Book Review
Bad Girl Reputation by Elle Kennedy

This is the second book in the Avalon Bay series. This book follows Coopers twin brother Evan and his ex Genevieve. Genevieve left town the year prior to this book without telling anyone, including her on again off again boyfriend Evan. The two have an explosive relationship since they were young. They would drink a lot and get into all sorts of trouble. When something happens, Gen decides she needs to get her life together and she decides to quit everything cold turkey, including Evan. She leaves town without telling anyone and starts a new life.

Gen returns to Avalon Bay for her mother's funeral and she intends to leave soon after. But her dad convinces her to stay to help with the family business. She decides she will just have to stay away from Evan, which proves much harder than she hoped. Can the girl with the bad reputation, continue on her straight path or will she fall into old habits with her ex boyfriend? Can good girl Gen convince Evan that he can also grow up and make better decisions?

I love Elle Kennedy books and I liked this second installment of the Avalon Bay. I really like the journey Gen was on to try and make better decisions and to live her life cleanly and how Evan tried his best to be the type of man she needed. Their attraction to each other was evident throughout the whole book and Elle added some steamy scenes and I don't think I would have been able to stay away from Evan. You could tell how much Evan loved Gen, and their growth throughout the book was great. Plus, you got to see a bit of Mack and Cooper.

Read this if you like:
*second chance romance
*second chances (in general)
*dual point of view
*small town

Thanks to NetGalley for ARC

I really enjoyed this book and getting to know both Evan and Genevieve.
Both are such complex characters and it was interesting watching them navigate who they were vs who they want to be.
I enjoyed how much Evan was in tune with his feelings and knew what he wanted.
I was proud of Gen for making sure she didn’t lose herself throughout the book.
Evan and Gen had immediate chemistry and I was happy everything worked out!

Another great read by this author. The perfect balance of romance, humor, and angst. I loved Cooper's book but Evan's really hooked me. Evan and Genevieve have so much to overcome and it's a heck of a journey. There's plenty of steam and equal amounts of sweetness. It's a fast paced romance that you won't want to miss.

Genevieve West and Evan Hartley wow what a messy relationship! From the angst go the drama this book kept you moving through the emotions the entire time , was good second book in the series . Enjoyed the ride to the hea with the couple ,

I loved Good Girl Complex, but was not in love with Bad Girl Reputation. I finished it and never thought not to finish, but I just didn't love it. The characters and storyline were never very engaging and I never found myself getting lost in the book. 
Genevieve returns home after her mother's funeral, she plans to avoid her ex-boyfriend Evan. Unfortunately for her, it is almost impossible to do. Despite all her plans to help her father run his business only, Evan has other ideas. He plans to remind Genevieve just how great they are together. Is there such thing as second chances?
Thank you Netgalley for my advanced reader copies

I was a little skeptical at first since I haven’t read the first book and there’s very mixed reviews about it, but I truly enjoyed this book!

In this second book we have Genevieve who comes back to town, after a year of being away, for her mothers funeral and sees her ex-boyfriend Evan. Evan and Gen had an exciting and toxic relationship in the past, they’ve been inseparable since they were young and always seemed to make bad decisions. But now that Gen is back, she has decided she does not want to be that type of person anymore and wants to change for the better, as well as her reputation in town. Evan is still unconditionally in love with Gen and wants to get back together with her, but Gen tells him she doesn’t want to go back to them doing bad decisions and being toxic to one another, so Evan decides he will also change for the better.

Gen is so funny and relatable, there were many times I would laugh out loud while reading the book, and I also liked seeing her progress to a better life and how she would prove it during several occasions. I did felt like the last few pages were a bit rushed, and I would’ve liked for it to be dragged out a bit more and see more of the new Gen and Evan.

POV- Dual
Spice: 🌶 🌶 🌶

I haven’t lost myself in an Elle Kennedy book in a long time and it feels so good to be back! This one had me in my feels with its small beachside town childhood friends to lovers and I will be thinking about Evan and Gen for a long time.

I love that these two characters are different than most, as both of them are “bad,” and that is refreshing especially for the FMC. They are pretty toxic for each other in the beginning and I definitely don’t agree with everything they did, but that’s what made them real and complex. It also made seeing them change for the better not only for themselves but to be better for each other that much more rewarding!

I didn’t read the first book, but I didn’t feel lost and it just made me want to make sure to get back to that one on my TBR even more! Bad Girl Reputation broke my heart a bit but it was put back together at the end with a beautiful epilogue that left me even more excited for the next book!

Genevieve is back in town for her mother's funeral. She has tried to take control over her life and is avoiding her ex boyfriend Evan. But it seems hard to keep away from Evan and a lot seems to have changed in the year she was away. Will Gen be able to stay reformed? What about Evan?

I really enjoyed Good Girl Complex and was looking forward to reading Bad Girl Reputation. There were many things about this one that didn't sit right with me. Why is Genevieve the girl with a bad reputation, when Evan was equally painted with the same brush and did not have any image issues? Why did Gen have to date two guys at the same time? That really sucked. Gen was away for a year, in that period both Gen and Evan were reformed and responsible? Now for the things I liked! I loved their chemistry and attraction. I really liked Gen's family and how supportive Mac is. Evan was also pretty sweet so I don't know why the impression of a bad guy was portrayed!

Second chance romance at its best! We love messy characters around here, and Elle Kennedy does it beautifully! I love love love second chance childhood friends to lovers, and this one immediately drew me in!

Read if you love:
- dual POV
- coastal vibes
- second chance
- childhood friends to lovers
- TENSION

Unfortunately this book just didn’t do it for me. I’ve loved other book by Elle Kennedy and I really enjoyed the first book in this series so I was surprised when this one fell so short. I didn’t feel myself rooting for Gen and Evan throughout the book and honestly didn’t understand why the kept saying they couldn’t be together. What was holding them back? It made them come across as immature and I didn’t feel like I was reading an adult romance book. I also didn’t understand how the whole ending with the cop was realistic at all! I REALLY wanted to love this one guys! I can see why others might so definitely still give it a try if you liked the first book.

This was a novel about second chances not only through the romance of Gen and Evan, but in second chances to better yourself, to be who you want to be and to believe in yourself enough to make those changes for your own good, and the good of others.

The characters of Gen and Evan are immature and don't always act rationally. but that didn't bother me because I could see their slow progression and character development.

Overall I enjoyed this story and series.

Special thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC of this book for an honest review.

First I would like to thank St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for providing me with an E-ARC of Bad Girl Reputation.

Unfortunately, I DNF'd this at 50%

One of the things I like about romance series is that when they move to a new couple each book you don't need to love the book before it in order to continue enjoying a series. I DNF'd Good Girl Complex because I didn't connect with either of the characters, and while I did enjoy the characters of Bad Girl Reputation more, at no point during either book was I routing for the main couple to be together. Not really a great way to feel while reading a romance. While these characters individually didn't irritate me as much as GGC the relationship is what I had a problem with. Don't get me wrong, I can enjoy a good second chance romance. But by the 50% point of the book I shouldn't still be feeling that the relationship is toxic and not really worth saving. The point at which I DNF'd the book was when Evan was "reforming" himself to be a better guy for Gen. In theory this is great, but the way that it was written felt cheap, like Evan didn't really mean it and was only doing these "good deeds" so he could get back in Gen's pants.
Disappointed because I truly did enjoy Elle Kennedy's writing in The Deal and plan to continue with the Briar U series but I think this is the end of my time in Avalon Bay.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book provided to me. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Considering I didn’t read Good Girl Complex, I went into this one knowing two things. One, I love Elle Kennedy’s writing/story telling. Two, I love second chance romance. Bad Girl Reputation is a second chance romance between two friends who can’t resist one another!

That chemistry between Genevieve and Evan was scalding hot. However, with physical chemistry, I also really love depth and I felt like that was the missing curve to an otherwise good ride.

Overall, this book was good. Can I recommend this book? Yes, but understand you may be wanting more from it and never get it.

I did not love the first book in the series, but I love Elle Kennedy, so I gave her a shot on this, the second book of the series, and boy am I glad I did! This book was so much better. I loved the main couple, but I also enjoyed reading more about the couple from book 1 making an appearance in this one. Evan and Genevieve are working hard to reform their bad reputations by being good together. I love that Gen is changing for herself, and not for Evan. I love that Evan supported Gen throughout her growth. Overall the book was filled with angst and heart and it was good to see the two characters grow up into responsible adults.

This was a quick, cute story about changing your path and building a stable life. I wish it was as easy as this book makes it seem! There is some good angst and spice and I really loved the small town setting. While a sequel to Good Girl Complex, I don’t think you need to read the first one before starting this. If I read this 10 years ago it would have resonated with me more but ultimately I’m over (new) adults acting like children which is what you get in this one.

PUB DAY REVIEW // BAD GIRL REPUTATION

🌟2/5
🌶️2.5/5

Genevieve West is a former bad girl. When she returns home for her mother’s funeral she’s adamant on making this a quick trip, then going back to life she has started to build in Charleston

Why you ask? Evan Hartley is Gen’s ex…they have crazy history together and an insane amount of passion in their past

It’s impossible to not run into Evan in their small costal town.

Evan is still untamable, sexy and irresistible - but Gen is determined to leave the past in the past

Gen is ready for a clean slate - no more partying, no more careless mistakes, no more Evan Hartley

But Evan knows they can be good together, but can second chances TRULY work?

_____

Well ya’ll: in the words of Randy Jackson “it’s a no from me dawg”

The beginning started out promising, and the spice factor was DEFINITELY hotter than in GGC

But the second half of this book turned into a dumpster fire…there wasn’t just one, but TWO irrelevant storylines that added NOTHING to the story!!!

This honestly didn’t feel like a romance novel - both Gen & Evan were VERY immature (and toxic for one another) their reasonings for why they couldn’t be in a relationship got extremely repetitive

The ending felt SO rushed and incredibly unrealistic, and epilogues are supposed to be cute and sweet and this one was 100% unnecessary and boring

With all that being said, I will not read the third book in this series

Thank you to @netgalley & @stmartinpress for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review

Elle Kennedy does it again. When Genevieve returns to town for her mother's funeral, she tries her best to stay away from her on again off again boyfriend Evan, knowing that if she runs into him again, that she will get caught up in his orbit. However, it is nearly impossible not to run into him in the small Avalon Bay town. Their story is full of passion, love, and even personal growth as they find their way back together. I loved reading and listening Gen and Evan's story, and loved even more that Evan was the one to "fall first' and try to get Gen back however he can.

If you’re into an old-lovers to enemies to lovers again, redemption romance, then this is right up your alley. 😈 Our lovers: Genevieve (Gen) and Evan. This couple has a LOT going on: the angst, the back-and-forth jabs at each other, so much push and pull, but also so much tenderness and care… they were truly a lovely, if not somewhat maddening, romance to read.

The book’s enemy, Rusty, a sh*tty Avalon Bay cop full of toxic masculinity, a drinking problem, and an eye that more than wanders from his marriage and family, was absolutely disgusting, and written so well. He read like a Nicholas Sparks novel villain. 👎🏻

This book had a lot of heart too. I really loved that Kennedy’s main love interest had their own personal growth battles to overcome in order to figure out how to overcome obstacles to love each other in a healthy way, and I think she wrote this beautifully. Overall, I enjoyed this read and I would recommend to friends!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press @stmartinspress and NetGalley @netgalley for this ARC of this book!

Genevieve left town, telling no one, a year ago when she felt her wild ways were getting to be out of control. Now, back in town for her emotionally-distant mother’s funeral, she can’t help but be drawn back to her childhood best friend and only love, Evan. Their chemistry is still off the charts, but will Gen abandon all progress she has made by falling back into old routines and old relationships? Evan has never stopped loving Gen and, even though he was deeply wounded by her disappearing act, he still can’t stay away.

If you love a small town, beachside romance, this series is for you (this is the second book, following Good Girl Complex). Most of the conflict is internal—in this case it’s Gen’s need to see that she can reintegrate with her friend group while also staying mostly sober and making good choices. These characters are in their early 20s and I have to think it’s a pretty common conflict in that time to be struggling with still being fun and young but also maturing enough to be an adult and have adult responsibilities and adult relationships. CW for neglectful parent, assault, and harassment by law enforcement. Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the eARC. Available today!

⭐⭐⭐
Bad Girl Reputation is all about forgiveness, second chances and learning how to trust and Love. I love a good second chance Romance where they learn how to better themselves as well as a couple. That is what true commitment is about. The only issue is that It was pretty slow at the start but by the middle you wanted Genevieve to stay in Avalon Bay.