Aurienne’s healing is very scientific and detailed in nature, and that was intriguing to read about. Osric’s trade is a bit less savory, but still interesting to read about…I particularly enjoyed his ability to shadow walk. Each of them has a very black and white opinion of the other, but as they get to know each other better they find that they are much more complex. This is something everyone can learn from; people are always much more complex than the first opinion you make of them which is often based on your own personal bias.
Added into the forced relationship between Osric and Aurienne is an intriguing story. This starts out fairly simply with a disease, the Pox, that needs solving. However, the story grows much more complex as it continues with politics and intrigue between both countries and the Orders involved. I thought this was all nicely woven together.
This was effortless to read, the writing flows beautifully and the story is a lot of fun. The dialogue between characters is sharp and witty and I loved it. I enjoyed this more and more as the story went on and am eager to read the second half of this duology when it releases.
My Summary (5/5): Overall I ended up absolutely loving this. I loved the characters here; they are complex and engaging. I loved the world building with the magic, different Orders, and both the political and Order conflicts. I absolutely loved watching Osric and Aurienne get to know each other and realize they are more than just their stereotypes. I look forward to reading the second book when it releases. I would recommend to those who enjoy an intriguing fantasy story with magic and some politics and don’t mind a slow burn romance as the focus.
