A review by bookshelflawyer
To Love and to Loathe by Martha Waters

5.0

I do love me some enemies to lovers who, even once they are together, still keep their playful bickering up! 

The book starts out on the heels of book one, with Diana and Jeremy making their wager about Jeremy getting married. This is then followed by another little arrangement where the two agree to become friends with benefits while Diana is still trying to get him married off. After Jeremy is told that his bedroom skills are lacking, he wants another opinion from someone who won’t sugar coat things for him - Diana. With much of the book taking place during a long house party on Jeremy’s country estate, there’s plenty of trouble to get up to. 

While I found there to be a lot going on overarching plot wise (the marriage bet AND the fwb thing) this book was very enjoyable. It had a sense of enjoyable chaos that fit the main characters very well. As in the first book, there were also plenty of side characters who were fleshed out and played a role in the shenanigans. 

Diana and Jeremy were a fun couple to read about. They are very much the couple whose love language is witty banter and that never really leaves them throughout the book. While there are certainly some vulnerable and romantic moments, the real romance is through their banter. That banter was what really made the couple for me. Also, seeing their wittier side made me appreciate them individually as characters as well. 

Diana was a little harder to embrace at first, simply because of her colder nature, but the more her humor showed, the more I found myself liking her. Similarly, Jeremy was hard to root for when he was so actively being the rake everyone expected him to be. It was hard to feel like he was taking anything seriously for a while. Still, their chemistry together and interactions with their friends made me warm up to them. During their story, Diana and Jeremy are certainly dealing with their own personal journeys and that’s shown both in and out of their relationship with each other. 

Since this was a hookups to lovers situation, there were certainly spice scenes that were enjoyable. Jeremy, in addition to getting initial feedback on his performance, continues the physical relationship with Diana in order to learn. And does he ever! Diana and Jeremy have chemistry outside the bedroom, but their flirty banter is just as enjoyable during those scenes too. 

Overall, quite enjoyable. With book two down, I’ll move on through the series and watch the rest of this chaotic group fall in love!