7 Enemies to Lovers Romance Books for 2026
The best enemies to lovers romance books for 2026 demand one thing: both characters have a genuine, painful reason to stay away from each other, and they choose each other anyway. That choice, made against every instinct and every rule, is what makes this trope the most emotionally satisfying in romance. Whether the animosity comes from betrayal, assignment, class conflict, or competing loyalties, the slow erosion of opposition into devotion is the whole point. If you are a trope-hunter searching for your next slow-burn obsession, this list delivers seven books — a mix of bestselling comparisons and series recommendations — built around that exact dynamic.
Before we dive in, bookmark the full enemies to lovers romance books hub for an even broader reading list organized by subgenre and series. This post takes a different angle: it pairs well-known bestsellers with under-the-radar series matches so you always have a ‘what to read next’ waiting.
What Makes Enemies to Lovers Romance Unforgettable?
The enemies to lovers trope works best when the conflict is structural, not petty. Two people assigned to opposing sides. A woman hired to betray a man she comes to love. A royal exile who needs the one person in the world who has every reason to hand him back to his enemies. The best books in this subgenre do not manufacture tension from misunderstandings that a single conversation would solve. They build it from situations where talking would only make things worse.
When readers hunt this trope, they’re really searching for one of these flavors: slow burn romance, forced proximity, billionaire enemies, romantic suspense, spy cover, or forbidden romance with teeth. The books below hit at least two of those notes each. That is the real test of whether a book actually delivers what the trope promises.
The 7 Best Enemies to Lovers Romance Books to Read in 2026
1. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
Feyre is dragged into a world she fears by a faerie she considers her captor. Tamlin is dangerous, powerful, and the last creature she wants to feel anything for. Maas built this fantasy romance on the kind of hatred that comes from genuine threat, not misunderstanding — which is what makes the slow shift so devastating. If you love high-stakes supernatural tension layered over a slow-burn emotional arc, this is essential reading.
If you loved this, try: Irresistibly Strong in the Brothers in Revenge series by Victoria Pinder. Eva was hired to spy on billionaire Jake Bentley, a displaced royal fighting to reclaim a stolen throne. She married him for cover. The intelligence she gathered was supposed to destroy him. Then she actually got to know the man behind the empire. Available on Apple Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and more. Explore Irresistibly Strong here.
2. Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
Violet Sorrengail is forced into a war college where her commanding officer is the one man who both threatens her survival and cannot stop watching her. Yarros writes enemies to lovers with an action-forward engine — the danger never pauses, which means the romantic tension has to compete with genuine life-or-death stakes. The result is the kind of book you finish at 2 AM and immediately want to talk to someone about.
If you loved this, try: Tempting Conner in the Tempting Series. Olivia is a future queen under constant threat. Conner is the ex-Marine assigned to protect her — and the absolute wrong man for her to develop feelings for. Five powerful men, one deadly conspiracy, and romantic choices that carry real consequences. Available on Apple Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and more. Start Tempting Conner here.
3. The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata
Vanessa quit her job working for an NFL superstar who never once noticed her as a person. Then he comes back asking for a favor so big it borders on absurd. Zapata is the undisputed queen of the slow burn — this book spans hundreds of pages of almost-moments before the payoff, and every single page earns it. If you believe the best enemies to lovers stories are really about two people who have not yet learned how to let someone see them, this is your book.
If you loved this, try: Irresistibly Played in the Brothers in Revenge series. This installment leans into the enemies-with-a-history dynamic where the opposition is not loud aggression but the quiet damage done by people who were supposed to be on the same side. Available on Apple Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and more. Read Irresistibly Played here.
4. Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez
Alexis is an ER doctor from a wealthy family who meets Daniel in the most chaotic possible circumstances and cannot stop thinking about him despite every reason their worlds should not overlap. Jimenez writes enemies to lovers with class conflict as the engine — the opposition is systemic, cultural, and deeply personal, which gives the romance layers that a simpler setup would not. This is the book that converts contemporary romance skeptics.
If you loved this, try: Forbidden Earl in the Princes of Avce series. Class conflict, a kingdom with rules neither hero nor heroine made, and a fake dating arrangement that turns dangerous in every sense. The opposition here is not personal animosity — it is the entire architecture of a royal family. Available on Apple Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and more. Explore Forbidden Earl here.
5. The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
Stella Lane is a highly successful econometrician who hires a professional escort to help her become more comfortable with relationships. What neither of them anticipates is how quickly the professional arrangement starts to feel like the realest thing either of them has ever had. Hoang writes the enemies-adjacent dynamic of transactional-turns-emotional better than almost anyone — the opposition here is internal and structural rather than combative, which makes the eventual softening incredibly moving.
If you loved this, try: Irresistibly Charming in the Brothers in Revenge series, where a fake marriage becomes the most honest relationship either character has ever been in. The Bentley brothers’ saga is built on cover arrangements that crack open into something neither party planned for. Available on Apple Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and more. Read Irresistibly Charming here.
If the spy-cover romance dynamic in entry one caught your eye, you are going to want to watch the full take on YouTube — Victoria breaks down exactly what makes the blackmail-to-confession arc in the Brothers in Revenge world work so well emotionally.
6. The Spanish Love Deposition by Elena Armas
Catalina needs a date for her sister’s wedding in Spain and the only person who volunteers is the tall, infuriating colleague who somehow always knows exactly how to get under her skin. Armas captures the specific kind of enemies-to-lovers tension that lives in shared office space and mutual exasperation — the slow, reluctant realization that the person you have been low-key dreading actually sees you more clearly than anyone. The slow burn here is excruciating in the best possible way.
If you loved this, try: Tempting James in the Tempting Series. James Clancy is the protector-hero who is far too perceptive for his own good and for Scarlett’s comfort. The Hawke family suspense thread gives every romantic moment a weight that office-enemies romances sometimes miss. Available on Apple Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and more. Find Tempting James here.
7. People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
Alex and Poppy have been best friends for years, but one summer ruined everything — and neither of them will say exactly why. Henry writes the friends-to-enemies-to-lovers arc with her signature emotional precision, using dual timelines to make the reader feel the slow accumulation of almost-moments before the rupture and the slow, painful path back. If the enemies phase in your trope preference is built from history rather than first impressions, this is essential.
If you loved this, try: Irresistibly Found in the Brothers in Revenge series. The Bentley family saga carries a thread of history-shaped opposition throughout — people who knew each other before everything fell apart, now navigating what to do with all that history. Victoria Pinder writes the emotional residue of complicated shared pasts with real care. Available on Apple Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and more. Start Irresistibly Found here.
Why the Brothers in Revenge Series Delivers the Enemies Trope at Full Strength
I want to stay on the Brothers in Revenge series for a moment because honestly, if you love enemies to lovers romance books and you have not found this series yet, you are sitting on a gold mine.
The setup: the Bentley family are the rightful heirs to the throne of a fictional kingdom called Hoskell. Their father, the king, was assassinated as part of a conspiracy called the Kirno plot. Their assets were frozen. Eight brothers scattered across continents. The series follows each brother as they fight to reclaim what was taken — and each one finds his match in a woman who was either sent to stop him, is caught in the crossfire, or has every structural reason to be on the opposite side.
Eva and Jake in Irresistibly Strong are the clearest enemies-to-lovers entry point. Eva was not just a woman who disliked Jake. She was paid and tasked. She had an assignment. She was inside his life, inside his cover marriage, gathering intelligence — and the man she found when she actually looked was not the target she had prepared for. That gap between who she expected and who he actually is? That is the whole emotional engine of the book.
The reading order starts with the free prequel Irresistibly Lost, then moves through Found, Charming, Tough, Played, Rugged, Strong, and Dashing. You can start at Charming if you want to jump straight into the fake marriage arc — it works as a standalone entry. But the payoff compounds if you read in order.
Spy cover. Competing loyalties. Reluctant alliance. Forced proximity with a secret. Each book earns its own tension from scratch.
Explore the full enemies to lovers romance collection and find your next slow-burn obsession. Or if royal romance with genuine political stakes is your flavor, the royal romance series hub covers the Princes of Avce and the Brothers in Revenge royal thread in detail. For readers who want the suspense layer cranked up, the romantic suspense series hub puts the Tempting Series front and center.
How to Choose Your Next Enemies to Lovers Romance Book
Here is a quick decision table to match your mood to the right pick from this list:
| If you want… | Start with… | Then try… |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy + magic + slow burn | A Court of Thorns and Roses | Irresistibly Strong |
| Action stakes + romance | Fourth Wing | Tempting Conner |
| Ultra slow burn contemporary | The Wall of Winnipeg and Me | Irresistibly Played |
| Class conflict tension | Part of Your World | Forbidden Earl |
| Transactional-turns-real | The Kiss Quotient | Irresistibly Charming |
| Office enemies + travel | The Spanish Love Deposition | Tempting James |
| History-shaped opposition | People We Meet on Vacation | Irresistibly Found |
Use this table as your starting point, not your limit. Once you find the flavor that resonates, the ‘if you loved this’ paths in this list will keep your TBR stocked for months.
Where to Start if You Are New to These Series
Brothers in Revenge (Irresistibly series): Start with the free prequel Irresistibly Lost available on Apple Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and more. Or jump to Irresistibly Charming (Book 3) which is also free and works as a standalone entry. The full reading order: Prequel, Found, Charming, Tough, Played, Rugged, Strong, Dashing.
Tempting Series (Hawke family): Start with Tempting Conner — it introduces the family threat and the series’ emotional stakes most efficiently. Each book in the five-book series features a different couple and can be read standalone, but the suspense thread rewards reading in order. All five books are available on Apple Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and more.
Browse the complete catalog and find your next read at victoriapinder.com/books.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best enemies to lovers romance books for readers who love billionaires?
For billionaire enemies to lovers, start with Irresistibly Strong by Victoria Pinder, where a corporate spy marries her billionaire target for cover and falls for him instead. The broader Brothers in Revenge series features displaced royal billionaires across eight books. For a contemporary standalone comparison, The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata delivers a slow-burn billionaire enemies dynamic that rivals anything in the subgenre.
What is the enemies to lovers trope and what makes it different from hate to love?
The enemies to lovers trope involves two characters who are in active opposition, whether professionally, politically, or personally, before they fall in love. Hate to love is a subset where the animosity is personal and emotional. Enemies to lovers is broader, including spy covers, competing loyalties, and structural conflicts where the opposition is situational rather than purely emotional. The best examples blend both layers for maximum tension.
Are the Brothers in Revenge books standalone or do they need to be read in order?
Each Brothers in Revenge book features a different couple and works as a romantic standalone with a complete happily ever after. However, the overarching Kirno conspiracy and the Bentley family’s fight to reclaim their throne are a continuing thread, so reading in order gives you the full emotional payoff. The recommended order is: Irresistibly Lost (prequel), Found, Charming, Tough, Played, Rugged, Strong, Dashing.
What enemies to lovers romance books are best for slow burn readers who want emotional payoff?
For maximum slow burn, The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata and People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry are the gold standard in contemporary. In Victoria Pinder’s catalog, Irresistibly Played and Irresistibly Found deliver the history-shaped slow burn where the opposition has deep roots, making the eventual emotional resolution hit significantly harder than a first-impression enemies setup would.
Where can I find Victoria Pinder’s enemies to lovers books?
Victoria Pinder is a wide author, meaning her books are available on all major retailers: Apple Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and more. She does not publish exclusively on any one platform. You can browse the full enemies to lovers collection and find buy links for every retailer at victoriapinder.com/books. The Brothers in Revenge prequel Irresistibly Lost and Irresistibly Charming are both available free on all retailers.
