I love Elle Kennedy and was really excited to get approved for this ARC. OVERALL I did enjoy it- Cooper is sexy AF and Mac is a strong woman. However something about it just fell slightly short for me making it a 4 star vs a 5 star. Thank you to netgalley for the ARC.

I LOVED this book! Elle Kennedy won me over a long time ago with both the Off-Campus & Briar U series, so after reading the description on this one, I knew it would not disappoint.

The author has a way of describing the characters where I feel like I know them. I'm a fan of any book with the FMC as strong-willed, independent & fiery as Mac was.

The chemistry between Cooper & Mac is off the charts too! Cooper was how I’d picture him to be & it was fun to watch as his feelings for Mac grew deeply & protective so fast.

Also, the supporting characters played their role perfectly. One of my favorite chapters is Mac helping Steph & Alana during a storm & that paving the way for their friendship to grow.

The only gripe I had (super minor) is how often “clone” appeared throughout the book. I understand the concept when explaining how the locals viewed the rich people that come into town, but I could’ve done without the repetitiveness. Again, super minor & doesn’t take away from the story!

If you love EK’s style of writing, I highly recommend this book. You will not be disappointed! :)

OBSESSED IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT, Elle Kennedy does it again with yet another amazing read… like I am seriously obsessed with everything this book is. Mac & Cooper’s romance had my heart aching & swooning so hard. I loved just how intense their connection was. I really enjoyed that we saw them build a strong friendship that turned into something more. I felt that we really got to see them grow together & because of that development, their connection was even stronger. Ugh when I tell you my heart melted for Cooper, the bad boy that you don’t even see coming, just utterly beautiful. The angst for them was done super well, my soul is still aching for everything they struggled to get through. I really can’t say enough good things about this book, LOVE LOVE LOVE!!

This is a great book. The two main characters are Mackenzie and Cooper. Mackenzie is rich and Cooper is poor. They are very opposite at first, then they discover they have similar parental upbringing. They have some issues but together they work through them by supporting each other. Eventually they find true love.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Modern day take on She’s All That! Boy makes bet. Girl falls for boy. Cute romcom moments all around! Who doesn’t love all of that? It was a sweet read with a great deal of charm and the right amount of backstory to keep you interested! Definitely recommend!

Good Girl Complex by Elle Kennedy follows two main characters - Mackenzie "Mac" Cabot and Cooper Hartley. Mac has lived a life of privilege while Cooper has lived a life consisting of slightly more than nothing. Mac is one of those trust-fund "clones", while Cooper works everyday for a living, working with his (sexy) hands. However, despite the completely opposite status of their bank accounts, these two may have more in common than they think..

Good Girl Complex is that typical trope where one of the characters makes a bet with their friends and ends up falling for the bet. However, Elle Kennedy executes this narrative so perfectly, I did not want to put this one down! The main characters were both like-able (especially the sexy tatted up Cooper), the side characters were likeable and even the "bad guy" Preston Kincaid was just that perfect amount of entitled asshat!

When Mac and Cooper meet, they instantly have chemistry. Sure, Cooper's initial intentions for Mac were less than honorable, but once they really get to know each other... They are essentially the epitome of slow burn and sexual tension. So hot. I also loved their banter back and forth (reminded me of me and my husband! *gush*)

Rated a huge 5/5 stars. Get this one on your TBR shelves for 2022, guys! And here's hoping this is a beginning of a series for Elle Kennedy because I need to see Evan have a happily ever after too!

Elle Kennedy has done it once again! A romance story where the townie boy falls for the rich "clone" girl. While they both have a connection to one another they are both keeping big secrets from each other. This story had captivating storylines where it became hard to put the book down! This book truly had the comedy and light hardness that is the epitome of Elle Kennedy's writing. While the only suggestion to make this book even stronger who be the revelation of Cooper's secret to Mac. The whole book centered around the secret and the anticipation was great but the scene just fizzled out. This truly was a great book to read!

I’m not going to lie, this book had me wanting to pull my hair out at certain points. One of my least favorite tropes is miscommunication/lying and rich girl/poor boy and those were the main points in this book. Ultimately, Mackenzie and Cooper won me over. I love a tattooed man with a bad attitude and Cooper definitely delivers and Mackenzie has the attitude to match. Throw in an adorable dog and a twin brother and you can’t help but love it.

The fact that this book didn’t really have an epilogue is what really took away the 1 star. It left me wanting and yearning for that ending that made me really feel something. It was very abrupt. There were also a few loose ends within the story that I still had questions about at the end.

A special thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book for an honest review!

Thank you so much to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Well, Elle Kennedy has done it again folks as far as writing a strong NA novel (and away from Briar U???)

The Good
To start off, I was a little weary because this book is not set in the Briar U world so I was apprehensive about a different setting. But I loved Avalon Bay for its charm and color cast of people and I honestly cannot wait for more books in this world
Mac/Cooper are amazing. Their chemistry is off the wall and I appreciate that they don't change to be together. I am also a sucker for couples being able to share their trauma with one another so freely.

The Bad
The whole revenge plot of Cooper getting together with Mac to make Preston mad was not my fave. I get having some sort of setback for the couple but bringing it up again felt a little unnecessary in my opinion--especially when there was already a Mac and Cooper fallout earlier in the book. (And a major reason this isn't a five star read for me)

The Ehh
It may totally be me but Mac's girl boss persona got on my nerves at times. It is one thing to want to be self-sufficient but her whole MO of constantly building or creating new projects for herself felt a tad bit unrealistic to me.

Elle Kennedy does it again! A college-aged romance set up with a fun group of friends? Yes, please! Ohhh I hope this means we will be getting some HEAs for Evan, Bonnie, Evan, Steph, Tate, Evan…oh and did I mention Evan? Okay okay enough about that twin. Let’s get to the real winner: COOPER.

I loved this story so much. Cooper is the perfect book boyfriend, which is a big statement considering how much I was NOT loving him at the beginning. The growth he goes through, though, felt authentic. Were his initial intentions revolting? Umm yes. But could I see how he regretted his initial prejudice and choice? Absolutely. Cooper’s support of Mackenzie was the redemption his character needed. And more importantly, his support in traditionally male-dominated industries, was what really sealed the deal. (Can we talk about how Mac easily dominated her entrepreneurial endeavors in tech AND construction?!)

It’s a hard thing to make a reader dislike a character so much in the beginning and then have the reader rooting for the HEA by the halfway point. Very few authors can successfully do it, but Elle Kennedy nailed it. I hope we get to read more about the group, the growth of the hotel, and umm…who has the tattoo. IYKYK.

Good Girl Complex will make you forget you are reading with its engaging plot of revenge, cheating boyfriends, love, and secrets. It reminded me of The Outer Banks with a stark separation between the wealthy "clones" and the townies much like the pogues and kooks. Mac is sent to Avalon Bay to attend Garnet College after a gap year she bargained for which allowed her to focus on her two popular apps: Boyfriend Fails and Girlfriend Fails. Her parents view her business as a hobby and only care about her getting a degree to become a respectable wife for her boyfriend, Preston. Their families have been connected since they were young and marriage was expected to be arranged between them. After months separated, she is ready to reunite with him at college but she soon learns there is another side to her world and Pres. Cooper is a townie of Avalon Bay who has no desire to attend college even if he could. His parents left him and his twin, Evan, to fend for themselves but luckily their Uncle has helped them out a lot. At the bar he works at, he constantly has to fight drunk clones off of his friend Steph and one night one guy takes it too far. Fists fly and blood runs until his boss is brought in to break up the chaos. Put on the spot by the trust fund kid who uses his "Do you know who my dad is? He owns these buildings" card, his boss fires him. Now Cooper is out for revenge on the spoiled clone and his friends find the perfect plan: steal his girlfriend and then break her heart.

Mac does everything right and Cooper starts to make her question what exactly is right for her. What could go wrong? Highly recommend checking this new Elle Kennedy read! My favorite has always been Garrett but I think Cooper really gives him a run for his money (in my opinion). Yes, there is the use of the "I'm not like the other girls" trope but I personally enjoyed it and couldn't put down this book once I started it. Hoping Elle Kennedy continues a series within this group of friends. Wouldn't mind a book on Evan and Gen.
5/5!
Thanks Net Galley for the ARC!

Elle Kennedy is back with her effortless and charming writing. I was so excited when I heard that she was coming out with a new series and book and the Good Girl Complex just delivered in the feel goodness I needed. 

She came back with another book boy boy fall in love with and Cooper made me swoon so hard, I'm a little obsessed with him and his personality and the vibes he gives out. I have to say when I met him first i did think what he did kind of made him a jerk,  but I loved when he started to realise that Mac wasn't like the people he despised. That she was different. It was so nice to see him fall for her. We got to see another layer to him and it just made him that more alluring. And the part where he defended her?? * sighhh* 

Mac was a great heroine. She had fight in her. She had great banter to her and she have as good she got towards Cooper. She didn't back down and she didn't let his words taint her. It was nice to see her not immediately fall for his charms. Cooper and Mac had amazing chemistry and I really loved their development. All in all this was a great contemporary romance from Elle Kennedy and I'm excited to see more from this world.

Books about college-aged students written by authors who haven't been college-aged students in a while are painful.

Mackenzie is a girlboss. She's the typical rich East-coaster but not like the other rich girls: "I don't even pick out my own clothes"
Cooper is "poor" (but has a house without rent/mortgage, a steady job, and is passionate about a money-making side project) and he thinks all rich people are terrible and spoiled.
Girl meets boy. Boy and his friends create an elaborate scheme to embarrass the girl in order to get back at her douchebag boyfriend. They fall in love instantly. Every character was plucked out of a Netflix original.

It was entertaining enough to finish the book. Bad enough to consider never picking up another book by the author.

I love Elle Kennedy's work. Everything that I've read from her so far (The Off-campus and Briar U series) has sucked me in and I've thoroughly enjoyed. Good Girl Complex had me hooked from the cover and description and I had a great time reading it.

I'll start with things I enjoyed:
- One thing that I think Elle Kennedy does best is letting you meet and get a feel for each of the main characters separately before seeing how they interact together. When some other authors do this I get a bit bored, but Kennedy's writing brings you into the story where you are loving every piece of plot, setting, and character information.

-(Vague in case of spoilers) Information that was revealed early on was so unexpected and so great plot wise that I sat stunned for a couple of seconds.

Minor problems:
-There were moments of dialogue that I felt needed some directing/description in between lines. All of a sudden the conversation or tone would change and I would feel like I was falling behind in understanding the depth of some characters.

-For some reason I felt a disconnect to the characters. Possibly because sometimes when relationships would develop it was told to the reader instead of watching the scene go down in the moment.

Overall, the beginning was a little tough for me, but the last 45% of the book had me enthralled and getting back to read it was all I could think about. All of the characters and dynamics were great! I honestly did want the story to end. I wanted to play around more with everything and everyone, but I have a suspicion that this was only the start of the visit to Avalon Bay.

This book is about a rich girl falling for a local bad boy opposites attract with a love triangle. Mackenzie and Cooper have been raised completely different from each other, but learn they have much in common with each other as they get to know each other. They have to decide if what they have in common is enough to maintain a relationship.

The banter and attraction between Mackenzie and Cooper is hot. It was good to watch Mackenzie grow into a strong and independent woman.

This story is good, but not great based on personal preference. Cheating for me is a turn off/deal breaker and undermines the whole relationship for me. I also thought the idea of pursuing someone based on revenge was juvenile and immature for someone in their early twenties.

I give it 4 out of 5 and am looking forward to more books about Avalon Bay.

Thank you St. Martin’s press, NetGalley, and Elle Kennedy. I received an arc and an voluntarily leaving a review.

Overall this was a pretty good book.
I would probably read this again at some point, too. I really like the cover and the plot. It’s reminds me of a revenge version of she’s all that, where instead of making a new boyfriend, Cooper’s claiming a douche bags girlfriend. It was spicy, heartfelt and just a really good book.

What a great romance book. I enjoyed every aspect of this story. It's not going to be for everyone but it felt real and honest to me because of the great writing. There's a vulnerability to these main characters and this story that caught me off guard in the best of ways. I laughed, I felt sadness, I felt empathy, and I just enjoyed every single page. It feels like a play on the Outer Banks TV show with it's own intrigue and unique set of circumstances. Great characters whom electrify the plot. A plot that doesn't quit and seamlessly transitions with great flow making it easy to read. It's charming and full of interesting plot twists. Elle Kennedy's writing is excellent; her story telling structure is perfect for this journey between this unlikely pair. All the secondary characters played excellent roles to which I hope stand alone stories pop up featuring all of them within this same realm. This is one I wished didn't end and once it did hoped more was forthcoming. For fans of New Adult, forbidden-esque, friends to lovers stories with great depth, plot, setting, and characters don't miss this one.

Mac is a good girl who has always done things to please her wealthy parents. She is already a successful businesswoman and has made millions from an app she launches. To please her parents she is attending college in Avalon Bay. Her boyfriend is also there and Mac thinks that her life will eventually follow the path of marriage and following the rules of her life. She has fought against how she really wants life to be until she meets Cooper. Cooper allows her to be herself and soon their friendship becomes more. Cooper has to accept that Mac isn't like the rich kids he usually sees come to town. They fall for each other and try to figure to make things work.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Elle Kennedy is a classic, and I recommend her to every romance reader. I love her previous works with Briar U, but Good Girl Complex felt a bit different. In a good way! I thought there was some definite growth in the book, and I enjoyed Mac as a character.

While some of the dialogue could have been a bit stronger, I liked the story overall.

I loved these characters! The main characters and the side characters were phenomenal. It gets a little steamy. Great story. I could not put this book down.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.