This was a nice, quick read on a Thursday night. I had planned to just start it after finishing another book, but within an hour or so, I'd finished the whole thing. Goodreads says only 60 pages, so it definitely moves quickly. We start in media res with very little background. Though I would have appreciated a little more depth and description, we learn enough about the character's backstories to get us through the plot. Besides, their story now is more important than everything that got them here.

I am not sure I'd have liked it if it were longer, but the quick action and love story kept me interested enough to finish in one sitting.

This review will be posted on Goodreads and my blog, Foxes and Fairy Tales on 24 March 2018
https://foxesfairytale.wordpress.com/2018/03/24/review-fight-for-you

First thing: I really like this cover. The colours, the layout, the text -- I really like this one. I think this is the updated version to go with the re-release and I have to say, Less Than Three Press really made a massive improvement on the previous cover.

Fight for You is a short novella, which I really wish had been written as a longer novel.

The story is set in a sort of Roman gladiatrix AU, perhaps with a bit of dystopian angle worked in. It’s harsh and cruel, where people can be taken as collateral for their families debt and forced to work in a not-quite-slavery slum. The world Bain-Vrba has created it really interesting – the Capital versus the Zone, how life works in the Zone, the cliques of the dancers, prostitutes and fighters etc. – and I really wish we had seen more of it. Especially, I’d have liked to see more of the dynamic between the haves and the have-nots, and perhaps some hints at how things are running in the rest of the Zone or to see a little of the Capital. There’s a lot of small moments – executions, assaults etc – which are peppered in without really impacting the overall plot. Likewise, I felt Cherry’s gladiator training happened incredibly quickly – she’s proficient in just a few pages -- and the individual arena combat scenes were over in just a few lines each time – not really long enough to feel any danger or that the outcome is never really in doubt.

This is a quick read, and I’ll be interested to see what the author writes next, but Fight for You just didn’t feel developed enough for me. I'd love to see it reworked or perhaps given a sequel where Berlin and Cherry make a life for themselves outside the arena.

This story is a romance between two female gladiators in a sort of alternate reality. Cherry was a dancer but has asked Berlin to teach her how to fight - as a gladiator, she has a better chance of buying her way out. As the two women spend time together, they grow closer, are definitely attracted to each other, The world the author has built is interesting, with people being held as markers for debt: not quite slavery, but they are definitely not free. I love good world-building, and while this was fairly lightly done, it was believable.

The main reason this didn't hit all the marks for me was I simply didn't connect with the two main characters. Berlin is hard, and I never really felt like we saw behind that. there was no moment where we got to see who she is beyond the fighter. We get to read about her background, but it's just data, there's no real connection there. Cherry is determined and driven, but I never really felt connected with her either. I want to feel emotional for the characters I read about, and this just didn't do it for me.

Something else that bothered me was the sexual relationship between Cherry and Berlin, specifically how it's described in the beginning of the story. As Berlin is supposed to be training Cherry (which is basically "I'm going to attack you, fight me off" without any sort of direction), there is groping and kissing, and it kinda comes out of nowhere. It's treated as more a power play than consensual sex, which is worrisome. It's not okay to train with someone and just kiss them or slap their ass without prior consent. Who knows, maybe it exists off the page...

It's a good story underneath, but its length is definitely to its detriment. I would have loved seeing this as a full-length novel instead of a novella.

An honest review thanks to NetGalley. This was an interesting novella, the concept and the storyline kept me intrigued as I learned more about their world. It was a nice quick read, but I do not think I will be re-reading it again.

Cherry is a dancer forced to perform for meager money as she was sold to cover her father's debts. In order to buy her freedom faster, Cherry enlists the help of Berlin; one of the best gladiators in the arena, to train her to be a fighter as well. As Cherry endures the brutal training and equally brutal fights, she learns she may not want to taste freedom all alone.

This book feels so clipped, it's more of a fleshed out outline than a full story I could sink my teeth into and really enjoy. The time goes by so fast, I never really got a sense of who the characters really were and why they should even be together. If this were a fully fleshed out novel, it would be amazing. But as it stands, it is sadly lacking. 2.7 out of 5.

An interesting f/f romance story that takes place in a dystopian society.
A quick read but many emotional connections make the reader care about the characters.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36655304-fight-for-you" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="Fight for You" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1511559712m/36655304.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36655304-fight-for-you">Fight for You</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5357735.Kayla_Bain_Vrba">Kayla Bain-Vrba</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2248106921">2 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
I rec'd a copy from NetGally/Less Than Three Press for an honest review.<br />A gladiator storyline (with leads Cherry and Berlin) that usually excites me. I loved the premise and as a result am conflicted regarding my rating - in my humble opinion, Ms. Bain Vrba should've written this as a full novel as the storyline seemed rushed with too many things happening in a short period of time. Unfortunately, I can only give this book 2 stars.
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