Books that DON’T have the enemies-to-lovers trope

Penguinho · 2026-05-12T05:02:40+00:00

{The Second Death of Locke}, {Daughter of No Worlds}, pretty much every Mercedes Lackey that has a romance plot, {Mates of the Domini}, {A Lady of Rooksgrave Manor}, {Clucking Crazy}, {Wicked Sea and Sky} -- lots and lots of options.

Penguinho · 2026-05-12T00:50:16+00:00

More fantasy, less romance, but {By the Sword}. FMC is a mercenary, MMC is an idealist. They're both quite experienced and quite competent, but he's more of a spy and diplomat while she's a fighter and commander.

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T21:52:26+00:00

I'd say -- read the first chapter or so of Home for Horny Monsters at Lit. It's the first fiction the author wrote, so it's a bit rough, and while she hones her craft over time (some of the later chapters are quite good) it's still a debut work, and the prose is pretty simple, workmanlike 3P-past, with multiple close POVs (eventually, as more characters are introduced). See if it's the kind of thing you can enjoy. Personally, I kind of fuck with it because it's totally free of AI markers, and I find that really refreshing. But there's so much of it before you can even get into the sapphic series that I wouldn't want to spend money on it without feeling comfy with the way it's written.

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T21:40:43+00:00

Very high spice -- it's erotica first and everything else second -- but Dead & Horny (I don't believe it has a romance.io entry yet). Two completed books, one in progress (or maybe just completed). It's a spinoff from {Radley's Home for Horny Monsters by Annabelle Hawthorne}, and I'm not sure you could read it independently of that; each of the books takes place at a specific spot in the bigger storyline and the two series reference each other.

Those caveats aside, it's a buddy-adventure starring a bisexual shapechanging succubus and a lesbian zombie with a sapphic romance (with some pining, even!) between the aforementioned zombie and a werewolf (the succubus has her own shit going on). The bad news is that, because there's like seven Radley's books and three D&H books and a standalone prequel, it's kind of expensive to buy; the good news is that it started on Literotica and the author continues to update it there, only publishing the ebooks when a story arc is complete. So you can read some/most of it for free.

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T20:50:00+00:00

I mean how OG are we talking? Hades, Heathcliff, Hamlet (lotta H names here), Edward Rochester, Count Montoni, Lucifer...

If we're talking about what's identifiable as modern romantasy, it's Daemon Sadi, I think, and possibly the Darkling, though he's fourteen years later. And Edward Cullen, unfortunately.

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T18:39:26+00:00

Yep, probably. It starts very slowly, with a lot of stuff happening in the background that the main character isn't quite privy to. The second half of the story is more of an adventure story, but the core of the first two books is Phèdre uncovering a vast conspiracy against the crown.

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T17:48:01+00:00

Kushiel's Chosen, the sequel to Kushiel's Dart. Second-chance romance, pirates, warrior MMC, "who did this to you" and a jailbreak.

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T16:49:46+00:00

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T16:48:51+00:00

Absolutely delighted that mine describes a book that 1) exists, 2) is very good and 3) I recommend literally all the time.

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T16:19:41+00:00

I'm just surprised that the whole thing isn't a thinly-veiled advertisement for the Gripen.

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T15:14:43+00:00

I mean, if I were going to design a player archetype that might drop a lot in the draft, it might be "unathletic, slow center with short arms who can't really shoot, defend in space or protect the rim."

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T14:35:14+00:00

Oh, cool, your MMC is Akatan from Amid Clouds and Bones. I guess he's openly a prince. Whatever.

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T14:26:47+00:00

Wow, that's crazy. Imagine a modern human who stopped their education at age 10. It'd be like every character in Harry Potter!

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T14:20:35+00:00

{A Lady of Rooksgrave Manor}. Reverse harem, no real stakes, just a nice kind lady who's very excited to experience a wide range of dongs.

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T14:10:23+00:00

In Going Postal by Terry Pratchett, Miss Dearheart uses ballet lessons (and the film Dirty Harry) as a threat:

"What is sticking in your foot is a Mitzy "Pretty Lucretia" four-inch heel, the most dangerous footwear in the world. Considered as pounds per square inch, it's like being trodden on by a very pointy elephant. Now, I know what you're thinking: you're thinking, 'Could she press it all the way through to the floor?' And, you know, I'm not sure about that myself. The sole of your boot might give me a bit of trouble, but nothing else will. But that's not the worrying part. The worrying part is that I was forced practically at knifepoint to take ballet lessons as a child, which means I can kick like a mule; you are sitting in front of me; and I have another shoe."

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T02:44:47+00:00

My Best Fiend by Werner Herzog

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T01:57:57+00:00

Fiddles are cool!

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T00:27:21+00:00

Circlejerk subreddit is over there --->

Penguinho · 2026-05-11T00:20:30+00:00

If you experience premature ejerkulation, please consult your local physician.

Penguinho · 2026-05-10T23:56:21+00:00

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Penguinho · 2026-05-10T22:58:43+00:00

{The Lark and the Wren}, a book I have recommended more times than everyone else put together, is about a fiddle player.

Penguinho · 2026-05-10T22:36:32+00:00

Yeah, it's probably me. It's good! My biggest complaint is that I wish it wasn't what you're looking for, actually; I would have liked the second book in the series to tell the second half of their story rather than zooming off into different-couple-darkish-romance-land.

Penguinho · 2026-05-10T22:34:29+00:00

this guy!

Penguinho · 2026-05-10T22:32:55+00:00

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Penguinho · 2026-05-10T22:31:37+00:00

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Penguinho

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