I really enjoyed this book! I was already intrigued by our hero, Evan, and elusive heroine, Genevieve, from pieces of them we got in Good Girl Complex. I was so ready to hear their story! Returning to Avalon Bay was such a trip. Elle Kennedy has created a world and characters that are so relatable and interesting. I appreciated the issues Evan and Gen faced, along with some of the problems our returning characters are still dealing with. The look into this couple's relationship and how they've coped (or not coped) with their issues was so very real to me. This couple has been together from a very young age and struggled with how to grow in their relationship while they're growing up. From the glimpses of their past we get, it's obvious that Evan and Gen are very much in love but also in a toxic relationship. I loved Elle Kennedy's way of showing how passionate and in love this couple was but also how volatile they could be. How easy it was for them to slip into past habits or fighting, drinking, and getting what they wanted from the other by means of jealousy. I resonated with Gen and her reasons for leaving town. Hitting her rock bottom as a party girl and not wanting to deal with the fallout or embarrassment of her situation, when she wasn't wholly at fault. I liked seeing her growth which pushed Evan to want to be better as well. I loved Evan's relationship with Riley and how he was a positive influence in a teenager's life, when at times he felt like he was only good for partying or starting trouble. I appreciated the dynamic with Harrison and the mostly mature way it was resolved. I liked that it didn't result in a full on blow out, which was what I was kind of expecting as another one of our couple's conflicts. I also enjoyed reading about Evan's evolving relationship with his mom and giving her another chance. Realizing that people are capable of change, no matter their age. My only complaint is that I wanted more of Evan and Gen once they finally got together as a couple. I wanted more than the dinner scene as the epilogue with their family. It was a nice ending, but I found myself wanting more of them and feeling like it wasn't enough after everything they had been through.

After the death of her mother, Genevieve West returns to her hometown and agrees to temporarily stay to help out her dad. She now has to face her ex-boyfriend Evan who she ghost a year ago when she suddenly left town needed to escape from her lifestyle of partying, excessive drinking and their tumultuous on again off again relationship. Although her feelings for him are still there, she’s worried getting it involved with him again will mean the return of her bad habits she worked so hard to break.

Genevieve and Evan have good chemistry, and a rich history. The first introduction to them as a couple gives you a great idea how their relationship dynamic and has you rooting for them right away. I also found outside of them as a couple, there’s lots of details about their town and the other people who live there that really round out the world.

I only have a few minor complaints. At times I did find it to be really slow paced, which for the type of book it is didn’t really work in its favour in my opinion. Secondly, a big aspect of the story is Genevieve maintaining her sobriety. Near the end of the book Evan makes a comment about how it’s okay to let loose sometimes and she just has to learn moderation. This isn’t something that’s ever brought up or really addressed again and I just felt like it wasn’t necessary.

Overall though I think it was a really fun and cute second chance romance. Definitely would make for a great summer / beach read!

A review for this book will be uploaded to my Tiktok @thisisris within the next month, and a link with be added to this review on netgalley once it is.

Absolutely loved this book from the first page!!! I honestly did not want to put it down. Gen and evan have a such great chemistry that i couldn't get enough!! And the spicy scenes🔥🔥

The Hartley twins are back again! This is the second book of this series. In the first book Cooper and Mac find love. Now it’s Evan’s turn!
This story centers around Evan and and Genevieve. They have a wild past and were both trouble makers in high school. Something happens that gives Genevieve a wake up call. She leaves town and leaves Evan with no warning. She returns to town and is now on a new path of sobriety. She thinks Evan can’t be pet of her new life but they are like magnets to each other. This is their second chance romance!
I enjoyed this one more than the first book. I liked to see the characters grow and change for the better.
Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this!

If you're looking for a quick easy read, this is it!

Gen and Evan obviously have their issues. Yes, they can be immature at times but I truly enjoyed watching their relationship evolve. I loved all the work Evan put in to becoming a better person for Gen. And the chemistry between them was first-rate. I just wished there were more steamy scenes.

This was such a fun read and I will be continuing the series!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC!

4⭐️ This book was such a nice quick and easy read. It is the second book in the Avalon Bay series and I enjoyed this book more than the first one. This book follows the other Hartley Twin Evan and Genevieve and how their relationship evolves. This book gives off the summer vibes with the small beach town as the setting. I am glad I read the first book in this series for more context on all of the characters in this series. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series (I hope it is Alana’s story).

Tropes:
-Small town
-Reformed bad girl
-2nd chance
-Childhood friends to lovers

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Bad GIrl Reputation was a lighthearted, yet meaningful story of redemption, personal growth, and second chances. Elle Kennedy's writing is enjoyable and easy to follow, and she writes a beautiful, character-driven story.

The dynamic between Genevieve and Evan is one that is, although strained at times, full of playfulness and love for each other. It was rewarding to see how these characters were willing to grow and improve, not only for each other, but more importantly for themselves.

The town of Avalon Bay is a charming, waterfront community that also plays an important role in this story. Readers learn about the importance of one's "roots"; while they can be associated with pain and conflict, they can also be reminders of something beautiful, and a promise for a rebeginning (even for a former bad girl).

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC of Bad Girl Reputation.

Genevieve returns home after leaving town a year ago and all she wants is to shed her bad girl reputation and stay away from her ex, Evan Hartley. Evan needs to grow up and shed his bad boy image and learn to show people that he is more than bar fights and hookups.

Their small coastal town seems to enjoy pushing Evan and Gen towards each other; friends, family, parties, and work. This story is about discovering who you are before you can truly be with someone else. Both characters go through some amazing growth in this story.

It is entertaining, witty, with lots of interesting characters and great chemistry between Evan and Gen!

A great follow up book to Good Girl Complex!

Bad Girl Reputation starts a little while after Good Girl Complex ended. I loved this. We got a peak into what Mac and Cooper were up to and we learned about Gen NOW instead of focusing on her past.

I loved how much Evan loved Gen. He said there was no way he doesn’t end up with her. They both had to conquer demons if they wanted to make it work. It was t going to be easy as they both dealt with past situations.

I loved this book from start to finish. Evan and Gen were so lovable. I loved going back to visit Avalon Bay.

An overall cute romcom by Elle Kennedy! The story follows Gen and Evan and their ups and downs of a relationship. Gen returns to her home town after the loss of her mother, and at the request of her father, decides to stay and help her family's business with the books. To her dismay, she runs right into the arms of her ex, Evan. Like always, their chemistry is off the charts immediately. This book was so steamy and packed with drama, I absolutely loved it! Elle Kennedy is quite literally queen of small town romances! I definitely recommend!

This is the second book in the Avalon Bay series. Good Girl Complex followed Mac and Cooper and this one follows his twin brother, Evan and Gen.

I absolutely adored GGC. It was very reminiscent of She’s All That meets The Notebook. This one definitely had a lot more emotion in it. It shows Gen and Evan’s struggle to figure out who they are as individuals while dealing with past trauma and seeing if these new versions of themselves can fit together. This story had so much heart and I found myself rooting for these characters the entire time. And I have a sneaky suspicion there will be a third book in this series!

2.5 ⭐️

(this was my first Elle Kennedy book and i definitely have mixed reviews. i wasn’t aware this book was a sequel until after i finished but it made sense on its own so i believe it can be read as a standalone!)

Bad Girl Reputation honestly took a while for me to get into to. since there was little to no info about Gen’s past, and her relationship with Evan, the “reunion” between the mc and love interest threw me off. the book was enjoyable a first but i frequently had frustrations with the characters and relationships. throughout the story i felt that the characters didn’t have much depth and i really would’ve like getting to know Gen and Evan a bit more. on the relationship standpoint, it was overly toxic at the beginning for my taste, but i really appreciated the growth later on. there is definitely positive character and relationship development to look forward to!

tropes included in Bad Girl Reputation:
- bad girl x bad boy
- lotssss of angst
- hot and cold/ toxic relationship
- second chance romance
- dual POVs
i definitely recommend giving this novel a try if this sounds good!!

a big thank you to the author, netgalley, and St. Martin’s Press, for giving me this eArc, in return for my honest opinion!

EEEEEEEEK! This book! THIS SERIES! I have gone down the rom-com rabbit hole and I don't want to come back up! When Elle Kennedy writes a book, you read the thing!

Honestly thought that no one could outdo Cooper, but step aside, because Evan is everything I never knew I needed. His love for Gen pulled at my heart and had me rooting for them from the very beginning.

This was my first book by Elle Kennedy and I’m not sure what to think. I’ve heard rave reviews about her books but this was just meh. The writing style was fine, the sex was good and the ending was fine. My issue? Why was the relationship so toxic? I mean 95% of this book is just 2 toxic people making a relationship work. Depending on the point in the book depends on the toxic people - this book had a lot to chose from. Usually I’m a sucker for a best friends to lovers trope but this one missed the mark for me.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy from NetGalley for an honest review.

Ok this was my first Elle Kennedy book and I really enjoyed it! As I started reading this book, I realized it was the second in a series. I didn't read the first one but luckily it all pretty much made sense so it can be read as a stand alone.
This book covers some messy characters who grow up and learn to forgive. The main character, Genevieve, is a hot mess but you can't help but love her anyways. This story is about her deciding it's time to grow up and be an adult all while reconnecting with the love of her life, Evan. There's a lot of personal growth, forgiveness, love and full circle moments for these two and those that are in their life.
I enjoyed this story and the fun atmosphere of a small coastal town. There is also a slew of colorful characters in this novel and I loved ever single one of them. This book is the ultimate story that no matter how lost you are, you can always find your way!

Bad Girl Reputation releases on October 4th!

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Griffin for my ARC copy!!

This review is posted on Goodreads and will be posted to my instagram page next week.

This was an enjoyable read! My one complaint is that I wish we were able to get more in-depth with Gen and Evan’s characters. I feel that we were only shown surface level stuff about them and their relationship.

3.5 Stars

Thank you to Elle Kennedy and the publisher for giving me the opportunity of reading this book.

I've been a big fan of Elle's since The Deal and while I liked Good Girl Complex, it was different than I thought it would be. Therefore, in going into Bad Girl Reputation, I was hoping to like it more and see resonate with the characters more than I did in Good Girl Complex,

While this isn't a bad book by any means, and I enjoyed certain moments of banter and anecdotes, the characters and story fell flat for me. I started to like Gen better by the end of the book, but for at least half of the book, I didn't really like either of the protagonists. I wanted to see more growth from both Gen and Evan and felt like when it finally started to happen it was a little too late in the book for me to really engage with their characters' arc.

This book held my attention enough for me to finish reading and want to continue the series. It might be because of where I am right now in my life that it didn't grab my attention like I thought it would. However, if you like angsty NA books full of drama then this book mostly delivers.

ARC REVIEW:

I’d like to start this review by saying thank you to Elle Kennedy and St. Martin’s Press for sending me an advanced reader copy of Bad Girl Reputation. Going into this book, I thought it was going to be a typical bad girl x bad boy romance story, but it was so much more than that. The tropes were childhood friends to lovers to strangers to lovers, party girl x bad boy, and second chance romance. Reading about Genevieve’s struggles in Avalon Bay and how she wasn’t able to fit in with everyone else made her so much more down-to-earth than other characters I’ve read about in the past. Evan was completely and utterly obsessed with her, and I don’t blame him one bit. However, I have noticed multiple typos throughout the story along with many repeated phrases, especially “all but.” The writing was predominately easy to follow, but as I was reading, I could definitely tell that some of the words were altered into synonyms of different words just for the sake of rich vocabulary, when it didn’t blend in with the rest of the writing. Overall, it was definitely a likeable book to read and had the perfect essence for summer, and I’m hoping Elle Kennedy writes more books for the other friends in Avalon Bay.

4.5 stars. It wasn't quite as good as the first book in the series but still excellent. This is a second chance romance between the bad girl and bad boy of small beach town Avalon Bay. Both characters try to mature and be more responsible as the story goes on. I liked that aspect of the story and the romance was sweet, but I didn't feel the tension and the angst like I did the first book.

I really struggled to get into this one, and just didn't have an affinity for any of the characters. I don't know if more back story earlier would have helped on Genevieve, but I just couldn't build the connection. I also had trouble liking Evan. Frankly, I think that with a younger audience this book would hit, but I just couldn't connect anymore.