This was a fun little enemies to lovers romance. I loved the side characters too and loved the friend group's antics. Some of the typical miscommunication tropes existed, but I wasn't mad at them! Pretty sure this is being marketed as a "if you loved The Hating Game, you'll love this," and I agree they feel similar in vain, but THG reins.

Love at First Fight by Mary Jayne Baker
Thank you, @netgalley, for the read!

SYNOPSIS:
Bridie and Ben have gone from friends to sworn enemies after Ben stood Bridie up for a dance. They are forced to work together though to help plan Bridie's best friend's wedding to Ben's brother. While they may consider themselves enemies, their friends and family think there's more. The scheming begins to see if they can force them to address their true feelings and proves to be successful, especially as they join forces to take down a common enemy. In the end, #TeamCupid wins with this one.

WHAT I LIKED:
- If I had to choose my favorite plotline in a book, it is definitely enemies-to-lovers, so when I saw this synopsis on #netgalley, I knew I would want to request it.
- I liked the chemistry between all the relationships in the book.
- I enjoyed the challenge that Bridie goes on in the beginning of the book - 20 dates in 20 days. I literally said maybe I should try this LOL.
- I liked the scheming and trickery from all the characters, it was like Parent Trapping almost.
- Loved all the banter and sarcasm, since I consider myself super sarcastic as well.

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE:
- I felt like the book was almost two different parts. The first half of the book was focused on Bridie and Ben's relationship, but then I felt like the second half was a different plot focused on Hattie and Cal.
- In the first 1/3 of the book, I wasn't a huge fan of Bridie. I get it, dating sucks, but I felt like she was so cynical.
- In the first half of the book that focused on Bridie and Ben, I felt like the arguments and conversations were repetitive.
- So many different balls drop during the book. First we have the scheming, then the baby, the ex, Ben apparently blackmailing. I just felt like it was a lot then somehow everyone figured all the scheming out so quickly and then all was well so quickly. It just seemed a little too unrealistic for me as far as how many different conflicts there were and then how quickly they were resolved.

Overall, this wasn't my favorite read, but I would recommend it if you are looking for a quick, easy and light-hearted summer read.

What a fun book!

I’m a sucker for a reformed bad boy, and this is exactly what you’ll get when the town playboy, Ben, realizes his feelings for the girl he let go over a decade ago.

There was laughter, friendship, and several tender moments. Suspense even came into play when the secondary characters ended up in a quandary of their own. I’m not used to friends of the main characters having their own chunk of a story like this, but it really worked here and was quite enjoyable!

If you are looking for a light, fun read that’s hard to put down, this is for you.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me this ARC in exchange for a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Pᴇʀғᴇᴄᴛ ʙᴏᴏᴋ ғᴏʀ sᴜᴍᴍᴇʀ
This is a light quick read that will refresh your mind and give you lots of laugh and love

Sᴜᴍᴍᴀʀʏ
Ben and Bridie have been mortal enemies since forever, And with a 10year old grudge plus hearts that don’t believe in love
Will they ever be able to realize their feelings for one another hidden underneath the hatred?

Eᴠᴀʟᴜᴀᴛɪᴏɴ
Enemies to lovers is my always troupe so I knew I’ll love this one before I read it and can we give a big up for the cover design because hands up 🙌🏼 it’s beautiful 😍 and I love it.

My favorite thing about this book is that there was no dragging fights like all fights were solved between hours or less than 3 days.

My favorite characters were Hattie and Cal of course they stole the whole show and I love them for being so supportive and loving
#thethingswedoforfriends

As much as I loved this one, I hated the ex girlfriend part because I’m tired of the evil ex- girlfriend situation in every room-com

Rᴀᴛɪɴɢs
I’ll rate this one 4🌟 because It gave lots of laugh

Rᴇᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴅᴀᴛɪᴏɴ
This is a rom-com, if you are expecting a plot twist, something new then this isn’t the book for you.
Anyone who enjoys rom-com especially Mary jayne’s last book Meet me at the lighthouse will definitely love this one

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me this eArc copy in exchange of an honest review 🤍

This was a fun, quick read but I did struggle to connect with the book in the beginning. The story is a fun idea but I really wasn’t invested in Bridie as a character.

Love at First Fight is a freshly modern frenemies-to-lovers take on Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing… full of love, miscommunications, hidden identities, and scheming!

Bridie is a late-20s something who is tired of dating and has become cynical to the idea of finding “The One” ever since her high school almost-sweetheart Ben stood her up at their prom. In an effort to clear her sorry state of affairs, she lines up 20 dates in 20 days with the hope of putting off love for good…. Just in time for Ben to return home after a year abroad. Bridie’s wish to avoid Ben at all costs is impossible once Ben’s brother Cal becomes engaged to her best friend and roommate Hattie, and the pair are recruited for maid of honor and best man duties. As they spent more and more time together, it's quickly obvious to everyone but them that their witty insults and general dislike for each other are only a mask for much deeper feelings - if only they would admit it to themselves and each other. Enter: a fortunate disguise, scheming friends, and mischief galore!

While overall this was an enjoyable romantic comedy, I did feel like there was some unevenness to the plot line. I can certainly appreciate the attention to closely following the story of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, but it seemed like even the secondary characters were bent so tightly fit the story rather than loosely following it that they barely felt like characters. I would have loved to see more freedom from the original - I think I would have found more joy in the story if I felt like I was discovering these little callbacks to M.A.A.N. like Easter eggs scattered throughout, than knowing how everything is built around the strict plot. Still, a fun easy summer read, perfect for a pool lounger or beach.

Thanks to NetGalley and Aria & Aries for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to net galley and the publishers for the ARC.

If you’re looking for a super speedy summer read with over the top Shakespearean-esque drama this is a good book for you! It is light and fun and full of antics.

I personally couldn’t become invested in the characters because I felt that their conflicts could so easily be resolved. Ben and Bridie did a 180 and then the plot completely flipped, and I would have liked to just watch a happy secondary romance between Cal and Hattie.

I wouldn’t consider this enemies to lovers, if anything maybe estranged friends? Or even just generally friends to lovers. If you want to dramatic flair, this is your book for it!

Love at First Fight by Mary Jayne Barker a fantastic five-star read. This is funny, and sweet and will make you fall in love with Bridie and Ben as the slowly realise there is such a fine line between love and hate. Bridie, Bridie, Bridie, me think the lady doth protest too much, but in her heart of hearts I can see why she would. It’s a difficult and challenging age for anyone, I would probably be much ruder to Ben!! This is a great story and the way the author weaves the story by the main players giving us their side just plays so well. It did have a couple of minor wobbles, but I was able to see past them into the overall story, and what a story it was. I adore this author and can’t wait to see what they will come up with next.

While Love at First Fight was not what I would consider an enemies to lover theme, it was definitely a cute romantic read. It starts off a bit slow and I had a hard time really attaching to the characters, everything ends up pulling together.

Love at First Fight is such a cute read!! It had me smiling at my book like a weirdo and laughing out loud.
The characters were so much fun, relatable and realistic. It is refreshing to find characters in their late twenty’s in books that have their lives together in some aspects but also don’t have a clue what they’re doing 😂

Whilst the writing was fantastic and I was drawn into the story from the start. Some of the scenes between Ben and Bridie just felt slightly cringey. I did however, still absolutely adore them together.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a cute, fun read with some realistic non-adulting adults 😂

Love at First Fight by Mary Jayne Baker startet out really nice and promising. The banter between the main characters was funny, witty and overall enjoyable. The first 40% of the book we're just right up my alley. Unfortunately it startet to drag from that point onwards. There was no more sassy banter between the protagonists, but a lot of (childish) insecurities and lack of communication, which I thought was frustrating. I also didn't like the friends playing cupid.
Another thing was the storyline between Hattie and Cal. In the beginning it was nice to see how these two act together and see their relationship grow. I really sympathized with them. In the end there was too much fake drama for me and their storyline was ultimately bigger than the main characters.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book and review it.

DNF
I love Much Ado About Nothing. This book is a romcom retelling. But it just didn't deliver. It isn't sharp or cute. I wish it just focused on the two main POVs.

OOH well this is just lovely, isnt it? My love for Much Ado About Nothing came flooding back in an instant as did my love for Bridie and Ben's quick wit as they try and out-do each other.
This was cheeky, flirty, fun and loved this story in its modern day context. Not without its unexpected twist or two, but packed with excitement. The perfect amount of rage was created for these two strong characters but enough to believe that they were still meant to be together. The meddling friends plotting really added to the drama. Loved it..

*ARC provided by NetGalley - comes out 5/08/2021*
I love watching those cliché Hallmark love movies, especially in summer. So why not reading a book like that? The summary of the books seems to promise me a wonderful enemies-to-lovers story, probably my favourite book trope. Bridie, the main character of this book, is a cynic woman who doesn't believe in love. She makes a deal with herself: if she doesn't find The One after 20 dates, she promises herself she can swear off love for life. But it's difficult to ignore all the love around her, with her two best friends getting married. And if that's not bad enough, Ben Kemp, the player of high school, comes home again after many years... They'll have to work together for the wedding, but can they forget what happened in the past?

I have a lot of thoughts about this book. I'll start on the bright side: This book really is a fast read. You don't have to think about difficult worlds or extreme plot twists. No, the story is simple and I think this is totally okay for a romance. Head empty and a belly full of butterflies. I loved the beginning of the book, where Bridie is dating the men for her challenge. It's funny and I think a lot of people can relate to the feelings Bridie has. I also like the way the author worked towards the enemies-to-lovers confrontation, but I expected more of it. I didn't really feel *the sparkle*, but that is very subjective of course. The storyline is very predictable, but I don't mind. Hallmark movies are predictable too and I still enjoy them. Something that bothered me more, was the fact the side story of the book suddenly became the main story. I feel like the book dragged a lot towards the end and it was really unnecessary, because I didn't read the book for this other couple?? I read it for Bridie's story and of course, there can be a side story, but not such a drama as in this book.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, but not as much as I thought I would. If you are a fan of cliché romance movies or books, maybe you'll like this book. I think you should check it out and see for yourself, because I have mixed feelings about this one. And I warn you: there seem to be 2 main love stories instead of the one that's mentioned on the back of the book :)

Love At First Fight has an interesting premise plus it was mentioned as an enemies-to-lovers book, so I was very excited to read this. And that cover? Stunning. But unfortunately, I was completely disappointed by the story. I had to force myself to get through the book. It was slow to start and felt like such a drag. I do have to say, the beginning was nice but then it started dragging on and on. And as much as I wanted to like the main couple (Bridie and Ben), I just didn't enjoy reading them + I disliked how the story suddenly changed midway to be about Ben's brother's wedding to Bridie's best friend and certain other things. It completely took away attention from the main couple.

Review copy courtesy of Net Galley.

Halfway through this book, I thought the plot was so familiar and then had to look up “Much Ado About Nothing” to see that it was very clearly a retelling. But it was a pretty fun romance: Bridie and Ben (both white) dated once in high school, and now her best friend is marrying his brother, so they are forced to interact and their friends scheme to make them fall for each other.

This book was exactly what I needed. A fun, light read with some good laugh out loud moments.
Loved it

I loved my first read by this author and I was ready to dive into this one. I was not as enamored of this book. The beginning is very slow, the dialogue feels forced and doesn't fit the characters.
Once the story get going though I found myself engrossed in the story and unable to put it down. This author creates realistic down to earth characters you can't help but fall in love with.
Despite the slow beginning, this book is a definitely on the recommend list.
I received an arc of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A fabulous fun filled story that was amusing and interesting as we watched the Bridie and Ben clash with each other as they are roped in as chief bridesmaid and best man for their best friend and brothers wedding.
I loved the set ups and crossed wires moments.
Great situation and well written.
Just my cup of tea ☕️

This was a cute and light enough enemies to lovers read. I really enjoyed the banter going on but found the romance a bit underwhelming. It started strong but it lost a little of the charm as I read. Overall this is an okay romance to relax and spend a few hours under the sun with.