This book got an automatic 1-star deduction as a result of its blurb. I was drawn in by this:

Bridgerton meets Gossip Girl with a dash of Jane Austen, in Reputation, a Regency-era historical romantic comedy with a deliciously feminist twist, from a hilarious new British voice, Lex Croucher.
St. Martin's Press

Reader, I was bamboozled. Under no circumstances would I qualify this book as a romantic comedy or even moderately hilarious. That is in very large part to its second and third act conflict. Sexual assault of one character, the attempted assault of the main character, and the physical assault of said main character in the last ten percent? Not exactly lighthearted fare.

In any case, this book features bookish and sheltered Georgiana Ellers in a fish-out-of-water narrative. Sent by her neglectful parents to spend the summer with her uptight aunt and uncle, Georgiana feels that she is doomed to waste away her days in dull company, until she meets Frances Campbell, the Season's It-girl, and is whisked into the social whirl of the haut ton.

From there, Reputation becomes less "Bridgerton meets Gossip Girl" and more "Pride and Prejudice meets The Great Gatsby." Georgiana's desperation to stay in the in-crowd is almost painful to read, especially as the thrill of adventure slowly turns to dread. Frances and her friends quickly show their true colors. Though Croucher gives them significant backstories that inform their vindictive carelessness, I spent a lot of time wishing that Georgiana would wise up sooner rather than later.

As for the romance part of Reputation, it felt almost like an afterthought. Thomas Hawksley, the love interest, is off page much of the story. His main function seems to be a Mr. Darcy stand-in with a tragic backstory to explain his starchiness and make him a paragon amongst his friend group. As a result, the romance doesn't pick up until the final third, with a very sweet epistolary episode.

All in all, this was an engaging read, even if it wasn't what was promised by the blurb. I suggest this for readers who don't mind a Regency young adult narrative that reads like a CW drama. The characters were very well-rounded and there was more diversity than I would have expected. Nuanced depictions of race, gender, and sexuality in Regency England were a pleasant surprise.

If you loved Bridgerton the show, but felt the books were a bit dull, then Reputation is for you! Funny and fun, this is a delightful romp through regency England. Georgiana's life goes for a spin when she meets Frances, and she'll learn if one's reputations really is everything.

I think the thing I loved most about Reputation by Lex Croucher is that at many times, it is pure hilarity. I can't even remember the last time I laughed during a book so much, and I have to say Croucher clearly knows how to write my kind of humor. But this is more than a funny story as it has plenty of substance as well, and if I didn't know this was a debut, I would NEVER have known by reading it. The author mentions in the acknowledgments that she thought it was important to give different communities in Britain's history a place in this book and I think she succeeded. I loved that there is a queer spin to the novel, and I don't know if that's what I would have expected just looking at the cover. While it did make me laugh almost nonstop, it was not really a "light" read per se, and Croucher also touches on slave trade as well as other deeper topics that I wasn't expecting either. There is some romance of course but this is just so much more than that and I can't just call this a straight-up romance or rom-com.

Georgiana is the only viewpoint in the story, and I had really mixed feelings about her. I know why the blurb mentions the movie Mean Girls now, because some of these characters, Georgiana included, have a definite mean streak. It was interesting to see how she evolves during the story though, and by the end, I was happy that she came to her senses. She had a sad life, and I can understand some of her choices to an extent, but I always love when characters grow in a book as opposed to staying stagnant and not learning anything. I would be remiss not to also mention how lovely the audiobook for Reputation is, and I adored listening to Bessie Carter narrate. If you prefer to listen to books, I would definitely recommend the audio of this one, and I think it also hit me a bit differently because of it. It’s really hard to explain exactly what you’re going to get if you pick this up, but I enjoyed the theme of young women finding their place in society and with each other, and if you are even remotely interested in what I’ve motioned I think it is worth a read!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Unfortunately this book missed the mark for me. I wasn't able to finish it because I wasn't grabbed by the plot or the characters. (I stopped reading within the first quarter of the book.)

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC

I went into this book with really high hopes that it would be similar to the tv show Bridgerton. It definitely reminded me a lot of the show as it takes place around the same time period. When I first started reading the book I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy it because I wasn't getting much out of the first few chapters. After continuing the book it actually made me laugh a couple times and I got really attached to Georgiana our main character. Fair warning that sexual assault does play a part in the book as well as a hint of domestic abuse.

This book was such fun! Gossip Girl meets Jane Austen -- what a great combination! I cannot wait to read more from this author in the future!

3.5 stars

At first I wasn't really interested, it just didn't grab me but as the story went on and I was absorbed in the regency era I really enjoyed it my time with it. I do love the drama and would a continuation of the story.

Thank you to Netgalley and publishers for an e-arc for a honest review.

I read 30% of this book and decided not to finish. I was bored and not intrigued by any of the characters enough to continue

I absolutely loved the premise of this book but was unable to get into it. I was hoping for more character development. Overall, Reputation just wasn’t for me.

The premise of this book was exciting to me, but alas, I could not really get into it. I typically really make a strong effort to finish ARCs, but after many months of shelving this one, I am finally giving up. I'm positive there are people out there who will love this, it just was not for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Delightful!

I'd give this book 10 stars if I could, it was delicious and perfect and hard to put down. I loved the humor and I loved the characters. Big fan, highly recommend, and I look forward to other books by this author.

I love, love, love Pride and Prejudice and I really wanted to feel the same way about this book, but I really couldn't. I can totally see how other people could get on board with this, because it's a fun story that does have strong Mean Girls vibes. However, I found Georgina to be an incredibly unlikable main character that I had a hard time rooting for.

Reputation is a Regency Era Romantic Comedy with an interesting cast of characters involved in drinking, lazing around, and disappointing their parents. Georgiana, left with her aunt and uncle while her parents travel, meets Francis, queen of the clique, at a party she attends with her aunt. They quickly become friends, until slowly Georgiana realizes these aren’t the best friends to have. For a debut, I liked this just fine, but it had some parts that dragged and lost my interest a bit. I didn’t love any of the chapters much and feel they could have been a little more developed.

This book was everything I wanted it to be. It had me turned pages without even realizing. It was so good!

I enjoyed this unusual historical romance with its diverse characters. It depicted the not-so-proper side of society that you don't usually see in these novels. The main character, Georgiana, grows a lot in self awareness. This is a novel I would highly recommend to readers who enjoy this genre.

I liked the premise of the book. I struggled with it and picked it up several times. I think I may have just read too many like this at the time. It is well written!

This was a DNF for me sadly. It reminded me of a "bad" review I read of Pride and Prejudice that said it was literally just people going to parties and talking a lot. This was pretty much the same, but with a gratuitous F/F scene and an unexpected sexual assault.

It’s a DNF for me dawg.

I started this one and only got 3 chapters in so yes I know not really giving it a fair shot but life’s short.

I just was soooooooo bored. I thought this was a romance but it was just Georgina going on and on about how bored she was and trying to make this girl her new bestie. But that’s every single thought for the first three chapters. I just couldn’t take it.

The short attention span really popped off here 🤣

This was a really fun, quick read for anyone who likes Jane Austen, Bridgerton, and the Regency Era. I think it's a YA novel, and if it's not, it's appropriate for older teenaged readers.

There were quite a few darker themes, but overall, the story is light and humorous. Croucher manages to set a story in the Regency Era, but still make it feel current and relevant, which I think is a gift. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys Austen novels and a whole lot of scandal.

This delightful regency romp is Mean Girls meets Austen. Georgiana is such a fun and interesting protagonist to root for (she's clearly inspired at least in part by Harriet Smith, but much more compelling), and I genuinely laughed out loud while following along with her adventures. Very much in the historic style of Bridgerton, so purists need not bother, but if you're not nitpicking for accuracy, the regency setting makes a delightful backdrop for social politics and young adult antics.