11 Enemies-to-Lovers Romance Books – What to Read After Watching Bridgerton Season 2

The enemies-to-lovers trope is one of the best in romance. It features two characters who hate each other, but over the course of the plot, that sizzling hatred turns into affection — then love. This trope was on full display in Bridgerton season two, with Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) and Kate (Simone Ashley), who begin the season by despising each other — and end it married and happily in love.

There are plenty of great enemies-to-lovers films out there (10 Things I Hate About You, for example), but sometimes, you just want to sink your teeth into a good book. Here are 17 books about love stories with two leads who start off hating each other and end up falling for each other.

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The OG enemies-to-lovers romance features Elizabeth Bennet, a headstrong young woman, and Fitzwilliam Darcy, a wealthy aristocrat. Lizzie originally dislikes Darcy, and rejects her first proposal, but her affection for him grows over time, and by the end of the novel, they are married and living at Pemberley. Jonathan Bailey even told T&C he based Anthony’s yearning off of Darcy.

The Unhoneymooners starts with a wedding: Olive’s twin, Ami, is getting married to Dane. Olive is obviously the maid of honor for her twin sister, and promises to put on a happy face — even though Dane’s brother and best man, Ethan, is her nemesis. When the entire wedding gets food poisoning, the only ones who aren’t affected are Olive (she has severe allergies) and Ethan (he’s a picky eater). Ami and Dane encourage their siblings to go on their honeymoon — not to give up a free trip — and they reluctantly go together. In Hawaii, Olive starts to realize maybe Ethan isn’t so bad after all.

In this twist on Jane Austen’s Persuasion, Chef Ashna Raje reluctantly signs up for “Cooking with the Stars,” a cooking reality TV show to save her beloved restaurant. She’s paired with soccer star Rico Silva — her first love and the man who ghosted her. Yet, when Ashna and Rico’s “first meeting” goes viral, they suddenly have a legion of fans rooting for them to succeed. Can Ashna put aside the past and work with Rico? Or is it a recipe for disaster?

Margaret K. McElderry Books

In 1926 Shanghai, 18-year-old Juliette Cai is the heir to the Scarlet Gang, a network of criminals. Their rivals are the White Flowers, whose heir is Roma Montagov — Juliette’s first love, and first betrayal. (Yes, this is a Romeo & Juliet retelling.) When a madness starts to take hold of the city, can Juliette and Roma put aside their grudges and work together to save their beloved Shanghai?

Augustus Everett writes literary fiction; January Andrews writes bestselling romance novels. They have nothing in common, except they’re currently living next door to each other in beach houses trying to conquer writer’s block. They strike a deal: January will write literary fiction, and Augustus will write a romance. Will they get out of their writer’s block? More importantly: Will these writer enemies fall in love? You may be able to guess the answer, but it doesn’t make the journey any less of a delight.

6

Red, White & Royal Blue

Alex, the son of the President, dislikes Henry, the Prince of Wales. When tabloids get hold of a photo of a fight between them, a major damage control plan from both sides of the pond gets underway to display a fake friendship between the two famous young men. When their fake friendship turns into something real, however, they both enter uncharted territories.

7

The Spanish Love Deception

Catalina has lied to her family about an American boyfriend — and with her sister’s wedding back home in Spain fast approaching, the lie has spiraled out of control. Rather than tell the truth, she decides she needs a fake boyfriend. When her handsome yet condescending colleague Aaron steps up, she’s ready to say no — but Catalina needs a date. Fake dating plus enemies-to-lovers? Sign us up.

A book quite literally called Loathe at First Sight is obviously going to have a great enemies-to-lovers plot. In this romance novel, Melody Joo starts her dream job as a video game producer–but quickly realizes her job is anything but a dream. Her coworkers are terrible, and the intern, Nolan, is the CEO’s nephew. When Nolan is assigned to her team, her expectations couldn’t be lower. But soon, they grow closer and she starts seeing him in a new light.

Rival art auctioneers Priya Gupta and Gavin Carlyle have known each other since they were young, and are constantly in competition for the same clients. When they are both invited to a country estate to spend the weekend trying to land the collection of the year for their auction houses, their rivalry blossoms into something neither of them expected.

Carolina “Lina” Santos is a wedding planner — one whose own wedding was a disaster when she was left at the altar. When she’s offered an opportunity too good to pass up, she’s forced to work with Max Hartley — the brother of Andrew, her ex-fiancée, the same brother who convinced Andrew to leave Lina. Can Max and Lina put aside their history and work together? And will they realize maybe they were always meant to be?

11

The Viscount Who Loved Me

Emily Burack
Emily Burack (she / her) is the news writer for Town & Country, where she covers entertainment, culture, the royals, and a range of other subjects.

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