Thank you St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the advanced reader’s copy.

Returning to Avalon Bay was like being reunited with old friends. I love a second chance romance story and Gen and Evan’s story checked all my boxes. I also loved seeing a sober main character. If anyone could attack demon’s head on, it’s Gen. I hope we see more of Gen and Mac in the future!

Well, this one was definitely better than Good Girl Complex (although that's not saying much, imo). I'm starting to feel like maybe I need to stop reading about characters in their early 20s... the older I get, the more annoyed I am with them a lot of the time. I didn't understand the infatuation Gen and Evan had with each other-- nothing felt new or fresh because everything was built on old memories they had that didn't match up with their new lives. Or if the memories did match up, they wanted the other person to change that about themselves, so why are you still in love with it? I don't know, it didn't flow well with me. I think I'm going to have to wait for Kennedy's next series and say goodbye to this one (if there are any more), because I don't enjoy this group of characters.

*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A delightful low stakes romance. Gen's sober journey was an interesting element that isn't usually discussed in this type of novel. My only gripe is that some of the conflict felt forced, which is a personal pet peeve.

Rating: 3/5
Warnings: Difficult Family Dynamics, Assault and Harassment
Steam: 3/5
Read If You Liked: Off Campus Series + Good Girl Complex

Thank you to SMP Romance and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. Bad Girl Reputation will be released on October 4th, 2022.

Oh the opportunities...This had the makings of a really amazing novel and while I did enjoy it, I felt it was missing a few things or at least a deep dive on subjects introduced.

Things I loved: The theme of second chances and forgiveness. Gen and Evan had amazing chemistry. Gen's Dad. Mac and Gen's budding friendship. Gen was so determined to change and I loved her confidence but also her vulnerability. I really loved that this was childhood friends to lovers, there is so much history with that dynamic.

Things I didn't care for: The games and just the toxic nature of their past relationship. The cop storyline. The lack of context beyond the surface level of their dynamics with their moms. So many freaking names of friends and brothers I could not keep track of who was who. Cooper and Evan's dynamic, my god you are freaking brothers act like it.

I absolutely love spending time in Avalon Bay. The second book of the series was just as wonderful as it's predecessor. There is a lot of baggage to unpack for these characters but Elle Kennedy unravels their story in an engaging, hilarious, and sexy way. All the characters lend themselves to this story providing a camaraderie readers can feel intimately involved in. There's a certain flair and comfortability to this setting that makes it so easy to relate to and want to be surrounded by.

And these two main characters. I can't even being to tell you how happy I am that their story was featured next in the series. After the build up and mystery to this couple Elle Kennedy sure delivered. The Hartley twins are some seriously GOOD bad boy heroes. I thought I loved Cooper but then I read Evan's story here. And let me tell you, Evan Hartley catapulted himself to the top of my "bad boy with a golden heart" list of favorites. The love story between he and Gen is tough and riddled with a crazy, intoxicatingly toxic but again, relatable past. But what unfolds in their present is just beautiful and honestly addicting. And really for me, Evan makes it so. I didn't want to put this down just to see where they end up.

Elle Kennedy pens good romance. That's all there is to it. Her writing is honest and true to her characters making them vibrantly vulnerable and charming and fun. There are so many lovely parts to this story for these characters where their distinct personalities just shine. It's funny and smart and romantic and true. It's a story of lost love, found again in a unique way. A story of redemption and second chances. A great love story. I hope we get much more from this author that revolves around this realm of Avalon Bay. It's a place I'll go back to again and again.

I honestly didn’t like good girl reputation so I’d not have high hopes of this and k was right really disappointed☹️

Unfortunately, I think this book is not meant for me.

I am a fan of Elle Kennedy's writing because it's simple, funny, and lighthearted. While those themes are explored in this book, I could not overlook the heavy toxicity surrounding the main couple. Evan and Gen have played a game of will-they, won't-they that worked for some time. But as the two grow older it's time to either cut the relationship off for good or grow and be better.

The book was filled with clichés and the resolution was did not meet my expectations. I wholeheartedly wish Evan and Gen had broken up for good.

Bad Girl Reputation by Elle Kennedy
•
Evan Hartley is Avalon Bay’s party boy trouble maker. He lives on thrill and impulse. Growing up without his mom or dad, he and his twin brother Cooper had to basically grow up on their own (aside from their uncle Levi- bless him). Without the guidance of a parent and the feelings of abandonment, Evan took some paths he could have done without. Evan wasn’t always lonely in his adventures though, he had his partner in crime, Genevieve West.

This dynamic duo is like fire and ice. They are no good for each other but the thought of them with someone else is enraging. Gen hit rock bottom after an embarrassing event and ended up skipping town. Upon the death of her mother she comes back to town with a plan. Stay away from Evan Hartley. That plan lasted a whole .2 seconds before she found herself unable to resist the familiar passion and pull that *is* her Evan. She knows she has to put space between them or her journey of self improvement is going to be derailed…they cannot resist each other and they both know it.

I absolutely loved this second Avalon Bay story. Better than Good Girl Complex even. This book hit so many hard topics while still keeping the light and humor. I really think the second chance trope might be my favorite and this one is no exception. These two characters are toxic to each other but they both realize they have to do better if they want to keep each other. Their story is a story of self improvement, redemption, forgiveness and second chances. They share the difficulties that come with living in the shadow of your past and trying to be a better person.

Read if you like:
•Dual POV
•Redemption stories
•Family mending
•Spice 🌶🌶
•Second chance

TW/CW: Talk of PPD (which I really appreciated), death of parents, corruption/ harassment in law enforcement, drug use, alcohol abuse, sexual assault.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
🗓 Publication Date: October 4, 2022
🤍 Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for this eARC in exchange for my honest review

I did it again - I didn’t realize that I attempted to read and abandoned the first book in this series, and this book has the same issue. Granted, it’s 100% a personal preference thing, but I don’t like books where the central lead has layers of toxic masculinity. Like very stereotypically prone to anger and punching people - not my vibe at all.

I loved this book so much. I’ve been a huge fan of Elle Kennedy’s and after reading the first book in the series I had to get my hands on this one.

This book was addicting and I loved every second of it. Elle Kennedy has a way of making each of her books unique in their own way and I love it.

This was so much fun!!! I loved the characters I loved the build up and I loved the dynamics Kennedy created. I had a blast reading this as I hope everyone else does when they pick this up!

A sweet take on second chances! This was great. I’ve read Elle Kennedy’s books in the past and it’s always been a known fact to me that yes! I would indeed be on the look out for any future Elle Kennedy works. I really enjoyed this and probably enjoyed it more than I expected to. 5/5 stars!

Genevieve West moved away from Avalon Bay and her on-again-off-again boyfriend Evan Hartley and created a life for herself in Charleston. Now, back home for her mother’s funeral, she’s determined not to fall back into her bad habits and back into Evan’s arms. On the other hand, Evan is determined to win back the love of his life, even if that means setting aside his crazier traits to become the man that Genevieve deserves.

I really enjoyed Good Girl Complex, and was so excited to receive the eARC for Bad Girl Reputation, the continuation of the Avalon Bay series. I also have to say, I liked following Gen and Evan’s relationship a lot better than I liked Mac and Cooper’s too! First off, we already knew the majority of the characters and the dynamics between them, so there was less filler to explain all the scene setting. Also, Mac and Cooper (Evan’s twin brother) didn’t have the history that Gen and Evan did, and the history is part of what made this one interesting. It felt much more like an organic story of two soulmates growing up both individually and together, rather than the more “insta-love” storyline of Good Girl Complex. I love jumping back in and seeing favorites from previous books, and obviously Mac and Cooper were around a lot in this one, although we only heard from Evan’s and Gen’s points of view. Where Good Girl Complex seemed to end abruptly without much closure for the reader, this book had a nice epilogue that lended itself to a much more circular reading experience. One thing I will say though is that for all we were told about how bad Evan and Gen were together, I don’t feel like it was ever truly shown to us, so a lot of their dramatics seemed…overly dramatic. Overall though, a really cute, kinda steamy read that would be perfect as a beach or vacation read! I don’t know if Elle Kennedy is planning on writing more books in the Avalon Bay universe, but I hope she is, because I’ll definitely want to read them!

Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for this eARC for review!

I'm a big fan of Elle Kennedy's books & Bad Girl Reputation did not disappoint! I love a good small-town series, so I was thrilled to hear that the author wrote another book set in Avalon Bay!

Gen and Evan's chemistry was palpable from the start & had me hooked all the way through! I loved the push/pull dynamic as both characters went through their transformational journey. The character growth both Gen & Evan went through was paced exceptionally well. It was believable throughout the book, ending with both characters ultimately becoming better versions of themselves when they finally did (officially) get back together.

I was also happy to see Mac and Cooper woven into the follow-up book organically, where it didn't seem forced. Not to mention Daisy, the sweet pup they rescued in the first book!

This was another hit by Elle Kennedy & I hope there will be a third book coming soon in the series (Alana as the main character, perhaps?). I'll be here for it!

i really enjoyed the first book in this series, good girl complex, and the second i finished it i knew i needed to read the second book! personally i don’t think anything will top the off campus series for me but this was still a good read and i always enjoy elle kennedy’s writing! personally i think i enjoyed this one more! i wasn’t a fan of the cheating trope in the first book but so far i’ve loved all the characters i’ve met :)

Gen is returning to her home town and is worried about reverting back to her wild ways. Determined to keep on the good girl persona she decides to try and keep her distance from Evan the boyfriend she left behind without so much as a goodbye the year before. Evan though isn't going to make it so easy on her.

Young love isn't always so healthy and their relationship had been pretty toxic and upon her return it looks like they might fall into that trap again. What I loved so much about this book is that the characters knew that the relationship wasn't healthy and that they needed to grow up.

This was all about growing up, second chances, acceptance, and coming to terms with who you want to be.

I have read a lot of Elle Kennedy books including Good Girl Complex, the prequel to this novel, but I can easily say that this is one of my favorites from her. It was an easy book to read in one sitting and stays true to what I know about the author's writing. I will be picking up her Briar U series after this as those are the only books I have yet to read from this author.

I was so excited to read about our resident bad boy and bad girl since the first book. I loved this book! It’s a great book about growing as an adult and forgiveness! I think the book was beautifully written!

I absolutely adored good girl complex! It was my first Elle Kennedy book and I soon started the off campus series right after! I was so excited to get this book on netgalley and it didn't disappoint! I loved seeing Evans perspectives and loved seeing Cooper again!

This story was about redemption and overcoming your past. I loved how the side stories and how dedicated Gen was to righting her wrongs. They had some serious heat.. tho I could have used even more steamy scenes ;)

... I really hope there's a book 3 and that it follows Harrison! I also think Kayla deserves a happy ending.

Thank you to netgalley for this earc in exchange for an honest review.

What happens when the party girl and the bad boy grow up? This story follows Genevieve and Evan. Gen left town after she had a run in with the local authorities and didn’t left her on again off again boyfriend before she just up and left. She is trying to reform from her bad girl ways. Evan is still trying to understand why Gen up and left him a year ago. He’s also struggling with a toxic relationship with his mother. This story really shows the growth of both characters, and that true love really does conquer all.

I would definitely recommend this book.