This swoon worthy rom-com set in 1930’s Hollywood follows the glamorous Joan Davis and playboy Dash Howard. They may make a perfect pair onscreen, but beyond the camera they couldn’t be more like oil and water! When one of Dash’s infamous on-set pranks goes wrong, he and Joan find themselves taking drastic measures to save their reputations and their careers.

I really enjoyed this book! I loved the whole premise of a romance set in the 1930’s Golden Age of Hollywood! There were certainly plenty of nods to the actors, films, and famous haunts of that era for fans to appreciate! But for those who don’t have a lot of knowledge about Hollywood during that time, like myself, it didn’t detract from the reading experience!

I really connected with both of the MCs in this story! I definitely had a soft spot for Dash and found him charming and endearing! I also really enjoyed getting to know Joan’s character! I had a lot of respect for how hard she fought to get to where she was, and I loved seeing how her character developed over the course of the novel.

There were a few moments where I felt the plot drag, and moments where I found the novel a bit choppy. I liked the clipped and witty dialogue, but I felt this tone didn’t work as well during the non-dialogue descriptive passages. So for those reasons I help back on the 5th star, but overall I really enjoyed reading this book and would definitely recommend it to others!

This book is perfect for fans of the Golden Age of Hollywood and enemies to lovers stories!

I’d like to thank NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for a copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank You to Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca for allowing me to read this book!!

It Happened One Fight by Maureen Lee Lenker captures the essence of Old Hollywood perfectly. What first drew me to this book is the title, which is a play on It Happened One Night. Fantastic movie. Fun fact it was also one of the first movies to sweep all categories at the Oscars. I really enjoyed the references to It Happened One Night amongst other movies.

It Happened One Fight encapsulates the struggles of women in the industry at the time with Joan, Arlene, and Leda. The theme of women having to constantly prove themselves is still very much seen in present day society. By the end of the novel they all reach forms of success even in unconventional ways. Their actions are understandable because they are navigating a male dominant industry.

Both Joan and Dash were lovely characters to read about. Dash reminded me a lot of Clark Gable, which the author mentions drawing inspiration for his character. Joan gave me more of Katherine Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor vibes.

I loved the plot, but do recognize there is a lot of drama, which might not be everyone’s cup of tea. I personally would have loved more newspapers clippings throughout the book.

Definitely keep It Happened One Fight on your radar.

Full review will be published June 11th at 12:00pm EST on Instagram, Storygraph, and Goodreads @abookwormsgarden

2.75/5 stars! This cover gave me "Gone with the Wind" vibes so I was excited at the opportunity to read this book. The premise was so funny. The story was not as enrapturing as the concept, but it had some witty moments. I think what held this story back was that the pacing was all over the place, which made the drama feel unnecessary throughout the story.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

I enjoyed the way Maureen Lee Lenker wrote this, it was a great concept for a Hollywood romance novel. It worked beautifully with the time-period and the characters felt like they belonged in this series. I enjoyed what was going on and loved the story itself. It left me wanting to read more from Maureen Lee Lenker and continue this universe.

"She nervously ran her palm along the row of buttons on her high-waisted trousers and came away with a handful of dust. The memory of it made her shiver. She hated dirt and farmhouse living. She hadn’t been anywhere like this since she’d hightailed it out of her family’s house in Oklahoma. She hadn’t been Joan Davis then; she’d been Mildred Shalk."

Joan is legally married to Dash thanks to his on-set prank. She agrees to star along Dash for one last time and they will get a divorce afterwards. But she sees another side of Dash and she doesn't want to end her marriage...

I like Joan a lot and I can see how hard it is for her to be taken seriously in old Hollywood. Dash took a little longer for me to warm up to.... He is a little too much at times. I like Hollywood stories so I do enjoy this one a lot. But overall it's a fun rom-com. Really enjoyed both characters at the end.

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.

So... I wanted to love this book.

The main characters got together rather early in the book and after that there was just too much unnecessary drama for me.
Overall this book was significantly longer than it needed to be.

I didn't like the finale all that much. Both mcs give a grande speech at the awards ceremony, and while this was probably supposed to be an empowering moment for them, all I could think was "Gosh, the audience doesn't care. Stop wasting their time with your personal sob stories." Apparently I'm heartless like that.

I also had a hard time liking the characters. Both Joan and Dash weren't extremely likeable, and I don't understand what they saw in each other.

Another thing that bothered me: the heroine hits the hero at some point, and while it wasn't her randomly attacking him, women hitting men is still abuse. I think that could've been addressed.