I enjoyed Bo and Sadie rediscovering each other after ten years. They remembered each other as children and high schoolers but had to learn about the adults they had become. Was it fate that they would rediscover each other? Had they needed to be apart to grow into the people they were ? The story was sweet, sexy and at times, very emotional.


I voluntarily reviewed this advanced reader copy and I have not been compensated in any way.

What a wonderful start to this book! Fierce Sadie! Love her character and her backstory! I was cheering for her the whole time!!

This was a sweet and fun second chance romance. I enjoyed the characters of Sadie and Bo as they “rediscovered each other. This series just keeps getting better and better.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my y.

Sadie Gold is ready to take her career to the next level with the role of a lifetime. Finally, she can shake her reputation as a pretty face with more wealth and connections than talent. But Sadie is not prepared for the wild turn her own life is about to take. Bo Ibarra is as good-looking and irresistible as ever. Sadie’s pampered and privileged upbringing and Bo’s childhood in a family struggling to make ends meet is in the past. When I started reading I couldn't put it down.Melonie Johnson is magnifysent and amazing writer.I cannot wait to read more of there books.Keep up the great work.You should definitely read this book.Can't wait for the next book.

ONCE UPON A BAD BOY – Melonie Johnson
A Sometimes in Love Novel – Book 3
Perfect 10
St. Martin’s Press
ISBN-13: 9781250193070
ISBN-10: 1250193079
ASIN: B07H7CPKSX
June 2019
Contemporary Romance

Chicago – The Present

Mercedes Goldovitz, better known as the actress Sadie Gold, has gone through hard physical training for months before she begins an upcoming role. She landed the lead character Jamie in the movie Fair is Fair, based on a best-selling novel. It could be her breakout role. Since her hiring, she has left the soap opera where she played a spoiled rich girl. As her family is very wealthy, many celebrity reporters and viewers think she only played herself and think her family influenced her getting the part. They do not know how hard Sadie worked and continues to work to advance her career, and for this part it means sticking to a very strict diet. Once a week she treats herself to a donut. Today she attends a pre-production ‘table read’ meeting where her costar Ryan, also training and dieting, tells how any mention of carbs makes him feel homicidal. Sadie tells him she has half a donut she will share with him. As they laugh together Sadie hears something not heard in eleven years: Bo Ibarra’s voice. Shocked, she learns Bo is the movie’s stunt coordinator. He was her best friend during the summers she spent with her grandmother during her childhood and teen years. Bo was her first lover. Then on their prom night date, he broke her heart, telling her with no reason or excuse, they were done. She hasn’t seen or spoken to him since.

Bo still feels his attraction to Sadie, the same thing he felt every summer when her parents dumped her off at her grandmother’s estate so they could travel the world. Later he knew it was a doomed relationship. Sadie came from a rich family. His father was the estate manager for her grandmother. He and his family lived in a home provided by his employer. Can he resurrect their friendship? Not on the job, Bo warns himself. His company’s reputation is at stake, so not if he wants to continue in this profession.

While Bo and Sadie work very hard with the rest of the movie crew developing Fair is Fair’s many difficult and sometimes dangerous scenes, their still abiding friendship moves them closer. But the past still haunts them. Why did Bo end their relationship the way he did? And Sadie has kept a secret from Bo.

Sadie’s friends from previous books in the series show up in the story. Especially prominent is Ana, her best friend since high school, who throughout the story acts as Sadie’s mentor. Bo’s and Sadie’s families also play important parts, which explains much about their different situations. Bo’s is warm and comforting, while only Sadie’s grandmother seems to care about her. The movie production scenes are interesting as are Sadie’s problems with media coverage, so the story travels some unusual paths. ONCE UPON A BAD BOY is both a heart-breaking and heart-warming story readers will enjoy.

Robin Lee

Sadie and Bo were young loves from different social circles, Bo's family might have worked for Sadie's grandmother but they click, were a set match until the fateful night Bo broke Sadie's heart. Now Sadie's trying to prove that she got the part in a new movie on merit not on her family name, problem Bo's the stunt coordinator and they'll have to be working close together, with all that has been left unsaid how can she ignore it go on with her life without letting him get to her? This story has humor, heat and a happy ending, oh and great friends! A very enjoyable read. Great follow up to the others in this series.

It's Sadie's turn! Sadie gets a role on an action movie and the first day on the set she runs into Bo, former boyfriend/lover that she hasn't seen in 10 years. Lots of sneaking around, fun times with friends, and a little bit of secrets. I love second chance at love stories, and this one did not disappoint. 3 friends down, 2 to go, who gets the next book?

This review is based on an ARC from NetGalley, courtesy of the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Another excellent read. This story involves star crossed lovers who eventually find themselves thrown together by fate and circumstance. An immensely enjoyable ride, with romance, steam, tribulations, angst and true friendship rolled into a top shelf read. I look forward to more in this series and from this author. Don’t miss this one.

Wow, another new author to add to my list of favorites.......Once Upon a Bad Boy has a bit of everything to keep you totally enthralled.......I couldn’t put this down the characters are so believable and lovable.....and you just hope things will work out ......a definite must read !

Another wonderful book in this series. It was sweet, sexy and emotional.
I look forward to the next book in this series.
I definitely recommend this book, this author and this series.

Bo and Sadie were childhood sweethearts until graduation. when Bo dumped her for no reason.
Years have now passed and, Sadie is a well known actress who is starting to film her first major movie when she finds out that Bo is the Stunt Coordinator for the movie. Neither realized that they would be working together until the first day of readings. Both have a great amount of difficulty dealing with each other.
Sadie was brought up very well to do, whereas, Bo was the son of the man and woman who lived in the smaller caretaker's house on Sadie's grandmother's estate.
Both Bo and Sadie have never forgotten each other. The problem is that Bo still believes he made the best decision because, he never thought he was good enough for the "princess." Sadie has never gotten over Bo but, she has also never forgotten the fact that he dumped her for no reason. She also has a secret that she has never revealed to anyone but her grandmother.
This is a classic love story about two people who lose a lot of time because they both feel they aren't right for each other, only to find out that they are meant to be.

I am so loving this series! This time the story focuses on Sadie. She is an actress who is about to turn 30 & is finally getting a chance at a big break with an action movie. Bo is the stunt coordinator that happens to be her childhood sweetheart that dumped her on prom night. Sparks fly as soon as they see each other but they are trying to be professional. To see this story develop is so worth it! Highly recommend reading this & can't wait to see which friend gets their story next.

The tone of this book is different from the previous two books.While those were firmly in the rom-com category this is a more serious book.Sadie and Bo don't work for me as a couple.Their history is more interesting than their current highly physical relationship.There is a Big Mis and the revelations are anti climatic.This isn't to say it is a bad book.They seem more in line with their age group and both are well developed.I just don't like them together.I still adore the friend group and found that more compelling.This isn't for me but I can see people liking it.

Once Upon a Bad Boy is book 3 in the Sometimes Love series and it was my favorite. I love a good second chance romance. Sadie was the rich girl. Bo was the poor boy,. Prom, teen angst, the journey back to each other as adults working together is a wonderful slow burn. It gives you all the feels you want from a romance novel. Sadie and Bo's story is a love story for the ages. I can't wait to read the next book in the Sometimes Love series!

ARC from Net Galley, my opinions are my own.

2.5/5

Once Upon a Bad Boy started off enjoyable, and I was excited to experience those flutters you get when reading a romance, however, the storyline definitely became weaker after the midpoint, causing me to feel underwhelmed. This felt more like a Wattpad story than something edited by a publishing house.

I liked how I was eased into Sadie and Bo’s lives in the beginning of the novel, and when they were reconnected, I was excited to experience their reactions, which was quite well executed. The tension and jealousy they felt individually was enjoyable to read about, and I initially expected this to be a cliché novel, but one which was a guilty pleasure read. However, as the story unveiled, I was disappointed.

For example, the reason Bo initially broke up with Sadie was kept a secret for a chunk of the novel, but when it was revealed, it was really underwhelming. I was just left there like ‘that was it?’ There was an opportunity there for something great to happen that really stirred up the plot. But it wasn’t anything special. It was dumb and to be honest, felt slightly out of character for Bo. I still don’t think that would have been the reason he broke up with her. I thought he did it cause his family was involved in drug dealing or something. That would have stirred up the plot, and changed the pace of the novel, making it exciting if he still had to handle that situation before he could be with Sadie, his one true love.

The romance between Bo and Sadie was also rekindled too quickly in my opinion. The tension between them ended way too quickly, and for no apparent reason. All their initial issues weren’t really brought to the surface to be sorted out before they fully got together, something which would have created a nice, emotional, story arc, they just kind of were like ‘okay, let’s get back together then’, and that was it. End of story.

There seemed to be a promise of these things in the first 40% of the novel, which was why I was looking forward to it, but the rest of the novel felt more like I was following people around during their daily lives rather than reading about a conflict that needed a resolution.

There were also side-plots I desired to be explored in a little more depth. For example, Ana and Ryan seemed pretty cute and I wanted to see a bit more of that in the book for a slight change of scenery. Also, Sadie and her grandmother supposedly had a strong relationship, but this wasn’t explored until the very end, leading to me wondering why I was expected to care about it. Showing snippets of their relationship throughout the entire novel would have been much better.

I would be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy the book. However, there are so many novels that are written with this same, generic storyline which are executed much better. The plot needed some changing and embellishing to make it memorable.

2nd chance at love romance

This was definitely not my favorite book in Melonie Johnson’s Sometimes in Love series.
I had a hard time getting into the storyline. Sadie and Bo as a couple didn’t capture my interest the way the other couples in the series did. I found myself skim reading to get to the end of the story. I also think that there were things in the book that could act as triggers for some woman though I’m not sure how the author could have addressed that without giving away the plot.
I received an advance reader copy via Netgalley.

I have not read the others in the series but that did not seem to bother my experience reading it.
Bo and Sadie were high school sweethearts but broke up after prom.
When Sadie, now an actor, starts her new film Bo is the stunt coordinator. They have a second chance at romance and love. the writing was fresh and entertaining and I really enjoyed reading. I may go back and read the first two in the series. thank you Net Galley

Once Upon a Bad Boy is the third book in Melonie Johnson's Sometimes in Love series. Sadie Gold, who is close friends with Cassie (Getting Hot with the Scot) and Bonnie (Smitten by the Brit) is a form soap star looking to prove her acting chops in an upcoming action film. Bo Ibarra is the stunt coordinator for Sadie's new film - he is also her childhood sweetheart. This story is a great second chance romance that shows us how two people can grow up, learn to forgive, and come together stronger than before. This was a bit heavier than the first two books but I loved it just as much. I have adored all three books in this series so far and I recommend them wholeheartedly. I am really hoping to get Ana and Delaney's stories soon!

I really enjoy Melonie Johnson's writing. Her characters are funny, smart and well-developed. She gives them so much humanity that you can't help but root for them. I do have to say that the secret revealed near the end was a tough one for me. Not because I don't believe in a woman's right to choose, but because I need the frilly, sunny HEA that the Hallmark Channel delivers, without the harsh realities. Life is hard. This world is hard. I, personally, need my happy romance books that entertain and deliver a HEA at the end and let me escape for awhile. We still get the HEA in the end, but it was a bit bumpier than I could handle at this moment. That being said, I am a fan of Melonie Johnson and I will continue to read her work!

I was provided an arc by NetGalley in exchange for a review*

This is my first book by this author, and Book 3 in the Sometimes in Love series. The books can be read as a stand alone. It would of been nice to have a little bit more of a back story knowing that it is a series of 5 friends.

Once Upon a Bad Boy is Sadie and Bo’s story. They have not seen each other for about ten years. Their time apart has only intensified the "heat" between them It is fun to watch the push and pull of these two. Can they learn from the past? The story is easy to read and an easy flow to it. Definitely a good pool or beach read. I will be picking up the first 2 books in the series.