This one was difficult to love as the character were,,, not so likeable. Maybe an editor could have fixed but there aren't any these days. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher

I love old Hollywood so I really wanted to read this one because of that. Unfortunately I did not like the writing and both of the main characters were so unlikeable. It was hard for me to enjoy this book because of those factors.

Witty and charming, really feels like a 1930s-style romantic comedy. Great for those who enjoy classic romance and want something nostalgic.

All I can say about this delightful novel is that I wish Henry Fonda and Barbra Stanwyck were alive to be in the film version. This is an immersive, fresh and catchy read destined to whet everyone's appetite for films of yesteryear. It's so perfect how Lenker captures the language and banter and I would have loved to have spent more time with Dash and Joan--they seemed so REAL to me

Very cute romance. I loved the historic Hollywood background and all of the issues they had to face. Really funny in parts and the chemistry between them was great. I did felt it dragged in a few places but otherwise a really interesting read.

This was like reading an amazing rom-com from the 1930s or 1940s with added modern day spice. It was so much fun to read and I couldn’t put it down I really enjoyed the behind the scenes of old Hollywood that’s this book had.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was everything. As a film major and huge nerd for 30s film, it was giving. I was obsessed with the setting, the language, the chemistry, the plot. It was perfect!

I really enjoyed this book up until the third act and then I had no idea what to do with all the things I liked.

The pacing is good, the setting is unique and overall it was fun and interesting. That third act break-up really hurt though.

It Happened One Fight was a fun take on a rom com set in an era that I don't feel like we've seen much of in the rom com genre. Overall I would give it a 3.5, with the pace of the book being the downfall.

Joan Davis and Dash Howard are movie stars akin to Joan Crawford and Clark Gable if you need a visual like me. They've starred in multiple films together to much success and were close until one fateful night when Joan is sold out by Dash to the press...or so she thinks. This launches the grudge of all grudges. When they are forced to work together for another file, Joan is all but shooting daggers at Dash making the movie a challenge. This is both enemies to lovers and a second chance romance and the romance was really believable. This was a fantastic look into old school Hollywood, misogyny and all. Where the book fell a little flat for me was in the middle when the plot kind of dragged and I knew what needed to happen to move it along. The first third and back third were perfectly paced and I think the middle could have used a good edit. I hope the author continues on in this universe as there are a few characters set up for a book. I can't wait to see waht Lenker does next!

I was very intrigued by a historical romance in the 1930’s but this story did not resonate with me. I didn’t find the characters to be likeable and therefore I did not finish the book. I may decide to give it another try at a later date.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc.

I loved this one so much! Taking the classic rom com genre and placing it firmly in the Golden Age of Hollywood with all of its glamour is absolutely genius, and I adored the two main characters the author created.

Obviously inspired by the classic films and film stars of the era, this is a truly fun "will they won't they" story that had me invested from beginning to end. And the settings of a film set and a ranch were perfect. Huge fan of thid author, and I'll be looking our for what comes next from her!

If you’re a fan of old Hollywood movies, especially It Happened One Night, then you’ll love this reimagining of the story.

when i read what this book was about I knew I needed to jump on this. it got everything I wanted in a book and boy did this book not disappoint. i love celebrity romance and this was a well done one

It Happened One Fight isn't a novel for everyone, but I for one loved it. I absolutely love the setting - behind the scenes during the Golden Age of Hollywood romance. Where two of Hollywood's biggest stars are often paired together by the studio, but can't stand each other in real life.

This novel might be on a thin border between romance and historical fiction.

It's a plot based on miscommunication and misconceptions. Where the two protagonists, Joan Davis, and Dash Howard, each have something to hide. They build walls around themselves to protect their tender feelings, but they also want someone to see below the surface. To help them with their vulnerabilities.

And I will say that Joan might come off as an unlikeable character to many - she knows what she wants and is determined to go after it. This might mean she's perceived as cold, and difficult to work with, and maybe even memories, but it's more that she's not going to let the patriarchy and misogynistic views keep her down.

Contemporary me wishes the primary villain wasn't so villainous - her character was full of jealousy, and hatred. A little too much of a bully. However, the character does fit into the archetype.

Note that once I learned that Patty Murin was the audiobook narrator, I stopped reading the physical book with my eyes and switched to reading the audio with my ears. Murin brought depth and emotion to the characters in her narration that I was missing a little when I was reading the words. So highly recommend the audiobook (available on Hoopla) if that's your thing.

Content Notes: alcohol, divorce, perceived cheating, blackmail, on the job harassment

Not quite sure what to make of this. I didn't not like it but it also didn't wow me. The set up and timing is unique for a historical romance, and the old Hollywood charm shines through.

I been following the author's insights in EW and online for a while and deeply appreciate her, so would certainly give her second book a try too.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC.

I really liked this one! I thought the chemistry between the two characters was really great and I thought this was a fun and probably very accurate look into the lives of movie stars of the time. The third act breakup was the thing that made me drop my star-rating, as I thought it was really lazily done -- they are actors, they should be able to act if they are being blackmailed to break up. Especially when it took so long for the couple to get together anyway, them breaking up that way felt rushed. The conflict could have been resolved differently (I am keeping it vague in case of spoilers).

I really enjoyed this one! I requested it for the title alone but I really enjoyed the old school TCM Hollywood vibes. Definitely a cute read & delivers exactly what the blurb says it will. I’m excited to see what else the author writes next :)

Maureen Lee Lenker didn’t disappoint. Reading this novel was just like watching a movie on screen. I was thoroughly mesmerised. It was perfect. Simply just perfect..

Given that I am a fan of author Maureen Lenker’s writing chops as an Entertainment Weekly scribe and knowing a "kernel of the idea—two costars who are accidentally married on set" came from an interview she did with Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder where Ryder posited the idea she thought that she and Keanu were married for real on the Dracula set, I was all anticipation for her debut novel. I’d only ever read one story set in the Silver Screen Hollywood era, Beau North’s story “Love in Limelight” in the multi-author anthology “Elizabeth: Obstinate Headstrong Girl,” and loved it. I didn’t know what to expect in “It Happened One Fight,” but knowing Lenker’s short story “The Food of Love” in another Austenesque anthology titled “Then Comes Winter,” I was all anticipation for her debut. Though I am not a fan of Old Hollywood films, I was confident I was in good hands with Lenker’s expertise in the Golden Age of Hollywood.

What struck me right away was how voicey Lenker’s characters were. They literally stepped off the page. "This was why she would never allow herself to fall in love. Because you ended up staring up at the night sky with your teeth kicked in like a chump." –Chapter 9

I liked the Old Hollywood vibe and the play on the fake relationship and enemies-to-lovers tropes. Lots of madcap laughs and big-hearted reactions. Lenker slowly built her characters and their complicated relationships and backstories, and about thirty-three percent in, the story took off.

“'I could murder Harry. Why would he think this was okay?'
Dash chuckled and resumed his place in the easy chair. "I imagine he thinks it’s funny.”
'Well, he’s got a sick sense of humor,' Joan growled. 'Why would they even let us stay here together? People are usually particular about men and women lodging together.'
He shrugged in that infuriatingly attractive devil-may-care fashion and replied from under his hat. 'Well, technically, we are married. So, I guess it doesn’t bother them.'”—Chapter 11

The prose felt like an old film, regarding pacing too. The melodrama between Dash and Joan harkened back to Silver Screen films that this novel emulates. Underlying tension drove the momentum, and though I expected the inevitable romance of Dash and Joan, I wasn’t quite sure if that was, in fact, Lenker’s plan. [read: bites nails to the quick]

"He turned her around on the dance floor, so no one could see his mouth and muttered into her ear, 'When you start taking responsibility for your actions. You’re not blameless in this. You kissed me. You provoked me at the table. Your little victim act is all wet, Joan. We both know it.'
'I am not playing victim. And I didn’t provoke you. I was merely responding to your jabs at my relationship with Monty. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were jealous.' She expected Dash to rail against her, to become immediately defensive at their suggestion. But he didn’t. Instead, he went quiet, the grip of his hand on her back loosening and his fingers intertwined with hers going limp. It was as if the fight went out of him." –Chapter 13.

As a fan of Jane Austen fan fiction, I can easily liken this to Old Hollywood film “fan fiction,” if there is such a thing, as even the author lists films that may have inspired her at the back of the book. “It Happened One Fight” is a charming debut novel, and I look forward to Maureen Lenker’s next effort. Maybe there is a sequel in the making?

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review! I adore Old Hollywood as a setting and was excited for this enemies to lovers rom com. The story was cute and entertaining— my only gripe is that it contained unnecessary frustrating miscommunication between characters which I never enjoy in rom comas. Still, i’m excited to read whatever the author puts out next!