Bad Bachelor by Stefanie London... an honest arc review

Bad Bachelor by Stefanie London
Expected to publish March 3, 2020
Sourcebooks Casablanca

Goodreads Synopsis:

Everybody’s talking about the hot new app reviewing New York’s most eligible bachelors. But why focus on prince charming when you can read the latest dirt on the lowest-ranked “Bad Bachelors”—NYC’s most notorious bad boys.

If one more person mentions Bad Bachelors to Reed McMahon, someone’s gonna get hurt. A PR whiz, Reed is known as an ‘image fixer’ but his womanizing ways have caught up with him. What he needs is a PR miracle of his own.

When Reed strolls into Darcy Greer’s workplace offering to help save the struggling library, she isn’t buying it. The prickly Brooklynite knows Reed is exactly the kind of guy she should avoid. But the library does need his help. As she reluctantly works with Reed, she realizes there’s more to a man than his reputation. Maybe, just maybe, Bad Bachelor #1 is THE one for her.

My rating: 3/5 stars

Thank you to the publisher for providing an ARC through NetGalley. This has not impacted my opinions. As always, this review is honest and spoiler-free.

WHAT I LIKED:

Darcy. The female main character is smart, sharp, and unapologetic. Stefanie London described her in great detail, and I felt like I knew Darcy like an old friend. Her spunk and wit, paired with moments of softness and empathy, made her a main character I could root for.

The sense of layering and character development. I enjoyed how all the characters were multi-faceted and had multiple dimensions. We got to see the main cast of characters struggling and succeeding due to their own active choices and autonomy.

The presence of family dynamics. How families function in romance is sometimes not addressed, so I enjoyed the glimpses into Darcy and Reed’s childhood and home life. Their relationships with parents and siblings were nuanced and emphasized that there is no one way to be a parent or child. Relationships are as unique as the people who participate in them.

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE:

Parts of Reed’s character. His internal struggle felt somewhat manufactured. As nuanced as Darcy’s internal dialogue was, I didn’t see that in Reed. There was an explanation for why he was the way he was, but maybe a little more development would’ve made is character seem more believable.

There were one too many coincidences. I’ll buy one moment of happenstance, but there was one moment closer to the end of the book when Reed discovered that someone close to Darcy wasn’t entirely genuine. You’ll know what I mean when I get there, but it felt a little too neat and tidy.

What have you been reading lately? Have you read Bad Bachelor?

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