Title: One For My Enemy
Author: Olivie Blake
Genre: Fantasy, fantasy romance, contemporary fantasy
Publisher: Tor Books
Publication Date: 2019
Format: Hardcover
Length: 417 pages

Read if you like: Romeo and Juliet retelling, enemies to lovers, contemporary fantasy setting, unique magic system, tragic romances 

Rating: 

Even knowing that this was a Romeo and Juliet retelling, I have to say that I was not emotionally prepared for the devastation that Olivie Blake would wreak on my soul with this book. Blake has a specific talent for crafting dark and complicated characters and exploring them in-depth, and One For My Enemy exemplified her ability to get you invested so thoroughly that you can’t avoid getting your heart broken. 

For a familiar premise, I still felt like this story was wildly unique, and I loved the incorporation of magic and magical creatures and how it amplified the plot. Blake’s particular attention to each character and the emotions they were moving through was powerful to me, and I found myself scribbling down quotes constantly because it was so utterly romantic and tragic at the same time. 

This book broke my heart wide open and I loved every second of it. I wish I could read it again for the first time, just to experience the joy of seeing the characters unfold, fall in love, and break apart all over again. 

Fair warning: there may be some mild spoilers below, so proceed with caution.

The Book: One For My Enemy by Olivie Blake

One For My Enemy follows two rival witch families in Manhattan. The Antonovas, led by a powerful witch nicknamed Baba Yaga and her seven daughters, and the Federovs, led by a witch nicknamed Koschei the Deathless and his three sons. 

The Antonovas are known for their business prowess, selling both conventional beauty items in a chic downtown store as well as magical stimulants similar to common nonmagical street drugs, but amplified and significantly more powerful. The Federovs, on the other hand, deal in favours and magical item procurements, and have fallen on harder times. 

The Antonovas and Federovs have been intertwined for decades. At one point, Koschei had proposed the combination of their families through marriage, but when Baba Yaga rejected his proposal, he instead chose to wage war. The families have conflicted ever since. 

Each family has an heir: Marya for the Antonovas, and Dimitri for the Federovs. When Marya and Dimitri were young, they fell in love but were forced apart after Kochei’s denied proposal. In the 12 years since they have avoided facing each other directly, but as the schemes of their families begin to unfold, Marya finds herself in direct conflict with Dimitri, who barely walks away from the encounter. The damage she does sets off a wave of violence between the two families. 

From here, witches in both families will grapple with what it means to be alive, to be in love, and to be a member of their respective families. They’ll seek vengeance, and find restitution, and everyone will learn what it means to have their hearts irreversibly broken. Before all is said and done, each member of the Antonovas and the Federovs will be forever changed. 

The Review

One For My Enemy had all the signature aspects of Blake’s writing that I’ve come to love. It had complicated, nuanced characters that were thoroughly explored through their own introspection and squarely in the morally grey (if not outright immoral) category. The narrative had jarringly beautiful writing that evoked the exact feeling that Blake wanted you to feel at any given moment, and it also had a plot that was exceedingly unique while also being familiar. I feel like Blake has mastered the concept of contemporary fantasy, and I love the way that her books leverage these enthralling magical elements and aspects that you expect from a fantasy while being so genuinely human and real that it’s relatable in a realistic way. Every aspect of this book came together perfectly and had me completely hooked, unable to put it down until I’d finished it. 

The love stories that appeared in One For My Enemy are among the most powerful that I’ve ever read from Blake. The depiction of the romance between Marya and Dimitri, and in particular, the emotion behind their estrangement and the damage it did to both of them felt so poignant it had my heart aching for them. Blake writes about heartache and unrequited love in a way that feels so accurate and visceral that it didn’t matter that she was talking about a witch mafia, it just felt real. Sasha and Lyv were also a nice contrast to Marya and Dimitri, too young to have yet experienced the same degree of heartache, while also full of optimism that they might overcome the fate that their siblings had endured. Their love was just as devastating at times, though it was gratifying to see them grow beyond the issues that Marya and Dimitri never managed to overcome. 

I loved everything about this book. I read it on a plane and in airports and I was so immersed that I didn’t even notice that I was silently crying through scenes until I came up for air. I think it’s ambitious to attempt to recreate a Shakespearean concept, particularly one as well-known and well-replicated as Romeo and Juliet, but Blake managed to make it feel unique and original. 

This is a story that will stick with me for a long time and some of the quotes are among some of my favourites. I’ll certainly be recommending this to anyone who will listen.