✨Im Literary Anxious✨

𝗘𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲🕒: 2 minutes
𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿: Brigitte Knightley ✍🏻𝗣𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁: 360 📖

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘀:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
𝗦𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗲:🌶️
𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁: Duology
𝗘𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲: TBC
𝗡𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝘆𝗹𝗲: Dual POV

“𝙄𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙪𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪?”
“𝘐’𝘥 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭.”

🤍Slow Burn
🌸Enemies to (Maybe) Lovers
🖤Mutual Loathing
🤍Healer x Assassin
🌸He Collects Strays
🖤Banter x 1,000
🤍Forced Proximity
🌸Denial Is No Longer Just a River In Egypt
🖤He Falls First
🤍Touch Her and Die
🌸Disagree on Who Has Better Cheekbones
🖤Shadow Walker

If you’re not a fan of slow burns, this book is not for you. I’m talking 95% of the book with not a single ember of burn. This entire thing is an exercise in edging.

I went in expecting fast-paced banter and enemies-to-lovers sparks. I got the banter, I got the enemies-to-lovers—but the pacing? Not what I thought it would be. The writing hooks you from the first line, but the story doesn’t fly at a breakneck speed. It’s not slow either. It’s just… its own rhythm. If you’re expecting “fast-paced,” this might not deliver on that front.

And yet—I’m rating this five stars. Because wow. This is easily the most beautifully written book I’ve read so far this year. Not just entertaining, not just witty—truly beautiful prose.

Aurienne and Osric are not your typical romance leads, and it works. Aurienne’s sharpness borders on arrogance:

“It was hard being perfect in an imperfect world, but Aurienne managed. If she had a flaw, it was that she was the Best, and she knew she was the Best. Some called it arrogance. She called it competence untainted by performative humility.”

Meanwhile, Osric balances his irreverent banter with genuine worries and fears, creating a layered, complicated MMC. Their dynamic? Brigitte puts the O in slow burn and makes it an art form. From Aurienne considering his terminal condition a boon to Osric begrudgingly admitting he can’t get rid of her, their road from enemies to mutual care is equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking:

“What a pity this Haelan was of use to him. She’d be far more tolerable dead.”

“How intimate it was to feel Fairhrim’s breath against his skin. Bit tingly. Bit pleasurable. Bit disturbing. Nothing about Fairhrim was pleasurable.”

The worldbuilding—Seith, Cost, The Orders—was fascinating without ever becoming an info-dump. It feels layered and intentional, even if some details are left open-ended. (Do I care what century it’s set in? Nope. Irrelevant. She’s building something unique from familiar pieces, and it works.)

Stylistically, the capitalization as emphasis is consistent—which makes it deliberate—but I’ll admit it occasionally veered toward annoying. Still, a minor quirk in an otherwise stunning read.

Some stray thoughts while reading:

• Leofric, you can’t just ask people if their balls are symmetrical.
• Everyone needs a critique cricket to keep them humble.
• Am I the only one picturing the Waystones as Star Trek transporters? 👀
• Xanthe = Edna from The Incredibles. I will not be convinced otherwise.
• Denial is no longer just a river in Egypt.
• If compartmentalizing feelings were an Olympic sport, Aurienne and Osric would take home the gold.

If you’re an Amazon shopper, the savings between the Kindle edition and the hardcover are less than a dollar. It’s a stunning book, so my recommendation is you get the physical copy!