I LOVE enemies to lovers 🙂
Lindsay picked most of my favorites, though–I’m going to have to do some real thinking to come up with more…
One of my earliest experiences with the enemies to lovers (or as I prefer to call it, Kiss/Kill) trope was watching Moonlighting in the 80’s. The snarky banter between uptight Maddie and playboy David was tight and tense and sexy and something that probably formed the basis of every romance I’ll ever write, including my debut contemporary romance, KNOW WHEN TO HOLD HIM.
This trope is old as dirt, and can be seen in Shakespeare (I could go back to the Bible, but that feels a bit strange, when we’re discussing romance novels) in Much Ado About Nothing, where Benedick and Beatrice’s sharp words and witty insults are so at odds with the attraction they clearly feel.
Pride & Prejudice is another example of the Kiss or Kill trope, with Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy’s wordplay being a (very proper) form of foreplay.
In the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, we’re still loving the push and pull between will-they-won’t-they sometimes-enemies. Look at the enduring popularity of Buffy and Spike, or the eternal hotness of Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
In KNOW WHEN TO HOLD HIM, Liam Connelly and Spencer Hightower find themselves attracted to the person who is the biggest threat to their professional careers and their identities as competitors. Their challenges are sexy, one-upping the other a turn-on. In the end, they’ll find out whether they’re strong enough to admit defeat in love and in war.
I had so much fun writing these two, and I’d love to hear all about your favorite Kiss/Kill couples on Twitter (@lindsay_emory) or Facebook (facebook.com/lindsayemorywrites)!
Author Bio:
As a Texan and recovering sorority girl, Lindsay Emory has strong opinions on college football, nachos, and wearing white after Labor Day. Lindsay started writing when her first grade teacher put her in a closet and told her to write stories, instead of teaching her math. When she’s not writing, she’s raising two daughters, watching movies with her husband, and reading as many books as possible. She is an active member of the Dallas Area Romance Authors chapter of RWA and a semi-active member of the PTA, which is a whole lot less fun.
Author Website: lindsayemory.com
Author Twitter: @lindsay_emory
Author Facebook: facebook.com/lindsayemorywrites
Author Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/lindsayemory
Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/32aSn
Book Title: Know When To Hold Him
Author: Lindsay Emory
Release Date: February 23, 2014
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Blurb:
Spencer Hightower’s job is cleaning up other people’s messes. And she is damn good at it. Unfortunately, being a supremely organized workaholic, it is isn’t always easy to meet guys—until Liam Connelly shows up, all gorgeous and really, really sexy. Sure, he makes Spencer’s pulse thump…but he’s also the biggest pain in her professional life.
Liam can’t believe his lousy luck when he learns that Spencer is his opposition in a high-profile scandal. She’s the best at what she does and the worst possible opponent. Of course, a little professional animosity can’t hurt a guy’s chances for a date, can it? Even as Spencer tries to keep her distance, their attraction grows stronger…and hotter. But once they cross all kinds of professional—and personal—boundaries, the situation snowballs into a disaster that even the great Spencer Hightower can’t fix…