St. Martin’s Press invited me back to review Once Upon a Bad Boy, the 3rd book in Melonie Johnson’s “Sometimes in Love” series. I have to say, it may be the best one yet.

Sadie Gold, another of the circle of girlfriends since childhood, is close to reaching her dream of big screen stardom. Little does she expect the stunt coordinator on her new movie will be her first love, Bo Ibarra — the guy who dumped her.

Bo and Sadie get together, but not without a lot of ups and downs, and some trust issues. Nevertheless, things heat up pretty quickly, and while the two previous books in the series made use of the f-word, this one has more crude language than the other two combined. I’m no prude, but I could do without that. Romantic comedies are usually not crude.

I appreciate the effort to recognize that we are a nation of immigrants, or the descendants by mentioning that Bo’s grandparents were “an Irish immigrant and a Jewish girl”; and that his half-Irish father is married to his Mexican mother. I’m just not sure how, with an Irish father, Bo ended up with Ibarra for a surname. This is a surname primarily from the Basque region of Spain.

The book examines other issues as well, such as teenage bullying, adult social media bullying, and the relentlessness abuse by tabloid news agencies. Overall, it was a lovely story that I enjoyed very much. It’s a great addition to the series, and I hope there’ll be more.

What Makes this Reviewer Grumpy?
• Incorrect verb tense: “I wish you would have…” should be “I wish you had…”;
• far too many split infinitives;
• misplacement of “only” within sentences;
• using “try and” rather than “try to”;
• beginning sentences with conjunctions.
Look for me online as The Grumpy Book Reviewer.

Once Upon a Bad Boy (Sometimes in Love #3) is Sadie’s story. After years struggling to be taken seriously as an actress, with critics chalking up her Emmy-winning role on a soap opera to her rich family’s influence rather than her talent, she’s finally won the part of a lifetime as the gutsy heroine in a major action flick. So, the last thing she needs is a major distraction in the form of her teenage love, Bo Ibarra. Unfortunately, he’s the stunt coordinator for the film and there’s no escaping him. On the night of their senior prom, he ended their relationship without explanation, telling her he didn’t want to see her again. For ten years, she mentally boxed up her pain and avoided following news of him. Now it’ll take all of her self-control to fight the attraction that is still there and avoid exposing the secret from her past. This second-chance romance wasn’t as well-written as the first two books in the series. The chemistry wasn’t as strong and Sadie, who is supposedly a tough, self-confident woman, is way too forgiving of Bo, first for the way he ended their teen relationship and then for his reaction when her secret is revealed. Compared with Logan in Book 1 and Theo in Book 2, Bo is lacking in charm and genuine passion for his love interest. It’s still a great series to follow, but here’s hoping the next book recaptures the magic of the first two.


I received a complimentary ARC of this book from St. Martin’s Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Once Upona Bad Boy is a story about second chances and growing up. Sadie is a great actress, but when a great role leads her back into the arms of her first boyfriend, things get steamy again really fast. Does Sadie want to go down the path where Bo runs away again or try to work things out?

I liked this story. It was well written with a delightful cast who were believable. I enjoyed the chemistry between Bo and Sadie. It was a cute read for anyone who likes a little romance. \

**my thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to review this book**

Book #3 in sometimes in love series and I loved it just as the other ones.

Sadie has a great career as an actress and she wants to get on a level where she owned herself not because of favors due to her back ground,rich family. Sadie gets a leading role in a movie where she works her tail for it. Little those she know that her stunt coordinator is someone from her past.

Bo wants the company hes been working for decades. This one job can prove that he can run the company but he was not counting on knowing the actress.

Bo and Sadie have a past together, feelings for each other never left. This is a second chance romance,funny and emotional and with a bit of a dark past but worth the read.

Sadie Gold has not seen Bo Ibarra in over ten years but they were once good friends and lovers. How is Sadie going to film a movie in her hometown of Chicago and not notice Bo, the stunt coordinator? It looks like these two will need to find a way to look beyond their past and find a new path.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for an ARC; all opinions are my own.

So I've read Smitten with the Brit and Getting Hot with the Scott.
This book is related to them, but only with characters and not by the genre.
While the other two were funny and light, this one took me by surprise.
It had more depth and hard themes. It was fresh and great. I really liked it.
Sadie and Bo met, when they were children and were spending their summers together.
Eventually their friendship developed into something more. Until Bo has had it enough and ended things between them.
After ten years a job brings them together. Will they overcome their past, or will they burn because of it? Only one way to figure it out! You have to read the book!

If you love reading about second chance romance, then this book is definitely worth the read.. If you love the "rich woman, poor man" type of story - even better! It's that type of book wherein you simply cannot put it down and will get pissed off if someone tries to bother you! It will break your heart when you read what the couple - Sadie and Bo - had to go through just to be together after 10 years.
This is a story about Sadie who is trying to hit it big time in the movie industry and Bo who is a stunt coordinator wanting to own the company he's currently working at. They met when they were little kids. Bo's family worked for Sadie's Nana and Sadie, ignored by her parents all her life, would spend the summer over at her Nana's place. They became best friends which blossomed into romance when they were teenagers. But something happened during Sadie's Prom night prompting Bo to walk away from Sadie.
It's just lovely to see their reaction when they come across each other after being apart for 10 long years and how their romance just falls into place so easily. The only complaint i had was the ending. I found it too abrupt. My reaction was like "that's it?? maybe I'm missing a page or something?" But other than that I truly loved it..

Thank you to Ms. Johnson, St. Martin's Paperback and NetGalley for providing the ARC.

I enjoyed the story and loved the chemistry between Bo and Sadie. I wish the ending was longer but did like how it played out. I'm really invested in the friendship the girls have and I can't wait to read the next book in the series. I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Having read the previous books in this series and not enjoying them, I went into this book not believing that anything would change with this story. I was both right and wrong with my assessment.

First of all, this book really angered me! I hated how Sadie was basically bullied and shamed for a choice she made!! I've made the same choice myself and it is the most heartwrenching decision that I've ever had to make. It also haunts you for years to come, and yet Sadie was constantly attacked over it! The author didn't handle the subject well at all, especially from a support standpoint! That being said, I could never really connect with Bo after everything. Sadie, too, was hard to connect with. That made the book even more difficult to enjoy!

I found the book to be boring and nothing special to make it stand out from a sea of other books just like it. Unfortunately, my anger over the choice situation colored everything about this book, and it just wasn't something I wanted to continue reading. I think that I'll avoid this author in the future.

A second chance romance, “Once Upon a Bad Boy” follows childhood sweethearts Sadie Gold and Bo Ibarra who had a falling out on their prom night.

For eleven years, they did not see each other but a twist of fate placed them face to face in a movie set where Sadie was the lead actress and Bo was the stunt coordinator. After the initial shock, they vowed to keep their relationship personal, but the heat between them had not abated.

Still, they were making a movie together and there are certain lines that could not be crossed. Though Sadie and Bo tried, they could not stop themselves. Careful as they were, they were still at a disadvantage.

Hiding their relationship from their family, friends and co-workers were hard enough. Hiding from fans and the paparazzi could be their undoing. And when and if the unthinkable happen, where do they go from there?

Told in two POVs, the story also flip-flopped between the past and the present to reveal Sadie and Bo’s relationship when they were children until they were in their teens. Poignant and bittersweet, the memories tug at your heartstrings as their young love developed only to be torn apart. There were no tear-jerking moments, but it still left a little ache in your heart as everything was revealed.

“Once Upon a Bad Boy” is Rated M for Mature due to sexual content and some adult situations.

Another DNF for me. This series just wasn’t a match for me. I can understand the appeal to many, but the style just didn’t click with my personal taste. I did t find the characters relatable or believable

I absolutely loved this book! It is a second chance at love kind of book filled with lots of steamy romance. I would highly recommend

Sometimes an unexpected book comes along that has you dropping all of your duties to read. Once Upon a Bad Boy was one of those books for me. I knew it was going to be enjoyable having read the first two books in the Sometimes in Love series, but I didn't realize just how consumed I would be with this story.

Once again, Melonie Johnson has crafted well-rounded and winning characters in the hero and heroine of Once Upon a Bad Boy. Sadie was a hardworking actress who was training and getting ready for a life-changing role in a book-to-movie adaptation. Her dedication and admiration towards her career was very inspiring. I liked how the author also made a point to highlight the self-doubt and insecurities Sadie sometimes had when it came to her abilities as an actor. It was very thoughtfully written and relatable to readers from across the career spectrum. I have a soft spot for career driven characters, so it didn't surprise me that Sadie's character worked for me so well. Besides her passion, Sadie's kind heart, vulnerable soul, and her bold personality made her an even more palatable character. Truly, Melonie Johnson has done an exceptional job at writing really lovely heroines.

Even though Sadie absolutely stole my heart here, I grew to really love Bo as well. I will say he wasn't really a bad boy as the title claims he is, but I think that's probably why I wound up liking him so much. He is hired as the stunt coordinator in her movie. Bo was as hardworking as Sadie was. He grew up with not much and had built a reputable position for himself. He had his own share of vulnerabilities and insecurities that he had to work through as well, which gave him a softer edge.

Sadie and Bo used to be in love when they were younger until Bo broke Sadie's heart at her prom. So, Once Upon a Bad Boy is a second chance romance, and a very good one at that. I found the chemistry and angst between the two to be the perfect balance. I could really feel the intensity of their relationship through the pages. My heart ached and soared with these two. They obviously had to work through their past and also through the new obstacles in their relationship. When they were together, Sadie and Bo were really good together. Their emotional connection with each other was especially beautifully written. I've also got to give a shoutout to the amazing female friendships in this book - I love this gang of girls so much! Also, Bo's family and Sadie's grandmother were exceptional. Bo's little nephew especially was a cute addition who brought some sweet and light moments to the story.

Truly, this series has been a pure joy to read. Melonie Johnson has managed to achieve the impeccable balance of a swoony romance, relatable characters, and excellent friendships with this series. I highly recommend it!

Received an ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

Siiiigh. That was adorable. It's very different from the other books in the series. Instead of meeting a new prince charming, Sadie meets up with the prince from her past. The prince who left her high and dry on prom night, never wanting to see her again. Sadie has come a long way since then, burying everything she went through that night deep down. When Bo is hired as the stunt coordinator on her new film, it's only a matter of time before their past and all that pain comes back to haunt her....and before the chemistry from their youth boils over into something much stronger.

I really appreciated this one. We got to understand where they were each coming from and we knew it was only a matter of time before they found their way back to each other. And the love scenes were a little spicier than I've seen from Johnson's other books (and I'm not mad about it).

Another great read....time for Ana to find her cake!

A second chance romance, good story and wonderful chemistry with the characters. Steamy romantic scenes and amusing banter to keep me entertained. I think I need more, bring on the next story.

Sadie Gold is an actress and wants to make it big time and prove that she can make a life on her own. She was raised with wealth and everything that it entails.
She had a broken heart on prom night but now 11 years later he comes back into her life. Bo Ibarra is a stunt coordinator and is working on her film. She can not forget the past with him and he never got over her. But she has a secret that could ruin things as they start getting close again. Then the media gets a hold of her and makes things look bad as well.
I loved this storyline and now Sadie and Bo want to see if they have something again. Her grandmother pretty much made her the person she is because her parents never had the time for her and used their money and prestige.

3.5 / 5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Publishing for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. It was released at the end of June and I just read it on my roadtrip vacation!! It was the perfect vacation read--an emotional and heartwarming love story.

Sadie and Bo's story is a second chance romance, and I was so there for it. They both grapple with some big emotions in believable ways, and I enjoyed watching their journey through their past to arrive at a better present and future. Of course, they are both written as **extremely good looking** and flawless physically, and I am a bit tired of that in my main characters, but I could forgive it in this case since they are in the acting/movie industry and it kinda goes with the territory. I really enjoyed the side friends (I have read the first two books in the series so already had a lot of their backstory) and especially Ana, who is a great counterpoint to Sadie.

All in all, I recommend this read if you like flirty banter, big emotions, and hot bedroom scenes (that leave nothing to the imagination, fyi--in case explicit isn't your thing). My only complaint is that the ending felt a bit of a dramatic emotional turnaround, as if she decided "oh right, I need to wrap this up neatly now" -- but it mostly worked so I'm not complaining too loudly.

This was my first book by this author, and I enjoyed it. I would read more from them. I felt that the characters were not fully developed, but I still liked reading about their story. It held my attention and I did become involved in the storyline. I would recommend this.

Well written book but not really my cup of tea.

I have read other reviews where people have loved it & I'm sure this book will be like Marmite but sadly not for me

Once Upon a Bad Boy is the third and final installment of the Sometimes in Love series by Melonie Johnson. This time we follow would-be star Sadie Gold as she films an action movie.. along side her childhood boyfriend who broke her heart, Bo Ibarra. The tension is real when they find out they will be working together. Can they move on from their ancient past and be co-workers, friends, or maybe even more?

I very much liked the previous novels in this series, they were both so good that I had a hard them putting them down, however Once Upon a Bad Boy.. I felt like it just dragged and I was only reading for the sake of finishing it, therefore this review is going to be short and sweet.

Sadie's life felt "too perfect" (even though she said she worked hard for it, didn't seem like that) and Bo's explanations for what he did were such shit, I was rolling my eyes whenever it was talked about. Then, despite everything that happened between them and how things were left, it of course gets tied up in a neat little bow with a rushed ending. Sorry.. maybe I'm just being too cynical, but this book was only meh to me - Rated 3/5