Book list · 17 books
The Best Enemies to Lovers Books, From Bickering to Battlefields
Two people who can't stand each other, and a slow realization that the problem might be something else. Here are 17 enemies to lovers books, from bickering coworkers to people on opposite sides of a war.
By Melanie Juarez
2 min read · Updated Oct 2026
The short answer
Start with The Hating Game by Sally Thorne: two assistants, one promotion and nonstop sniping. Want the classic? Pride and Prejudice wrote the playbook. For romantasy, Fourth Wing puts the leads on opposite sides of a war, and The Cruel Prince does it with almost no spice.
Quick picks
Best first enemies to loversThe Hating Game · Sally Thorne
Best with low spiceThe Cruel Prince · Holly Black
Best romantasyFourth Wing · Rebecca Yarros
Enemies to lovers is the trope where two people start out as rivals, opponents or flat-out enemies and end up in love. The fun is in the friction: the banter, the grudging respect, the moment one of them realizes they've been arguing for the pleasure of it. (Like picking books by trope? Here's how a blind date with a book works, too.)
“Enemies” covers a lot of ground, so we've ordered this list by how high the stakes are. It starts with neighbors and coworkers who bicker and ends with people on literally opposite sides of a war. Every book has our spice rating, its main tropes and content notes you can open or skip.
The full list
Liz Buxbaum lives for rom-coms and has one goal: win over her longtime crush. Her only way in is Wes Bennett, the annoying boy next door, who agrees to help a little too easily.
If you liked: Every Summer After, The Hating Game
Content notes
Grief over a parent's death.
Elizabeth Bennet decides Mr. Darcy is the proudest man alive within one evening of meeting him. He doesn't do much to change her mind. Every enemies-to-lovers book on this list owes it something.
If you liked: The Viscount Who Loved Me, Book Lovers
Content notes
Nothing major. Period attitudes about marriage, money and class.
At her twin sister's wedding, everyone gets food poisoning except Olive and the groom's brother, Ethan, who can't stand her. Someone has to use the free honeymoon to Maui.
If you liked: The Wedding Date, The Hating Game
Content notes
Some on-page sex.
Can't decide?
Let us pick your next romance
Pick romance and we'll hand-pick a brand-new book, wrap it so you can't peek, and tuck in snacks, stickers and a bookmark. You can rule out themes you'd rather skip, and switch genres any month.
Lucy and Joshua are executive assistants to two co-CEOs, sitting across from each other and hating every minute. Then they both go for the same promotion.
If you liked: The Unhoneymooners, The Spanish Love Deception
Content notes
Explicit sex.
Literary agent Nora Stephens is the cutthroat one, never the small-town love interest. On a trip to Sunshine Falls with her sister, she keeps running into Charlie Lastra, a brooding editor from back home.
If you liked: Beach Read, The Hating Game
Content notes
Grief over a parent's death, explicit sex.
Theoretical physicist Elsie pays the bills as a professional fake girlfriend. Then her favorite client's broody older brother, Jack, turns up on the hiring committee for her dream job.
If you liked: The Hating Game, Twisted Hate
Content notes
Explicit sex.
Alex, son of the US president, and Henry, a British prince, cause an international incident at a royal wedding. Damage control means pretending to be friends.
If you liked: The Love Hypothesis, The Hating Game
Content notes
Homophobia, outing, explicit sex.
Anthony Bridgerton has decided it's time to marry, and he's picked the season's most sought-after debutante. Her older sister Kate thinks he's the worst possible husband, and tells him so.
If you liked: Pride and Prejudice, Red, White & Royal Blue
Content notes
Grief (a parent's death in backstory), sexual content.
Iris Winnow types letters to her brother at the front and slips them under her wardrobe door. Someone writes back. Meanwhile, her rival at the newspaper, Roman Kitt, is making her life difficult.
If you liked: The Cruel Prince, Uprooted
Content notes
War, grief, a parent's alcoholism.
Jules Ambrose and Josh Chen have been at each other's throats since the day they met. When the tension finally boils over, Josh suggests a fix: enemies with benefits, with strict rules.
If you liked: Love, Theoretically, The Bridge Kingdom
Content notes
Explicit sex, past trauma, some violence.
Jude is a mortal girl raised in the High Court of Faerie. She wants a place there badly enough to fight for it, and Prince Cardan, the cruelest of them all, wants her gone.
If you liked: Powerless, Kingdom of the Wicked
Content notes
Violence, murder, bullying.
In a kingdom where people without powers are hunted, Paedyn Gray survives by faking mind reading. Then she saves a prince's life and gets thrown into the Purging Trials.
If you liked: The Cruel Prince, Fourth Wing
Content notes
Violence, death.
Lou is a witch hiding in a city that burns witches. Reid is a witch hunter sworn to the church. One scandal later, they're married, and neither of them wanted it.
If you liked: Kingdom of the Wicked, The Bridge Kingdom
Content notes
Violence, witch burnings, religious extremism, sexual content.
When her twin sister is murdered, Emilia does the one thing every witch is warned against: she summons a prince of Hell, Wrath, to help her find the killer.
If you liked: The Cruel Prince, Heartless Hunter
Content notes
Murder, grief, violence.
Princess Lara has trained since childhood for one job: marry the king of the Bridge Kingdom, find its weaknesses and hand them to her father. Then she meets the king.
If you liked: From Blood and Ash, The Serpent and the Wings of Night
Content notes
Violence, a harsh childhood, explicit sex.
Oraya is the human daughter of the vampire king, in a world built to eat her. To change that, she enters a tournament held by the goddess of death and needs a dangerous rival on her side.
If you liked: Fourth Wing, A Court of Thorns and Roses
Content notes
Violence, gore, death, explicit sex.
Violet Sorrengail trained to be a scribe. Her mother, the commanding general, sends her to the dragon riders' war college instead, where cadets die every week and one of them has good reason to want her dead.
If you liked: Powerless, The Serpent and the Wings of Night
Content notes
Violence, death, graphic injury, explicit sex.
Where to start
If you want banter and a happy glow, start with The Hating Game, Book Lovers or The Unhoneymooners. If you'd like it with corsets, go Pride and Prejudice, then The Viscount Who Loved Me. Prefer magic and real danger? The Cruel Prince and Powerless are low on spice; Fourth Wing and The Serpent and the Wings of Night turn up the heat. Romantasy is its own genre with us, too: a romantasy blind date keeps the magic coming.
How we rate spice
Our spice rating is our own editorial call, from 1 (closed door) to 5 (very explicit). It's about how much is on the page, not how fierce the rivalry is: some of the most vicious enemies on this list never get past a kiss.
Questions readers ask
What are enemies to lovers books?
What's the difference between enemies to lovers and rivals to lovers?
Are there enemies to lovers books without much spice?
What are the best fantasy enemies to lovers books?
How do you rate spice?
Are the content notes complete?
Can't decide?
Let us pick your next romance
Pick romance and we'll hand-pick a brand-new book, wrap it so you can't peek, and tuck in snacks, stickers and a bookmark. You can rule out themes you'd rather skip, and switch genres any month.
About the author
Melanie Juarez
Co-founder, Blindly
Melanie is Blindly's co-founder and resident bookmom. She reads every reader's quiz answers and hand-picks each blind date herself, from the family-run Blindly home in California. Nothing makes her happier than matching someone with their next favorite read.
Read Melanie's story →
