I received an advanced copy from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Spoiler-free review.
Was this really the “foe-mance of a lifetime,” as described on Macmillan’s website? No. But this Bridgerton-esque sapphic romance is still worth your time. Just don’t expect the enemies-to-lovers showdown that its sales team is so keen on pushing.
Georgiana is a gothic novelist operating under a pen name, and her stories have been copied by another anonymous writer for too long. Finally willing to roll up her sleeves and confront the author, Georgiana realizes it’s none other than Cat, the daughter of her father’s former servant—and her childhood crush. The pair then find themselves running into each other in random spaces until they eventually end up residing at the same supposedly haunted manor. Realizing this can’t all be just a coincidence, the women end up diving headfirst into a mystery surrounding their pasts, their families, and even the manor itself.
This was not an enemies to lovers. I wouldn’t even say they were “ladies in hating.” Georgiana and Cat are a lust-at-first-sight pair whose rivalry ends less than 20% into the story, and any tension in their relationship thereafter is caused by their own insecurities. This isn’t the fault of the author, who wrote a genuinely entertaining love story, but of the sales team trying to capitalize on popular romance keywords.
I call this story Bridgerton-esque for its setting, romance, and sexual content (though of course, Bridgerton was not the first to popularize these themes). Set on the outskirts of ton society with references to debutants, balls, Lords, and Ladies, the story focuses more on those who feel both rejected by high society and who never had much care for it in the first place. As gothic novelists—and lesbians—Georgiana and Cat have to make their own way in the world. So if you watched Bridgerton specifically for the ball scenes, maybe skip this one. But if you liked the atmosphere, the language, the romance, and the sex, you might be a fan of Ladies in Hating.
Georgiana and Cat are likeable protagonists with opposing personalities; Georgiana is cold, reserved, and shy, while Cat is blunt, flirtatious, and opinionated. The surrounding cast (my favorite being Georgiana’s dog, Bacon) are pleasant personalities that help set the book’s atmosphere as a historical romance. The villains and the mystery surrounding them held my attention throughout the book.
The book isn’t shy about its sexual content, with the word “steamy” in its synopsis. There were three or four explicit scenes, each lasting a little longer than I thought needed, but that I thought did a good job at characterizing both Cat and Georgiana within the relationship. With female sexuality being a conversation we still struggle to have today, I thought the exploration of kink between two consenting women was refreshing—though sometimes I wanted them to get away from their skirts and back to the mystery.
All in all, Ladies in Hating is a fun, sexy mystery that kept my attention. I recommend it to fans of Bridgerton, sapphic romance, or anyone who want something more Gothic Lite.
STAR RATING: ☆☆☆☆
