Love at First Spite has great potential—the whole idea of the Spite House is fantastic—but the story feels generic. Dani and Wyatt are okay characters, but they aren’t remarkable, and the lack of a POV from Wyatt makes it hard to truly understand his character. As with any romcom, there are a lot of predictable plot points, and unfortunately, aside from the fate of the Spite House, none of them provide any twists. Overall, Love at First Spite is a quick, fun read, but it won’t be making my favorites list.

3.75 stars

The premise of this was really promising, and while I definitely enjoyed it, there were also a few bits that irked me.

I get that the book is literally called <i>Love at First Spite</i>, but there were some times when the main character Dani seemed just a little too spiteful, to the point where it was annoying. She had every reason to be angry at her ex, and while building the spite house to get back at him was clever, some of the tactics were just a little over the top.

I also felt like the relationship between Dani, and the love interest Wyatt had a lot of ups and downs. There was definitely some chemistry there, but Wyatt seemed a little wishy-washy, hot and cold throughout the whole book, and it was sometimes hard to get a read on him. Definitely also some miscommunication/keeping of secrets on both of their parts which is just personally my most loathed trope. Others may love that aspect and feel like it adds good tension to the story, it just isn't for me.

Overall, I did still enjoy reading this book and would recommend it. The architectural descriptions made me yearn for my own semi-tiny house with an amazing view, and I LOVED Mia and landlady Iris. I flew through the first half and was fully ready to give this five stars, but a few aspects of the back half of the novel made me feel differently.

*Thank you to Netgalley and Graydon House for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

Love at First Spite is the perfect book for fans of the enemies to lovers trope! I really loved how the two main characters developed their relationship over the course of the book, but I actually think my favorite part might have been the whole idea of the Spite House and watching it come to fruition. I'd never heard of anything like that before and it was a fun concept to read about! I also really loved the side characters in this one, they were super funny and very entertaining to read. Overall, this was a really fun book!

I solid three star read.

I loved Wyatt, and the side characters (Mia and Iris) the best, the main heroine Dani was good and I understood her motivation at the start but half way through the book I was just upset with her. I enjoyed Wyatt's and Dani's relationship/ slow burn but wished so many times that Dani would just come clean and felt it was just too late in the story. I did not like her ex Sam at all, which you shouldn't but with the whole spin at the 3/4 of the way and how it was dealt with.. it fell flat for me.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I have mixed feelings about the book. The first half of it was amazing, the character dynamics were great and I enjoyed the story. But I had a hard time with the romance in the end, the two characters didn't seem like they had all that much chemistry with each other. That said I do see myself finding time to read it again at some point.

A book that's basically about how a rich white guy gets away with arson. But that's an oversimplification so lets backtrack a bit.

Danielle, having recently walked out on her fiancé weeks before their wedding because he cheated on her with the realtor who sold them their house, is a woman on a mission. Having sworn off men, relationships, and love, she's hell bent on getting revenge on Sam, her cheating fiancé.

Wyatt is the hotshot architect who works at the same firm where Danielle is an interior designer. Taciturn, aloof, and kind of difficult, he's also the only one Danielle can get to design her a house on the property adjacent to her fiancé's. She wants to build a spite house, to block Sam's view and generally be a nuisance to him.

The first half of the book is fairly solid - I like a good revenge plot, I'm petty and I'm not ashamed of it. Watching Danielle and her cousin/best friend Mia and her landlady Iris join forces to help Danielle reach her goal, is kind of sweet and also empowering.

The trouble begins in the second half of the book. At some point, when Danielle and Wyatt give into their mutual attraction, I keep expecting Dani to come clean to Wyatt about her real intention about building that house. But she never does. And I kind of hate that she keeps this big thing a secret and yet, keeps getting mad at him for pulling away from her and sending her mixed signals when she's been less than forthcoming with him. Secondly, there's a major thing she forgets to do, that when the big bad thing happens, could potentially derail not just her plans but Iris and Mia's as well. I love a competent heroine and I really wish the author had found a way to achieve her plot goals without having Danielle come off looking like an incompetent, unprofessional flake. Third, when the big bad happens, it's a bit OTT. And that's where the arson thing comes into play. Sam literally burns down the house Dani is having built. Intentionally. Like. WTF. And then Dani and Mia and Iris break into his house, find proof of his criminal doings and blackmail him into buying the plot of land at over market value so they can recoup their losses because that's the thing Dani forgot - she forgot to get insured on the property. And so, she feels bad about turning him into the police because of their shared history and offers him an out - he buys the property from them and they won't go to the police.

Anyway, they get their $$$ back, Wyatt and Danielle end up together and honestly, this is one of those books where I really liked the hero a LOT and also spent much of the second half of the book questioning what he saw in the heroine. It did not make sense to me at all. I don't understand how they fell for each other, or why he was even attracted to her in the first place. I feel like he was far better developed as a character than she was despite the fact that the book was entirely in her POV.

I will say I liked the stuff about Wyatt having vertigo due to his Ménière's disease - I have no direct experience with this but I thought it was done fairly well and I liked the scene were Dani took care of him.

But really, the capper on the book was the arson and Sam just having to buy the property and not facing a single criminal charge. The premise had potential, the execution just wasn't there.

CW: cheating ex fiancé (off page), breaking and entering, arson, some fat phobic commentary about Mia;

When you pick up a book called LOVE AT FIRST SPITE, you expect a decent amount of Enemies-to-Lovers hate banter, zings, and sexual tension. This book was a decent read, with a great premise, but delivered a watered-down version if what I was expecting.

Wyatt is professional at work and a bit standoffish, but not a full grump or even unlikable at the start.

Dani is kooky and fun, but she never really verbally spars with Wyatt. She just gets to know him better. That's great in real life, but doesn't create a very zingy Enemies-to-Lovers romance. Dani also does some very childish things that seemed a bit out of character for how the author portrayed her.

LOVE AT FIRST SPITE has some fabulous female friendships! I loved that part of this story. And once the leads got together there was great chemistry and seriously steamy scenes.

LOVE AT FIRST SPITE turned out to be a pretty good book that COULD have been a great book if everything was punched up a bit. It needed more enemy banter, more character development, and more smart dialog.

This is the author's debut book and I would definitely read her next book to see if she finds her stride and gives a bit more next time.

Love at First Spite was quick, quirky and cute romance read that really questioned just how far is too far when it comes to revenge?

Dani has watched her mother be steamrolled by her farther her entire life, so when her fiancé starts to do the same thing and also cheats she’s long gone. The lot next door to the new house that he owns but she never wanted is open and with the help of her cousin and new landlady the ultimate revenge is enacted; The Spite House.

This book was so much fun to read. We get a bit of that office romance that I love and the side of revenge Dani was also dishing made for an interesting story. Wyatt being the big bad architect that people feared was hilarious compared to the big cinnamon roll he actually was. They definitely had chemistry from the start and the spice was on point. There was a bit of the miscommunication, but considering they start as a fling with a deadline and are navigating hiding and office romance it was believable. Like Dani I was frustrated with Wyatt at times, but in the end he won me over.

My favorite part of the book wasn’t actually the romance though (although it was good and you should pick up this book just for that!) but instead was the camaraderie between Dani, her cousin Mia and her landlady Iris. They were the best supporting characters and Iris truly made every scene she was in and gave the best advice. We love women supporting women and we got a huge helping of that in this book.

I do think the revenge plot was fun but it did get a tad over the top at times. I wanted Dani to focus more on Wyatt and her life more than the house and the silly shenanigans that went with it. I understand why it was drawn out but I truly wanted more Wyatt and Dani spice scenes. It’s something I’m easily able to get over though. This was a unique romance plot and as someone who is currently having a house built it was fun to see the process in the book; It added a little something extra for me. I’ll definitely be recommending this book to my fellow romance lovers.

This was such a sweet and fun romcom perfect for fans of sunshine/grump and enemies to lovers. The author did a great job with the characters, the storyline, the pace, the design/architect/building setting and it had just the right amount of steam. I'm looking forward to reading more by her.

Welcome to project Spite House. It's Dani's project to spreading the misery to her lying cheating ex-fiancé. Build a vacation rental next to her ex-fiancé's house that will mess with his view and his peace of mind and prove that Dani is not someone to be stepped on.

Ooooooh I love this cute enemies to lovers mixed with grumpy sunshine trope rom-com read. From the blurb I knew that this is going to be a fun read. I'm so glad that I was right, I'm flying through this one, I devoured it in a short time. It's an easy-to-read page-turner romance read full of drama and loveable characters and amazing Great Danes. This book put a big smile on my face, it brings happy lovey-dovey sweet and warm feelings, there's plenty frustrating moments too which makes everything more exciting. The drama, the banter, the hot n cold, the friendship, the heartbreaking, the steaminess, I love them all. Definitely a highly recommended rom-com read.

Thank you to NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you also to HarperCollins for inviting me to be on this blog tour.
Love at First Spite follows Dani, who has just been cheated on by her fiancé. The story opens with her destroying her wedding gown in the absolute best way. Dani is an interior designer for a big company, so we get a lot of the details of her work life. But we also get to know her friends. Mia is Dani’s cousin and also her best friend. And there’s Iris who becomes Dani’s landlady/roommate. But most importantly, there’s Wyatt. He’s our love interest. He works with Dani at the same company, but he’s an architect. So, when Dani, Mia, and Iris buy the property right next door to Dani’s ex-fiancé to build a spite house, Wyatt ends up being the architect that helps design said spite house.
I really liked Dani as a main character. I loved her friendship with Iris and Mia. These three women were hilarious. Mia doesn’t hesitate to call Dani on her shit when she needs it. And Iris is delightfully vague and unhelpful when Dani goes to her for advice. The three together were absolutely one of the highlights of this story. Most of all, I enjoyed Dani’s growth and development. She’s learning that she shouldn’t compare things to her past relationships and that maybe building a spite house isn’t the most healthy way to move on from her ex.
The romance was one I was easily engaged in. The chemistry between Dani and Wyatt was obvious right from the start, despite Dani actively disliking Wyatt when the story started. I loved Wyatt more and more as we got to know him better through Dani. The two of them together were a couple that I became invested in right away. I also really liked the way that the third act break up was handled.
Overall, this absolutely was a fun story to read. All of the antics that Iris, Mia, and Dani got up to while planning and building the spite house made me smile and laugh. The romance was enjoyable and easy to root for. I will definitely be recommending this book in the future.

I love a good, playful revenge story and this was particularly amusing. Plus just a smidge of naughty. The concept of building a house out of spite is just brilliant.

For Libraries: Your romance readers are going to find a lot to love here.

Revenge. Secret workplace kisses. Garden Gnomes???

When Dani calls off her wedding, thanks to her fiancé sleeping with their realtor, she seeks revenge by buying the lot in front of her ex’s house to build The Spite House— a rental marketed towards girl’s trips and is, of course, blocking the ex’s gorgeous lake views. To get plans going, Dani reluctantly partners with Wyatt, the grumpiest co-worker ever, but surprise surprise, all that head bumping turns into bumping uglies. Soon revenge doesn’t seem as sweet as moving on completely with hottie McArchitect.

——

Being from the PNW, I loved the Washington state references. West Coast pride aside, Love At First Spite was a sweet read, with just enough humor to make it pop. I loved Dani’s idea for The Spite House; it’s something I can see myself doing (😏). The one thing I wished I had more of from this story was Wyatt! Maybe I’ve spoiled myself over the last year with reading copious amounts of dual POV, but I was dying to get to know Wyatt more on a personal level. At the end of the day, this story is about Dani and her journey of letting go of the past and desire for revenge and opening herself up to love again, so Wyatt’s POV was necessary… I’m just greedy.

Love at First Spite is everything a person could want in a romantic comedy.
Not only is there a winning heroine and swoon-worthy hero, but there are terrific secondary characters who have just enough time in the story to make it interesting. There is also a great setup and even better follow through in the plot.
Plus, an excellently timed “Dirty Dancing” reference.
Who could ask for anything more?
I love how the author takes “normal” romcom tropes (workplace, opposites, enemies to friends to lovers, revenge) and crafts it all into a believable and winning story.
I admit to being a little upset with Dani at first, because I thought she was too negative in her assessments of people, particularly Wyatt. But then I realized that it was reaction to how Sam treated her, as well as how she perceived her mother and father’s relationship – and then it all made sense.
It is easy to see where there are missed connections between Dani and Wyatt, and the author does a fantastic job of skirting that just enough that the reader knows what is going on even as Dani remains clueless.
But where the author truly excels is in Dani’s reactions as she realizes what is really going on with Wyatt. In my opinion, any author that can make a reader experience the same “swoop in the belly” that a character feels when they recognize an attraction building has done an excellent job of character development and writing.
In other words, it is awesome to have those feelings right along with Dani – it makes it all more realistic.
As I mentioned before, the secondary characters have just enough to do to make things interesting. Mia and Iris both add comic relief in their own ways, and a stealth scene with Mia and Dani late in the book had me literally laughing out loud.
Of course, the spite that propels the entire plot is well-placed and serves as a platform for the relationships that build. A twist at the end could seem sensationalistic, but actually fit the rest of the story. And I loved how “the girls” dealt with all of it.
As I mentioned, Love at First Spite is a quintessential Romantic Comedy and should not be missed. It sets the bar high for the genre for the rest of the year.

Honestly, it wasn’t so much enemies to lovers as it was miscommunications to lovers.

That’s not to say it wasn’t good but it wasn’t that hate between the two main characters at all. It was more reluctance to talk to each other due to work gossip. I didn’t love that bit.

Either way it was a really cute day read. Dani’s development did feel a tiny bit forced but that might have been because she was fighting it a lot. Dani had a bit of a mental roadblock when it came to drastic change, which made her very relatable. But she wasn’t super in tune with her feelings to begin with. Her character arc was pretty satisfying to see through.

Wyatt and Dani definitely had a lot of insecurities that they both worked through alone and together. I honestly liked it. It was really cute and really good to read through during the holiday season.

Interior designer Dani is down to do whatever it takes to get back at her ex-fiancée, even if it means collaborating with her least favourite person at work, architect Wyatt.
While spending time together both at work and working on Dani’s Spite House they both learn more about each other, and Dani especially is surprised to see Wyatt’s soft side. But the closer that Dani gets at exacting her revenge, the more at risk her budding romance with Wyatt becomes.

I was so pleasantly surprised by this book! The more rom-coms I read, the more cautious I become. I’m so used to reading books where the MC and the love interest have a petty disagreement that breaks them apart, before ultimately just making up in the last few pages. This is not the case with this one! Adults acting like actual adults in relationships? Heck yes!

This was the perfect combination of a workplace romance and grumpy and sunshine trope, with a dash of ‘forced proximity’. Both the MC, the love interest, AND the side characters were all thoroughly enjoyable and well thought out. Iris was an absolute treasure, as were her two Great Dane companions!

The romance was immaculate! The perfect amount of spice that it wasn’t quite fade to black but just enough to give you a taste. The only tiny complaint I have is that I felt that the relationship was a bit rushed. It wasn’t there, then all the sudden it was. Though knowing that Wyatt was quietly pining makes it better!

A very happy publication day to this!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the eARC in exchange for a review. Opinions are 100% my own!

Sweet and sexy! Who doesn't love a good revenge story? I loved the chemistry between Wyatt and Dani. Add Love at First Spite to your reading list!!

They say living well is the best revenge. But sometimes, spreading the misery seems a whole lot more satisfying. That’s interior designer Dani Porter’s justification for buying the vacant lot next to her ex-fiancé’s house…the house they were supposed to live in together, before he cheated on her with their Realtor. Dani plans to build a vacation rental that will a) mess with his view and his peace of mind and b) prove that Dani is not someone to be stepped on. Welcome to project Spite House.

That plan quickly becomes complicated when Dani is forced to team up with Wyatt Montego, the handsome, haughty architect at her firm, and the only person available to draw up blueprints. Wyatt is terse and stern, the kind of man who eats his sandwich with a knife and fork. But as they spend time together on- and off-site, Dani glimpses something deeper beneath that hard veneer, something surprising, vulnerable, and real. And the closer she gets to her goal, the more she wonders if winning revenge could mean losing something infinitely sweeter…

‘Love at First Spite’ by Anna E. Collins was so good that I finished it in a day! Fun, romantic, a bit heartbreaking, some suspense, a little angst, humor, strong friendships, adorable puppers…this book had a little bit of everything and I really loved it. It was an absolute romp that stole my heart. I loved Dani and Wyatt; their connection, their individual depths, and the way they were both so human (and at times so idiotic I wanted to shake them, lol), all of it. There wasn’t anything I didn’t love about this book. It left me completely happy and satisfied with a tale well told. 100% recommend!

Love at first spite is the perfect blend of workplace romance and grump/sunshine! They also happen to be my favorite tropes so I was delighted to read this and happy that I enjoyed it as well. I loved the characters and the writing. The author hit the right notes with it at all especially the relationship between Dani and Wyatt. I also think it was interesting to see when a scheme can get to be a bit too much. Wyatt was the perfect cold man that I LOVE in books.

This book was the perfect way to kick off the New Year!

Love at First Spite is an office romantic comedy with a revenge plot, stolen glances and a sizzling tension between an arrogant architecture and an interior designer.

Do I want this? To take on a construction project next to Sam’s house? To mess with his peace, with his view, his smooth sailing into the future? Do I want to build a house just to spite him? A spite house? Hell yes!

Dani caught her fiancee cheating on her, and because of it, she decides to buy the lot right next to her ex's house to build a spite house. Seeing as she's an interior designer, she has that part down. Now she needs an architect and the one willing to do it is Wyatt, a co-worker who's always serious and no one really wants to work with.

"He’s kind of like [...] like a handsome ogre who is forced to work with the local villagers but ends up scaring them half to death. He’s Shrek, basically. Good luck with that one."

Dani's plot for revenge was a recipe for disaster and a complete roller-coaster. Did I have fun reading it all? I absolutely did. The woman is definitely dedicated to her spite house. While I enjoyed her vendetta against her ex, I do think she went way above and beyond to follow through with it. I did love how she realized that continuing with the spite house meant more time spent with Wyatt.

The friendship that blossomed between Wyatt and Dani was so sweet and kind. I love when a man isn't afraid to admit that he's wanted you for a while now, and Wyatt did just that. This man also made me blush sometimes and just grin like a mad woman. Their friendship quickly turned into friends with benefits, but let me tell you, they were only fooling themselves, because you could just tell that even that early on, there was a form of love and care for each other.

He lifts his glass. “To your build.” “To a productive collaboration,” I say. “With…benefits?” Wyatt stills, surveying me above the rim of his glass. A Cheshire grin blooms behind it.

The author introduced a disease that isn't talked about often, which is Ménière. As someone with a grandma who gets vertigo episodes, my heart went out to Wyatt. It's the reason for why he doesn't date; he doesn't want to limit or be a disturbance. I just wanted to jump into the book and hug the heck out of him! I believe this is where we got the most vulnerable moments out of him for the first time, and it was beautiful to see how open he was about it with Dani.

He’s a fascinating mix of work and play, and I don’t know where one ends and the other begins. But I like it. It helps me meld the two versions of him together into someone real. Gentle and firm. Safe and dangerous.

I cannot leave some side-characters behind, specifically Mia, Dani's cousin. Mia is such a funny and outspoken character. She's also very supportive of Dani and all her shenanigans, no matter how crazy they sound. There's also Iris, Dani's land-lord, who quickly forms a friendship with Mia and Dani. Both Iris and Mia help Dani embark on her revenge vendetta, and if that doesn't scream friendship goals, I don't know what does.

"To schlongs, the only good guy parts."

I really enjoyed this story a lot! It was funny, romantic, sweet, and vulnerable.