I love opposites attracts especially with a bad boy! Mac and Cooper had insane chemistry and I instantly found Cooper to be my kind of guy.

Only downside for me was the cheating element of the book. I'm not a fan of any cheating, even when the cheater is an a**hole.

A classic good girl/bad boy story about two characters who assume they could never belong in the other’s world. There’s a dating bet that starts it all, there’s revenge, there’s the secret that could change everything—all tropes we’ve seen before and which lead to an obvious ending. Unfortunately what could have been an entertaining, though predictable, story missed the mark for me.

On the positive side, both actors who performed the audiobook did a great job voicing the characters. They were compelling and easy to listen to, and they fully embodied the characters for me. As far as the story itself, the author has a strong command of the character’s voices, and much of the dialogue felt believable. It was a quick read(/listen), and it held my interest.

That being said, my interest was sometimes out of morbid curiosity rather than caring about the characters. The love story felt shallow and silly at best and like blatant harassment and abuse at worst. The male character, Cooper, spends much of the novel objectifying female characters and crassly pressuring Mac to have a physical relationship with him despite her constant protests and reminders that she had a boyfriend who she will not cheat on.

Of course the most troubling part of the entire narrative is that Mac DOES somehow find his harassment appealing and comes to believe that she and Cooper are “friends” before they become romantically involved. The idea of a female character believing that the guy who keeps trying to coerce her into sleeping with him behind her boyfriend’s back and who has never once displayed a positive personality trait is an example of true “friendship” is one of the least believe things I’ve read in a very, very long time. The appeal of Cooper to Mac never made sense for even a second, and it made the rest of their relationship very hard to buy into. This book tried hard to make cheating and sexual harassment sexy, but hiding this within a romance doesn’t doesn’t make it more acceptable.

I also found the discussion surrounding money to be very unbelievable. Mac comes from a rich family but she also happens to be a self-made millionaire at 21 even though we never observe any of the skills or intellect required for her to attain this. This didn’t feel relevant to the rest of her character—it was sort of thrown around as a casual fact. The conversations between the wealthy characters sounded like caricatures of rich people instead of what ANY real people actually sound like.

I do think there is a target audience for this book who will enjoy it, but it will require overlooking a lot of problematic issues.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a free audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’ll start by saying overall I enjoyed this book.
My biggest complaint is the storyline has been done so much that I kept thinking of movies and other books that it reminded me of. I kept listening to see how it was going to play out and if Elle was going to add in any unexpected twist. It goes pretty cookie cutter but I enjoyed it.

Joe Arden & Ava Erickson did an amazing job narrating.


*I was given an audio copy of this book by #netgalley to give my honest opinion

Well, I think this may be my first and last attempt with Elle Kennedy. I’m usually willing to overlook what reads as a cliched synopsis if I think the tropes themselves can be adapted enough to still tell a compelling story. And Good Girl Complex seemed like a breezy, beach town romance attached to a very hyped author that I’d always wanted to try. Unfortunately, what I wanted to be a fun if not forgettable read was instead a narrative littered with red flags.

The Flags:
- The very foundation of the main leads’ romantic relationship was cheating. No matter how much of a tool Mackenzie’s current boyfriend was, that kind of disloyalty rankles.
- I don’t want to call Mackenzie a pick me girl… but she’s a little bit of a pick me girl. This book outright states she doesn’t have many female friends and finds it easier to connect with guys, which I don’t think could spell this characterization out any more clearly.
- Mackenzie is also a #girlboss. I do not find fault in any of the characters that questioned her split-second decision to purchase an entire hotel to take on as a remodeling project with absolutely no prior experience working in this industry as a 20 year old.
- Cooper’s identity as a “bad boy” hinges solely on his tattoo sleeves and the occasional fight he gets into, always in the name of somebody else’s honor. He’s not the reckless, rough around the edges archetype pitched in the synopsis. He might actually be one of the most morally unambiguous characters in the entire novel actually.
- Mac’s idea of being “wild and adventurous” is enjoying carnival theme rides, a concept that is wholeheartedly endorsed by Cooper. I have nothing more to say about that.
- The entire third act breakup did not need to happen. Cooper had weeks to own up to his dishonesty and instead ignored every opportunity despite almost being caught out halfway through the book. This isn’t even miscommunication, it’s being obtuse.
- The grand gesture was an anonymous post… on an app. And the male lead had the audacity to outright call it a grand gesture in the narrative. That wasn’t self-aware, that was self-congratulatory.

The one genuinely wholesome relationship that had actual development beyond insta-love was Mackenize’s friendship with Cooper’s twin brother. I’ll admit I did enjoy watching his prickly attitude soften towards her as they were able to work through this initial animosity through events totally removed from Cooper himself. But for a romance novel where this was only a sideplot to a sideplot, this ultimately didn’t sell me on the book as a whole.

In the end, I think Good Girl Complex could find an audience in those who are willing to look past the frustrating use of very familiar romance tropes. But between the wooden characterization of the main leads and the dishonest (and disloyal) circumstances surrounding them getting together, unfortunately this novel did not work for me.

I will start by saying that the narrators were both impeccable, and the vibes of the setting were very Outer Banks-esque, which I truly enjoyed. The tension between Cooper and Mackenzie is palpable and their romance scenes were pretty well done. Mackenzie was a fine enough character, but I had some major qualms with Cooper. He has major a**hole energy, and I just couldn't buy into why Mackenzie enjoyed him as a person, apart from his appearance. The things he says and his motivations for doing things are NOT ideal for a romance hero, at least not for me. To be honest, I bet Cooper voted for Trump :/

*Thanks to Netgalley, Macmillan Audio and Elle Kennedy for providing me with an advance audio-copy in exchange for my honest review*

I am a huge fan of Elle’s Off Campus series, mostly for the hot college hockey players, so I decided to choose this one without even reading the blurb. I soon realized there is not a puck or a hockey rink in sight, but that’s okay because apparently I am just an Elle fan period!

Life of the rich meets life of the townies in this slow burn, good rich girl/bad poor boy, opposites attract, with a side of secrets, lies and revenge NA romance. Steam is alright once we get to it.

Cooper is known as a “townie” in the beachside town of Avalon Bay. A tattooed bad boy who has to work for what he has. When he gets canned from his bartending gig due to punching rich douche, Preston, for groping his coworker and good friend, Stephanie, he’s out for revenge. Coop makes a bet to steal Preston’s girl ~ how do you think that will work out? Yup, exactly as you think it will.

Mackenzie begins her semester at Garnet College, where her long time boyfriend, Preston, is. Mackenzie and Preston come from a life of privilege and are expected to marry. She meets Cooper, they hang out a few times, even rescue a dog together, and now she’s questioning everything she thought she knew about the future she was supposed to have.

Even though the old revenge plot is predictable I enjoyed it nonetheless. I always love when written from a dual point of view and Joe and Ava were the perfect narrators. It was nice that Mac was not the typical snobby rich girl, but was a down to earth character that made a name for herself by creating a popular app. I probably would’ve wanted to hang out with Cooper when I was in my 20’s for a fun time 😜

TW: cheating

I think the best way to describe this book is a nostalgic mix of The Outer Banks and After. 5/5 stars. This romance was something so cute but passionate! It felt so real that the romance was even better. This book was quite spicy but since it was an audiobook it was easy to skip past those parts. But the story was honestly so amazing because It felt like it would actually happen in the real world. Most romance novels focus so heavily on the romance that the reality of the plot sometimes gets lost. So it was nice to read because the things that happened were real life problems such as family issues and money stereotypes. The romance came from such a rough place, and it made it so much better! I can only speak good about this guys. This book makes me believe that love will prevail even when things are tough. It has some amazing messages in it linked with the romance to even out the plot with serious, but loving emotions. I would recommend this to everyone living a life with or without romance right now because this book, it will give you the hope to continue searching. Thank you to MacMillan Audio for this arc.

Contemporary romance isn't my first pick of genre, but I've read a few lately that I have really enjoyed. When I saw this cover and read the synopsis, I had really high hopes for what this could be. Unfortunately, I was disappointed. The relationship was utterly lackluster. It's what you would expect two college aged companions to swear to as love, but really is just temporary physical attraction. Their relationship wasn't built on anything more than lies and lust. They had zero in common, and I don't mean that in the "opposites attract" sort of way, I mean in the "this relationship is destined to fail" sort of way. The hero, Cooper, was a possessive boyfriend that needed therapy from his childhood trauma. The heroine, Mac, was a naive millionaire who fell for his emotionally abusive behavior and called it love. They had zero conflict resolution skills. Then the cheating, goodness gracious. Let's put a cheating element in every single relationship portrayed, and try to make it normal. This whole thing was just a train wreck!
While I don't mind a little smut working its way into a romance novel, this might as well been advertised as an erotica novel. There were way too many overly descriptive scenes for my liking, or really for a book in this genre. It made the relationship feel even more lust-filled, and did the believability of the relationship zero favors.
I listened to this book on audio and enjoyed the narrator. The reason this book gets 2 starts instead of one is because I really did enjoy Elle Kennedy's writing STYLE, I just hated the characters, their interactions, and the plot. I'd give her another try, but wouldn't recommend this book to any of my friends or family.

Thanks NetGalley for this Audibook arc !



This book was okay. Honestly it wasn’t the worst book I’ve read but not the best. It felt predictable.

I really enjoyed listening to this take on the rich good girl-poor bad boy trope.

Cooper Hartley is a bad boy living in coastal Avalon Bay. He has a tough exterior because he had to grow up quick and doesn’t care for the wealthy college kids that invade the town.

Mackenzie Cabot isn’t just a rich girl, she is also a business woman who has made her own money. She wants to focus on her business and finish school while sticking to the plan to marry her rich boyfriend Preston.

When Cooper and Mac meet, the banter between them is too good and the attraction is instant. Eventually they give up trying to resist each other. He realizes that Mac is more than a rich princess, and she realizes that she doesn’t have to stick to the plan, she can strike out on her own!

The characters of Mackenzie and Cooper really pulled me into the story. The narrators made them come alive in my head as I listened. Their voices took the story to another level, and kept me engaged. The pace and flow of the book were good. I never got bored, I was invested in the story. I couldn’t wait to see what happened, if there would be consequences for choices made or not. The side characters were also intriguing and hopefully we will get books with Stephanie, Alana, and Evan.

TW for cheating, spice level 3/5.
ARC provided by Macmillan Audio

Good Girl Complex is a fun new adult romance about the students and long time residents in the elite college town of Avalon Bay who are from opposite sides of the tracks. Mackenzie is a student who took a gap year to become a very successful entrepreneur, but her parents don't take her internet business seriously and want her to go to college instead. Cooper is a tattooed bartender/carpenter/construction worker in Avalon Bay, and has an identical twin who is kind of his opposite. They become friends and despite their differences there seems to be a lot of chemistry between them, but Mac has a very protective long-term boyfriend, and Cooper has a secret that he doesn't want Mac to find out. The greatest thing about this book is all the lovable characters and their genuine friendships. I really respected Mac for how she wanted to earn her own way and kept striving for what she wanted to do with her life despite what her family and friends thought.

Ava Erickson and Joe Arden did a great job narrating the audiobook, they really brought each of the character's personalities to life. I haven't listened to any of Elle Kennedy's books on audio before and I was happy to find that they are just as enjoyable as they are in print. I hope this book will become a series, because I'd really like to spend more time in Avalon Bay and get to know some of the other residents too.. especially Mac's roommate Bonnie, who was a lot of fun and a great friend!

RELEASES FEB. 1, 2022!!!!

A 2.5 really. This was my first Elle Kennedy and I was super excited to get my hands on an advanced copy of the audiobook. I'm ALWAYS on the hunt for New Adult romances (or really just NA books in general) because I feel it's a really lacking genre. I need more characters I can relate to in my 20s, people!!!!! No kid talk! No marriage talk! No locker talk! Quarter-life crises ONLY.

ANYWAYS. This was a really anticipated read for me and I was in the mood for something exactly like this, but it was a huge disappointment. I couldn't connect with the characters and I feel like their personalities were so immature and reminded me of YA high schoolers. They didn't seem like people in their 20s at all and that made it hard for me to relate to them in any way. I think they both had moments where their immaturity, stupidity, selfishness, and impulsivity went overboard and it was just too much for me. I wasn't super fond of either of them, although I much preferred Cooper over Mac, and it made it hard to root for their whole relationship. I don't mind a "rich girl, townie boy trope" at all, BUT I'm not a huge fan of the "bet" trope. It just instantly puts a sour taste in my mouth and it's hard to want a relationship to blossom when you know one character only went for it because of a bet. It's just hard to read & it stresses me out. There were moments where I swooned and wanted them to be happy, but there were MORE moments where I felt the opposite. In regards to the audiobook itself, I did like the narration a lot and recommend it if you decide to pick this one up. It was smooth and Ava Erickson and Joe Arden brought the characters to life. I'll definitely be on the lookout for audiobooks done by them in the future.

Overall, the smut was very nice, the writing was decent, and I did enjoy my time with this. I just didn't appreciate a lot of elements in here and I couldn't connect with the characters or root for them the way I wanted to. Whomp whomp.

------------------------------------------------
reading thoughts

20%: ohhhhhhhkayyyyyyyy I see you elle kennedy. loving the concept of this & it's already very swoony. it does seem pretty predictable tho and i don't just mean "oh they're obvs gonna end up together" because... it's a romance so like... duh. i mean it in the sense of... i think i have every aspect of the plot already figured out. which kindaaaa sucks.

i'm still gonna let it do its thing tho and just flow with it."

70%: this is not going as well as i anticipated and i'm BUMMED


thank you to netgalley & macmillan audio for an advanced audio edition. all thoughts & opinions are, as always, my very own.

The Good Girl Complex

Wow. I inhaled this book. I found myself wanting to listen instead of picking up a physical book to read.

The characters were fun and easy to get to know. The small town charm was perfect. I love the “forbidden romance” or should I say love from different worlds trope.

Coop and Mack while an unconventional start had a sweet passionate relationship.

I truly enjoyed listening to this book and I thought the narrators did a fabulous job!

Recommending this one for both physical read and audio.

Good Girl Complex by Elle Kennedy
A special thanks to St. Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for this ARC.
I voluntarily read and reviewed this book all thoughts and opinions are my own.
McKenzie Cabot Has been a good girl her whole life. She’s a people pleaser always trying to make everyone around her happy. From her demanding parents to her overbearing long time boyfriend. Even though she has several successful websites her parents are insisting she goes to college which means a move to the beach town Avalon Bay.
Cooper is a twin who has grown up in this tiny college town his whole life. His life has been hard. His dad has passed and his mom breezes in when she feels like it.
When a freak accident with a puppy puts them on the same path sparks fly. But Mac has a boyfriend so she works hard to keep it platonic. Everyone can see these 2 are meant to be but can they get there? You’ll have a to read Good Girl Complex by Elle Kennedy to find out. This book releases on 2/1/22.

I adored this story! Another Elle win for me! It was a very cute Oceanside small town story.
Elle wrote Macs struggles so well. You can actually see her grow through the story. So awesome to follow.

My only downside was the ending felt so rushed. There were so many outside interferences that by the time everything came together it was about a 15 minute break up make up period. Too instant for my liking.

The narration was perfection!

⚓️

This was my first read from Elle Kennedy and I have heard great things about her previous works. Unfortunately, this book just didn’t grab me. I believe that fans of Kennedy’s books may still enjoy this new release because the writing was quite good. My difficulty with this story lay with the hero - I just did not like him. A common romance trope, it ticks a lot of boxes, but my inability to like Cooper even the slightest bit prevented me from fully enjoying this book. That being said, there were some deliciously funny moments in this story and I would still recommend it for fans of contemporary romance novels with a heaping helping of sexy times.

😏

Thank you 🙏🏻 to the author along with Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for this audio ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I listened to the audio version of this book and felt like the narrators brought it to life! I thought it was cute and would make a nice beach read. I had never read anything by this author before but I enjoyed her writing style and would definitely look for more by her to read in between thrillers.

This book was really cute & really has me ready for summer! It reminded me of the show Outer Banks but without the action & adventure. I live opposite attract romances and I liked that Mackenzie was a business woman. I also loved the way her relationship started as friends to lovers with Cooper. In typical Elle Kennedy style this book was well paced, fun and sexy. The audiobook was great! I finished it in one sitting and I loved both narrators they did an excellent job.

5⭐

I love Elle Kennedy and was excited to see a new series from her. Good Girl Complex was fun and sexy with great characters. I felt like I was in Avalon Bay and had a connection to all of the characters. Elle Kennedy has a great way of showing the relationships between her characters and this really shone in the long-time friendships of the Avalon Bay locals. The side characters (as in all of Kennedy's books) really make the story.

Good Girl Complex follows Mackenzie "Mac" Cabot. She is a wealthy and sweet girl, who wants more than just being a congressman's daughter and showpiece for her future husband's arm. She has already started building her empire and making millions and doesn't see why her boyfriend and parents are pushing so hard for her to go to college. She is reluctantly attending Garnet College when she meets Cooper Hartley. Cooper is a local bad boy and not at all what Mac was looking for. So why can't she stop thinking about him? Their friendship turns into one of the best things in her life.

Cooper doesn't like the "clones" that are constantly infiltrating Avalon Bay. The clones are the rich kids that are always looking down at him and the other locals. But, he quickly realizes that Mac isn't like the rest and there is just something about this girl he can't quit. He's just keeping one secret from her that could blow the whole thing up.

At first, I felt the ending was a little abrupt, but then I realized that it is going to be a series, so we have not seen the last of the Avalon Bay crew. I had a lot of unanswered questions, but now know these characters will likely get their own books. I'm so glad we will get to see more from them!

This is the story of Mackenzie, a college student whose life has been laid out for her according to her parents wishes and Cooper a townie who initially works at a local bar near the university. Cooper gets into a fight with a clone (a cookie cutter rich local college kid) one night and he loses his job and wants to find a way to get back at all the clones. He then decides to go after the clone's girlfriend for revenge.

It was strange to me that Mac had such high ideals about not cheating, but then cheats on her boyfriend with Cooper. I felt the chemistry was not fully developed between the characters. I liked the storyline of everyone not having faith in Mackenzie and her dreams and her proving them all wrong. She’s definitely a boss!

The narrators on this audiobook did a great job of bringing this story to life. They were the reason I enjoyed the story.

Publishing date: 2/1/22

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for access to this ARC