About You Fight Like A Girl by Crystal Naldi
What happens when a young gay man joins an all girls fight club? What will his Devilish crush think…
Patrick Boss is a young, secretly gay college student who has spent most of his life feeling like an outsider. Living in Los Angeles, he carries the weight of family expectations, a fractured past, and the quiet ache of wanting someone he can’t have—his next-door neighbor, Angel Guerrero. Angel is an amateur MMA fighter, all confidence and heat, and the two have never exactly gotten along. Tension has always come easy between them.
After a brutal attack from a jealous frat boy leaves Patrick shaken and ready to give up, he’s taken in by an underground, all-girls fight club that becomes his unlikely refuge. Led by the fierce and guarded Amber Torres—a woman who doesn’t trust men easily—the club teaches Patrick how to fight, how to endure, and how to belong.
But strength awakens something inside him. Something dangerous. Something hungry.
As Patrick grows bolder—physically and emotionally—Angel keeps finding reasons to stay close, drawn in by a pull neither of them is ready to name. The line between rivalry and desire blurs, and attraction simmers beneath every charged encounter.
Angel carries his own darkness. And when secrets surface and masks begin to fall, Patrick must decide what he’s willing to fight for—and who he’s willing to become.
Because life is a fight.
And if you can’t fight life like a man…
you fight like a girl.
You Fight Like a Girl is a queer, enemies-to-lovers coming-of-age story about underground fights, dangerous attraction, and finding power in the most unexpected places.
— This story has already been brought to life on screen.
Watch the official live-action proof-of-concept trailer for You Fight Like a Girl! on my website.
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Author Bio:
My name is Crystal Naldi, and I’m an indie author and filmmaker creating bold, cinematic queer romance stories with grit, heat, and heart. I write about outsiders, rebels, and fighters — the ones who refuse to stay down and refuse to stay quiet. My debut series, You Fight Like a Girl, throws readers into the underground world of secret fight clubs, enemies-to-lovers tension, and dangerous attraction.
My work has been featured in Leader Magazine and Celeb Digest, and You Fight Like a Girl was recently selected for the Best Independent Book in San Antonio of 2026 award from Evergreen Awards (article forthcoming).
When I’m not writing, you’ll find me singing karaoke like I own the stage, reading and writing fanfiction, or taking long walks in the park plotting my next story.
I believe life is a fight — and sometimes you have to bleed a little to become who you were meant to be.