The irresistible urge to fall for your enemy

Review by Booklist Review

Knightly's debut is an absolute joy, full of well-written banter and entertaining vignettes. Readers will be captivated by an exceptionally clever magical system, several concurrent mysteries, and the slowest of slow burn romances between two people who absolutely hate each other. Osric Mordaunt and Aurienne Fairhrim are sworn enemies, each belonging to opposing magical orders. Aurienne is a Haelan, vowing to use her magic to protect and heal mankind; Osric is a Fyren, trained to walk the Dusken Paths, killing and dealing in secrets for money. When Osric's magic begins to falter, he does the only thing he can think of--bribe a Haelan to help him discover a cure. What follows is the most delightful of enemies-to-lovers plots as Osric and Aurienne research fairy stories and forgotten lore and attempt magical treatments in far-flung places, all while trading delightfully barbed quips in a series of increasingly ridiculous attempts to save Osric's magic and ultimately his life. While it might cause captivated readers real anguish when this book ends on an abrupt cliffhanger, the possibility of more to come in an entertaining series will definitely make up for it. This is a superlative read deserving of very real praise.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.

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Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Knightley's frustrating debut romantasy and Dearly Beloathed duology launch unsuccessfully mixes the tone and humor of 1960s British sex farces with a convoluted biological warfare plot. In an alternate England where the Norman invasion failed, magicians join one of eight orders, including the Haelens (healer-scholars) and the Fyren (shadow-walking assassins). Fyren Osric Mordaunt has a disease known as seith rot, which could end in complete magic loss, and turns to Haelen Aurienne Fairhrim, the world specialist on seith channels, or mystical energy streams that allow the use of magic. Aurienne despises all Fyren on principal, but Osric makes an offer she can't refuse: a hefty donation to support otherwise unfunded research into a pox outbreak. Aurienne and Osric initially clash, but grow unwillingly (and unconvincingly) to care about each other, as they explore old magic and the new spread of the pox. Knightley overrelies on gross-out humor ("He rubbed his hands like a fly that has found particularly succulent poo") and naughty jokes, and the light tone never gels with the more serious subject matter. Only the most diehard enemies-to-lovers fans need apply. Agent: Thao Le, Sandra Dijkstra Literary. (July)

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Review by Library Journal Review

DEBUT Osric Mordaunt needs healing, and not just from any Haelen. Only Aurienne Fairhrim has the knowledge and ability to keep him from losing his magic and his life. The complication is that Haelens are a righteous bunch who only heal the innocent and worthy, while Osric is an assassin from the Fyren Order and falls decidedly in the "not worthy" category. However, Aurienne is instructed by her mentor to heal Osric in exchange for his money, which will fund a much-needed immunization program against the Pox, which is killing children in droves. Aurienne makes her distaste of Fyren known and informs Osric that his condition is incurable, although she reluctantly agrees to try an experimental method that will probably fail. The two meet secretly over several months, and although they are both vocal about their strong mutual dislike, Aurienne and Osric go to extraordinary measures to protect one another. VERDICT The first in the "Dearly Beloathed" duology is a wickedly humorous, slow-burn love story between two protagonists who epitomize the opposites-attract trope. It's sure to delight readers of debut novelist Knightley's popular fanfic and garner her a new audience.--Eve Stano

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