I read this book expecting a standard light-hearted romance novel with potentially a bit of cheesiness thrown in for good measure. Though the book did definitely provide these expectations with the well-used tropes we all know and love, it also offered more depth than just your standard romance.

I enjoyed the reference to past events throughout the book which was gradually built upon until we eventually saw the big reveal, I think this was done very well without being rushed or prolonged.

I also enjoyed the way in which the author discussed grief throughout the book. It felt like it wasn’t just used as a trope to gain insight into the main character, it was a topic which was present throughout the story. It made it feel more real in that it affects all areas of the main character’s life and perspective of the world and those around her. Though this was a big theme of the book, the author managed to make sure the book remained reasonably lighthearted and enjoyable.

Overall a fun read which provides both relatable emotion and excitement. The storyline was quite original for a romance and I’d be happy to read more by this author.

What a great read this was. I liked the characters and how they worked together. It is quite emotional in places and it definitely made my eyes well up briefly. Captures how grief and shock can affect people extremely well. I look forward to more books from Bianca. (I have also pre-ordered a print copy). A fabulous book.

Two exes, one month in Europe on a publicity book tour? What could go wrong?

What to expect
Forced Proximity
Second Chance Romance
Grief representation
Mental health Representation

Even with the sensitive subject matters and triggers, Bianca still makes this book flow in such a way that it almost feels like a light hearted summer read. But at its core its book about all sorts of healing. Both from trauma and grief, and how confronting it head on is always better than running away from the past and your feelings.

This book also isn't just about the relationship between 2 people. Andie never fully processes the trauma in her past and the grief she feels after the loss of her dad, she can't even separate the 2 events because they happened so close together. This affects all her relationships, with Jack, with her best friend and her mum.

It was a relatively short book, great to devour in an afternoon or evening. Because of this, the story doesn't have a huge amount of build up, it heads straight into the main story from the get go. I loved the mention of Shakespeare and Company, and the other bookshops along the tour, many I would love to go visit!

Highly recommend this one if you're looking for an easy read that's also quite deep.

Thanks Bloomsbury and Netgalley for the ARC.

This was a very easy read which I finished in a day. I enjoyed the story line but I thought the character development fell flat. I wasn't invested in the characters especially Jack and Andie's relationship. It felt like it was a bit to rushed with not a lot of insight into the day to day of the characters.

Overall, this was not my favourite rom com but it's worth reading to make the decision for yourself.

This is a lovely story where Andie, our main character, learns a lot about herself when faced with Jack, a living reminder of a traumatic event in her past. Their chemistry is palpable and believable, but I struggled to side with Andie when the miscommunication between them reached its peak. It’s a good use of the miscommunication trope, especially as Jack is a reminder of a time in Andie’s life before her father’s death. Grief is discussed in a really beautiful and touching way, which was great to read! Overall, I liked it and would recommend it to someone looking for a romance story with emotional depth!

When English expat Andie starts her dream job as a senior book publicist for a New York publisher she's horrified her first book tour is accompanying author Jack Carlson, the man who, five years ago ruined her life at university. Debut author Bianca Gillam crafts a lovely, slow-burn travel romance touching on grief, parental neglect and second chances.

Andie will frustrate as she stubbornly refuses to air her grievances with Jack despite his many attempts. She can't help but let her enmnity show. However as she slowly opens up we learn her feelings about Jack are linked heavily to her unaddressed grief from her fathering dying at the same time. Jack, too has father issues, striving for success under his neglectful father's shadow and nursing regrets over Andie.

Refreshingly, Gillam provides a compelling and justified reason for her hostility, though pacing wise I wish this was revealed earlier. Too often the 'secret' is often something badly communicated or overheard slight or something completely ridiculous. What did surprise me was Andie's decision about her future, I was surprised that she made what i thought was a bit of an extreme decision given the circumstances.

I breezed right through this book and couldn't put it down. I look forward to enjoying more work by her.

Thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC.

Overall, I really liked this book but I didn't gel with the main female character as I found her quite selfish and childish. However, that aside I really enjoyed the rest of the book. I really liked the plot, I found it overall to be funny and a good rom com.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I liked everything about this book apart from the female main character, I just didn’t like her, or her attitude and I found her quite childish. She’s very selfish towards her best friend. BUT that didn’t make me hate the book. The plot was brilliant and the male main character was great, humor was good. the FMC does redeem herself so I was happy about that. Overall a great book.

Oh my gosh, this is my favourite contemporary romance book ever. I loved it so much. I enjoyed the plot and the banter at the beginning, so I was totally engaged but I was not expecting the huge revelation towards the end. The EMOTIONS. Honesty from about 80% onwards I don’t know how much tears came to my eyes. This is so good, amazing. I can’t wait to see what Bianca writes next!

"The name is still there, clear as day. Jack Carlson."

3.5 Stars rounded up.

A slow building romance that does play upon the trope of miscommunication/misunderstanding.

I loved the premise. I loved that the characters had the dynamic of working together and travelling together with their shared history. It allowed for great moments of tension, and flows in their dynamics with the obligations to their jobs and their believed obligations to the past. I enjoyed the main characters, I think they are two differing personalities that allowed for the tension and mystery to work well.

I think the highlight of the story, overall for me, is the depiction of grief and how individuals choose to address and work through what is causing them harm. I think the main female character, whilst I understand for many people may be frustrating, shows quite a human way of dealing with grief and feeling entirely overwhelmed. As a reader, you fall very easy into the feelings of wanting her to go through development for the betterment of herself and for the happiness of the character. I think whilst romance is definitely present and a central focus of the story, I find that the themes of grief, self-sabotage & acceptance are more of the shining factors in this story.

What I would have to love to have had sooner in the story, or at least some sprinkles of, was the initial misunderstanding. I think because there was such little information given to the readers about this initial incident, I think I felt a bit disconnected to the actions and motivations of the main female character. I felt that I needed a bit more justification for her behaviour because the motivation = response wasn't there for me - I understand that it was better to allow the story to fully unravel with the character development but sometimes the connection between the main female character and myself, as a reader, felt a bit frayed (especially in the beginning).

I think the story moves and flows very well, I was able to finish this book pretty much within one sitting. The pacing of the book is good and moves fast - there are moments that I would have liked a slower pace just to have greater depth in the scenes of the tour. I really enjoyed the scenes we were given and I would have loved to have had more.

Thank you to Bloomsbury Publishing for this eARC, I am voluntarily leaving a review.

Until her first day, when she discovers that her biggest author is Jack Carlson – the same Jack who ruined her life in university. Who she hasn’t spoken to in five years. Who is not only still infuriatingly hot but incredibly successful. And whose campaign she definitely cannot mess up, if she wants to keep her job.

An excellent rom com from Bianca Gillan. I adored this story and thoroughly recommend this to anyone

This was a really delightful rom-com. I loved the premise and the chemistry between our two characters. I had a lot of fun with this one.

I don't usually read many romance books because I get bored really easily, but I absolutely loved this book!

Loved the humour, bookish setting/theme and the range of locations visited by the characters. The grief element was a great addition which really gives you a better delve into the main characters life and emotions (although quite sad in parts).

A fab book for this authors debut!

I was given an ARC of Bad Reputation by Bianca Gillam through NetGalley, and I couldn’t wait to dive into it! Two exes being forced together for European tour? A bunch of tension and unspoken history? Sign me up!
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I immediately became obsessed with the main character, Andie, a PR agent living in New York. Andie is a drama queen (in the best possible way), and I found her so funny. She is so stubborn - often to her detriment - and she is the queen of repression (ALWAYS to her detriment). I found her very relatable, although there were times when even I was exasperated by her lack of communication. It’s definitely not one to read if you hate the miscommunication trope!
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The book had so many wonderful moments of vulnerability - between Andie and Jack (her client/ex), Andie and Sara (her best friend), and Andie and her mum. Each character had their moments of smashing down walls and letting their loved ones see their grief or their insecurities. It also helps that the exposition was slid so well into the first few chapters that it never felt clunky, nor did it leave us with any questions - aside from the big mystery of what happened between Andie and Jack all those years ago.
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Despite Andie’s years of repression, however, some of the healing felt a little too rushed for my taste. They’d be half way through a conflict, and Andie would have a wave of clarity, which for me felt a bit too simple. As much as I love a healing moment, I do enjoy reading some higher-stake conflicts. Andie was a bit too self aware in a way that made her (very very occasionally) annoying. That being said, for the most part I loved her.
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I enjoyed reading the dynamic between Jack and Andie, and it was great to see where they would push and pull away from each other at various stages on their tour. It made for a really fun read, where I found myself both smiling down at my phone and wanting to close my eyes in frustration.
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I had a great time reading this book. Bad Publicity will be released in January 2025 - so keep an eye out for it!

This is another great holiday read for this summer! This book scores 4 stars from me❤️

A quick synopsis of the story:
Woman with a terrible past spends a month touring Europe with a man she hates.

I really enjoying reading this book on my adventures in Bosnia and Croatia. It was a great story to get back to between exploring new places and relaxing. The first chapters were super quick to read and kept me wanting to read on! I especially enjoyed the shortness of them, as the book developed however I noticed that chapters became much longer and paragraphs were rather long. It was definitely a lot more effort to finish the book than I expected, although the story was really good and nothing stopped me from finishing the book!

I really loved the speed of the story at the start, lots was happening and the story had a very good flow. The characters are very unique and work great within this book. Strong but sad story line, with a good ending. Definitely recommend for all my reads to preorder this book.

This book seemed like the classic enemies to lovers trope that I love, which it was - but with a unique spin that I think sets it apart from other similar books. I loved the publicist/author angle as it's not a pairing I've seen before in a romance novel, so the story taking place over the course of an international book tour was really exciting!

There was a point around halfway through where I felt things were moving a little slowly - we still don't know why Andie and Jack don't get along - but it really picked up again around 70% and I can see why we were left waiting for so long!

Despite the slow burn, this was a book I enjoyed and would definitely recommend. It's got everything you'd want from a modern romance - tension, drama, emotion and spice - but what made this book stand out for me was its characters. The book is about real human relationships, growing up, building a life and dealing with everything that being an adult throws at you. The feelings of burnout and overwhelm that Andie feels while trying to cope with her burgeoning career, her history with Jack, the loss of her Dad and her guilt over losing touch with her Mum are things that many readers will be able to relate to.Unlike similar titles I've read which have felt quite surface-level, this had real depth and warmth and I loved reading it.

This such lovely rom com book. Reminds me of likes of Emily Henry and Amy Lea. Such fun and cute book. Recommend it.

4⭐️
I flew threw this one almost as fast as she took flights! Andie has her dream job in publishing, an apartment in NYC and a great best friend. She’s even secured a promotion and all is going swimmingly until she gets told who her first celebrity author will be, and it turns out they have history. A great read for those who enjoy the friends to enemies then to lovers trope, or for a rekindled romance. I found it interesting that the issue with Jack wasn’t revealed until the latter parts of the book, leaving you guessing for the rest of the time but secretly willing Jack to succeed. The character had a huge amount of emotions to work through, with an unsurpassable grief that overwhelms her and threatens to take over at any time. This book does deal with this aspect of grief, and losing a parent, so just a word of warning about that for those it might impact. That being said, I enjoyed the book, the reality check Andie needed and her changing feelings and actions towards Jack.

rounding this up to 3.5

when two enemies from university end up working together.

as cute as the story was, it was a tad too fast paced for me so at times it felt underdeveloped.

however - the book was still enjoyable for any fans of the romance genre.

the author depicted grief in such a beautifully realistic way, that it was my favourite element of the book.

A fun, light-hearted rom-com that didn't take itself too seriously.
The characters are reasonably likeable, though Andie can be a little questionable at times - since her actions don't always make sense.
Overall the book was enjoyable, well written, and fun to read.
The pacing was a little uneven but nothing that disturbed my reading.