Title: Do Your Worst
Author: Rosie Danan
Publisher: Berkeley
Publication date: November 14, 2023
Length: 352 pages
Genre: Contemporary romance
Source: Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley
Rating:

Cursebreaking, archaeology, and enemies-to-lovers romance, all set in a crumbling old Scottish castle! How’s that for a catchy set-up?

Really, they had me at Scottish castle. As a local explains:

“This land has always been different. Special.” […] “Why do you think thousands of people pass through Inverness ever year, coming for a glimpse of an ancient monster or to touch a series of sacred prehistoric stones? It’s not just down to Jamie Fraser.”

(Well, to be fair, a lot of it is probably down to Jamie Fraser… but I digress.)

In Do Your Worst, Riley has finally decided to try to turn her family’s cursebreaking gift into an actual business, and her first big paying client is the new owner of an old castle in Scotland. Locals are certain that the castle is cursed — no owners have ever lasted, and the land itself seems to work against whoever tries to live there or fix up the place. Unfortunately for Riley, her employers have also hired an archaeologist to explore the site and verify whether there are historical artifacts to be documented and preserved. After an initial meet-cute at the local pub, Riley and Clark discover their mutual employment the next morning, and immediately butt heads.

Clark’s career went down in flames six months earlier when his project collaborator falsified findings, leading to professional disgrace. This castle project could be Clark’s one shot at redemption, but he can’t afford to have his work tarnished by association with some woo-woo occult fraud. Naturally, Riley takes offense at his attitude, and the two instantly assume combative positions, each determined to drive the other off the project.

There’s one teensy little complication — they’re also wildly attracted to one another. How are they supposed to work side by side, attempting to undercut and outshine the other person, when they also find them irresistibly hot?

Naturally, sparks fly, and hands are NOT kept to themselves. If you’ve read Rosie Danan’s previous books, you’ll know that she writes very explicit sex scenes, and that’s true in Do Your Worst as well. I mean, they’re well written and fit well within the character and relationship development… but if you prefer your bookish intimate moments implied rather than graphically shown, this may not be the right choice for you.

The cursebreaking storyline is cute, not especially deep or hard to decipher, and mainly a device for Riley and Clark to get close (and remove their clothes). The mood is not particularly serious, even when both characters are given emotionally weighty family histories to unpack and come to terms with. It seems like the author is trying to give the story and characters a little more depth, but the heavier elements aren’t all that convincing.

Overall, Do Your Worst is a light read, with plenty of banter and sex. The love story goes from attraction to soulmate level much too quickly to be believable, but hey, this is the kind of book where it helps to just sit back and go along for the ride. Even if I didn’t always buy the plot or the characters’ actions and feelings, I was always entertained.