** spoiler alert ** The entirety of the plot was based on miscommunication which fell a little flat for me. I was excited for a second-chance romance, but did not feel a lot of chemistry between Andie and Jack.
Grief was present throughout the novel and I felt this was very well handled. I wish we could have explored Jack's relationship with his dad a little, as this would have fleshed out his character a little more. I felt there was a lot of potential for character development for both Andie and Jack (especially when the reveal of their time in Edinburgh turned out to be a very serious circumstance) that was not worked upon. Saying that, it WAS nice to read a FMC that wasn't entirely perfect and with warring emotions.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Andie and Jack have a past, what kind of past is left unclear until very close to the end. Since what Jack did happened close to Andie's father's terminal illness, Andie cannot forgive Jack. Five years later, Andie has to work as Jack's publicist, which means forced proximity for a book tour.

As much as I like second chance romances, this novel was not for me. I didn't like Andie one bit and there was no chemistry between the two protagonists. To be honest, I only finished this book to find out what Jack had done to Andie to deserve her being so petty, mean and unprofessional.

This was a simple, fun, easy and quick read. The perfect type of book for your holiday, beach, pool kind of read. This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

This book really surprised me and I loved it. I read it in 2 days because I didn’t want to put it down.

This was a romance combination that I hadn’t read before with a publicist and an author so I really loved that. It was also nice that the book was set in a few different countries. It made me want to (a) be an author and (b) book a flight asap. I also loved the link to Edinburgh, having studied there myself

I thought the reasons behind why Andie hated Jack were actually valid. Usually the main characters don’t like each other over something silly and you think really all this is because of that? But when I read what had happened in the past I completely got it and felt relieved that it was something bigger but not too big that it wasn’t resolvable.

I really adored Andie’s growth throughout the book and I respect the tough decisions she made at the end. It felt like a natural progression and not forced.

Jack was a perfect MMC. I loved his layers and that he came across really confident but was actually quite nervous underneath the facade.

A main highlight for me was Andie reconnecting with her mum again. I thought that was really heartwarming.

Sometimes I thought Andie was a bit too dramatic/self-obsessed but it didn’t detract from the book.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I will be recommending it. A great read!

Thank you, Bloomsbury & NetGalley, for sending me this arc in exchange for an honest opinion.

As a fan of bookish books and the second chance trope, I really enjoyed the story. Having New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Dublin and Edinburgh in one book, I felt like I was travelling with the characters (also, my favourite bookshop in Dublin, Hodges Figgis, was mentioned!). Most of the time, Andie was so mean to Jack (in a funny way) that it made me wonder what had happened between the two in the past. I liked the awkward moments between them, but I couldn't relate to Andie hating Jack – I mean come on, he remembered her favourite flavour of crisps, speaks French AND reads dragon books!😍
As the story progressed, there was an insight into what happened between them and why Andie was so hurt. The conflict made sense, but it upset me that there were no consequences for Robbie. I would've liked a more empowering narrative. Andie had a realistic character development and I liked that she didn't change into a completely new person overnight but took time for herself to figure things out. Still, the last chapters broke my heart and the ending felt too rushed. I would've liked to see more of Andie's growth and her friendship with Sara (who, by the way, is a great no-nonsense friend). I'm not a huge fan of open endings (that's just personal preference), so a bonus chapter to see how Andie and Jack were doing a few months/a year later would've been nice.

This was an enjoyable easy read with some heavy topics that were handled well. However, I feel like the characters lacked development and chemistry. There’s so much potential with this plot to show huge character growth for both the FMC and MMC, but it really lacked this. I’d like to have seen less detail about some of the book tour logistics and more time dedicated to building their chemistry and showing character growth.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in return for an honest review

This book follows Andie on her latest work trip as a book publicist, she is a career loving girlie until she arrives at the trip only to found the man who ruined her university experience- Jack. The story follows both characters as they navigate this difficult relationship a whilst travelling through Europe on Jack’s month long book tour.

I want to start by saying that my favourite part of this book was the exploration of grief- it was so well done and so well weaved into the story without feeling jarring or out of place. There were so many elements of the story that I highlighted as it was like they came from (a more articulate version) of my own brain. As a fellow member of the ‘dead dad club’ this book made me feel seen and I thought it was done so well.

I didn’t actually love the two MC’s in this book and their relationship, I just didn’t really buy into the whole ‘enemies’ thing and found it to be a little bit erm, pathetic? I think the falling out made sense as it was almost linked to the grief Andie was going through but for it to ripple out to this point just felt a little bit far fetched for me. I think because I didn’t fully buy into them not getting on it prevented me feeling invested in their relationship pulling through. I didn’t really feel any of the tension (either of hate or of love) and instead felt like I was told about it which then impacted me feeling elated as the story went on.

Overall this book was really enjoyable, the past elements being weaved through worked really well and as mentioned the exploration of grief was beautiful and real. I’d recommend this book if you are looking for something light hearted but with splashes of depth

I was drawn to Bad Publicity by the colourful cover and the intriguing premise. Although light and fun in places, there was more of a serious undercurrent within the plot, which I wasn't expecting. If you enjoy a slightly more grown-up rom-com, I think you'd enjoy this title by Bianca Gillam.

I love an enemies to lovers trope and the premise for this really caught my attention as I also work in publishing and enjoy a bit of drama (and drama between a publicist and author, sign me up)!

This book surprised me. I wasn’t expecting it to be quite emotional and deal with serious issues, like grief and guilt but I think that’s what makes the book stand out from other similar romance books.

It started off really fast paced and then became really slow moving, but I persevered and I’m glad I did. A 3.5 star from me.

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital arc.

I found this an easy light-hearted read and enjoyed the story, however I don't think it stood out to me compared with other titles in this genre

Pick up this gorgeous hug of a book and get transported to your happy place… wraps itself round you like a cosy blanket. It has warmth, charm, laugh-out-loud moments and a wistful nostalgia. I absolutely loved it.

I really liked the idea and concept of this book. It touches on some sad topics, such as grief, which I have to say was handled and written incredibly well. It drew me to the characters. I felt there wasn’t enough character development, and the character development that there was, didn’t portray our protagonists in the best of lights. Overall, I did enjoy it and I did finish the book.

This is a romance with a good backstory and has a great enemies to lovers feel to it. I was very invested and found it hard to put the book down. Their chemistry and banter was fab, and had me hooked from the start. It is a fairly slow burn, which is something I love.

3 stars - a fun concept but struggled to connect with the main character

Bad Publicity has all the makings of a great book, and the plot seems like the perfect set up for a romance. The depiction of grief and how it affects us was handled in a sensitive and empathetic manner, and reflected the realities of how it impacts your life. The pacing was good and it moved quickly enough to keep my interest throughout, though some scenes could have been developed a bit further.

What held me back from rating this book higher was the lack of connection with the main character, particularly in the first half of the book. While some of her actions and choices were tied to her grief, she also came across as quite a selfish friend to Sara, and often put her own problems above anyone else's. While there's nothing wrong with an unlikeable main character, it has to be done carefully for the reader to still connect with them and this aspect let the book down for me.

I really enjoyed this book! It was a sweet romance that dealt with some really difficult topics in a sensitive and well rounded way. At times I found parts of the plot slightly repetitive and felt that perhaps there was a bit much going on in terms of character complications, but on the whole it tied together well and I really loved the characters’ journeys both as a couple and as individuals. By the end I found myself completely invested and thoroughly heart-warmed! Well worth a read!

I’m sorry but what the biscuit is wrong with the fmc???? She was so mean towards the mm. without any reason. Ok, he did something a couple years ago to her, but that doesn’t justify the way she acted towards him HALF PERCENT OF THE BOOK
I wanted to love this so much cause it sounded so so good but i couldn’t get over the way she was acting
The mean girl behaviour doesn’t always work

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the arc 🫶🏻

this review won’t be long - i initially liked the idea of the plot a lot since it sounded like typical enemies to lovers banter. however, the storytelling kind of fell flat for me. i think the topic of grief was handled extremely well and it made me connect deeper to andie, however, the plot just felt boring and i was not really invested in their relationship. the flashback chapters were the only two that genuinely made want to read more but they only came up at the end. therefore, i think the writing style just wasn’t something for me. but it wasn’t bad at all and i’m sure a lot of people will enjoy it!!

Bad publicity was a great read which managed to be romantic as well as hitting on serious subjects such as sexism and misogyny.
I cared about the characters and was really rooting for a happy ending.

Bad Publicity by Bianca Gillam - 4⭐️

I was honestly thoroughly impressed by this book. If you want to read a romance that had a bit of a backstory, and will wrench your heart, this book is literally perfect for that. I am always unsure when there’s been a bad situation in the past between characters and it isn’t disclosed what that is early on, usually I am not the biggest fan of this. But the author did this really well, and didn’t put too much of an emphasis on it being this huge mystery. Loved both the main characters, but I definitely have a soft spot for Jack who is such a sweetie, and a very well developed character. Once the story had reached the two characters actually getting on tour together as author and publicist, I was very invested and found it hard to put the book down. Their chemistry and banter was very well written, and had me hooked from the start. I would say this is a fairly slow burn, which isn’t usually my favourite, but just happened to love it in this.

Thank you very much to the author and publishing team for letting me read an ARC of this book!!

Bad Publicity is a book lovers' dream romance, encorporating an enemies to lovers trope , as Senior Book Publicist Andie and her ex, famous novelist Jack Carlson, find themselves travelling around Europe on a month long book tour. Swoon! Andie is still seething and hurting from their last encounter over 5 years ago, but pastes on a professional face to do her job. The adventure sees them touring European cities from London to Berlin and onward to Paris. Each city presents additional challenges with the opportunity for growing tensions to turn into sizzling hot temptation. The dialogue is pacy and witty with lots of witty retorts between the pair. Both characters are flawed but so likeable, and there is so much growth for both of them as the storyline develops. Between the building sexual tension, and spicy scenes, there is also heartbreak and grief and some very real and moving moments. A perfect balance between the serious, the hilarious, the romantic, and some heat. Bad Publicity is a fast paced romance giving us readers a little glimpse into the publishing world. It is a mesmerising tale of two exes, an upsetting history, trauma, grief friendship, and family. An absolute page-turner that I read in one sitting. My ideal holiday read. With thanks to @BloomsburyPublicity and @biancagillam for a copy of the book, due out on shelves January 2025. #badpublicity #biancagillam #romance #netgalley #frenemies