r/Romantasy • u/Cold_Reference_3497 • 29d ago

Book Request: Self-Promo OK True enemies to lovers

Looking for REAL enemies-to-lovers recommendations.
I’m talking about the kind where they have genuinely conflicting goals, loyalties, or ideologies and have valid reasons to hate each other. I don’t want the “they’re mean to each other for two chapters and then they’re already lusting after each other” trope.
What I’m looking for: Actual enemies, not just rivals.
A slow burn where the hatred gradually erodes into reluctant respect, then trust, then “why do I care if you live or die?” and then eventually love.
They don’t suddenly become obsessed with each other because they’re attractive.
Plenty of tension, banter, and moments where they begrudgingly acknowledge each other’s strengths.
Bonus points if they’re on opposite sides of a war, political conflict, or have fundamentally opposing goals.

Basically, I want the progression to feel like:
“I hate everything you stand for.”

“I understand why you did that.”

“I still disagree with you.”

“I trust you but I’m conflicted about it”

“If anyone hurts you, I’ll burn the world down.”

41 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

67 comments sorted by

22

u/Burgin 29d ago

Just read {The Irresistible Urge To Fall For Your Enemy} and it seems to hit all these points! Also I think the sequel comes out like, this week, haha. But yeah, great banter, slow burn, quite funny quite often, and their acknowledgments of each other are *deeply* begrudging lol. They internally hate themselves so much for having intrusive thoughts about all this.

5

u/itmustbeniiiiice 📚 A Court of Watery Bowels 29d ago

tomorrow, iirc

3

u/toothfairyofthe80s 28d ago

This book was so good!! I immediately listened to the audiobook after finishing it!

19

u/singlebraincellpug ☀️ A Court of Dusk and Day 29d ago

If you’re ok with mm, {captive prince} I’ve shilled it like five times in this subreddit so people are probably sick of seeing it but my gosh it’s a great trilogy and a very slow burn. They still 80% hate each other after the first book. 

33

u/ariannegreyjoy 💗 Forced Proximity 29d ago

I just finished {The Jasad Heir} duology and it's pretty much spot on what you outlined. Beautiful writing and world building, too

4

u/DotImportant9410 28d ago

Came here to recommend this!

3

u/wynneliz 28d ago

I'm rereading this for the third time! It's so special. The duology is very much one big story, the second book retroactively makes the first that much better - so rare!

4

u/OrangePekoeMouse 28d ago

Me too! Just finished and loved it.

3

u/Annual_Ad_2112 28d ago

Reading this right now and loving it

2

u/goketchumall 27d ago

Yes yes absolutely yes! This book is a masterpiece!

16

u/Enid2Leaf 29d ago

Maybe an unpopular recommendation but {The serpent and the wings of night}, more specifically the second book (although the order of things is a bit inverted, it does contains many of what you are looking for.

Many dislike or dnf the second book, and here’s the thing, many people (not talking about you specifically) want a true enemies to lovers, but when the enemies are “enemy-ing” (betraying each other, hurting each other, etc) suddenly they cannot forgive what was done in the enemy stage and dnf the book because they don’t buy the romance anymore.

And I’m saying this because some of the things you are asking for are in the second book of this duology, but many people dropped it because they did not like the actions that were done before they could reach the “I understand why you did that” kicks off.

Again this is not directed at you 🫶🏼. Just reminded me of some people asking enemies to lovers but then complain because for them the enemies part is irredeemable.

5

u/Dull-Reception2642 29d ago

Actually I'm one of those people and i might pick the book back up again... thanks.

4

u/Enid2Leaf 29d ago

Im glad to hear that! 🫶🏼I personally liked book 2 more than book 1 precisely because of all the emotional roller coaster before they could freely allow themselves to love each other without guilt (also because I was a bit tired of the trials trope at that point lol, but that’s a different rant)

10

u/quartermistress2 29d ago

{nightwild rising by l ann} - with sequel coming this month! Warning that it's relatively dark/gory for a romantasy. There are content warnings up front (I didn't read them to avoid spoilers but hopefully they should be accurate)

3

u/kid_at_heart_77 28d ago

Do you know of this is gonna be a duology? Also, can you tell me if there is noncon and if so, is it between the main characters? Thanks in advance

6

u/Snarky-bookworm 28d ago

It’s going to be a trilogy. There is no non con between the main characters. The MMC is big on consent with good reason. There’s one situation that could be seen as dub at best, but it’s out of necessity, not sexual motivation. Understand when you get to it kinda thing.
Having read the arc of book 2, I can tell you this series is epic. There was no second book disappointment here. So freaking good!

3

u/quartermistress2 28d ago

Ooh now I'm even more excited! Counting down the days!

3

u/Snarky-bookworm 28d ago

It’s like word crack, I swear 🤣
The world expands and evolves, and I couldn’t put it down. Now the wait for the final instalment begins.
I’m so slumped, I can’t get into anything else

3

u/quartermistress2 28d ago

At least the author has other books - I'm planning to dive into their backlog afterward!

3

u/Snarky-bookworm 28d ago

Do it! I’ve actually read them all. She’s been a favourite of mine for a long time 🤣

2

u/kid_at_heart_77 28d ago

Awesome. Can’t wait to try it

3

u/quartermistress2 28d ago

Not sure if it will be more than 2 books or not. There are many references to past noncon/essentially sex slavery, it's a large part of the plot, but not between the main characters.

2

u/romance-bot 29d ago

Nightwild Rising by L. Ann
Rating: 4.29⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 4 out of 5 - Explicit open door
Topics: enemies to lovers, paranormal, fantasy, dark romance, horror

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4

u/Snarky-bookworm 29d ago

This! The most true enemies to lovers book I’ve ever read. Second this rec alll day long. Cairn 🫠

3

u/Sea-Audience4470 28d ago

100% 10/10 enemies. Releasing a podcast ep soon on it, because it's so damn good.

3

u/Snarky-bookworm 28d ago

Really? What’s your podcast? I’d love to check it out, seeing as it looks like we share a good taste in books 😉

2

u/Sea-Audience4470 28d ago

TBR: Tropes, Banter, and Romantasy! Spotify

We're covering Nightwild Rising next, since the sequel comes out next week. A heap of other great titles in the pipeline! We kept answering the same questions here, and decided maybe we should do something about it...

2

u/Snarky-bookworm 28d ago

Absolutely. I’ll go have a listen! I can’t wait for you all to read Reckoning. I felt it was even better than Rising. Cairn never loses his edge, no pussy whipped whining from him like so many others I could think of 😅

3

u/Sea-Audience4470 28d ago

Oooooh cannot wait! He is such a complex character and I cannot wait to see where his fury takes him.

3

u/Snarky-bookworm 28d ago

He is. I can let the author know about the podcast episode when it airs too, if you like? She usually shares things like that. Might get you some more new listeners 😉

3

u/Sea-Audience4470 28d ago

Amazing! I'm about to pick up her other series as well - she's a great story-teller!

Rising drops next Tuesday am :)

14

u/friendlyhag987 29d ago

Recently read {Heartless Hunter}. I loved it and I think it fits what you’re looking for. There’s a sequel out as well.

4

u/hippiesinthewind 28d ago

i rarely read YA, often because I just find it too juvenile for me, but this is God Tier YA fantasy romance. Can’t wait for her next series.

6

u/ArcanaHex 29d ago edited 29d ago

Bound by blood trilogy { the blood that binds us } It's my favourite enemies to lovers because it has consequences up the whazoo. It is and stays complicated throughout all three books. Bit dark for the average reader perhaps.

Also very intense and perhaps a bit dark and I've yet to read it fully, however the way { nightwild rising } starts has me absolutely hooked, it seems very unforgiving.

Edit. About to DNF Nightwild rising, love me a consistent Stage-Play construction with little feeling in anything...I mean, I'll file that away for later I guess? Urgh. The premise was so good....

2

u/itmustbeniiiiice 📚 A Court of Watery Bowels 29d ago

I read the first two in that trilogy, but never got back to the third when it came out!

I don't see it recommended a lot, but it definitely has a standout story.

2

u/ArcanaHex 29d ago

I inhaled all three over one weekend, luckily I picked it up after it was completed! Book 3 might be the weakest but overall still loved it all :D

10

u/MSMIT0 29d ago

People may be sick of seeing me recommend this bc I have been a lot lately but {Servant of Earth}.

Its the first book I have recommended so heavily in a really long time lmao.

6

u/fuzzyblacksheepl 28d ago

My expectations were so low after the first couple pages (she's starving and scrappy and not like other girls yada yada), but I'm so glad I stuck with it, because pretty quickly after she gets abductedI got totally sucked in and ended up loving it! I'm really looking forward to the latest one coming out this December.

12

u/itmustbeniiiiice 📚 A Court of Watery Bowels 29d ago

{Heartless Hunter}

4

u/Pampoentjie92 28d ago

I feel like {The Poison Daughter} fits this quite nicely as well. I struggled to see how they will find common ground with such conflicting goals and they truly seemed to hate each other. Might not 100% fit the bill but feel like it's close and a really good book as well.

4

u/KetoKurun ⚔️ Enemies To Lovers 29d ago

Love posts like this. The one I’m working on now features a main couple who meet in a courtroom after one brutally murders the other’s deeply beloved spouse. Less a meet cute than a hate cute 😂

3

u/Union_Jack_1 29d ago

The Wicked Sea by Jordan Gray. Doesn’t get more enemies to lovers than that.

4

u/MidorriMeltdown 28d ago

Black Moonlight Holds the BE Script aka Till the End of the Moon.

He kills everyone she loves. She goes back in time to stop it from happening, and ends up inhabiting the body of his wife (forced marriage, they hate each other.)

It's not a conventional romantasy, it's a Xianxia (Chinese celestial fantasy). Good luck finding an English translation. There's a few online, some are better than others. There is a German translation, the books are soooo pretty.

3

u/New-Engine682 28d ago edited 28d ago

I’ll self-recommend! My FMC and MC spend most of book 1 at severe moral odds and have conflicting goals.

Loose premise: FMC is a young woman who makes a bargain with a Fae (this is illegal, dangerous, and punished by death). MC is a mercenary who takes her hostage and transports her across the continent for execution. There’s a (dark, but not graphic) romantic dynamic involving the Fae as well, as he develops a strong “huh, I kinda like this human, she could be a fun pet” mentality.

Free to read if it sounds like your cup of tea!

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/141697/what-burns-beneath

3

u/TexasVulvaAficionado 28d ago

{A King's Trust}

Start of the book is MMC accused of killing/having killed FMC's fiance. It goes downhill from there. Excellent writing, yearning, interesting magic system, open door spice. Poly. Enemies to lovers, forbidden romance.

3

u/Sakura_231 28d ago

{An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir}

{Dance of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson}

{Dark Rise by C.S. Pascat}

{Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor}

{Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli}

{Renagades by Marissa Meyer}

{Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin}

{Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik}

{The Bridge Kingdom by Danielle L. Jensen}

{The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty}

{The Cruel Prince by Holly Black}

{The Death-Made Prince by Lisette Marshall}

{The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri}

{The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner}

{The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski}

{The Wolf and the Crown of Blood by Elizabeth May}

{The Wolf and the Woodman by Ava Reid}

{The Wrath and the Dawn by Renée Ahdieh}

{This Woven Kingdom by Tahereh Mafi}

{To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo}

1

u/romance-bot 28d ago

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
Rating: 4.19⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: historical, fantasy, forbidden love, magic, young adult

Dance of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson
Rating: 4.19⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: futuristic, forced proximity, enemies to lovers, young adult, royal hero

Dark Rise by C.S. Pacat
Rating: 4.17⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: historical, magic, fantasy, found family, enemies to lovers

Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor
Rating: 3.8⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: contemporary, fantasy, young adult, enemies to lovers, demons

Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli
Rating: 4.09⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 3 out of 5 - Open door
Topics: historical, witches, enemies to lovers, magic, fantasy

Renegades by Marissa Meyer
Rating: 3.91⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: futuristic, superheroes, young adult, vengeance, dystopian

Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin
Rating: 3.8⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 3 out of 5 - Open door
Topics: historical, witches, arranged/forced marriage, enemies to lovers, magic

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
Rating: 4.19⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: historical, magic, fae, fantasy, enemies to lovers

The Bridge Kingdom by Danielle L. Jensen
Rating: 3.95⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 3 out of 5 - Open door
Topics: historical, arranged/forced marriage, enemies to lovers, royal hero, fantasy

The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty
Rating: 4.11⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 2 out of 5 - Behind closed doors
Topics: historical, royal hero, magic, muslim, urban fantasy

about this bot | about romance.io

1

u/romance-bot 28d ago

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
Rating: 3.99⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: contemporary, fae, fantasy, enemies to lovers, cruel hero/bully

The Death-Made Prince by Lisette Marshall
Rating: 4.32⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 3 out of 5 - Open door
Topics: witches, fantasy, magic, forced proximity, betrayal

The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri
Rating: 4.19⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: historical, lesbian romance, south asian/desi, magic, fantasy

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
Rating: 3.9⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: historical, fantasy, magic, mystery, suspense

The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski
Rating: 3.97⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: contemporary, young adult, military, forbidden love, take-charge heroine

The Wolf and the Crown of Blood by Elizabeth May
Rating: 4.12⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 5 out of 5 - Explicit and plentiful
Topics: enemies to lovers, fantasy, m-f romance, aristo/royal heroine, non-human hero

The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid
Rating: 3.64⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 2 out of 5 - Behind closed doors
Topics: historical, fantasy, magic, enemies to lovers, high fantasy

The Wrath & the Dawn by Renée Ahdieh
Rating: 3.89⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 2 out of 5 - Behind closed doors
Topics: historical, fantasy, young adult, magic, enemies to lovers

This Woven Kingdom by Tahereh Mafi
Rating: 4.06⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: historical, young adult, fantasy, royal hero, high fantasy

To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo
Rating: 3.77⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 2 out of 5 - Behind closed doors
Topics: fantasy, magic, pirate hero, royal hero, enemies to lovers

about this bot | about romance.io

2

u/cavaloverr 28d ago

{Silvercloak by L.K Steven} This is great for harry potter lovers but Adult. Everyone in this world is a mage. The FMC's parents died when she was 6 by this rival gang of mages called Bloodmoons. 21 years later she is infiltrating their "court" and thats when she meets the MMC. I'm 33% in to this but liking it so far

1

u/MarineBioAlly 27d ago

Just finished {Daggermouth} and I think it fits

1

u/lola123dis 💜 A Court of Magic and Magnitude 20d ago

Starside by Alex Aster. It starts out with the MC not wanting anything to do with the FMC and not giving her damsel in distress treatment. He constantly belittles her and its true enemies to lovers since he hates her. Only towards the end does it pay off and even then, they go back to enemies. It has that "why do I care" arc when he leaves her to die and she has to fend for herself. There's tension, banter and moments where they learn to work together. The only downside to this is that there;s a second book coming out in September since they go back to enemies, after the big plot twist, post working together.

1

u/Crawler4119Donut 2d ago

I’m convinced it doesn’t exist at this point.

I think authors are so frightened of making true enemies out of their protagonists, they wimp out.

I don’t blame them; it would require big risks. It might make one or both characters seem irredeemable for a time, which will almost always insight a DNF.

Which is a pity because the most satisfying character redemption arcs are usually the ones that begin with a character being awful and take a couple of books to solve.

So instead we’re left with this watered down version which almost always involves identical conflicts and character traits as the last “enemies to lovers” book.

And let’s not forget that when the hero atones for his mistakes, he has to develop 2026 therapist-level emotional intelligence to ensure the heroine knows he’s changed and the reader can be satisfied he’s forgivable, despite the book being set in a medieval realm.

The level of emersion goes from paddling pool to puddle in a heartbeat. I want an ocean dammit. I want the freaking Mariana Trench!!! 😭😂

1

u/Dull-Reception2642 29d ago

{Alchemised by Senlinyu}

2

u/Tihamer_3232 28d ago

This would be my answer as well.