Member Reviews

A hot hockey playboy will find out what happens in Vegas doesn't always stay in Vegas. I love a great hockey romance and this story is sinful! Don't miss this must read. I can't wait to read the next installment.

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Great book! Friends to lovers is a great genre and this book help solidify it! It was a slow start but was happy that the last half flew by!

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A new sports series from Nicole Edwards and if Bad Reputation is anything to go by she has another hit series on her hands.
Chase and Cassie have been best friends for nine years, he is living the playboy lifestyle of a hockey superstar, the man known as Sin is a love and leave them type of guy the only woman who has been in is life for more than a few nights is Cassie, Cassie is a VP for an iT company and needs help on a business trip to Vegas and as always Chase is her first point of call, "What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas " not so for these besties.
What Chase and Cassie share is a friendship I'm sure we would all love to have in our life and I think that's why this story feels so real, the storyline flows and as with all of Nicole Edwards books every character is strong not just the Stars of the book. The chemistry is sizzling and the banter is perfect, I laughed and I shed a tear or two but that's what made this a perfect read for me.
I'm looking forward to meeting more Stars from the Bad Boys of Sports because this author knows her sports and she doesn't compromise the game to give us a story.

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5 Star review of Bag Reputation (Bad Boys of Sports #1) by Nicole Edwards
What's a girl to do when her best friend is Chase “Sin” Barrett, a hot, alpha bad boy of ice hockey? Invite him to Vegas; well that's what Cassie Desrosiers decides to do, she works hard and now has decided it is time to play hard and who better to help her than Chase.

Chase has puck bunnies swooning at his feet, all wanting to hook up with the love em and leave em bad boy and of course being known as “Sin” gives you an indication of just how naughty he can be, both on and off the ice.

What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, right? Not always. The chemistry between Chase and Cassie is smoldering. I loved the build up and how they build on their friendship until they simply sizzle together..

One of the things I most enjoy about Nicole Edwards’ books is that she doesn’t just focus on the two main characters; she always ensures we get an overall story with no one being left out. I cannot wait for the next book in this series.

I voluntarily reviewed this book which I received from the publisher through NetGalley.

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This is the story of Chase & Cassie. They've been friends for nine years now. Best friends.
He's a hockey superstar in Texas and she's an app-tech-something-too-complicated-for-this-blogger-to-understand-person. They spend a lot of time together - enough for Cassie to know that her bestie is a class A manwhore! But - he always treats the ladies like queens - if only for that one night.
Cassie couldn't do that one night thing. And she's too busy with work anyway. And also - Chase is scaring away every guy that comes near her.
And then Vegas happens ....

What will happen with Chase & Cassie?
Does the friends to lovers thing ever work?
Will there be a HEA???
READ THE BOOK TO FIND OUT ☺

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This was adorable!
I'm not a huge fan of the friends to lovers thing. Because - hello? He's a hot hockey god! And she's super sexy and smart - there has to be attraction on both sides!!!! And yup - there is. At least for Chase there always has been, but he doesn't want to lose her by one-night-standing-her. But he also doesn't want to lose her to another guy. And also, she would never want something serious with him - she's too scared for serious - her mom taught her that. And she's also mega-sure that he would never ever want anything more than one night.

I really liked the story. Even though there were way too many people in it for my liking. It felt like there were too many future stories being set up - even though the next in the series is a football book? And I also felt that Chase's dads had already been stars in another book - no idea why. (P.S. I looved the 2 dads thing so much!!) It was way too much about other people. Chase and Cassie's story didn't really feel like the main part of the book for the first half. And their constant protesting - about how they're not attracted to the other, how they would never start anything ... bla bla. Way too much protesting. Way too much blaming it on mom. It got boring. But then came Vegas and things got a lot more interesting!!! ☺

I really liked reading it. I had to keep reading - I wanted to see how they finally got together. How and more importantly WHEN!!!! Hurry up already! ☺
I liked Chase a lot - no idea why the book is called Bad Reputation though. He's a great guy! All the weird and stupid stuff is all in Cassie's head. She should've gone to see a therapist about her mom years ago.

BAD REPUTATION was a fun & sexy & slightly frustrating friends to lovers romance! Run to your nearest amazon for your own Chase - this one is MINE!

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Bad Reputation is a fun and sexy friends-to-lovers, sports romance. Chase and Cassie have been really good friends since college. Chase is a successful professional hockey player who indulges in a lot one-night stands, or so it seems. He's has been attracted to Cassie for years but has done a good job of hiding it. Their relationship gets a curve ball when Chase joins Cassie on a trip to Vegas, where they end up having ##. Bad Reputation is cute, but I did begin to lose interest. The story dragged a little, and I found myself skipping some pages. I’ll definitely be reading Nicole Edwards again.

ARC provided, but this review was voluntarily and honestly written.

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New author for me. I loved her writing style, her characters and this story.
This was a fun, sexy friends-to-lovers/sports romance read. Chase and Cassie are great characters. They are best friends who are complete opposites but balance each other out. Cassie is smart, beautiful and completely unaware of Chase's real feelings for her. Chase is a bad boy hockey player whose reputation is based more on his actions on the ice than off the ice. He is a sweetheart underneath it all.
After a crazy trip to Vegas things change between the two and they decide to give a relationship a try and then the fun begins....
I highly recommend this book and will be reading more from this author.

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Bad Reputation is a friends to lovers romance written by the queen of sexy, Nicole Edwards. I have read several books by Nicole and she has proven over and over that she can tackle any subject. Chase and Cassie are best friends and then after a week in Vegas everything changes. The choices they made in the city of sin follow them home and now they aren't sure they want what happened in Vegas to stay only in Vegas.

As always Nicole gave us an incredibly sexy story with some fun and exciting twists. I personally don't love when the POVs change in the middle of chapters but I never had a problem following along. Bad Reputation was a fun escape from my day and I look forward to the next OTT alpha she gives us.

~miranda

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Chase and Cassie have been friends since college. Now Cassie is 28 and working towards her goal to lead her entire department at the tech company she works for. Chase is pursuing his dream and is a left-winger on the Texas Tornadoes NHL team. They eat dinner together, go out together and enjoy the company of each other. They each have defined their relationship as being in the friend-zone only.

Cassie has issues that stem from her mother looking for husband no. 5 in the hopes that he will make all of her dreams come true. Cassie knows her mother is crazy but projects her mother's bad decision making into her mantra to never have a relationship or get married. She was very intelligent in her business, but not in her personal life.

Chase knows he feels more for Cassie but buries it because he knows she would not be receptive. It was a shame how much he kept his feelings to himself because of Cassie's inability to act like a grown-up when it came to relationships. Chase has two dads, has grown up accepting of others and although he has a bad reputation for fighting on the ice, he really is a good guy. He puts Cassie before himself over and over again.

Cassie pretty much had no friends, no social interactions and thought that she was doing fine because she had her work. I struggled to like her at points because she was self-centered to the point that she didn't even notice other people, let alone what they were feeling. Her work ethic was beyond reproach but the fact she was doing it because it was the opposite of her mother was not a good thing. She definitely had to deal with her issues and grow up and concede that she was not her mother and never would be.

Chase agrees to go to Vegas at a conference where Cassie is the keynote speaker. Things do not go as planned and something unexpected occurs there. The fact that Cassie was the one who pushed for it and then acted like it was a dare later didn't strike me as being truthful to herself or Chase. Chase was afraid to confront her after he realizes what happened and it spoke volumes to me of how much Cassie caused him to stress out over his true feelings. Cassie finds herself at a crossroads and acted like a toddler at points. She honestly thought she could walk in and salvage her career because of her past performance. That was naive beyond words. Chase knows he has to tread carefully and I did like his patience. I also liked how he called her on her BS when warranted and stood up for himself. It was interesting how it all played out. The book was an easy read and kept me interested throughout the story.

I received an ARC from NetGalley for my honest review.

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I choose this one on the tittle. Lol. Cute story. I liked it very much.

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Have you read the blurb? You know knew what's gonna happen, right? I mean...professional hockey player, female best friends...it's but rocket science. We know what's gonna gotten, right? Yep. You probably do. But I'll be the first to admit that I was pretty entertained by the story. I mean, you didn't like a HEA?

Chase is sinful. Ok. Ok. His nickname is Sin. Mainly because he spends so much time in the penalty box, but his looks and player reputation don't exactly help his cause. Especially considering he's been best friends with Cassie since college, out in that forever friend zone. But it's been years and their relationship has grown. So much so that he spends more time with Cassie than anyone else. And he's afraid someone gonna finally notice.

Cassie is a VP for a huge computer software company (or something like that). Her company is on the verge of launching a new line of geeky stuff and she's completely stressed out. Not just because of work. Her "clock of ticking", her Mom is being, Mom, and she's starting to look at Chase differently. Great timing, right? Throw in a trip to Vegas, and its on!

Like I said before, we know what's gonna happen in the end. But it's the process of getting there that was a cool ride. I enjoyed meeting the support characters. I'm wondering where the series is going even though I'm pretty sure I can guess who's story is next. All in all? This was solid enough that if totally pick up the next book.

reviewed by Chris

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Bad Reputation was the perfect friends to lovers book. I just loved Cassie and Chase, they were the perfect pair. He was cocky, sexy and sweet all wrapped into one. Cassie was just as amazing, she was sweet, strong, and very self confident. The story had the perfect mix of humor, emotions, and hot sex thrown in. I highly recommend this one.

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enjoy a Best friend to Lover . Chase is the hot hockey player with a nickname Sin. We don't really see this "bad boy" he seems really sweet to me. So this conflicts ( for me) with his bad reputation. So Chase seems to be harboring some hidden feelings for Cassie his BFF. Cassie is this uptight, all business software hot shot and these two spend all their time pretty much with each other. Oh Cassie for someone so smart you're pretty dumb and blind. She has a great sidekick Natalie who thanfully isn't wearing blinders and sees the writing on the walls! There a little back and forth in the beginging I wanted to just say enough alredy. The second half woah you blink its over! I loved Chase's Dads they were great addition to the story great concept . This was fun and sexy . Arc provided by Netgalley for an honest review.

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I thought the excerpts from the article on Chase were a fun addition, and I loved his dads! Was glad that the action/drama surrounding Cassie wasn't wrapped up in a neat bow (it was true to real life). However, I admit that Chase didn't come across as as much of a bad boy/player as I was anticipating.

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What a thoroughly enjoyable, easy to read but also very entertaining book!
I was so enthralled with the characters, best friends Chase and Cassie
Friends who have known each other for many years, they really have the most wonderful friendship! One I would dearly love to have!!
Chase Barrett is a hockey player, Cassie has a VP position in an IT company, when she's asked to do the lead address to an audience, and they head to Vegas, well, does what happens in Vegas stay in Vegas??
This book had so much I loved about it! It felt like I was reading about real people I could relate to! I loved the funny parts , the sexy times were sizzling and all in all it was a very beautiful story!
I don't want to say much more but I did shed some tears towards the end and I loved how it ended!! I could have read so much more

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I really enjoyed this book! I love hockey sports romance books and this one did not disappoint! Very well written, made me stay up way passed my bedtime. i would recommend this to anyone that loves sports romances. Would love to read more by this author.

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This was my first read by Nicole and she did not disappoint.. The love between Chase and Cassie was always there, since they are best friends. Was that love really just best friends though? After one night in Vegas everything changes but will Chase and Cassie admit what they both want or let their past dictate their future?

Can't wait to read more from Nicole!

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I was lucky enough to get an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. I am a huge Nicole Edwards fan and this is a fantastic first book in her newest series!! I just adore Chase and Cassie!! This book had two things I love: the best friends to lovers trope and hockey, doesn't get much better than that for me. This storyline is amazing and I just love the way everything plays out for Chase and Cassie. He is the sexy bad boy of hockey and she has been his best friend since she tutored him in college 9 years earlier. That is where any similarities to other stories ends. Ms. Edwards takes us on a journey I know I won't soon forget. I laughed, I swooned, I teared up some, and I probably even blushed a bit. There are some incredibly sexy steamy scenes between these two. What would you expect after 9 years of bottled up love and passion is finally unleashed.
Absolutely LOVE the epilogue! 5 sweet and steamy stars!
Pick this one up, you will be happy you did.

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I really loved this book. I'm a sucker for best friends trying to keep it platonic but sparks are flying kind of story, & this one delivers big time. Chase is a sexy professional hockey player. Cassie is an executive for a company & has her eye on moving up. She doesn't want to mess up her career or her friendship with Chase, so she sticks him in the friend zone. Every woman needs a friend like this. Smokin' hot! Highly recommend this book if you're looking for a good time.

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This was not what I was expecting it to be. I normally love sports romance books, especially starring hockey players because of my love for the Off-Campus Series by Elle Kennedy, but this was mostly just a let down.

Bad Reputation is a friends to lovers story that surrounds two best friends that are both ignoring the fact that they feel more for each other than just friends. Chase is your typical bad boy professional athlete that only really has one-night stands. And his best friend is Cassie, who is an overachieving workaholic who is a VP of a very successfully company.

They have been best friends for many years, and their friendship started when they met in college. They soon realized that they grew up very close together, and their families soon became close, too. After Chase signs on with the Tornados and moves to Texas to play professionally with them. Cassie also joined her company because it was located in Texas to be close to Chase. They are now twenty-seven and twenty-eight, and trying to figure out what they want with the rest of their lives. And one night in Vegas changes their friendship forever.

I have to get ready to get on my own flight to go back home to Vegas, so I’m going to make this a really simple and easy to write a review for you guys!

Things I didn’t enjoy about this book:
➽This book alternates points of view in the middle of every chapter. This just made the story feel so disjointed, and never really allowed me to enjoy a scene completely. I really wish the character switches would have been done at the start of every chapter instead of this alternating mess.
➽Also, at the start of every chapter is an excerpt from a sports column, and I found this rather pointless and very much a waste of my reading time. It kind of connects with the epilogue, but it was still not enough to make me enjoy these senseless excerpts.
➽I grew up in Michigan during the height of the Detroit Red Wings. Hockey has planned a huge part of my life growing up, and I have never once heard of the penalty box being called a “sin bin”.
➽Cassie seems to completely change her personality type in the middle of the book and it was rather annoying and abrupt. How she could become so irresponsible all of a sudden was rather unbelievable.
➽Also, after that 50% mark, this book becomes a huge mediocre sex storyline.
➽And lastly, I feel like the title of this book is sort of inaccurate, too.

Things I loved about this book:
➽Chase is adopted and has two dads! I loved how this was seamlessly woven into the story, and we need more romance books that normalize queer relationships and parental figures like this!
➽I loved that Cassie was a year older than Chase. This is something I rarely see in books, and I very much enjoyed this rarely seen dynamic in adult romance.
➽Chase does an amazing job asking for consent before having sex with Cassie, especially when they’ve both been drinking. I very much appreciated this.
➽Chase had some really good dirty talk during a few of their sexual encounters, and that is something that I personally really enjoy during sex, and I thought a few of Chase’s lines were really well done.

Overall, this is a decently short friends to lovers story. Like, this was a really quick read for me. Yes, the bad did outweigh the good for me, but I didn’t dislike this book by any means, I just thought it was okay. There wasn’t anything offensive or anything like that, I just felt like the alternating PoVs in the middle of the chapters were too abrupt and made for a very disjointed read that I could never fully immerse myself in. I did really appreciate all the good things I did list above, though. I just hope if you guys pick this up that you will enjoy it more than me. Happy reading!

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