Book Review :: The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley

The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley
ISBN: 0356524736
Series: Dearly Beloathed #1
Published by Orbit Books
on 8 July 2025
Genres: Fantasy, Magic, Romance, Romantasy
Pages: 416
Goodreads

Osric Mordaunt, member of the Fyren Order of assassins, is in dire need of healing. Naturally – such is the grim comedy of fate – the only healer who can help is Aurienne Fairhrim, preeminent scientist, bastion of moral good, and member of an enemy Order.

Aurienne is desperate for funding to heal the sick - so desperate that, when Osric bribes her to help him, she accepts, even if she detests him and everything he stands for.

A forced collaboration ensues: the brilliant Woman in STEM is coerced into working with the PhD in Murders, much to Aurienne's disgust. As Osric and Aurienne work together to heal his illness and investigate the mysterious reoccurrence of a deadly pox, they find themselves ardently denying their attraction, which only fuels the heat between them.

Last updated on 15 July 2026

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What is The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley about?

The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley is the romantasy equivalent of being forced to do a group project with someone you hate – except the stakes are life and death, and the tension is absolutely insufferable (in the best way).

Aurienne Fairhrim is a healer, a scientist, and a genuinely good person. Osric Mordaunt is an assassin. They belong to enemy Orders and have absolutely no business being in the same room together. And yet …

Osric is sick – the kind of sick that only Aurienne can fix. She needs funding to keep healing the people who actually deserve it… and he’s got money. So she takes the deal, hates herself a little for it, and the world’s most reluctant partnership begins.

While it’s Aurienne doing most of the work in the ‘heal Osric’ department, they also work together to investigate the reappearance of a deadly pox … while trying very hard not to notice each other. The denying-the-attraction thing is going terribly, by the way. Turns out being brilliant, morally opposed, and forced into close proximity is a recipe for absolute chaos.

My thoughts on The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy

I loved The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy. A lot. 5 stars.

There are very few books that make me laugh out loud, and this was one of them. Knightley has written these characters stunningly, and I couldn’t get enough. The banter, the sass, the eye-rolls, the everything was * chef’s kiss * brilliant.

I loved how different the two main characters were, but how well they complemented each other. The insults and one-liners in this book were excellent, and yet they still managed to work together (even if reluctantly) to get the job/s done.

“It was hard, being perfect in an imperfect world, but Aurienne managed. If she had a flaw, it was that she was the Best, and she knew she was the Best. Some called it arrogance. She called it competence untainted by performative humility.”  – one of my fave quotes.

There are these eight orders – all outlined beautifully in the book with Order emblems and everything! – and they all have very niche values and abilities. They’re broken up into Bright Paths (4 orders), Dusken Paths (3 orders), and then there’s a Dim Path (1 order). Aurienne is Haelan, a Bright Path Order, and Osric is Fyren, one of the Dusken Path Orders and everything the Haelan are against.

Which is brilliant, let me tell you.

It was also a lot of fun to read an FMC in STEM, and have the science interwoven with the magical side of things.

As well as these Orders, there are Deofols, which are animal familiars used for ‘communication, companionship, and counsel’. And they are sassy. They have their own personalities and aren’t afraid to flaunt them, even if they’re a bit unhinged. I loved it.

When it comes to the plot, I thought the pace was really good, and it helped that there were basically two missions going on: the hunt for a cure for the pox affecting the many, and then Aurienne trying to cure Osric of his disease. Of course, there are side-quests and other things that happen along the way, but those are the main driving forces of the story.

As well as a description of all the Orders at the beginning of the book, there is a pronunciation guide, a glossary and a map (you know I love a map), all at the FRONT of the book, which is excellent because then you’re pronouncing things correctly right from the get-go and not wondering halfway through the book if you’re actually reading that right.

As you can, I ate this book up. I cannot wait for the second in the Dearly Beloathed series, The Exquisite Torment of Loving Your Enemy. I might even re-read The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy before it comes out.

Have you read The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy? What did you think?