This was the first Elle Kennedy book I’ve read, though I own several and have been meaning to read them forever. I think I would have enjoyed this one a lot more if I’d read the first in the series, Good Girl Complex, before this one. It would have given an introduction to the characters and more background on everything. I felt like I was missing a lot.

There was quite a bit going on in this story, and I’m not totally sure if I liked all of it. There was a love triangle, and the main characters (not to mention a few of the parent-child relationships), were extremely toxic together. Not sure they should have been together, especially with everything they put each other through.

I’m still digesting everything, but with all of the toxicity in the story, I’m having a hard time determining if I liked it and enjoyed it or not, and if I can recommend it. The writing was good, but the storyline was something else! I give it 3.5-stars and round it up to 4 for quality writing and great narration (on the audio version), but for story, the rating is brought down.

I received an advance review copy from NetGalley, St. Martin's Press (St. Martin's Griffin), and this is my honest feedback.

I had a hard time getting into the book, I'm not sure if it was evans character or not being able to gen. While it was hard I appreciated gen and Evan being able to have a second chance and getting their acts together I expected a bit more of the bad sad present vs in the past and talking about it. While I might not have enjoyed it I know others will especially with the second chance romance

I really wanted to love this one. I gave the first book, Good Girl Complex, three stars. As a reader in her early 30’s, I think part of the reason I’m giving these books lower ratings is that I don’t feel connected to the main characters. They are suppose to be early 20’s but act like they are in high school. The toxic relationship between Gen and Evan was hard to get past. I love a second chance romance though, and I appreciated that they were trying to get better. It would have been better if they were trying to get better for themselves instead of for each other.

I love the small, beach town vibes and the large friend group. The emphasis on forgiveness and redemption and found family. The cop storyline was done poorly in my opinion.

Thank you SMP and NG for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I wanted to love this book so much!! Unfortunately I had such a hard time getting into it and actually found myself not wanting to finish. I liked Good Girl Complex so Bad Girl Reputation was one of my most anticipated reads of this year but I didn’t connect with either of the main characters. I also wasn’t blown away with the second chance/toxic relationship tropes going on throughout most of the book. If you want an easy read, go for it, but I personally wasn’t invested in the storyline.

Thanks to netgalley for the e-arc!

Solidly fine. This series doesn't have the addicting quality that her earlier books do, but they're definitely still fun, turn off your brain kind of reads. If you like Elle Kennedy, you'll like this book.

Bad Girl Reputation by Elle Kennedy

This one is book #2 in the Avalon Bay series following Good Girl Complex! We fell in love with Mac and Cooper in the first one! And we got to know a little bit about Cooper’s twin Evan! Bad Girl Reputation picks up right where book #1 left off and follows bad boy Evan Hartley and his bad girl ex Genevieve. She’s back in town for her mother’s funeral after leaving town without telling a soul, not even Evan. Are these two baddies destined to stay away from one another or will they change their ways forever and fall in love again?

Anyone who knows the Off Campus and Briar U series knows about Elle Kennedy’s amazing writing! She does romance so well!! I really love the small town beach setting that these stories have. I loved that this second one tied so much into the first one, we got to see so much Mac and Cooper and other characters from the first one! I definitely recommend this series if you’re a fan of second chance romance (psssst: that’s one of my favs)!

A HUGE thank you to @netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for a copy of this ARC!!

🌟🌟🌟🌟/5 stars for me!

I received this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

How dreamy!

Can I tell you how much I really love this series? Seriously, Elle Kennedy is such a wonderful writer. At first I wasn't sure if I was going to like Genevieve (Gen) and Evan, but after a few chapters they really won me over, especially with how relatable they are. Their story is all about forgiveness, healing, and second chances. Gen and Evan fit together so perfectly together, I honestly couldn't see them with anyone else. No matter how hard they tried to be. I had the pleasure of listening to this on audio and both Lee Samuels and Summer Morton did a fabulous job bringing these characters to life. I seriously love listening to books on audio because it brings everything about the story even more to life and really creates a vivid movie or show in my head. This series is one should absolutely pick up if you're looking for a small town, second chance romance, with relatable characters that are truly captivating!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was a sweet second chance story as we see what harkens when the party girl and the bad boy grow up. Gen and Evan are lifelong friends and sweethearts but when something happens to Gen that she’s keeping from everyone, she leaves then without a word for a year and leaves her friends and boyfriend behind. Now her mother had passed and she’s forced back home into her old town and has to face the consequences of leaving so abruptly. She’s the party girl trying to reform and Evan is the bad boy who will always get Gen to do whatever he asks, they hold such power over each other. Now Evan wants to win her back. They have to grow together… or apart to figure out if they really are the true soulmates they always thought they were. I liked this story a lot and I liked watching Gen and Evan both grow as young adults in a small town. Working through their issues and realizing what they needed to do to be good for each other. Very sweet second chance romance.

They say bad girls have more fun and that certainly holds true for Genevieve...until it doesn't. Gen must now decide how she wants the rest of her life to go. For sure, Evan, who hasn't really changed since his teens, can no longer be a part of her future. While the chemistry is off the charts, falling down the rabbit hole of partying and her former wild ways must be off the table. But...is it possible to find a happy medium? Both Evan and Gen will need to grow up if they want any chance at a future together. There are other stories lingering in the background that I hope we will hear more about in the future.

T hanks to NetGalley for this ARC. I’m a day late but Happy Pub day to this book!

Gen and Evan were reckless and adventurous, they were on and off again since they were little. Now that they’re older Gen knows it’s time to grow up, it takes Evan a bit longer to realize that. Until he knows that being with Gen is so important he’s willing to make some changes in his life.

I have mixed feelings about this book. It was fun! It was also annoying. Lol Gen was not my favorite but Evan? He had great character development! This was more of a 3.5 star read for me, rounding up to 4. I enjoyed it but didn’t love it. I think it would have been better if I could see Gen actually go through her “crazy” adventures. I think that’s why I really enjoyed Evans POV.

I still would recommend this book!

Bad Girl Reputation
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Genre: Romance
Format: Kindle eBook and Audiobook
Date Published: 10/4/22
Author: Elle Kennedy
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio
Narrators: Lee Samuels; Summer Morton
GR: 3.69

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: When former bad girl Genevieve West returns home for her mother’s funeral, she’s prepared to keep her distance from her ex-boyfriend, Evan Hartley. Their history is rife with turbulence and passion. No more partying. No more foolish mistakes. Her plan is to temporarily remain in town to help her father run his business, but the second he finds somebody else, she’s out of there. Evan has other ideas. He knows they can be good together, but he just has to convince Genevieve of that, even if it means turning over a new leaf himself. But can a bad reputation ever truly be shed? Do second chances really work?

My Thoughts: This was such a heartfelt book. This is book no. 2 in the Avalon Bay series, with Good Girl Complex being the first one. I have not read Good Girl Complex yet, but will be listening to it on Scribd very soon. I love this series! Gen used to be a bad girl, when she moved away for a year, she really cleaned up her life. While Evan has a stable life, he still appears to be a bad boy. They are like oil and water or peanut butter and jelly. The chemistry and attraction was on fire. The characters were well developed with depth, witty banter, chemistry, and just so well done. The author’s writing style was complex, humorous, passionate, heartfelt, intriguing, and kept me engaged. This book releases today and I highly recommend picking up.

Though this is a sequel it’s also a stand alone. Was a great end of summer read, great second chance romance full of angst and drama!

Loved this book! An escape to Avalon Bay was exactly the chill vibe I needed after a few angsty reads lately!

Evan and Gen are a trope I haven’t actually read before- bad boy and bad girl! So that was different and refreshing.

Overall a fun, easy read with lol moments!

Book Review
Bad Girl Reputation by Elle Kennedy

This is the second book in the Avalon Bay series. This book follows Coopers twin brother Evan and his ex Genevieve. Genevieve left town the year prior to this book without telling anyone, including her on again off again boyfriend Evan. The two have an explosive relationship since they were young. They would drink a lot and get into all sorts of trouble. When something happens, Gen decides she needs to get her life together and she decides to quit everything cold turkey, including Evan. She leaves town without telling anyone and starts a new life.

Gen returns to Avalon Bay for her mother's funeral and she intends to leave soon after. But her dad convinces her to stay to help with the family business. She decides she will just have to stay away from Evan, which proves much harder than she hoped. Can the girl with the bad reputation, continue on her straight path or will she fall into old habits with her ex boyfriend? Can good girl Gen convince Evan that he can also grow up and make better decisions?

I love Elle Kennedy books and I liked this second installment of the Avalon Bay. I really like the journey Gen was on to try and make better decisions and to live her life cleanly and how Evan tried his best to be the type of man she needed. Their attraction to each other was evident throughout the whole book and Elle added some steamy scenes and I don't think I would have been able to stay away from Evan. You could tell how much Evan loved Gen, and their growth throughout the book was great. Plus, you got to see a bit of Mack and Cooper.

Read this if you like:
*second chance romance
*second chances (in general)
*dual point of view
*small town

Thanks to NetGalley for ARC

I really enjoyed this book and getting to know both Evan and Genevieve.
Both are such complex characters and it was interesting watching them navigate who they were vs who they want to be.
I enjoyed how much Evan was in tune with his feelings and knew what he wanted.
I was proud of Gen for making sure she didn’t lose herself throughout the book.
Evan and Gen had immediate chemistry and I was happy everything worked out!

Another great read by this author. The perfect balance of romance, humor, and angst. I loved Cooper's book but Evan's really hooked me. Evan and Genevieve have so much to overcome and it's a heck of a journey. There's plenty of steam and equal amounts of sweetness. It's a fast paced romance that you won't want to miss.

Genevieve West and Evan Hartley wow what a messy relationship! From the angst go the drama this book kept you moving through the emotions the entire time , was good second book in the series . Enjoyed the ride to the hea with the couple ,

I loved Good Girl Complex, but was not in love with Bad Girl Reputation. I finished it and never thought not to finish, but I just didn't love it. The characters and storyline were never very engaging and I never found myself getting lost in the book. 
Genevieve returns home after her mother's funeral, she plans to avoid her ex-boyfriend Evan. Unfortunately for her, it is almost impossible to do. Despite all her plans to help her father run his business only, Evan has other ideas. He plans to remind Genevieve just how great they are together. Is there such thing as second chances?
Thank you Netgalley for my advanced reader copies

I was a little skeptical at first since I haven’t read the first book and there’s very mixed reviews about it, but I truly enjoyed this book!

In this second book we have Genevieve who comes back to town, after a year of being away, for her mothers funeral and sees her ex-boyfriend Evan. Evan and Gen had an exciting and toxic relationship in the past, they’ve been inseparable since they were young and always seemed to make bad decisions. But now that Gen is back, she has decided she does not want to be that type of person anymore and wants to change for the better, as well as her reputation in town. Evan is still unconditionally in love with Gen and wants to get back together with her, but Gen tells him she doesn’t want to go back to them doing bad decisions and being toxic to one another, so Evan decides he will also change for the better.

Gen is so funny and relatable, there were many times I would laugh out loud while reading the book, and I also liked seeing her progress to a better life and how she would prove it during several occasions. I did felt like the last few pages were a bit rushed, and I would’ve liked for it to be dragged out a bit more and see more of the new Gen and Evan.

POV- Dual
Spice: 🌶 🌶 🌶

I haven’t lost myself in an Elle Kennedy book in a long time and it feels so good to be back! This one had me in my feels with its small beachside town childhood friends to lovers and I will be thinking about Evan and Gen for a long time.

I love that these two characters are different than most, as both of them are “bad,” and that is refreshing especially for the FMC. They are pretty toxic for each other in the beginning and I definitely don’t agree with everything they did, but that’s what made them real and complex. It also made seeing them change for the better not only for themselves but to be better for each other that much more rewarding!

I didn’t read the first book, but I didn’t feel lost and it just made me want to make sure to get back to that one on my TBR even more! Bad Girl Reputation broke my heart a bit but it was put back together at the end with a beautiful epilogue that left me even more excited for the next book!