This was a quick, easy read that I enjoyed as there were a lot of elements that made this book fun:
- Enemies to lovers
- A wedding
- Misunderstandings
- Multiple perspectives from the two main couples of the novel
- Plotting friends and characters that are oblivious about their feelings
- The characters (Bridie, Ben, Hattie and Cal)

Bridie and Ben were good characters and I enjoyed seeing them winding each other up and then seeing them both change their views on relationships and dating over the course of the book. This book wasn’t necessarily what I was expecting it to be plot wise, and I didn’t go into it expecting Hattie and Cal’s storyline, however I did enjoy most of their story, aside from the ending as I wasn’t a fan of the ‘cheating’ storyline and I guessed what was going to happen as soon as Johanna came back into the picture.

I did enjoy this book, however it probably isn’t one I’d pick up again.

Ideal if you are looking for a quick and fun romance that is lighthearted with laugh out loud funny moments.

Love at First Fight is a fun, light-hearted romance that takes place in England. Bride has always nursed a grudge for her first love who stood her up for their school dance 12 years ago. Ben has never realized how upset Bride was all those years ago. They are still friends, but they bicker and put each other down all the time now, Ben is a player, Bride is a jerk magnet. Neither are very happy with where they are.

But Bride’s best friend, Hattie is getting married to Ben’s brother, Cal and the two of them are going to be thrown together quite a bit as the best man and maid of honor, not to mention that Cal and Hattie are going to be doing a little playing at Cupid.

Mary Jayne Baker has delivered another amusing tale of romance amidst all sorts of bizarre shenanigans. Her characters hit the mark with just the right amount of teasing and love that makes believable friendships. Looking forward to reading more from her.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Love at First Fight by Mary Jayne Baker is a cute rom-com. I enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys the enemy to lover trope.

Love at First Fight is a cute rom-com that is unlike many books "inspired by" a certain work of Shakespeare's, as this one is very clearly Shakespearean in its characters, plot, and tropes. Lifted from Much Ado About Nothing are the following:
--Our lothario returning from abroad, to his small town (and the girl he left behind).
--A masquerade ball with disguises.
--A clever woman whose biting words hurt said lothario.
--Friends plotting to set up the resistant couple by convincing each of them that the other is in love with them.
--TWO couples (this isn't just Romeo & Juliet, ya'll, it's an ensemble)
--The appearance of cheating.
--A wedding.
--A trickster antagonist who nearly derails said wedding.
--Much fuss is made over mostly a string of misunderstandings.
While the Shakespearean ties were what intrigued me about this book, I think most of the things that annoyed me about it were actually pulled from Much Ado (the carefully planned, overheard discussions, mostly). I don't think his comedies work as well in modern adaptations (save Shrew) as his tragedies/romances/histories. A for effort, C for effect.

Love at First Fight by Mary Jayne Baker is about two friends/ enemies with a rocky past that meet up again after some time apart . I love an enemy to lovers read and the characters, Ben and Bridie are very cute together. I liked how much their friends were rooting for them and the devious plans to get them together. It was a great read and I fully recommend it.

Love at First Fight was an enjoyable, lighthearted read. This would be a great book to take with you on holiday. This is an uncomplicated love story that is full of little twists. Giving 4 stars due to a lot of repetitive narrative. But overall, I enjoyed it.

‘Love at first fight’ is a witty and delightful inspired by ‘Much ado about nothing’ set in a beachside Yorkshire town.

Bridie and Ben are the Beatrice and Benedict, trading barbs at each other. Only Bridie’s comes with extra sting after being stood up by Ben ten years previously at their leavers ball. The pair, plotted by their friends, are forced together to organise a ‘sten’ for his brother and her best friend who are marrying.

It’s a tough job to refresh and adapt what is considered part of literary canon, but Mary Jayne Baker does it well to refresh the setting to a modern era while still keeping the spirit of the play.

I laughed so many times. I also loved the extra layers of backstory she gave to Ben especially. I also loved the ensemble nature of the book, we have their scheming friends but also drama with their friends too just like the play. I have pre-ordered my own copy and I’m going to hope Aria have an audiobook commissioned because I will buy the audiobook.

4.5 stars

Bridie Morgan absolutely cannot stand Ben Kemp. He’s an insufferable womanizer, who has been mercifully out of town... until he’s back. Their friends are convinced that they are meant to be, so they hatch a plan to get them together after all these years.

The premise of this novel is right up my alley, and I love the Britishisms throughout, but it lost me in the mid way point. This could have been two entirely different books and it would have made more sense. I kept checking my progress and kept thinking that it should end soon, only to find that I was about halfway done. I thought the end half was a bit messy and not as thought through as the first half. I did enjoy myself, but I think I would have been happier only having Ben and Bridie’s story rather than the other plot points we get later on.

This was a decent read, fans of romantic-comedies will likely enjoy. I was looking for something a bit deeper and this fell short for me personally. It was also odd to switch viewpoints suddenly towards the end of the book.

I actually really loved this book. It may be because I absolutely LOVE Much Ado About Nothing (it's my favorite Shakespeare play) and am slightly biased by that alone. Honestly, I really loved the modern twist to the play. Even with the switching up of gender rolls and modern setting, it still basically stayed true to the play. While I knew what roughly was going to happen in terms of the plot, the thing I loved the most about this was the banter and the dialogue between the characters. I wanted to be there to hear the witty barbs between Bridie and Ben. I loved how sweet Hattie was, if a bit more insecure that I would imagine Hero to be in the original play.

All in all, if you love British wordplay and Much Ado About Nothing, you will love this book.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to give an honest review of this book!

The blurb for this book promised so much more than the book delivered. With a plot twist halfway through the book, switching the story over to two other characters. It felt as though the author either didn't have enough to say about Ben and Bridie's relationship or was just trying to cram two books into one.

*special thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC copy in exchange for an honest review!

So I just finished Love at First Fight. It’s a cute, fun, and a bit cheesy British romance. I must say I’m a sucker for these enemies to lovers arc, but here the title is not quite accurate as I thought it would be.
Although Bridie and Ben can’t stop bickering at the beginning, they’re also known to be friends for pretty much forever. Frenemies would be more like it.
Their whole plot seemed a bit rushed, especially cause the last third of the book focused on their best friend’s relationship. So I wished we had more time to accompany its development and really root for them instead of going through pre-marriage drama.
Overall it’s an enjoyable and quick read.

Fluffy and fun, albeit predictable, this is a decent read. No real challenge, but a nice way to pass the time.

Recommended for fans of the genre.

Love at First Fight by Mary Jayne Baker is a cute, lighthearted romance that was fun to read.

Bridie has sworn off men, but to prove to herself that she’s really done, she decides to date twenty men in twenty days. After the twenty dates, all duds, she has decided to live life as a single woman. But, when her old boyfriend-turned-enemy, Ben, comes back to town for good, Bridie is determined to forget him, as she has never forgiven him for standing her up at their school leavers’ party. However, Bridie is the maid of honor for her best friend’s upcoming wedding, and Ben is the best man, they have to work together to plan the combined hen and stag party.

The book started off fun and light with Bridie’s interesting dates but dragged a bit in the middle and towards the end. The story between the secondary characters of Hattie and Cal almost overwhelmed the main story between Bridie and Ben. There was some excellent banter between Bridie and Ben, and their friends working to get them together was cute.

All in all, the story was cute, and I did enjoy it, but I wish it focused more on the main characters and their lead-up to romance. Also, a small criticism is the main character’s name, Bridie. I kept reading it as Birdie.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I really didn’t like this book, I couldn’t make myself finish it. The main character wasn’t likable to me and the premise has been done before so many times. The banter didn’t feel natural & overall, it just wasn’t for me.

I recived an ARC from the publisher via #NetGalley Thank you! This have zero impact on my review.

♡ REVIEW ♡
LOVE AT FIRST FIGHT truly sounded like something right up my alley. An enemies to lovers romance with forced proximity, and a couple of meddling friends? I couldn’t request this title fast enough! I think this was exactly what was promised and I was just THRILLED for the first 50% of the book.. after that. Not so much. It’s NOT that the book was bad, or not entertaining, but there were so many thing that just kept going on and on and on, that in the end I got bored with it all. I would have probably given it a 4 or 5 star rating if it had actually ended at the 50% mark. It kinda seemed like the author had a lot of ideas and just didn’t know when to stop.

I did think all the relationships that were featured were so lovely and ship-able, and I loved all the characters (which I personally think is the best thing in a book like this). The book is both extremely dialogue and trope heavy, so if that isn’t your thing this might not be for you. I did, however, really like that the book followed multiple people and not just the *main* couple, like a typical romance. That definitely gave it all a much interesting look.
To sum it all up: I thought it was enjoyable, but too long, with too much heavy dialogue and a bit too trope heavy.

My rating: ✨⭐️ 3/5⭐️✨

LOVE AT FIRST FIGHT
Author: Mary Jayne Baker
Publisher: Aria & Aries @ariafiction
Pub date: 5th August 2021

Bridie and Ben have been frenemies for years, but their relationship is suddenly taking a turn. The storyline was predictable and somewhat drawn out... but the banter between Bridie and Ben kept things interesting. There were some parts that were lost in translation for me as the author/characters are British and some of the references relied heavily on British customs and dialect.
While I enjoyed the story and some of the relationships, I did feel like the dialogue and the plot were a bit drawn out and could have been shortened to keep things interesting,
A good beach/summer read. Thank you to NetGalley and Aria & Aries for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Love at first fight' is a perfect romance novel to spend an entertaining time and read when we want something that doesn't make us think too much either.
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Bridie is completely disenchanted with love and that is why she has decided to do a marathon of 20 dates before finally giving up trying to find a partner. And when he has lost hope of finding someone on those dates, he meets Ben, a person from his past who will turn everything upside down.

Something strange has happened to me with this book. At first, I liked it a lot, then I lost interest, but then in the end I got back on track and really enjoyed how the story ended.

I really liked the introduction of the characters. I loved the protagonist, and I really enjoyed her personality. Then when that love interest was introduced, I also found it curious, but as the story progressed, I realized that I couldn't really say that I was being an enemies to lovers. And that disappointed me because there really wasn't a tension of getting along, but rather of making the other person mad, which doesn't seem like the most mature thing to me.

Overall, I think the plot is fine. It is not very complicated nor is it a super elaborate novel. It is quite good, and it is very entertaining. I think it would be a perfect summer reading and one that I would definitely recommend for one of those afternoons where we want to read something fresh without much fuss and just have a good time.

The way of narrating yes that I liked a lot. The author has that fresh tone that surrounds you and encourages you to want to continue reading. Perhaps the most striking thing that I put to the novel is that it really is not a romantic comedy or an enemies to lovers, but I also think that romantic lovers will like this story.

I have never read a book whose potential dropped off so quickly. When reading the description, I was hopeful for a light summer read at its best, and I would have been fine with that. The problem is, the book has zero identity. The novel follows two main relationships: Ben and Bridie's frenemies, and Cal and Hattie's engagement faced with turmoil. It absolutely did not achieve its intended goal of a seamless change in perspectives. Like half of the book is about Ben and Bridie (who are immensely annoying) and then the other half is some shallow problems in Cal and Hattie's relationship...???? Made no sense to me.

Also the dialogue was incredibly cringey. It felt as though every other sentence ended with a question like "didn't I?" "Aren't there? ""Could we?".