Bad Girl Reputation by Elle Kennedy | Book Review

Bad Girl Reputation by Elle Kennedy

(Avalon Bay #2)

Published: 4th October 2022 by Piatkus

Other works: The Deal, The Chase, Good Girl Complex

Rating: 4 stars

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. This in no way affects my review.

Synopsis:

When former bad girl Genevieve West returns home for her mother’s funeral, she’s prepared to keep her distance from her ex-boyfriend, Evan Hartley. Their history is rife with turbulence. And passion. A heck of a lot of passion... which she’s trying desperately to forget. 

But it’s impossible not to run into Evan in the small coastal town where they once ran wild. And the moment she sees her gorgeous ex again, it’s clear to Gen that Evan is still as unruly, sexy, and irresistible as ever. This time around, however, she’s resolved to walk a new path. No more partying. No more foolish mistakes. Her plan is to temporarily remain in town to help her father run his business, but the second he finds somebody else, she’s out of there.

Evan has other ideas. He knows they can be good together, but he just has to convince Genevieve of that, even if it means turning over a new leaf himself. But can a bad reputation ever truly be shed? Do second chances really work? Genevieve and Evan are about to find out.

Review:

Warning - potential spoilers!

Good Girl Complex, the first in this Avalon Bay series, ended up being one of my favourite romances of last year, so when I had the opportunity to read Bad Girl Reputation, its companion novel, I jumped at the chance! Although the focus of the story obviously wasn't on him, I was intrigued by Evan, the male protagonist of this story, when introduced to him, and so I was very pleased that he and Genevieve were the focus this time around. I don't read too many 'exes coming back to each other's stories, but something about the passion between these two really drew me into their story.

Seeing as this series has followed twin brothers so far, I was interested to see if I would be as much of a fan of Evan as I ended up being of Cooper, and especially his relationship with Mac. Initially, and considering what I'd read of him previously, I thought Evan might not have much more to himself than pure grouchiness, but it was nice to see his blatant soft spot for Genevieve and his willingness to do anything for her, including reforming himself. I really enjoyed Good Girl Complex, which seemed like much more of the classic kind of love stories I read, and fortunately, this matched up for me in terms of my enjoyment! The way that Evan and Genevieve just gravitated towards each other, even with time apart, was so sweet to witness, and they clearly weren't meant to stay away from each other.

Kennedy's writing is as strong as ever, and it's no surprise that she's so well-renowned in the romance world. I found myself constantly thinking about this book whenever I was away from it and just wanted to rush home to finish it! I really liked how Kennedy chose to frame this story around people wanting to better themselves and kind of get their acts together, in an attempt to redeem themselves from some morally questionable pasts. I enjoyed getting to witness Genevieve's life especially as she faced a turning point in her life, and inspiring Evan to do the same. It made for a much more satisfying and successful romance, as much as I did also enjoy the slight toxicness and mutual jealousy between the two.

I thought the whole secondary storyline of the reason why Genevieve left town to be very well-written and tactfully done, not turning it into something ridiculous but rather it came across as a very realistic depiction of circumstances like those that happen in real life. I definitely felt very relieved when the whole situation got resolved and the Deputy got his comeuppance! The little love triangle was also a nice sub-plot, without taking over the story completely, as was Evan's interactions with his mother and the growth of that relationship. By the end, I became a massive fan of Evan and Genevieve and rooted for them hugely. I can't wait to see them hopefully feature in the third Avalon Bay book, which I will certainly be reading once it comes out!