Wow! What an intense book to read!! Bad Reputation is the second installment of the Bad Bachelors series by Stefanie London. I loved the first book, Bad Bachelor, and this was just as good! Stefanie gives us a well rounded storyline, very likeable characters, and intriguing dialog. It sucks you right in! As the story unfolds, you are right there watching everything with bated breath! Remi and Wes' story was interesting since it takes place in the ballet world-something I know nothing about. It intrigued me and Stefanie gave us a good amount of information-for those that know nothing about this-but didn't give too much to make the story drag.

Wes is putting together an off-Broadway ballet/play that veers from the norm. His family is considered ballet royalty and when he quits the family business to do this, he's questioned. It ends up going sideways quickly when a dating app called Bad Bachelors starts getting posts about him. They are not all negative, on the contrary, most are glowing! Glowing in one department-sex. He's made no bones about dating a lot, but when one poster dubs him "The Anaconda", things take a turn for the worse, and he's in the public spotlight. It's a good thing he has his production. He still needs to find a lead ballerina and fast. That is his focus. This stuff will die down...won't it??

Remi is a ballerina from Australia on a hiatus. Now living in NYC, she's currently teaching Barre Fit classes. One day she has a mom and daughter class and Wes shows up with his niece. He had no idea it was class he needed to attend, but takes it in stride when the teacher, Remi tells him to stay and take the class. Sparks fly instantly between these two. He asks her out, but she declines. When he returns the next day to talk to her, he sees her unbridled passionate dancing and knows she's the lead he's been searching for! But he wants to date her too. He decides the production must be his focus.....

Remi is drawn to him but since she left Australia, she promised to never get her pointe shoes in a bunch again. What could it hurt to go to the audition though?? She's rewarded with the lead and things take off from there!

I loved how this story unfolded. Both Wes and Remi are written very well and you get a true sense of who they are. There are plot twists and intense drama unfolding left and right! It's the perfect edge to keep you flipping those pages!! Plus the romance!! Gosh these two are angsty and combustible all at the same time! I fell in love with these two characters!

An overall great read! It's not necessary to read book one in order to read this one, but I think you would benefit. My only beef is her friend Annie. I think she is a self-centered b*tch to treat her friends as she has. I wonder? When is the cost too much for her???

Anyway, read this book! You will love it!

reviewed by Deb

Remi’s boss was Mich who had taken a run down accounting office and made it into a perfect studio. Mish ahd opened Alonge Barre Fitness with a single tiny studio. Remi had started working for Mish four years ago and she had then only taught two classes per week. Through the years Remi and Mish grew close and her schedule. Now Mish was opening her third studio and Remi was to be the main instructor. This place was exactly what Remi had yearned for as a young girl - a bright space with a long barre. Wes was used to women checking him out. He exercised often and presented himself well. After a stint as a guest judge on Dance Idol, his face drew even more attention. Wes was ready for today to be over with. Sadie was wes’s best friend as long as anyone could remember, they had grown up as neighbors. They had one disaster of a kiss when they were eighteen and then they agreed they made better friends than anything else. Sadie was also Wes’s business associate. Broadway productions were expensive even the “Off Off Broadway” productions. Out Of Bounds was Wes’s brain child, a dance production with no separation between stage and seating. The cast was part of the audience and the audience was part of the show. It was the antithesis of the world Wes had grown up in, one fortified with rules and posture and tradition. With his big picture views and Sadie’s talent for turning his vague descriptions into something living and breathing he knew they had to be special. Sadie was a choreographer and had left Wes’s parents company- a premier dance company in NYC - to do this with Wes. Out of Bounds would make or break Wes’s future and he wasn’t the type of guy to back down from a challenge. Wes’s twin sister was Chantel and she had five year old Frankie- Wes’s niece. Frankie was a child who made it hard to focus on anything but her. Wes’s mother acts like Wes’s dream to create his own show was a personal attack on her, the family company, and the art she adored in her dramatic way. Despite all the tangled- up feelings in Remi’s heart when it came to dance ,Remi’s body still knew what it wanted. What felt right.Remi had been badly burned by a bad relationship that put her in a bad light as far as her reputation as a person and a ballerina. After that Remi lost her role in the premiere dance troupe back home and she had lost her confidence. A very hot man came up to Remi and said he was Chantel’s brother Wes and he was bringing Frankie to class then he was told he also had to participate with Frankie and he did. After the class Wes asked Remi out to dinner she would have until she learned who he was. Remi was messed up since yesterday's class class. It was like Wes had burrowed into her subconscious and kept popping into her thoughts like a jack-in-the- box. No matter how hard she tried Remi could not shake him. Remi was scared when it came to Wed -that he might unpick the careful stitches around her wounds , that he might summon all her doubts and regrets she tried so hard to bury and they were everything she had ran away from. Wes returned to the studio the next day and seen Remi dance and knew he had found his lead dancer for Out Of Bounds. He asked Remi out to dinner again and she said no and he wants to persuade her to be his star dancer. He is also dealing with the Bad Bachelor app which had nothing bad to say about him but just the information that he was well endowed as well as the family drama. Darcy and Annie are Remi’s friends and tell her she is taking the safe way and not taking a chance.
I really enjoyed reading this story. I loved Remi and Wes together and how they interacted with each other. This was a fun interesting read and I liked learning more about the world of ballet and behind the scenes. Remi and Wes had a hot chemistry even if they did try to fight it. I felt like I was there with Remi and Wes and really enjoyed that. I loved the twists and turns of this story. I advise you to read the first book in this series just easier for everything to come together. Even though Wes’s mother was considered ballet royalty I didn’t like how she treated Wes and his dream she had followed hers let him have his chance. I felt this could have been a little longer. I wish I could have rated this 4.75. I loved the characters and the twists and turns and I recommend.

Remi & Wes were flippin' FABULOUS! I was drawn into this production Out of Bounds and did NOT want to put it down to do real life things. This book was all of the things I love... funny, intriguing, serious, sexy, down to earth, I could go on and on. Can I just start from the beginning and read all the fabulousness again?

MS London has such a fabulous voice when it comes to writing stories that connect with readers, she brings her characters to life, makes them friends, you feel their emotions, their pain and their happiness and in this second instalment in the Bad Bachelors series we get to see Remi meet the man that will sweep her off her feet in a story of dance and love, make yourself comfortable for this one.

Remi Drysdale is an Aussie living in New York, she left Australia when her dancing career and life were turned upside down by a man, here in New York she teaches ballet and has the best friends in Darcy and Annie and living her life happily, or is she because when she meets a gorgeous man at dance lessons and is asked to try out for a new dance production, has she got the courage to go back to what has always been in her heart and be strong enough to not mix business and pleasure and have her heart broken again.

Wes Evans has grown up with a famous dancing family known on Broadway but he has decided that it is time to go out on his own with a production out of the ordinary and when he takes his niece to dance lessons he meets the person who he wants as his lead, she will be the star of the show, there is an instant attraction, of course there is also all the talk about his sexual prowess on that bad bachelor app as well which could very well throw a spanner in the works in more ways than one.

This is a fabulous story of people keeping secrets of not learning to be honest and open up, but it is a story of true love that sees Mr Genial, Wes Evans teach beautiful Remi to not think so much when dancing just to let her passions out, oh yes there are a few hurdles to cross before they reach that gorgeous well deserved HEA with the bad bachelor app causing a lot of problems for them both as well as co-dancers. This is another keeper for me MS London I loved Wes what a hero and Remi is just lovely, I am loving this series and can’t wait to see who captures Annie’s heart.

I’m really enjoying the Bad Bachelors Series and this book is as good if not better than the first in the series, this time it’s Wes Evans being targeted by the notorious Bad Bachelor App they have dubbed him “The Anoconda” and it’s really messing up with the backing he is trying to get for his new show. Wes is trying a completely different angle to ballet and free dance but he wants to do it on his own and is determined to raise the money needed from backers and not go to his ballet royalty family for help. Wes thinks he has found the perfect leading lady when he is roped into taking his 3 year old neice to the parent and child dance class and he meets teacher Remi an Aussie trying to start a fresh life in NYC. Will the Bad Reputation App not only ruin Wes’s chance at a hit show will also ruin his chance at love.....
This is a great read and it’s a must read for me it had the perfect mix of humour, passion, romance as well as being close to reality with friends trying to protect each other at all costs. Looking forward to more in this series from the very talented Stefanie London.

Wes and Remi meet when he brings his niece to her ballet lesson where Remi is the instructor. Remi gave up on her ballet dream and started teaching and also teaching at a Barre place where her friend owns. From the getgo, Wes and Remi have sparks.

While I liked this story, I enjoyed Bad Bachelor more. I don't want to compare the two, but this was more on the not so fun side. More subdued. I did like seeing all the other characters from the other books. Looking forward to Annie's book though the most!

2 - 2.5 Stars

Whew, the last quarter certainly bounced back and saved the book for me. After almost certain my expression frozen in disapproving expression, the turn of event dissolved it and my bad-temper along with it. Saved by disaster!!

I’m sorry to say this second installment to the “Bad Bachelor” series was a bit of a bore. Which was a pity because the characters were rather interesting at the beginning, but then it’s like a switch when off and Remi turned into this helpless damsel in distress and Wes... not that much help eh. Not to say I didn’t want Remi to help herself; after all what’s not to love about characters who pick up after themselves and rallied or one-upped their nemesis eh.

The thing is, for the majority of the story Remi struck me as feeling sorry for herself and ran out of trick to come over it to save her performance. As if that’s not enough, Wes seemed to bring out the worst in her. And I don’t mean it in a salty way opposites characters liable to do with each other, one that signified sexual tension between them. Nope. Remi turned weak and sentimental whenever Wes was around. Totally NOT what I pictured her when she was (first) introduced in “Bad Bachelor.” Then there’s the flattery worshiping expression (in both POVs) that had me gagging... too much is too much, dude!! Throughout the long foreboding read, I kept waiting when - FGS - the disaster would strike that when it actually did, I could only sigh and roll my eyes. Predictable to the t.

Fortunately, then things started to get interesting! Forced to face the consequence of their culpability, Wes and Remi reached out to people for some guidance that resulted in unexpected revelation. Personally I have reservation about the Bad Bachelor apps - that became the series’ name - and its creator. There’s something alarming about Remi’s mate (I thought so in “Bad Bachelor” and I still think so now) and their “unbudgingness”. While it promised some interesting story when their other half came into the picture, I lost respect for this person since #book1, so I don’t know. We’ll see...

But back to Wes and Remi, their owning up to their truth and trying to find the way to make things right lifted my opinion of them. Not enough to consider I liked “Bad Reputation” though, sorry. But at least I felt redeemed that I didn’t drop the book altogether. If nothing the last quarter was worth the read and compensated my view on Wes and Remi.


Advanced copy of this book is kindly given by the author/publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second book of Ms. London's Bad Bachelor's series. The plot revolves around a couple who have to deal with the fallout from a bachelor rating app (a yelp to rate men). Remi is a ballerina confused about her career choices and Wes is a producer looking for a lead for his show. He casts her as his lead and they then have to deal with their attraction to each other.

I really enjoyed the chemistry between Remi and Wes, they seemed real to me. They were well developed characters and the conflict they were dealing with was intense. The pacing of the story was just right. There were no dull moments. I enjoyed seeing New York through Remi's eyes. I can not wait for the next book in this series.

Received as an ARC from Netgalley for an honest review.

Bad Reputation is the second book in Stefanie London's Bad Bachelor series. Those who have read the first book, Bad Bachelor, will be familiar with the presence of the Bad Bachelor app and recognise this book's heroine Remi Drysdale as one of two best friends to Darcy, the heroine of the first.
As a Kiwi, it made me smile to read the Aussie-isms sprinkled through this book courtesy of Remi being an ex-pat Australian in New York.
After reading book one of the series I'd already changed my tune on considering the concept of the Bad Bachelor's apps being a positive idea. This book further convinced me that despite a well-intentioned concept that the app would not work in reality. The book interweaves the impacts of outwardly positive reviews with the developing relationship between Remi and Wes against the backdrop of the show that links the two.
I've read this book twice since receiving it. The first time I read it, I found that every time I prepared to put it down to ensure adequate sleep, the story kept pulling me back in and resulting in it being read in one sitting.

LOVED this book! A unique setting for the storyline, compelling characters, and the addition of social media just made this a great read!

Book two in this series and wowza! This one just knocked my socks off. I absolutely loved this story.
It's intense, the characters are so well written and you get pulled into the story from the very first page. Romance abounds, the angst is low-medium, the steam is smoking hot and the storyline is so very real you feel like you're in the front row watching this drama unfold. And unfold it does.
The series revolves around a dating app called Bad Bachelors, introduced in Book one. This story happens to target Wes who is a wealthy well known man and now known for his sizable physical attributes thanks to a photo of him with someone of vacation. Thus the topic of Wes begins on Bad Bachelors. Wes has just broken away form his well known family in the ballet/dance world to produce his own show with a friend who will choreograph the show. It's a great idea he has but still hasn't found his lead yet.
Enter Remi, an Aussie now living in NYC and teaching Barre classes after leaving Australia and being badly burned in a relationship and her professional career as a ballerina shot to hell. She's teaching a mother-daughter class when Wes brings his niece in because his sister can't make it and the niece is adamant about going. Wes is taken with Remi, asks her out, she refuses. When he returns the next day he sees her dancing and knows he's found his lead. But will she accept? Will she even talk to him? We refuses again an offer for dinner. Her fears keep her safe. Stepping out and dancing again put her at risk. Meanwhile Wes is dealing with the Bad Bachelor nonsense, his family drama and trying to sway Remi into his show. When he does the story really takes off. Remi relies a lot on her two friends Darcy and Annie, it's the three of them. The story takes some very sharp twists and turns and holy crap moments. The drama is spellbinding, a perfect balance to keep you flipping those pages. Cursing one minute and smiling the next. The heat is perfect, Wes and Remi are two great well written characters and very likable. My own two cents is that Annie is a real botch.
My final take, read the book. It's a great story, not necessary to read book one, but you might want to anyway. Great story and deserves 5 stars. Stellar read Stefanie!

*arc from NetGalley and publisher for an honest review*

Read this all in one sitting. It's a quick fun read. I love that these books are set around the app, Bad Bachelors. It adds a fun and interesting element to a couple's story. Wes and Remi were just too cute together. I enjoyed that they were both dancers, and found the inner workings of the ballet world fascinating. I know that that world is 100% cutthroat and I felt that that aspect really came through in Bad Reputation.

I also felt that the ending was perfect. Wes did what had to be done and while in the end there was a happily ever after, neither Wes nor Remi got everything they wanted when they wanted it. Sacrifices were made.

Strong friendships were another good aspect to this series, even though there were issues there too. I can't wait to read the next one!

This book has both cursing (including f-bombs) and on-page sex. If those things will cause you to leave a bad review, you should skip this one.

This cover is one of the best that I have seen in ages. The colors and the layout are flawless. If I were rating this book on the cover alone it would be five solid stars.

I have read almost everything that Stefanie London has ever written and have enjoyed ever book (Bad Bachelor included). Unfortunately this book was a rare 'miss' for me by this author. I didn't hate it, but I just didn't love it either. That I count this book as a miss and it still pulls in a 3 star rating should tell you everything you need to know about the kind of solid books that Ms. London writes.

There is a lot of technical ballet talk in this one. I know less than nothing about dance steps so after the third instance of having to stop reading so I could go to YouTube to try and figure out what the named steps were, I just stopped caring what it all meant and skimmed over all of the dance talk looking for plot points. My lack of dance knowledge really took away from my enjoyment of this book.

***MAJOR SPOILERS IN THIS PARAGRAPH AND THE NEXT*** The other issue I had was that that the funding drama wasn't believable. A man who is described as being “flamboyant” in one paragraph is too much of a pearl clutching “conservative” (Ms. London's favorite go-to scapegoat of late, sadly) to fund an off-off-Broadway show because it was being produced by a guy who dates a lot and has a big penis? That just makes no sense. Broadway and ballet are full of people of all sexuality types, not to mention recreational alcohol, drug use and sexual abuse, but the flamboyant conservative won't fund a show because Wes has a racy nickname and some positive reviews on a website that is of questionable quality at best? I just can't picture it. I would rather the man had backed out because of fear of retribution from Wes' mom or jealousy that he's got an Anaconda. Either of those would have made much more sense than the “evil conservative” who won't fund a show because of a man's dating reputation.

*still spoilers* Also, the new-and-improved Bad Bachelor thing is very confusing. If the men have to connect their Facebook accounts to be rated, why is Wes on there? Could he not just disconnect his account and have his profile taken down, thus negating the BB review issues altogether? And why would the men who are guilty of the things Annie is trying to prevent sign up for a BB account knowing they're going to be found out? I loved the idea of BB in the first book but now I'm just completely confused by it.
END SPOILERS

I did enjoy Wes and Remi and the way that they developed a relationship before just jumping into bed together. Wes was a great guy who honestly just wanted to do the right thing for everyone in every situation, but his feelings overrode his judgment at times because he's also a human being. I have huge respect for that. His relationship with Chantel and Frankie is such a beautiful glimpse into the great person that he is. Remi was also really great. I loved that she was who she was, and she didn't compromise herself to make her dreams come true. Her attraction to Wes was genuine and she didn't want to risk her reputation just to get a job. I also loved that she stood up for herself with Annie and Darcy. Her reaction to finding out they had such big secrets from her was genuine and so realistic and I loved that she stood up for herself to them and didn't just roll over because they were all friends. These two characters were really great and they are the reason that this book got as many stars as it did.

One thing that this book did that surprised me was that it made me really dislike Annie. A lot. Her excuses and justifications really rang so hollow that if Remi had never spoken to her again, I would have been totally Team Remi. I look forward to seeing how Ms. London spins her redemption story because she desperately needs redeeming, and I believe that Ms. London can do just that.

And although it wasn't as prevalent in this story as it is in most of her other books, when Ms. London's unique and fantastic sense of humor showed up in this one, it was nothing short of laugh out loud funny. I actually had to read one of Frankie's lines out loud to my people because I burst out laughing while reading in a silent room and had to explain myself. I really love it when her humor shines through.

This might not have been my favorite book by Ms. London, but I'm still glad that I read it and I am very much looking forward to the next book in this series.

Bad Reputation was an interesting and engaging read. With likable characters and a romance that was slow to build, due to the personal issues of the two lead characters. And there was an intenseness and emotion to them that I particularly liked.
Yet, I did find parts of this story a little messy and didn't feel Wes's reputation was as bad as its made out to be. But nonetheless it was an enjoyable read and I would certainly read more from this author and series in the future.

I would say I liked the book, but didn't love it.

Something about the h didn't sit right with me. I really enjoyed the concept of the book and H was great, but I just couldn't totally buy into it. I've read other London books and very much enjoyed them, but his one wasn't a favorite. I really enjoyed the first one in the series, but this one fell a little flat for me. Not horrible, but just ok.

Net Galley provided me a copy of the book for an honest opinion.

Yes this book was good! Thanks Stefanie this goes on the list of books I enjoy that you write. This book was the second in the series and even though it is not needed to read this one I always advise my readers that they should read to get more out of the story line. So we have Wes who's reputation is well bad as the title explains he is a bachelor that got the misfortune of being listed as a "Bad Bachelor" on an app that gets to trash bachelors, and he is pretty popular in that app. He needs a dancer for one of his shows and ends up seeing Remi who is his niece's ballet teacher and he knew he found the perfect one. Remi had left dancing in shows after leaving the company she worked for after having a broken heart. She does end up giving this a chance, and they not only work together but give dating a chance, wish we could have left it at that but we know we can't because problems due arise in multiple fashions but truly enjoyable.. Enjoy!

This book follows the story of Remi and Wes. Even though it can work as a standalone, it's best to read the first book of the series to get the full view on events like the Bad Bachelors site, what stands for a few plot twist that come into play.
Remi is a ballet dancer that has had a couple of backsets in her career and Wes is the son of dancing royalty that is putting together his first show. Wes has also been the latest victim on the Bad Bachelors site regarding his physique and sexual prowess.
Wes sees something magical in Remi and convinces her to audition for him. Sparks fly as they navigate their attraction towards each other while working together and facing their own fears.
Things I like about this book:
- Wes is a very well rounded character and he really tries hard to do the right thing
- Remi self-awareness and honesty
- The way their relationship is a true equal partnership
- The way the author deals with the family relationships for the main characters
- The continuous fall-out of Bad Bachelors as a site (picking it up the thread from the first book) and how it continues to be a source of conflict for the characters

Things I wish were better:
- I'm struggling with Annie as a character and her lack of loyalty/sense of right or wrong regarding her friends... I just don't see how she can be redeemed, to be honest.

I really enjoyed the second book as much as I enjoyed the first and I look forward to see what happens next!
*I was given an ARC copy on NetGalley*

If you're a fan of Broadway shows and Ballet, then Bad Reputation, is a perfect book for you. I'm not a huge fan of either, but I still loved the story.

I was engaged in the story at the start and could not wait for the training to start but then the story lost steam and it became a bit prédictable

I enjoyed this book, the second in the series. However, I did feel it felt a bit flat in comparison to the previous book in the series. I thought both main characters didn’t feel quite fully formed, and while I enjoyed the romance and saucy parts of the book, I disliked the instalove premise. All in all, I did enjoy this for the light and fluffy read that this was and will likely continue to read this author’s work.