Love at First Spite

The Spite #1

by Alexandra Warren

Love is not on the drink menu.

At least not for Nori Davis as she basks in the single life which includes frequent happy hour visits, lots of alone time in bed with her “favorite things”, and of course being sought after by guys she’s not interested in.

But when she’s caught off-guard by a man who’s a little different than usual - on a mission a little different than usual - she can’t help but to get lost in his seemingly impossible potential no matter how hard she tries to fight it.

Maxwell Watson doesn’t have time for a serious relationship. Between opening a lounge, being the owner of a lounge and… the lounge, there’s just no room for anything beyond it.

Still, when he notices one particular patron who is palpably dissatisfied with his business, going after her for more information isn’t even a question. And when more turns into a whirlwind of energy neither can deny - turns into an encounter that can’t be forgotten - Nori and Maxwell find themselves attempting to navigate what can only be identified as love at first… spite.

Genres: Romance, African American Romance, Fiction

274 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 21, 2016

About the author

Alexandra Warren is a contemporary romance author with over thirty works to date, all of which intentionally center Black love. She is also the co-founder of Girl, Have You Read…, a digital platform dedicated to Black romance written by Black authors.

When she’s not in front of her computer, she enjoys traveling, spending time with family, watching sports, and clearing her DVR. Alexandra is a proud native of Omaha, Nebraska, but she currently calls Houston, Texas home.

Learn more about Alexandra by visiting her website www.actuallyitsalexandra.com.

Reviews

[Annette Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love at First Spite was a cute book. I really enjoyed it but, the characters not so much. Well, not all of the characters but, definitely Nori and Kelvin. Nori was annoying as hell. I don't understand why authors make their heroines so difficult to the point where your readers dislike them. And, I did not like Nori at all. She was immature, played too many games, and was difficult for no reason. The author wrote her as if she was this bad bytch with an I don't give AF attitude when, in actuality, she was extremely insecure and had an incessant need for validation. Her personalities were all over the place. Nori made Maxwell work hard unnecessarily. He was the complete opposite of Nori. Where she was a fun party girl who spoke her mind and didn't care if she offended anyone, Maxwell was a people pleaser who played by the rules. But, he instantly fell hard for Nori and went above and beyond to prove to her they belonged together almost to the point of kissing her azz. Normally when authors write storylines about these difficult females, there's a reason for it. But, there was no bad break-up in Nori's past or recent heartbreak and her parents were still very happily married. So, it was difficult to rationalize and understand her fear of falling in love. Kelvin was extremely immature and childish. I didn't like him at all. His behavior was so bad, I almost don't want to read book two. The author would have to give him a completely different personality for me to even think about liking him. The only thing I truly enjoyed was the beef between Ms. Nina and Ms. Marie. The petty mamas kept it entertaining. Apparently, Maxwell's daddy left his mama for Nori's mama. But, Nori's mama ended up leaving Maxwell's daddy for Nori's daddy then, he went back to Maxwell's mama and everyone lived happily ever after. But, Ms. Marie (Maxwell's mama) is still holding onto this 30 plus year old grudge and decided to take her dislike of Ms. Nina (Nori's mama) out on Nori. Yeah, it was a shyt show full of drama but I was here for it. It pissed me off when Ms. Marie tried to come for Nori during Sunday dinner and Maxwell didn't defend her. Then, everyone (including Ms. Nina) was pretty much telling Nori she was overreacting. Ummmmm, no TF she wasn't! There's absolutely nothing wrong with expecting your man to have your back when his mama is disrespecting you. Mind you, this is the second time Ms. Marie came for Nori and Maxwell didn't say anything so, she was well within her rights to be pissed off and hurt. I've said it once and I'll say it again. This is why I don't like reading books on characters in their early twenties because, I can't relate to this kind of silliness. But, I don't know if these characters were in their early twenties or thirties because, the author didn't give us a single age on any of them. Not only that, but she also didn’t give us a character description on Nori. Other than telling us she had natural curly hair, I have no idea what Nori looked like. The author finally described her skin color as peanut butter in chapter 16 or 17 but, that's all we got for Nori's description. I don't know about the rest of y'all but, I like to know how old the characters are and what they look like. It tends to make for a better reading experience. But, I digress. Love at First Spite was a good book. I just wish the author had done things a lot differently with these characters to make them more likeable.

[mina reads™️ · Rating 2 out of 5]

This author does fun dialogue and banter between characters so well. The beginning of this had me ready to declare a new favorite author. But the rest? Whew chile. Nori and her flip flopping personality. As a matter of fact both their personalities didn’t seem stable, like the author wanted to have a quirky confident girl and a shy stiff dude but that didn’t mesh with her narrative so she had them switch it up so damn much i had whiplash.

Messy Ass Maxwell, with the corny plot twists that throughly turned me off Maxwell completely as a character and love interest. Nori always making concessions for Maxwell, despite some clear as day red flags from his past. Nori with her “why me out of every other woman” yet she’s so confident and self assured so her insecurities weren’t well explored and just seemed shoehorned in to make things more complicated than need be.

The alicia and lisa drama...The drama between the parents and all that other unnecessary shit. And the resolution??? Everyone telling Nori she was overreacting??? IM SOOOOO IRKED. I absolutely adored the first 20-30 percent of this story and the author took everything allllllll the way left. I cannot believe....I’ll be back to make this more coherent later maybe

Ps. I’ll probably try something else from her because I really enjoy her writing style and the dialogue but this narrative whew baby, this was not it! (For me at least) but I’m definitely willing to try again. Someday

[Kameel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love At First Sight

This was in a way…that kind of love….Maxwell fell almost instantly for Nori….Nori was a carefree free spirited soul…and Maxwell is extremely rigid and structured….let’s see what happens when their worlds collide.

[Olivia]

This had so much promise at the beginning- main characters who have a great first interaction/night and the first third was really strong! Also some funny moments and characters

But by the end this felt soooo drawn out with conflicts I really didn’t care for. Like the mom drama and a classic trope I don’t like at the end. I kept pausing and thinking what happened??? Why do these characters insist on being as frustrating to both themselves and the other???

Honestly, the page time spent on the conflicts would have been better served as sexy time/ smut (because the ONE smutty scene-also why just one full short one in an almost 300 page book???- was good stuff) 😂 but still enjoyed the chemistry our characters had and will try out another book by this author (I was going to read her other book- Accidental Arrangements- first but it said spoilers for this book so I read this instead. Hoping the original read is better!)

[The Love Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars - Love at First Spite is one of the author's earlier books. Neither Maxwell or Nori were looking for love. Nori was looking for a good time at a lounge, but was not impressed. Maxwell, the owner of the lounge, is a perfectionist and couldn't let her leave without figuring out what she didn't like. This leads to a night of talking, laughter, and a surprising connection that leaves them both wanting more. Despite her reservations about love and how fast things seem to be moving, Nori can't ignore the signs that Maxwell may indeed be the one to finally capture her heart.

I understood the chemistry between Nori and Maxwell, but it also felt rushed and underdeveloped. Though it was supposed to follow a love at first "sight" storyline, I think they spent more time trying to convince Nori to give the relationship a try than to actually be together. A lot of their intimate time spent together (both in and out of the bedroom) seemed to happen off page and we were told about it more than shown it.

I know this being one of the author's earlier works adds to what I felt was lacking, which is fine, because I've read some of her later works and they've all been great reads, which just shows me this author's writing just needed time to develop!

SN - the family drama was ridiculous, but hilarious at the same time lmaooo, I loved Nori's mother

TROPES: love at first "sight", black romance, opposites attract, family drama, he says "i love you" first

[Camy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay. Goodish. Not bad.

I think Nori very easily made some allowances for actions in Maxwell's past that most would indeed perceive to be red flags and her "you can have everyone, why me?" questioning was annoying, but there were some smile-worthy, quirky moments in this run-of-the-mill, urban-ish, sexually tame story.

[Shalana · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ⭐⭐⭐
Edit: changing to 3 stars because I realized I liked this one much more than another book that is def a 2 ⭐.

I am shocked that I feel the need to give an Alexandra Warren book 3 stars but this did not work for me.

I enjoyed the first 55-60% of the book and truly didn't care for the rest of it. Nori was initially a confident, quirky, a bit annoying heroine at the beginning of the book and then somehow became this unreasonable, insecure heroine. The character development just fell flat for me.

Max was just blah to me. The drama with their moms was also blah. It just wasn't a fun read for me.

[J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

That Nori was a piece of work lol idk how Maxwell did it because I would've been chunked the deuces. Their love story was different to see a woman who was scared of commitment and a man who wanted commitment more than anything.

[Renee Bailey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not sure how I felt about this book...I was trying to fall for Maxwell but for some reason he just didn’t do it for me. I got that he was fine, rich and successful but the scene where he didn’t stand up for Nori left a sour taste for me. Yes, I understood that Marie is his mom but he’s a grown azz man who was dating/falling in love with a woman so I felt he should have said something. Nori and her why me out of all of these women plucked my last nerve. On one hand she had the confidence of Miss America and then on the other hand she was like a child.

[Jos-Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute and engaging story with well developed characters and sub characters. I enjoyed reading about Maxwell & Nori and their crazy family & friends. I look forward to reading more from this Author!

[Bunny Robinsonfuller]

Ok this is the first book I have read by Alexandra Warren and boy did she make an impressions on me. Nori and Maxwell lol. these two are something else. Nori is does not or will not spare your feelings. she says what's on her mind and does not care if you like or not. Maxwell the one who does the right things most of the time. A pleaser for the most part and wants to make things right. Nori is a patron at Maxwell and his brother Kelvin's lounge and he notice that she is unhappy. Maxwell straps on his cape and off he goes trying to fix a situation. He was not prepared for meeting Nori, she might be the kryptonite to his Superman persona.

I really enjoy reading this book. I can't wait for upcoming releases.

[Kimberley (pennedbykdb) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Max and Nori’s “new normal” is so beautiful!! 😍😍

Alexandra Warren is out here serving black love, amazing family dynamics and a whole lotta laughs and good times!

I enjoyed seeing the dynamic of the guy falling first and the girl running for the hills and having to be dragged kicking and screaming to the door of love. And a lil bit of old family feuds and grudges being thrown in for a lil razzle, dazzle was an added bonus. Love at First Spite was lit!

[Byron Washington · Rating 4 out of 5]

👍🏾🔥👍🏾🔥👍🏾🔥👍🏾🔥

[Bianca Bianca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes

I love Alex warrens writing. I can’t believe it took me this long to read this book. I loved it.

[Katie ratherbereadinggg · Rating 3 out of 5]

3-3.5 stars RTC

[Madison · Rating 4 out of 5]

the banter in this book is top tier

[Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quirky, quick love ❤️

This was a great story where we as readers were lucky to experience the quirky, funny and sometimes frustrating love story between Max and Nori! Neither of them were looking or expecting to fall so quickly in love, but they did and it was kismet. Looking forward to reading Kelvin’s story.

[Beverly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet Love

I read the second book of this series first not noticing it was part of a series I thought I love Kelvin and Tianna❤️ and I did But …after reading this OMG ! In spite of Nori quirkiness and her brutal honesty Maxwell , the straight laced business man, or so he seemed just couldn’t help falling in love with her..

This story or maybe I should say Nori had me laughing so hard a couple times I laughed until I cried. These two by normal standards would be consider “the odd couple”however they were so perfect for each other. They encounter their share of obstacles a couple that make you wonder if you he two will be able to withstand the pressure that came with them.

I don’t want to give anything away so I’ll just say read this book and then read book two of the series. You won’t be sorry

[Vernell Renee Howard Griffin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Read!

Max and Nori complemented each other. This was a perfect example of when Opposites attract. Max and Nori's unique personalities attracted them to each other. They knew what each other wanted and need it from each other. But there was one thing that they had in common and that was their sexual need for each other. I thought that was awesome and cute. I like when a couple need and want each other and say what they want and what they need from their partner. I'm glad they worked through their disagreement so they can continue learning each other to build a strong Foundation in their relationship.

[L. Boogie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the way Nori and Maxwell met. It was swooning and laughing from the beginning

Nori is kind of a ditz. It can get old but overall it works for her. Maxwell has the patience of Job. I really like Kelvin. He is funny and annoying as a little brother should be

Nori and Mawell’s moms going off on each other was wild. And I let it slide when Maxwell didn't defend her that night, but after he begged her to do dinner at his bitchy moms and she went off on Nori again with no back up from him, I was 100% on crazy Nori side. I think the resolution to this issue happened too quick, especially with the turn around with the mom. But whatever

[Andrea Underwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laugh out loud

This book was smooth. I loved Nori's craziness and Maxwell's smoothness. They were a great opposites attract pair with a cast of secondary characters that spiced up the book. Her mother and his mother wow. Throw in a humorous brother and spicy best friend and you have a true winner. The only thing missing is her father we got to see Max's dad we should have been able to meet her's; especially since you could tell their relationship was strong and the parents were still happily married. It was a missed opportunity. The fight between their mothers was everything... no other spoilers you just got to read this one.

[Celeste · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny, feisty, and quirky

I laughed, I smiled. I appreciated the layers which were Maxwell and Nori. What you want in any story is characters you can and do root for. Especially when you can visualize the circumstances. That's what you have with Maxwell and him being vulnerable and open to be more than what meets the eye. As well as with Nori who was spunky and not your average woman. You love the supporting characters in Kelvin , the younger brother who saw more than what others expected. Layna the best friend who is straight talk no chaser. Add in the parents and you just recognize how small the world truly is.

[Nina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maxwell with the sexy-churchy smile, suits but also gets comfy in them basketball shorts and shirts ar home, and unsuspecting, Nori is snared. She fights tooth and nail in her awkward way of expression that is so similar to me I felt too seen.
Max doesn't rush her, he's honest, upfront, and their dynamics works for them
Enter Nori's mum and Maxwell mum who just so happen to know each other from way back and the drama of who stole whose man and who was jot in the ass then and daaamn, I laughed so hard.
This love story is for the quirky girls who just say what's on their mind, explain things a little oddly and may they find their maxwell.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love Max & Nori!

Initially I had this book for a few months before I decided to read it, but I wish I read it sooner.
The way the book was written was immaculate and the humour had me reevaluating my life. There were genuinely some real laugh out loud moments.

I love the fact that this book had elements of love but didn’t make it soppy. Max and Nori were such opposites that attached but they maked it work together.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read!

I loved Nori and Maxwell together. A chance encounter has the chemistry flowing instantly! From the beginning they hit it off so well! I laughed so much reading this book! Knowing that Nina and Roger dated in the past and Marie still held a grudge had me cracking up at their antics! As usual this was a great read by one of my favorite authors! I loved the ending, so romantic!

[V. Rena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Balanced

Oh my goodness, I so enjoyed reading this book. Maxwell and Nori balanced each other out very well. It gave me plenty of laughs while exploring the topic of love. The parents were a trip. This book is my first book by this author. Look forward to reading more of her work.

[Fatima · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Read

Nice love story written by Alexandra Warren. Nori is funny, smart, quirky, sexy, and complicated all at once. Maxwell is handsome, established, but stiff. Once these 2 meet sparks fly and things heat up, but not without the past being an issue for their future. If you like contemporary romance I definitely recommend this book.

[Kaala · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was good… The beginning was really funny, and there were parts in this book that made me laugh out loud in real life. I would recommend this as an easy read for anyone that is into the cheesy black romance novel books and wants to just unwind with an easy read… This definitely was not one of my favorite books of this author’s, but it was a good book overall.

[anndrea pollard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nori and Maxwell....omg definitely love at first spite. Their chemistry was hot from the very beginning. I love how Nori was able to bring out the best in Maxwell. She is witty and quirky, definitely unlike anyone he's experienced before. Nori definitely had her share of eye roll moments but all in all, a beautiful and easy read. The Nina vs. Marie/Mary show down was absolutely HILARIOUS!

[Neal Carney Sr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was spite alright

I liked the realistic characters and how the storyline progressed. Love is hard and unpredictable at times but you could feel the progression of something wonderful happening even in an unreasonable timeframe love happens when you least expect it. Goodreads did it again, captured my undivided attention. Good story!