3.75 stars

LIKES:
📝 breezy, quick, fun writing
🏖 set in a beach tourist town!
👥 multi-pov (Gen & Evan)
🏍 Gen is a bad girl with a past
⛹️‍♂️ Evan is a play boy from a troubled family
💞 second-chance romance (4/5 steam)
🗣 lots of flirty banter
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 explores complex family dynamics
🚔 + examination of police behavior
💊 + sobriety
🎭 full of new adult drama!
•
DISCLAIMERS:
⚠️ DM me for TW!
🧀 a bit cheesy at times
🏊‍♀️ wanted a bit more depth
🍼 very new adult (may feel immature!)
•
VERDICT: a banter-filled, beachy second-chance romance between a bad girl & a play boy with a past - explores some deeper themes like sobriety & complex family dynamics but wanted a big more depth & maturity!

“Bad Girl Reputation” by Elle Kennedy
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release Date: 10/4
Genre: Contemporary Romance


Thank you Netgalley for this ARC! I read the first book in the series, so I figured I should give this one a try. I really enjoyed it. While I think the first is slightly better I would still recommend both. There are a couple spicy scenes.

Genevieve West hasn’t been back to Avalon Bay in a year, but then her mom passes away. She’s back for the funeral but plans on leaving as soon as possible that is until her dad asks her to stay for a while and help with the business. The one thing she wanted was to forgo her bad girl reputation which means not getting involved with her ex Evan.

•• Evan and Genevieve ••

☆☆☆☆

Bad Girl Reputation by Elle Kennedy
Book 2 : Avalon Bay

After reading Good Girl Complex, I was excited to head back to Avalon Bay for twin brother Evan and find out his story with Gen! I was pleasantly surprised but slightly disappointed.

I honestly got so frustrated at the beginning and was a little over Evan’s “I need to punch someone” phase. But when he started the big brother program was when I got hooked. I was so happy with the turn around and loved the rest of the story.

I enjoyed watching them grow together and find their way back to each other. I absolutely love second chance romance!

Thank you NetGalley for an early copy of this book! Available now - happy reading y’all!!🫶🏻

I loved this book. It is the second book in the series, but I didn't feel lost reading it as a standalone. I loved Gen! I was taken aback at first by her boldness but after a short while I admired it. Gen is a young woman who stands securely on her own two feet and makes her own decisions, good or bad. She left her home town to avoid a dangerous enemy and also to straighten herself out. She had been in a long time relationship with Evan (one of the town's bad boys), and the two of them had broken almost every law, got caught for a few of them, and she had realized that she needed to reform and she couldn't do it around Evan. She just couldn't resist him. And Evan can't resist her, but he has to convince her that the two of them could be together and not burn down their lives.

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a great contemporary romance with characters who work for a living, live in small towns, and who aren't perfect.

I received a copy of this book from publisher St. Martin's Press via NetGalley. It was a pleasure to read and review this book.

I did not like the first book and I did not like this one too.... I think for me I did not really get the full detail of the plot like the depth in the plot wasn't enough for me and the character development went nowhere....

The characters act their age and while it may not be for some readers you have to know going in that it's going to read more NA. It's a quick, fun read that pulled me in! I've really enjoyed this series thus far and these two were no exception!

Know what I love more than a second chance romance? A second chance romance written by Elle Kennedy. *dreamy sigh*

I have been eagerly anticipating the story of the other Hartley brother ever since I greedily devoured Good Girl Complex. As much as I loved Carter, I couldn’t wait to get to the heart of the more reckless twin, and boy did he deliver.

Ever since Evan was old enough to notice girls, the only one he noticed was Genevieve. And growing up, these two were like fire and gasoline. Their toxic back and forth only fueled by the undeniable chemistry between them and their reckless behavior. So much so that everyone knew their reputation in high school. Evan, the heartbreakingly handsome bad boy, and Gen, the stunning bad girl who caused havoc together until the day Gen suddenly left town without so much as a goodbye. Now she’s back for her mother’s funeral, and Evan is like a moth to a flame.

But Gen is no longer the reckless bad girl who left the small town. She’s grown up, she’s changed, or at least she’s working on it. But tough to prove yourself in a town that remembers you at your worst and an ex that you can’t seem to stay away from.

We don’t get enough bad girls in romance, and Gen is one FMC I could really get behind. I love a good redemption arc, and this is a girl that hit a low and now working on bringing herself up and staying away from her triggers, like her reckless ex. But chemistry like theirs is impossible to ignore.

I can’t place my finger on exactly why, but I didn’t quite devour this one as quickly as I did book one. And while I really enjoyed it, it still took me 4 days to finish. There was nothing specific either, I just didn’t get as enraptured in this story as I did the previous one. Did I enjoy it? Absolutely! Did I adore Gen and Evan together? Without a doubt. Do I recommend this for fans of steamy second chance with a bad boy and reformed bad girl? YES. I really loved Evan’s growth in this story as much as I did Gen’s. And while I can’t say it was my favorite, it was still a super satisfying fun read and I can’t wait for more in this series

"𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘺𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘌𝘷𝘢𝘯'𝘴 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘦: 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥, 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘐 𝘢𝘮. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘪𝘵, 𝘐'𝘮 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦. 𝘛𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘕𝘰𝘵 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘦'𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥."

𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖: Gen returns to Avalon Bay to attend her mother’s funeral. When she comes home she tries to avoid her ex-boyfriend, Evan, at all costs. Evan spends his time proving to Gen that they are meant to be together.

THOUGHTS: Overall, I really enjoyed this. I think my favorite part about it was how much growth we saw from Gen between her behavior in the first book and how much she was working on herself in the second book. I also really enjoyed what Evan was doing as well – being a big brother to Riley. Also, the chemistry between Gen and Evan is extremely undeniable which I loved. I was a litttttle bit annoyed with some of the behavior from the characters in this one, but overall it was a nice second chance romance.

I enjoyed this one a little bit more than the first .It has some of my favorite tropes second chance, childhood friends to lovers, small town romance.

Th bond between them was incredible, I mean you could feel everything the tension, the love the feelings were over the place.

I can't wait for more books in this world if it's possible!

I'm thinking Elle Kennedy just might not be the author for me. I didn't love this one and the romance felt a little lack luster and a little toxic. Sadly I wanted to love this but didn't

Bad Girl Reputation may be for you if you love small towns, second chance romance, childhood friends to lovers and dual POVs.
Genevieve returns to Avalon Bay after the death of her mother. It’s a small town, so she quickly crosses paths with her on-and-off again childhood friend/love, Evan.
I struggled with this one, because it revolves around a lot of miscommunication, and in my opinion, unnecessary and immature drama. Gen and Evan obviously have chemistry but there was a lot of toxicity in their relationship. I did like Gen and felt that she was trying to grow and change her life (reputation). I wasn’t the biggest fan of Evan, hearing his POV was often painful and immature. I liked the Big Brother storyline but otherwise I am not sure how he really grew? He never seemed to actually listen to Gen or respect her boundaries. By the end, it felt like he was taking the steps she asked for in the beginning.
This is my first book by Elle Kennedy and I read this series out of order. Reading the other reviews it sounds like I would have had more background on Evan if I had read the first book, which may have helped. Overall, I liked the writing style, I just wasn’t a fan of this particular storyline.
Thank you St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest feedback.
3.5 stars
I am going to be honest here: I did not read the first book in this series (though I think I will now). BUT I don’t think I lost much context by reading this book first.

It was actually an easy, relaxing read. With that being said, I didn’t find myself investing too much into the characters. While they did seem petty and childish at times, they eventually found a little growth. NOW.. the attraction between Genevieve and Evan is FIERCE and made this book well worth the read!

I love Elle Kennedy's books and was so excited to dive back into the world of Avalon Bay. Gen and Evan are childhood friends to lovers to second chance romance. You can feel the push and pull tension between these 2 characters throughout the book while they struggle with their own demons. I loved that we got to see Mac and Coop throughout the book as well. I nearly died when Evan said that he could prove that Mac can weirdly tell them apart.

4 stars.

I made sure to read Good Girl Complex before I read this one, and I'm sooo glad I did. I originally thought this was a standalone, but everything made a lot more sense if I read the first one. That being said, I was excited to read Evan's story after book one but in book two.. he was just.. not what I imagined him to be at all. I feel like he was a completely different character in GGC so it threw me off. I liked Gen and Evan as individuals but could not stand the constant push and pull, it was almost dragging and made me turn away at some points.

3.5⭐️ rounded up!

I really liked Good Girl Complex (the first book in the Avalon Bay series) and Bad Girl Reputation was even better for me. There were definitely some less than stellar components of the book, but as an easy romance read I did enjoy it.

Genevieve and Evan have an off-on relationship, that came to a sudden close after Genevieve left town for a year and cut all contact. After coming back for her mother's funeral, and staying to help her dad with the business, she is determined to continue being the "new" and clean Genevieve. Evan is desperate to win her back, and the novel follows the two of them struggling to figure out whether they can make it work, or should even try to be together again.

Gen and Evan do have a pretty toxic relationship, at times trying to make the other jealous, knowing this will get a rise or reaction out of the other. For me this worked and I loved it, but I can imagine other readers might feel very differently. Other negative points could be how they were also quite immature, and that the end conflict gave me whiplash. And not a good whiplash, but a "that doesn't make any sense" kind of whiplash.

Besides this, I loved the moments between the two, and all of their tension. While a lot of the focus did seem to fall on their sexual attraction to the other, I also believed they really did care about each other. Their history contributed to them really understanding and knowing each other well, which was really sweet.

The side characters, while not in the spotlight, were enjoyable. We got to see a bit of Mac and Cooper, and there was some character development all around. The book also mentioned some heavier topics, so while I don't remember everything, I would encourage looking up any triggers.

Will definitely be buying a copy for myself, I love these covers so much!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC!

Sidenote: I really wish I had posted my review before the release date, but unfortunately school got in the way. Happy release to Elle Kennedy, I'm excited for the third book!

If you've read Good Girl Complex you'll know that Genevieve West has a reputation. However, she's trying to turn her life around and make better choices.

That's easier said than done when she returns to Avalon Bay and sees Evan Hartley, her ex boyfriend.

Despite numerous temptations, Genevieve works hard and with self discipline, proves her mettle.

I really enjoyed our FMC, giving those who doubted her, the proverbial middle finger. I hated some of the issues she had to deal with and I'm sure I'm not alone in my utter dislike for those who abused their power.

Although I've read GGC it's not necessary to ensure the enjoyment and understanding of BGR but it offers some background to issues which are present in both books.

All in all a nice addition to this new series by a well loved author.

Took me a hot minute to get into this book but once I gave it a couple of chapters, WOW!!! Bad Girl Reputation has earned a solid four stars from yours truly haha!

Bad Girl Reputation follows the story of Genevieve and Evan, who have a complicated history together as they have been going out on and off since middle school. When Gen returns to Avalon Bay for her mom’s funeral, she reunites with Evan. Is their romance actually toxic for each other, or are they truly the only ones who understand one another?

Bad Girl Reputation is the second book in the Avalon Bay series (Good Girl Complex being book 1), but it can totally be read as a stand-alone. And if you are a fan of dual POV, new adult spice, small town, second chance romance, you'll probably love Bad Girl Reputation too :)

Thank you so much NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Elle Kennedy for the advanced copy of this book! Bad Girl Reputation is out TODAY!!!!

Gen doesn't have the greatest reputation in her hometown. When she was younger, she lived up to her bad girl reputation and then some, but she has since moved away and started a new life for herself. When she comes home for her mother's funeral, she worries that all the good she has done will be down the tubes, especially when her former partner in crime, Evan, storms back into her life.

I haven't met an Elle Kennedy book I haven't loved. Gen and Evan trying to rekindle their passionate relationship but without enabling each other into their past poor behaviors was an amazing read. Anyone who comes from a small town where everyone knows each other business can relate to this.

Not only did I find the plot though-provoking, but Gen and Evan's chemistry together is off the charts hot, not to mention their amazing banter. I loved every moment of it, and now will not-so-patiently wait for the next adventure in Avalon Bay!

Thank you to St Martin's Press for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Ok first of all, this narrator was great! I have really enjoyed all of the books that I have read by her, and this one was no different! I am always down for a good second chance romance, so this one had me sold from the very beginning. I also loved the small town setting. I will say the miscommunication trope was a little heavy for my taste, but still an enjoyable read.

I didn’t hate this book. But I didn’t love it either.

I’ve read other books by Elle Kennedy that I definitely thought were better. To me, this was lacking something. I can’t put my finger on what it is, but I definitely feel like it was lacking in some area. It was a bit boring in parts and the jealousy issues seemed super childish and annoying.

However, there were things I like about it, too. I liked the chemistry between the characters and their little banter they had going on. I really liked Gen’s dad. He seemed so genuine and understanding of his kids. I also liked the side characters and hope to read about them in the next book of this series.

This is a second chance trope which isn’t one of my faves. That may play into my overall rating of the book!