The Enemy

It Happened in Charleston #2

by Sarah Adams

It’s been twelve years since I’ve seen him. Twelve years since he won our war of wits by outsmarting me with a tactic I didn’t even know was allowed. But tonight…I resurrect the battle.

Ryan Henderson is back in town for our best friends’ wedding, and I plan on showing him exactly how much I don’t care about him—or the almost kiss he ruthlessly dangled over me after graduation.

A lot has changed since our feuding days. I'm a successful bakery owner now, and I plan to rub every delicious detail of my life in his ugly face.

Just one problem: his face is gorgeous.

He wasn’t supposed to look like this or pursue me like a sexy guided missile. I must stay strong until the wedding is over and Ryan scurries back into whatever alternate universe he escaped from.

His interest in me is nothing but a continuation of the games we played in high school...right?

But the longer he stays, the more I wonder if I’m wrong and his tender smile and heated attentions are genuine. Maybe it’s not a game.

Ha! Who am I kidding? This is Ryan we’re talking about. Of course it’s a game. A game called war. And this time, I will win.

Genres: Romance, Enemies To Lovers, Audiobook, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance, Rom Com, Fiction

254 pages, Paperback

First published August 29, 2020

Reviews

[alana ☁️ · Rating 2 out of 5]

i hope this book wasn't marketed as enemies-to-lovers because honestly it's far from it. both characters have been pining for each other the whole time and they just kinda pretend to hate each other. 😑

the main reason i dislike this book was bc of the heroine, June. she was unbelievably immature and childish―despite being 30. she's holding a grudge for meaningless things that happened in their teenage years and i thought her CONSTANT need to hate Ryan was really unnecessary. he confessed he has always had a thing for her then going out of his way to be nice to her and clearly she liked him too; i understand her feeling hesitant and unsure bc of her past experience but she won't communicate and LITERALLY kept running off from him it's just so annoying.

i didn't enjoy this at all and was very very disappointed (maybe bc the first book was THAT good and i expected more from the sequel).

[Zoë · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread one 2/2/2023: gosh Junes body insecurities hit a little close to home for me, i love her

Men written by women are back at it again y’all.

I am so salty I don’t have a attractive man who KNOWS HOW TO COOK and has liked me for years pinning after me

*sighs*
My life is so boring.

This book is so pure and I love it with my whole heart.

June Bug
I loved this girl and related to her so much. I loved how she had an obsession with Nick Lahey. We love a successful QUEEN. But she did annoy me a lot as I re-read the book.


Ryan
Ryan, my pure, wholesome, amazing Ryan. May I point out he IS A THREE STAR MICHELIN CHEF. HE KNOWS HOW TO COOK. AHHHHHHHHHHH.
*fangirling*
And when June was doubting herself he was there *swoons*
I wish that Ryan existed *cries in loneliness*
And on top of all of that HE IS ATTRACTIVE.

The Family
The family was so fun and I wished I had one like them!

Plot
The plot was basically the romance but I LOVED THAT because I love romance stories.

If you loved The Spanish Love Deception you will love this too!

Edit: I lowered it to 4 stars because I hate the start of this book.

*bows*

[lilly ♡ (semi-hiatus) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.75 ★

so heartwarming and cute, this is why i love sarah adams

--

so excited for this 🤭 my irl bsf choose this for my next read

[emma ⚘ · Rating 4 out of 5]

oh how i love cheesy little romance books 🤭

[martina · Rating 2 out of 5]

It Happened in Charleston
1. The match ➟ 4 stars
2. The Enemy ➟ 2 stars

Book: The Enemy
Rating: 2 stars

I was too annoyed with this book to give it a proper review; I just did not enjoy this at all, which sucks since I loved the first book so much. This book reminds me of everything I hate about romcoms. However, the thing that annoyed me the most was how this was supposed to be an enemies to lovers and it wasn’t. I am sick and tired of reading enemies to lovers, where the mains actually secretly have feelings for each other. Don't get me wrong I don't always mind those, especially if it’s like hero who is so in love with the girl, but they are not enemies if they actually like each other!!!! In this circumstance they were supposed to hate each other but there was never any hate going on. Literally, a couple chapters in our hero confesses that he has always had a thing for the heroine. But I think what made this was even worse, was that even after the confession, the heroine still believes the hero hates her... like gurl what???

The heroine, June, was so unlikable. I understand having trust issues and commitment issues, but it was just not working in this book. To me she was just so annoying, petty, and ridiculous. Like her one-date rule....don't even get me started. Our hero was not any better, but i guess I don't have any serious complaints about him.

my biggest take away from this is ➟ stop marketing books as enemies to lovers if they are going to confess their love in the first couple chapters!!!!

[spring ~♡ · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reading this book was so so...difficult. Reading this review might become difficult for some of you too. Wanna know why? I'll tell your why.

*minor spoilers for the first chapter*

So, the protagonist went to this wedding where she went to the washroom and then the toilet paper was over so whenever someone was walking close to the washroom she was screaming "hello? Can you pass me the toilet paper? I will give you my half finished lipstick!"

What the fuck is this. Seriously. Wtf. 😭 this is so embarrassing. She was NOT quirky. She was embarrassing.

And then she met the love interest after 10 years. she started telling him how successful she is. And how she has her own business. And how she can give him a job if he wants.

AND GUESS WHAT HAPPENED?
GUESSSSS!

his friend entered the scene.
And
He started talking about how her love interest is three times more successful than her.
😭😭😭

And the love interest just smiled. (No, not because he thought she was adorable. He was mocking her cause who wouldn’t)

She was speechless cause SHE OFFERED HIM A JOB IN HER KITCHEN. Without knowing he is like the most successful chief in the star wars universe.

And then he told her... She has toilet paper stuck on her shoes. 😭🤮🤧🤢😭😫😣😖🏃🏻‍♀️

Help-
Please.

AND ALL THIS HAPPENED IN THE FIRST CHAPTER. I don’t need to tell you what happened in the rest of the book. Use your imagination. (Or don't)

Last time I got this much secondhand embarrassment was when my sister told me liver and heart is the same thing because Google said so.

[gilda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wish I had enjoyed this more but I was annoyed for almost the entire book

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not exactly an enemies to lovers book but nonetheless it was so cute. The mutual pining was *chefs kiss*! Sarah Adams’ books always put the biggest smile on my face.

[Melany · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an absolute worthy read! I would've given it 5 stars but June got on my nerves a bit, even near the end, so I reduced it by a star. I think the premise was great, I loved the author's writing style. The comedic bits in between were hilarious and relatable! The two main characters you just want to root for, through it all. Was a cozy, quick read. Would highly suggest!

This audiobook was given to me by NetGalley and the publishers to read and review. All comments above are my own opinions after completing the book.

[Sara]

Dnf @ 62%

The fmc was too childish for my liking

[Oceana Reads Co. · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️
Entertaining while I drive to work and back this week.

No language. Some intense kissing but that’s it.

Would recommend!

[M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Okay, here it is, then, June Bug. I’m going to lay it all out so there’s no room for confusion. I love you. I always have. Pretty certain I always will.”
I raise up onto my tiptoes to brush my lips over Ryan’s as I whisper, “I win.”

I'm a bit conflicted about how to rate this book. I enjoyed it? yes, most of it. I was waiting for something better and am I a bit disappointed? Also yes. I think my expectations after reading The Match were too high and quickly deflated when I started this book.

This was a good "enemies" to lovers romcom that made me laugh a few times, but it wasn't as fun and easy to read as the previous book, there were actually a few things that made the story feel dragged in places for me. I liked the main characters most of the time. Ryan was charismatic and I liked that he was straight to the point after reconnecting with June after all these years and was determined not to let this opportunity go, and I liked June, she was a likeable character when she behaved like an adult and not like a whiny kid, and the whole thing with her self-esteem issues made you really empathize with her.

BUT I really really REALLY hate that trope where the heroine holds a grudge for years about something meaningless and the hero −who has obviously always been secretly attracted to her and that's why he has always picked on her (let's stop with this bs)−, returns more successful than ever while the heroine is either stuck or going through a bad time. And another thing that bothered me is that June's character was sometimes annoying and petty. Like Ryan was going out of his way to be nice to her, but she was stuck in her high school years?? I don't know, her character felt like a cartoon and the humor was too forced. There's a difference between quirky characters and those who act like teenagers while in their 30s and she was in the latter category to the point of being ridiculous.

So I feel like I'm on the unpopular side here. I enjoyed this book while I was reading it, but I don't think I'll ever think about it again because it obviously didn't meet my expectations. Points for the epilogue.

[Syndi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Enemy is sweet enemy to lover romance and I do love a good enemy to lover trope. Not all books from Miss Adams hit the correct spot for me. But this one does.
It is sweet and the prank is quite funny.

June and Ryan are both adorable. The story is quick and after finishing the book, I want to eat donut.
Well done, Miss Adams

4 stars

[Belle₊˚⊹♡ (Book slump💔) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to give this a 1.75 but i thought that was too mean so i gave it a 2 🙂

2 ⭐️⭐️

This book was just a little too cheesy for me 😭
It was very predictable but that wasn’t even the problem I think the problem for me was just the characters and they weren’t likable for me 😅

The mmc Ryan was a little-
He was just kinda creepy and things he would do 💀
Tho this book did crack me up but in ways that I probably shouldn’t be laughing at- 😭
I didn’t even read the epilogue since this book just lost me loll

Overall would I read another Sarah Adams book?
Tbh probably 💀

Rating: 2/5
Spice: 0.5/5 (some references but in a really cringy way)
Age rating: 14+

[angelpompom · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was kicking my feet, giggling, and grinning like a fool while reading this one✨ im obsessed with Ryan🫠💕 if theirs one thing you need to know about me it’s that I’m always down bad for a hot chef🔥💕 even more so than firemen I think🤣 which is saying smth👀 everything Ryan says is perfect (I need help I know)😭🫠 I kinda hated June in the beginning but she was just a little annoying! She got better tho!! She’s was so scared of getting hurt again I couldn’t help but feel for her🤧 Did I mention I’m in love with Ryan👀?? Hot chef anyone? TOO BAD!! HES MINE!!🔥🤣

[Ridhima · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel like I got robbed with this one.

This is one of those enemies-to-lovers books which isn't really that, because the characters liked each other the whole time and just pretended to hate the other.

The whole romance feels so rushed between them; they make up, become friends and fall in love over the span of a single week. June has major trust issues and she literally keeps running away from him and slamming doors in his face. In response, Ryan violates her privacy, steals her spare key to get into her house uninvited, and forces her out of her comfort zone repeatedly instead of patiently waiting for her to get comfortable with him.

To add to that, there are way too many mentions of Ryan's dark "pools" and perfect abs in this book. More than necessary. Every time they disagree on something, June realizes she doesn't care once she sees that he's too attractive. I mean, why show that?

I really liked The Match by Sarah Adams, but this one just didn't hit the right spots for me.

[FictionalDen · Rating 1 out of 5]

so let me get this straight, June, a 30 year old woman, is getting herself ready to meet her high school enemy after 12 years okay and these are her inner thoughts

It's been twelve years since I've seen him. Twelve years since his smug face leaned down to kiss me, stopped just before our mouths met, smirked, and then turned and walked out of my life forever……..

But tonight...tonight, I resurrect the battle. And victory will be mine. No longer am I that naïve little graduate, excited for a kiss from the enemy. I'm now thirty years old and majority owner of Darlin' Donuts—one of Charleston's top hotspots. My best friend, Stacy, and I opened the bakery three years ago, and we have been enjoying a nice bit of success ever since. Not only am I the Southern queen of the gourmet donut tycoon, but I'm turning down men calling me up nightly for a date. Okay...nightly is a stretch. But it's definitely somewhere around three times a week. Twice a week. Once a week. Above average, okay?

Point is, I've got a lot going for me now. Career success. Tons of friends—because family makes the best friends, am I right? And I'm at least four inches taller than I was in high school (read: two inches). Best of all, I've perfected a killer winged eyeliner and paired it with a little black dress that has had men eyeballing me from across the bar all night long.
Sorry, boys. You can look, but you can't touch



I already wanted to DNF the book here but forced my self to keep going and booooooooy it got even more cringier….

so this is their first conversation/interaction after 12 years

”Listen, June —“

“No, you listen, Ryan Henderson. I can see it in your eyes that you still think you're better than me. But guess what? You're wrong, buddy!" I really wish I hadn't said buddy, but I do like my enthusiasm. "I am not that same little girl from high school who let you push her around and didn't push back."

Ryan interrupts my epic monologue with a chuckle, trying to steal my thunder. "In what world did you not push back?"

epic monologue



I ignore him, resisting the urge to settle the sharp point of my heel on the top of his shoe and press down, and instead, continue on, thunder unstolen. "I might've tipped my chin up for you back then, but not anymore. I am a grown woman who has scraped and worked my tail off to open my own bakery and establish a brand that is recognized across all of South Carolina. I am a force of nature, so don't mess with me this week unless you want me to cancel your birth certificate."

I take a step back and finally let a smirk touch my lips. "But who knows? Maybe if you're nice enough, I can give you a position scrubbing dishes in my kitchen."

I'm on fire right now Somewhere in the world, Taylor Swift is feeling a tingle down her spine because of this Bad Blood reenactment. I feel like I could run a marathon or lift a truck from all the adrenaline coursing through my veins.

SHE DIDN’T JUST COMPARE THE ICONIC BAD BLOOD ERA WITH HER “EPIC MONOLOGUE”





and of course let’s not forget Ryan who *shocker* always had feelings for June but instead of confessing them or acting upon them he played along with June to annoy each other just to get her attention not even realizing that she actually wanted to kiss him that day 😂 like why else did she close her eye?

so then I decided to mark this one as dnf

[Katie (hiding in the pages) · Rating 5 out of 5]

AUDIOBOOK:

I read this book a couple of years ago and had the chance to listen to the audio of the new and updated version and I loved it every bit as much.

Will Damron is one of my favorite audiobook narrators and it was a treat to listen to him banter with Connie Shabshab as the voices of Ryan and June.

There’s not much more delicious than a secret crush…who is also an enemy and the competition…and I was delighted at the wit, sparks and banter Adams writes into this book. It’s obvious that the chemistry ignites the pages and the fade-to-black moments are fire. This book made me hungry as I swooned the pages away.

Content: mild language; mild+ innuendo/fade-to-black/closed door/kissing

One of my favorites!

Isn't it known that the closest emotion to love is hate? Ryan and June have been bitter enemies since high school and now, twelve years later, it's still war, especially when June realizes that Ryan has changed.

"Gone is the boyishness of his face. Gone are the lanky arms and legs. It's still Ryan staring me down, but Ryan the man. Ryan 2.0. Ryan maple-glazed and covered in sprinkles."

The Enemy is a perfectly snarky, hilarious romantic comedy that had me laughing and swooning throughout. Sarah Adams perfects her characters voices and portrays their personalities through their words and actions in ways that bring them to life. June is real (she's hard on herself and lacking trust), and loyal and funny. Ryan is determined, hard-working, a chef, and could charm the socks off a bear.

The combination of the battle of wits, pranks, and flirting makes for a delectably swoony concoction and will leave you craving donuts with a silly, satisfied smile on your face.

Content: mild+ romance

*I received a complimentary copy. All opinions expressed are my own and were voluntarily given.*

[scl.ashx · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, first things first - men written by women authors are great. AWESOME.

I loved the book (even though I am not much in romantics books). The only thing that missed the mark was the overly-annoying mc. She was a bit childish and dramatic and so little of character development. But our "Ryan" was always there for her and he was the one who balances out the story for me.

Another thing that was nice about this book was June's loving family. Like dude - if they were real I would have asked them to take me in. They always had June's back and cared for her so much. Especially her mama bear - I loved her soooo much.

Overall, story writing was impeccable and had a nice flow. Though I kinda liked the 1st book better.

[Anastasiia Monachyna · Rating 5 out of 5]

не перестану казати наскільки це мила історія🥺
сподобалось навіть більше, ніж перша книга серії, але не вистачило якогось екшену чи різкого повороту подій (мабуть книжок про мафію перечиталась)

[Tasha Metzler · Rating 4 out of 5]

When you throw in HS “enemies” aka both pining for the other, fast forward to adulting and stilllllllll pining, one’s a baker and the other is a chef? I mean — Bon Appétit my peeps! 🤌🏼🤌🏼🤌🏼

[Mikayla Noel · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.75⭐️

Very cute but the fmc was a tad annoying for me!

[Carolina Moncayo · Rating 5 out of 5]

i’m so painfully single 😔✌🏽😔✌🏽😔✌🏽

this books was so adorable and wholesome, i’m literally melting from love. this book might as well be my 13 reason because it had me crying in the bathtub for 3 long hours praying and asking God when is it my turn. man written by Sarah Adams are literally the standard and it should be a crime to settle for less than this

Let’s start with a loud FUCKK BEN 🤠 and then we should kneel and praise June because she deserves that shit. she really is the whole combo: smart, funny and beautiful and I absolutely ate her character and her storyline up because her feelings after a bad relationship were so mf raw and real and I just loved her

Ryan omg don’t get me started, this is the man I pray to god to have one day because if not him who then? he had me on my damn knees at all times. he was so sweet and bewitching (Mr. Darcy shit if you know what I mean💀🤚🏽) but yeah I loved this book and this is the reason I’m such a hopeless romantic

[Culturomaniaczka · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️4.5/5
🌶️1/5
🫶🏼14+

OKAYYYY… JAKIE TO BYŁO CUTE I SEXYYYYY (pomimo braku scen łóżkowych)

cała historia rozgrywa się na przestrzeni kilkunastu dni and I LOVE IT! Mamy gburka Ryan’a i słoneczko June. Kocham ich osobno i razem ❤️

Enemies to lovers, second chance romance i grumpyxsunshine … czego chcieć więcej?

Łagodność i optymizm June podbiły moje serduszko, a do tego jej strach przed miłością wynikający z przeszłości pozwolił mi zrozumieć (i troszkę utożsamić) się z bohaterką🫶🏼

Ryan! OH.MY.GOD! Ty sexy slodziaku! Jego cierpliwość do June była po prostu urocza i piękna! A JEGO TESKTYYY??!!! No normalnie same motylki brzuchu!!!

Ucinam jednak pół gwiazdki, bo były momenty gdzie June mnie denerwowała, a jej nienawiść do Ryan’a była ciut bezpodstawna… a przynajmniej ja tam nie widziałam prawdziwych wrogów :/

JUNE I RYAN PROWADZĄ WOJNĘ. A W MIŁOŚCI JAK NA WOJNIE… WSZYSTKIE RUCHY DOZWOLONE 😏

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second book to the It Happened in Charleston series did not disappoint.

- Dual POV
- Second Chance Romance
- Childhood friends
- Enemies to Lovers

Yes, yes, yes, and yes.

I enjoyed this book. It's an easy 4 stars for me.

[debs ༉‧₊˚. · Rating 3 out of 5]

°❀⋆.ೃ 2.75/5 stars! ࿔*:･
⤿ “i feel my heart physically crack a little. it’s both painful and healing at the same time.”

[Sofi (sofi.bookshelf) 🩷✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Se merece cada una de las estrellas. Este libro me dio todo lo que necesitaba para ser feliz.

Esta historia contiene muchos clichés que me encantan; enemies to lovers, boy falls first y que se conocen desde el colegio. Todos llevados de forma maravillosa, me creí cada cosa que pasaba en las páginas a medida que leía.

Los personajes me fascinaron. Cada uno de los que aparecieron aquí me hicieron adorarlos. No había caído en cuenta que June era la hermanita de Jake (por el cual babeé en el primer libro de esta bilogía) y cuando aparecieron quedé en shock por un momento. Volviendo a nuestra protagonista… la adoré, me encantó que no tuviese problema en dejar claro que sólo quería una cita y que defendiera sus ideales, todo de ella me gustó bastante. Ryan me hizo suspirar embobada varias veces, también por su personalidad maravillosa. No tuvo problemas en esperar a que nuestra chica estuviese lista para ciertas cosas.

Este libro me hizo sentir muchas cosas, hace un tiempo no leía algo que me llevara al punto de emocionarme con cosquillas por ciertas situaciones o palabras. Es tan lindo cuando pasa eso, habla de lo bien que una autora te hace ser parte de una historia.

¿Lo recomiendo? Sin duda alguna. Fue el ultimo libro en mi librero que me quedaba de esta autora y estoy aguantando para no comprarme enseguida el que me falta.

[Andrea | andrea.c.lowry.reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had such a fun time listening to this absolutely adorable story.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆?

It has all those sweet, heartwarming and humorous moments that I that make a romcom so enjoyable.

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲:

Dual POV
Enemies to Lovers
Found Family
Supportive Family
Strong Women
Good Communication

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲?

I was hooked and loved this slow burn buildup full of witty banter. I found myself cheering not only for the romance itself but for the characters as individuals as they got a second chance with each other.

Steam level: PG

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼 𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻?

Connie Shabshab and Will Damron absolutely blew it out of the park with their narration and the added life they brought to the story.

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲?

This was a fast-paced story that I listened to in no time and was the perfect light hearted book. Between the character growth, atmosphere, hilarious cast of characters, and all the romantic suspense I just couldn’t leave the world Adams had created in this fun and sweet story.

𝗗𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸?

Yes! This was just a fun and delicious romcom that I totally binged, and I there are more books in this series and more from this fun cast of characters!

Thank you Dell for this gifted copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

[RateTheRomance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enemies to Lovers + Bakery/Chef Romance + Second Chance At Love = HEAVEN.

I will never understand what sorcery Sarah Adams uses to make Closed Door romances feel hotter than hell. How? HOW?! But she does and I love her books.

THE ENEMEY has the perfect bland of Enemies to Lovers snark and sweetly swoony moments.

June is the perfect Heroine! She is ALL OF US. The very first chapter of this book is pure perfection! SO funny and awkward and the perfect set up for this book. And Ryan will make you curse every day of your life that you have to spend without a sexy chef in your kitchen. June and Ryan's pranks on each other were hilarious! Their shared past really added to this book and made their happily-ever-after that much more satisfying.

Sarah Adams is my favorite Closed-Door Romance author because she gets it right every time! Always laugh-out-loud funny, always plenty of sizzle (even without the sex) and always a sweet HEA that will leave you with a smile on your face.

[Yar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Легка, мила і весела історія. Початок трішки затягнутий, але далі все легше і веселіше. Книга для вечора, щоб посміятись і помилуватись на героїв та сімʼю Джун🥰

Але моє серденько розповідь до кінця не зачепила🙂