17 Best Enemies to Lovers Romance Books

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Welcome to our blog ReadingAndThinking.com, and this article about "Enemies to Lovers Books," where we will explore why this popular romance trope is the ultimate guilty pleasure for readers of all ages.

From high school to college, dark romance to fantasy, and billionaire to slow burn, we will delve into the best enemies to lovers books in various genres.

But why do people read enemies-to-lovers? What makes this plot so irresistible? Is there really a book called Enemies-to-lovers, or is it just a common trope?

Join us as we answer these questions and more while uncovering the reasons why enemies-to-lovers books are the best.

Hello, I am here today to give you some recommendations for one of my favorite tropes ever and Best Enemies to Lovers romance books, I just did Friends Lovers, and some of you guys said that you would like to see Best Enemies to Lovers books.

About Best Enemies to Lovers Books

Today I have a completely new stack of books to share with you that all have these steamy enemies-to-lovers books in them.

In all of these slow-burn enemies-to-lovers books, you're going to have these two characters who at the beginning of the story very much do not get along for one reason or another there's going to be a ton of banter, a ton of tension, a ton of inks and then solely throughout the story.

They're obviously going to follow each other and then they'll be madly in love by the end of it.

So if that is the type of classic enemies-to-lover book that you are looking for then today I have got you covered with a ton of recommendations to choose from.

17 Best Enemies to Lovers Romance Books

This blog article recommends "17 Best Enemies to Lovers Romance Books"! Whether you prefer YA, New Adult, or Adult reads, we have something for everyone in this list, with a mix of fantasy and romance novels that will leave you breathless.

As a fan of this popular romance trope, you know the thrill of watching two characters who can't stand each other overcome their differences and fall deeply in love.

And now, we bring you a curated collection of 17 of the best enemies-to-lovers books that will leave you swooning with every turn of the page.

Get ready to dive into classic office romances, unexpected honeymoon trips, and other captivating scenarios that will keep you up all night.

These stories will have you rooting for the couple you once thought could never be together and leave you begging for more. So, what are you waiting for? Let's get started!

Here are 17 of the best enemies-to-lovers romance books that will leave you swooning:

Related Topics: Books for Women

1. Fight or Flight by Samantha Young

Standard romantic romance novel, 3.5 stars for readability. Overall, it's a relatively qualified romance novel, and it's the one I'm personally most satisfied with among the similar ones I've read recently.

Although the plot is a bit bloody, the author's handling of it is not bad, and the two characters are not too flat. However, I don't understand how beautiful the female lead is. I started to get upset and feel insecure without being noticed by the male lead. This feeling is too difficult to relate to.

Also, the heroine's parents don't care about her, and even almost caused her to be violated and refused to admit it. This setting is a bit too much.

Obviously, the author wants to portray the heroine as a very insecure person who has not been cared for by her parents since she was a child, but this is a bit too hard. I instinctively feel uncomfortable.

However, I like this author's writing style and should read her other novels in the future. She's also quite productive.

2. The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

First of all, the advantage of this book is the very attractive romantic stalk of happy enemies + evenly matched, the sexual tension between the hero and heroine is really full!!

And the author is really good at writing ambiguous little actions, the description of the actions between the male and female protagonists is really exquisite, and the metaphors are also used very well!

do you think she just wants to write a love novel, she has a lot of psychological descriptions of the heroine's self-analysis, Generally speaking, the author is not bad in describing flirting & sexuality, but not so good in story development and plot description, which cannot attract readers.

I hate Joshua. Ghosts know what will happen next... Also, what I don’t understand is why the author didn’t spend more ink on why the heroine hates the hero, leading to The first half of the whole book has a feeling that the heroine cares about obscenity...

This also leads to a slightly flat character in the whole book... The most important point is that this book is more like an erotic novel under the banner of romance than romance,

or you Americans can’t do without meat when you write romance. I’m not saying that you can’t write meat. If it is less than two pages, I don't think so many people will read this book...

But also, this book is definitely an excellent choice for you who want to fish and learn English.

3. The Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas

A TikTok sensation, this rom-com about a young woman who agrees to fake date a colleague and brings him to her sister’s wedding has “everything you could want in a romance”

Catalina Martín desperately needs a date for her sister’s wedding. Especially since her little white lie about her American boyfriend has spiraled out of control. Now everyone she knows—including her ex and his fiancée—will be there and eager to meet him.

She only has four weeks to find someone willing to cross the Atlantic and aid in her deception. New York to Spain is no short flight and her raucous family won’t be easy to fool.

Enter Aaron Blackford—her tall, handsome, condescending colleague—who surprisingly offers to step in. She’d rather refuse; never has there been a more aggravating, blood-boiling, and insufferable man.

But Catalina is desperate, and as the wedding draws nearer, Aaron looks like her best option. And she begins to realize he might not be as terrible in the real world as he is at the office.

Elena Armas is a Spanish writer, a self-confessed hopeless romantic, and a proud book hoarder. After years of devouring HEAs and talking—okay fine, yelling—nonstop about them, she has finally taken the leap and decided to create some of her own.

4. From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout

At this level, it is actually the best romance novel on Goodreads last year, especially since the heroine has a lot of inner drama... every time. The author does not rely on the plot to promote the character but relies on language repetition to brainwash the readers...

The worldview setting is similar to the approved Twilight, a strengthened version of vampires and werewolves, let me dream back ten years ago. The low score of this book on Goodreads is very exciting, I can’t stop laughing, it’s the biggest gain from reading this book.

I almost gave up reading, and after chapter 10, I am getting better and better. Once I accept the setting of the beautiful man and Mary Su, I can happily watch them fight and fall in love!

5. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black is the first book in a trilogy, that is set in Faerie, which happens to exist alongside our world.

Jude, our main protagonist is not a fairy, but when she was just seven, she saw her other killed, who was formerly married to a fairy, called Madoc, who killed her parents and then abducts them into the land of Faerie.

Ten years later is where the story sets off that involves death, dissent at the High King's court, betrayal, and a touch of hot faerie romance.

When I first started the book, during my first read, I thought that it would be set in an Epic Fantasy place, before I saw the map which instead, of being detailed, was rather more beautiful and pretty looking.

I found that this was actually what made the story really interesting. Faerie is this palace that is exquisite, beautiful, and almost a fragile place, where everyone and everything is extremely beautiful, or so we are led to believe. While the world on the outside is beautiful, and while everyone is also beautiful, who they are may not necessarily be so.

I also really liked all the characters that this book had to offer, in that they all feel so very different from each other, which is a good thing.

Cardan is a character that is someone who is spoilt, aggressive, and cruel(hence the cruel prince), but again, I also do like him in a way, especially as a character, and sometimes even the bullies deserve some sympathy, or sometimes at least.

Everyone in the Court of Shadows is an awesome person, despite what it may seem, Oriana may need to get slapped a few times, but even she turns out ok in the end. ✔️ for likable characters.

For people who like the works of Cassandra Clare especially, I think this book would be greatly suited towards them, or you, as faeries are ultimately a dominant part of Clare's world, and this book, it is pretty much what this book is all about.

There is a bit of romance, which I think is given in a good dose, though it is a little bit less than many YA works out there, I honestly thought that there would have been more considering how much beauty everyone gives off in this book.

6. Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

I was attracted by the plot when I saw the plot in the bookstore, and the ratings were very high. I thought it was the truth and sweetness of perfect juggling love and the youthful inspirational and cute literature that seriously does royal children navigate identities & grow together.

The White House in Rick and Morty is more real than the White House here. I understand and support everything about political correctness and hope that Trump will die, but is this kind of childish plot really written by adults? When I watched House of Cards in middle school, I knew that politics is not a game of cards.

The plot includes the president and his ex-husband having a family dinner to discuss campaign strategy and quarreling. The first son collapsed because his parents often quarreled.

No one talked to him, so he called Prince Henry for an hour to talk about his feelings. (excuse me White House family affairs Alex's heart Is there no point to force numbers? Your therapist should do a background check for a year, right?)

And: The White House has a silly tradition of pardoning turkeys on Thanksgiving Day. Before the pardoning ceremony, the turkeys were placed in the hotel.

Our handsome 21-year-old president’s son heard about it and was indignant about “wasting taxpayers’ money” and insisted on putting the turkey in his room, Then I was too scared to sleep and called Prince Henry to promote the relationship.

I understand that all the plots are aimed at cultivating feelings, but really young adults (and it is set by a perfect genius) the country's future red second generation is really not like this...intellectually challenged.

Don't complain about the details, the children of high-ranking cadres will not go to state universities that are only attended by children from middle-class families with poor grades.

Children in the White House do not party and drink with singers and movie stars every day, let alone the children of several heads of state sneak into street KTVs and sing with ordinary people.

Please, not American spring break fling. The first two chapters are ambiguous (with an anticipation filter) and cute. I really can’t watch the latter part. I don’t want to watch two mentally handicapped high-ranking sons send emails every day with wordplay and no real troubles.

Treat politics seriously, it's one thing to draw a reasonably imaginative picture & use it to vent because the reality is shitty, but another if you treat everything as a playhouse and write something childish that is too simple to watch the plot.

The takeaway from reading this book is to trust your intuition. It is not worth wasting time writing a book with a background that looks like a house at the beginning.

7. Beach Read' by Emily Henry

Reread this book…. I truly love it because of how human it is. This book didn't feel like me reading characters and their lives it felt like actual people, broken people who wanted to be fixed but didn't know how they could possibly achieve it. It felt real. That's the only way I can truly describe it.

The author did an amazing job of capturing who these people are and all the problems that they face. She captured how humans aren't just good or bad or right or wrong there are flaws and layers to a person.

Things within someone that you will never truly know or understand and honestly.. that's okay. What I took away from this book is we shouldn't seek happily ever afters but be happy right now.

And Gus Everett let's talk about him for a second. Never have I ever so far read a male character as complex and interesting as him. I feel like a lot of the time in romance the female is focused on most and the men are usually tied to the surface level.

Even if the men have dark pasts it's only explored briefly and as soon as the female lead says one word to them all of a sudden they are cured. But Gus.. he's different and that's what I love about him.

I love when writers write men as actual human beings with feelings and pain and people who aren't cured with a few words or gestures. Life isn't that easy and Gus and January's life depicts that fully.

8. The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

I am so sorry but I just don't love this novel at all. It did make me feel there were nothing unbreakable connections between them, Olive and Ethan.

There wasn't any wild, exclusive, and extreme love that I can feel from their getting-along story during the HONEYMOON (fake at the beginning, despite). I felt disappointed, truly am.

Still, I kinda like it, but just the front 10 chapters. The plots were so hilarious which made me HAHAHAHAHAHA like I am SO SO hysterical at almost every part of these chapters.

But, there is always a BUT in our lives, especially when we read this one.

Seriously, the left fifty percent of the story was so cliché and made me feel suffocated. Seriously, was it written by another person?

About the what-Olive-did-to-protect-her-twin-sis Plot, HE didn't believe HER AT ALLLL, and being like a jerk to Olive made everything SO HEARTBREAKING.

How was that supposed to be like that, I just don't get it. It doesn't make any sense. Cuz as Ethan told Olive, he was so into her years ago and still has strong feelings for her.

(Aww…Are you kidding me? Are these the feelings you are having for her? WOW WOW WOW, that must be terrific ironic if you say so)

He didn't choose to stand with her and gave her courage at all. He is so dumbed and treating her in a care-nothing-about-her-but-her-BOOBS way. HELL NOOO!!

(‼️I didn't say I can't accept SEXUAL SENSES, OPPOSITE I LOVE NOVELS WITH STEAMY SEX, but could you please write it In a comfortable, steamy-natural-description, and less awkward and oddly way??? Thank you so much!!) NOT TO MENTION, Ethan doesn't help gazing eyes at his EX, are you serious?

And he even made everything worse cuz he had no clue about 'why she seems feeling angry and hurt' after 'he can't help thinking about his EX IN FRONT OF Oliver….This is just way too much for me to inhale and exhale easily when I read this part.

What made me feel harder to breathe, about everything that happened after they got home, (About exposing Dane's Part) Ethan just made a simple apology after being an absolute jerk !!!

Ridiculously, the apology was accepted?!! and everything is forgotten and they will live happily ever after? COME ON, please!!! He was being an asshole, wasn't he??

I just wanna ask, Why? An apology can erase everything that happened. No, it can't, or I mean, this shouldn't be the HEROINE I wish to see, forgiveness doesn't that easy sometimes.

Maybe I could still see a barely chance for Ethan, but it needed to take A LOT MORE than that. From what I can tell, Ethan doesn't deserve Olive. He should be SOLO for at least 10 years maybe.

9. The Kiss Thief by L.J. Shen

“My absolute favorite L.J. Shen to date. Indulgent and addictive.” – USA Today Bestselling author RS Grey"This book will ruin you for all other books in 2019" - Bestselling author BB Easton From USA Today and Washington Post bestselling author L.J. Shen comes to an enemies-to-lovers romance with a twist...They say your first kiss should be earned.

Mine was stolen by a devil in a masquerade mask under the black Chicago sky. They say the vows you take on your wedding day are sacred. Mine were broken before we left the church.

They say your heart only beats for one man. Mine split and bled for two rivals who fought for it until the bitter end. I was promised to Angelo Bandini, the heir to one of the most powerful families in the Chicago Outfit.

Then taken by Senator Wolfe Keaton, who held my father’s sins over his head to force me into marriage. They say that all great love stories have happy endings.

I, Francesca Rossi, found myself erasing and rewriting mine until the very last chapter. One kiss.Two men.Three lives. Entwined together. And somewhere between these two men, I had to find myself forever.

10. Man Card by Sarina Bowen and Tanya Eby

Nothing ventured, nothing banged. Asia still doesn’t know how it happened. One minute I was arguing with my arrogant competitor—our usual trash-talk over who deserves the larger commission.

But somehow I went from throwing down to kneeling down... It can never happen again. I don’t even like Braht. He's too slick. He's a manipulating mansplaining party boy in preppy clothes.

So why can't I get him out of my head? BrahtThere are two things I know without question. One: Ash and I are destined for each other. Two: never trust a man with a unibrow. Ash is missing my piece.

She’s the sweet cream to my gourmet espresso. And nothing gets me going faster than her contempt for me. They don't call her the Ashkicker for nothing. Eventually, I’ll win her over…if my past doesn’t ruin everything first.

11. I Hate You by Ilsa Madden-Mills

She’s been expecting this ever since their latest showdown. She had good reason.

The hottest guy she’s ever seen.Former fling. Dumped her in front of all her friends. At her own party.

So no, she’s not about to forgive and forget just because he sits next to her in class. He thinks all he has to do is turn on those baby blues, and she’ll melt right back into his arms. Please. She’d be crazy to let this cocky player affect her again. (Tell that to her body.)

Charisma Rossi.Nerd girl with a dash of bad.The one who got under his skin.The one he cut loose.

Blaze knows she’s the riskiest prospect at Waylon University, but none of the interchangeable girls he hooks up with have ever made him feel the way she did. There’s absolutely no way he can have the girl and the game.

So why can’t he stop trying to win her back?

Can this wide receiver score the girl or will he make the biggest fumble of his life?

12. The Name of the Game by Jennifer Dawson

Some people follow the rules. . .

A professor of forensic anthropology, James Donovan is the reasonable sibling among the passionate, impulsive Donovans. But there's nothing reasonable about his reaction to baker Gracie Roberts. She's all wild curls and mouth-watering curves, as deliciously tempting as the sugary treats she's famous for--and twice as irritating. But before long, James decides that getting a taste of her is one indulgence he can't pass up.

Some people play to win. . .

Independent, smart, and sexy, Gracie's year-long dry spell has her itching for a man. Responsible, health-obsessed James? Not in a million years! She needs a guy who knows how to let loose! But when James sets out to show her just how satisfying a disciplined man can be when pleasure is at stake, she learns just how sweet--and spicy--he really is.

Have James and Gracie found the recipe for love?

13. Twice Shy by Sarah Hogle

Maybell Parish has always been a dreamer and a hopeless romantic. But living in her own world has long been preferable to dealing with the disappointments of real life.

So when Maybell inherits a charming house in the Smokies from her Great-Aunt Violet, she seizes the opportunity to make a fresh start.

Yet when she arrives, it seems her troubles have only just begun. Not only is the house falling apart around her, but she isn't the only inheritor: she has to share everything with Wesley Koehler, the groundskeeper who's as grouchy as he is gorgeous--and it turns out he has a very different vision for the property's future.

Convincing the taciturn Wesley to stop avoiding her and compromise is a task more formidable than the other dying wishes Great-Aunt Violet left behind.

But when Maybell uncovers something unexpectedly sweet beneath Wesley's scowls, and as the two slowly begin to let their guard down, they might learn that sometimes the smallest steps outside one's comfort zone can lead to the greatest rewards.

14. The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa

Mia Sosa delivers a sassy, steamy #ownvoices enemies-to-lovers novel, perfect for fans of Jasmine Guillory, Helen Hoang, and Sally Thorne!

A wedding planner left at the altar? Yeah, the irony isn’t lost on Carolina Santos, either. But despite that embarrassing blip from her past, Lina offered an opportunity that could change her life. There’s just one hitch… she has to collaborate with the best (make that worst) man from her own failed nuptials.

Marketing expert Max Hartley is determined to make his mark with a coveted hotel client looking to expand its brand. Then he learns he’ll be working with his brother’s whip-smart, stunning—absolutely off-limits—ex-fiancée. And she loathes him.

If they can nail their presentation without killing each other, they’ll both come out ahead. Except Max has been public enemy number one ever since he encouraged his brother to jilt the bride, and Lina’s ready to dish out a little payback of her own.

Soon Lina and Max discover animosity may not be the only emotion creating sparks between them. Still, this star-crossed couple can never be more than temporary playmates because Lina isn’t interested in falling in love and Max refuses to play runner-up to his brother ever again...

15. The Layover by Lacie Waldon

After ten years as a flight attendant, Ava Greene is poised to hang up her wings and finally put down roots. She's got one trip left before she bids her old life farewell, and she plans to enjoy every second of it.

But then she discovers that former pilot Jack Stone--the absurdly gorgeous, ridiculously cocky man she's held a secret grudge against for years--is on her flight. And he has the nerve to flirt with her as if he doesn't remember the role he played on the most humiliating night of her life. Good thing she never has to see him again after they land...

But when their plane encounters mechanical problems, what should have been a quick stop at the Belize airport suddenly becomes a weekend layover. Getting stuck on a three-hour flight with her nemesis was bad enough.

Being stranded with him at a luxury resort in paradise? Even with the sultry breeze and white sand to distract her, it will take all the rum punch in the country to drown out his larger-than-life presence.

Yet the more time Ava spends with him under the hot Caribbean sun, the more she begins to second-guess everything she thought she knew about him...and everything she thought she wanted from her life. And all too soon, she might have to choose between keeping her feet on the ground and her head in the clouds...

16. Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin

Bound as one to love, honor, or burn.

Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned.

Sworn to the Church as a Chasseur, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. His path was never meant to cross with Lou's, but a wicked stunt forces them into an impossible union—holy matrimony.

The war between witches and Church is an ancient one, and Lou's most dangerous enemies bring a fate worse than fire. Unable to ignore her growing feelings, yet powerless to change what she is, a choice must be made.

And love makes fools of us all。

Shelby Mahurin grew up on a small farm in rural Indiana, where sticks became wands and cows became dragons. Her rampant imagination didn't fade with age, so she continues to play make-believe every day—with words now instead of cows. When not writing, Shelby watches the Office and obsesses over her Twitter feed. She still lives near that childhood farm with her very tall husband, semi-feral toddlers, two dogs, and one cat.

Shelby's favorite books include A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas, Uprooted by Naomi Novik, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, and, of course, Harry Potter.

Her debut novel, SERPENT & DOVE, will be released from Harper Teen in the Fall of 2019, with a sequel to come the following year. She is represented by Sarah Landis of Sterling Lord Literistic.

17. Mr. Wrong Number by Lynn Painter

Things get textual when a steamy message from a random wrong number turns into a thrilling anonymous relationship in this hilarious rom-com by Lynn Painter.

Bad luck has always followed Olivia Marshall...or maybe she's just the screw-up her family thinks she is. But when a What are you wearing? text from a random wrong number turns into the hottest, most entertaining--albeit anonymous- -relationship of her life and she thinks things might be on the upswing...

Colin Beck has always considered Olivia his best friend's annoying little sister, but when she moves in with them after one of her worst runs of luck, he realizes she's turned into an altogether different and sexier distraction.

the moment he discovers she's the irresistible Miss Misdial he's been sort of sexting for weeks--and now he has to decide whether to turn the heat up or ghost her before things get messy.

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17 Best Enemies to Lovers Romance Books

About Best Enemies to Lovers Books

17 Best Enemies to Lovers Romance Books

1. Fight or Flight by Samantha Young

2. The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

3. The Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas

4. From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout

5. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

6. Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

7. Beach Read' by Emily Henry

8. The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

9. The Kiss Thief by L.J. Shen

10. Man Card by Sarina Bowen and Tanya Eby

11. I Hate You by Ilsa Madden-Mills

12. The Name of the Game by Jennifer Dawson

13. Twice Shy by Sarah Hogle

14. The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa

15. The Layover by Lacie Waldon

16. Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin

17. Mr. Wrong Number by Lynn Painter

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