Bad Girl Reputation follows the other Hartley brother and his on again off again love Genevieve. Genevieve left Avalon Bay a year ago without telling anyone and is now back in town. I thought this would be a great second chance romance but I just felt bored. I’m not sure if it was the story line or the characters but it wasn’t clicking for me. That being said, if you like small town, second chance new adult romances then maybe this is the book for you!

4.5 stars

This is the second book in the Avalon Bay series but can be read as a stand-alone. This book was such a fun read with a lot of chemistry, personal growth and a happy ever after.

Gen and Evan were tethered together. No amount of time or distance could sever their connection. Sure they were like gasoline and a match. Always looking for the next high and to hell with the consequences.

Gen left Avalon Bay for that reason and made it a quick departure when she did. Now returning after a year away, can she withstand the pull to reconnect with Evan?

Evan wants nothing more than to reconnect with Gen. Her leaving left a hole in his heart. One that he is determined to fill by becoming the man Gen needs.

Can Evan and Gen make it work without leaving destruction in their wake? Grab your copy of Bad Girl Reputation today and find out.

Honestly I like the Avalon Bay series so far.

This book was a pretty easy read during my break from Outlander. It was quick enough to read in a couple of days and just shut my mind off. Can’t wait until the third!

After a disappointing first book in this series, Bad Girl Reputation won me over. This was an emotional roller coaster that I did not want to end. The chemistry was off the charts between Evan and Genevieve!

Gen West had to get away to save herself. She was spiraling and felt there was no one she could lean on. Now her mother has died and she is back home. Her father has asked her to work in the office till it gets on track. She knows she will run into Evan Hartley, the only guy who ever understood her. He was her first and only love. Only Evan has failed to grow up. She can't do that anymore. It seems that Evan has taken her words to heart. It isn't until he becomes a big brother, that he finds his calling. The one police officer is not going to let that go. It isn't until Gen's dad and her brothers get involved, that the situation gets resolved. Love is finally declared. Being good is ok but you still need to have a little fun.

Really got into these characters. I loved the characters that you get to know earlier in the series and this one doesn't disappoint either. You understand and are invested in the various perspectives and honestly I couldn't put this book down.

This was a quick, fun read. I loved that this book was about second chances. I was so glad this book had duel pov between the two main characters.

My con is that I didn’t really connect to the characters and therefore, wasn’t completely invested in the story.

You don’t need to have read the first one to understand this one, so I would say give this one a chance even if the first book doesn’t interest you.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC.

After a year away, Gen returns home when her mother passes away. She needs to keep her visit short. She doesn't want to revert to her old party ways. The short visit is extended when her dad asks her to stay and help with the family business. Her biggest downfall when him? Her ex-boyfriend Evan. Their just bad for each other and she worries she won't say no. She also wants to avoid the crooked deputy who just wants to get even. Can she avoid the deputy? Can she stay away from Evan long enough to help her dad and not revert to her old days?

This was a quick, cute read that had you rooting for Evan from the beginning!

First off I'd like to thank Netgalley, and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of Bad Girl's Reputation!
When Genevieve's mom passes away she makes her way back to her small hometown to say her goodbyes. Having to stay in town longer then intended to help her dad, and brothers run the family business, Evan her long time ex- boyfriend keeps popping up in hopes of getting her back. Gen is trying hard to change her ways, giving up partying and trying to stay away from bad boys.

I loved Evan and Gen's push pull relationship. I laughed out loud at times at their bantering. I loved Evan's determination to win Gen back. The ending was perfection! I jumped into this without reading the first in this series, and thought I probably should read it first but once I started I couldn't stop! Whoops guess I have to get Good Girl Complex now!

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC. This book was so fun. I really enjoyed it. This book kept me interested and i enjoyed the book and this genre

Genevieve West has a bad reputation. She has a history of causing trouble, partying a little too hard, and making a scene wherever she goes. Her on-again, off-again history with Evan Hartley was well known around Avalon Bay, until she suddenly left town without saying goodbye. Gen is back in her hometown a year after leaving for her mother’s funeral, and after a passion filled reunion with Evan, she is determined to ditch her former reputation and pursue a better life. Evan is convinced that he and Gen are meant to be, even if she denies it, and decides to convince her to take another shot on their relationship. This steamy second-chance romance is angsty, filled with passion, and focuses as much on the characters individual development as it does their relationship!

They didn’t always make rational choices or communicate all that well, but I loved Evan and Gen’s second-chance at love! I thought the first book in this series was ok, but much preferred this one! It could easily be read as a standalone, and was a very fast and fun weekend read. I might not remember the finer points of the story a few weeks from now, but I did enjoy it and would recommend this romance!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and the author for the opportunity to read and review this book!

First of all, thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC. I'm a fan of all things Elle Kennedy and it was very exciting for me to be able to get my hands on the book prior to its publish date.

I usually LOVE Elle Kennedy books, her books usually have interesting dynamics, lively stories and characters that are.... engaging.
So I'm not really sure what happened here. I read Book1 to this series and it was 'good, fine, read it'. But I struggled so much with Bad Girl Reputation. Maybe it's me.... maybe I'm just not into reading characters with a history of being toxic to each other and like, not in a 'sexy way'. I usually shut my brain down enough to just absorb storylines 'as is' and don't really 'feel it, judge it, question it'.

I won't spoil this too much and get too deep into the specifics, but the 'bad thing that happened at like 80% of the book' was... ridiculous? And how it sorted itself out was also... a stretch? 'Dad's poker buddy with the boss, so he can try help smooth this out' is ... I don't know, a cop out? (no pun intended).

It pains me that I didn't enjoy this read.

This small town second chance romance is a second book and a continuation with familiar characters. While it does deal with some heavier topics, there are some light and funny moments also. These characters are flawed but know it and are trying to improve themselves and they will have you rooting for them to figure it all out.

Bad Girl Reputation by Elle Kennedy was another home run! I love this author and will read anything she writes. For this book, it was the follow up from Good Girl Complex. Bad Girl Reputation is a second chance romance about Genevieve and Evan who were in a somewhat toxic and tumultuous relationship in high school that ended when Genevieve left town suddenly without saying goodbye. She has now returned for her mother's funeral and is staying to help her father manage the family business, all while trying to not get sucked into the bad habits from her past.
I love this story and the concept. Another great series from Elle Kennedy!

Thank you St. Martin’s Press & Netgalley for an eARC of Bad Girl Reputation by Elle Kennedy. This was my first book by this author and I am looking forward to reading more by her.

Former bad girl Genevieve West returns home for her mother’s funeral and is doing her best to keep her distance from her ex boyfriend, Evan Hartley. While their relationship is full of passion, they always seem to get in trouble with one another. She finds it harder than she thought to keep her distance, but this time around she wants to do things differently. No more partying and trouble, she plans on getting out of town as soon as she’s done helping her dad with the family business. Evan, however, has other ideas…

This book reminded me a bit of Outer Banks as a setting. The chemistry between Gen and Evan is constantly sizzling - These two can’t keep their hands off of each other. Imagine keeping your distance from that?? The storyline goes quickly and you can feel Kennedy setting up for another in this series, I need to go back and read Good Girl Complex which is the one that came before this!

After her mom dies, Gen returns to the home she abruptly left behind a year ago. Leaving was the only way she could get away from her own bad habits and reputation to turn her life around. But when her father asks her to stay and help out, she also has to deal with Evan Hartley, the man she left behind.

Evan Hartley is a proverbial bad boy, not afraid to mix it up when he feels like it. But his soft spot for Gen could get them both in trouble. He's still nursing wounds from her leaving the last time, but he can't stay away from her. He loves her. I just adored his character -- he has such a good heart, but he's not a pushover by any means. He loves his twin brother fiercely but they can get into it, and he's drawn to Gen like no other woman. He's a sexy beast in love, and that makes for swoony material for sure.

But Gen's put a lot of effort into ditching her bad girl reputation and she doesn't want to backslide. I adored her for her resolve to grow up and put her bad ways behind her.She left at that proverbial moment when she knew if she didn't change now it was going to get ugly for her and she is committed to her new life.

I loved these two together. They are hot, hot, hot and it's not just sex. There's a level of caring between them that is so natural, they almost miss what they have together. The back and forth between them as they figure out their relationship was portrayed in what I thought was a realistic manner. And Evan ripped out my heart perfectly for Gen to put back together as these lovebirds finally figure out what's important. This ending rocks for sure.

I did like what this story said about family, especially estranged family members. The story of the twins and their mother was particularly touching and it didn't skirt the issue that it's just darn hard to get over these sorts of familial issues. And when Gen gets information from her Dad about her mother that causes her to see her mom in a new light -- that was a truly beautiful moment in this book.

There were many lovely moments in Bad Girl Reputation. I appreciated how Gen wasn't put down for wanting to have some fun, and that she recognized herself that her path wasn't a good one.

Bad Girl Reputation is a sweet second-chance romance between two long time friends and lovers. It left me feeling good. This is what romance is about!

This was a good easy to read rom com. The main mcs I think played their roles well and had pretty good chemistry. It was a great build of their relationship. Of course it had your typical rom com cliches but they worked. If you love Elle Kennedy and a good, fun rom com this is for you.

This book was a fun follow up to Good Girl Complex! It was a fun time for sure, and very easy to get into. I did also really enjoy the relationship between Genevieve and Evan even though their dynamics were definitely more angsty and explosive than other romances I've read!

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

I'll be honest, the first couple of chapters had me worried. I wasn't sure about the main characters and was concerned that the book would show an incredibly toxic relationship. Thankfully, we got a redemption arc while maintaining some fire and vim.

This is a second-chance romance, and I am here for it. Gen is uncertain at first but gains confidence as the story continues. And Evan is a bad boy with a rough exterior and a gooey center just for Gen (swoon!).

I didn't read the first book in this series (going to remedy that), but it didn't affect my enjoyment of this book.

Bad Girl Reputation is a second chance romance about Genevieve and Evan who were in a somewhat toxic and tumultuous relationship in high school that ended when Genevieve left town suddenly without saying goodbye. She has now returned for her mother's funeral and is staying to help her father manage the family business, all while trying to not get sucked into the bad habits from her past.

Genevieve and Evan continued a bit of their back and forth toxic pattern throughout a portion of this story until they both worked on themselves so they could be healthier and in a better place to pursue a relationship. On the whole I liked Genevieve and Evan together once they were in a better place. I really liked the work Evan did on himself and the relationship he had with Riley.

Overall I found this story to be engaging and interesting and I enjoyed it a lot more than the first book in the series. There were still some parts that needed further development or things that were left unanswered, but overall it was an enjoyable read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.