3.75 stars
The Bad Girl by AD McCammon was a good ex-best friends now enemies to lovers romance, but there was a bit too much push and pull at times. Arwen is an outcast at Westbrook High, and people either hate her or fear her. She doesn't fit in and doesn't try to. When she first moved to town, her one and only friend, her best friend, was Aidan, the town's golden boy and football star. They were inseparable the summer before 8th grade and quickly became close. But when Arwen was seen as the outcast and outsider, people bullied her for being Aidan's friend and she quickly distanced herself from him. Fast forward to the summer before their senior year in high school, Aidan is done allowing Arwen to torment and bully him. Despite all her meanness, he still likes her and has always wanted to be with her. Something starts to change between Arwen and Aidan, and Aidan is going to continue to push for a relationship with Arwen. This is book 2 in the Westbrook Three series, and I felt as though I should've read book 1, despite this being a standalone. The timeline for both books is the same, and I was getting the rundown of the first couple's relationship at the same time as getting the setup for the third couple's relationship, which felt to be too much to take in. There were also massive spoilers about book 1 in this book. I really loved Aidan, he was truly the golden boy and was committed to having a relationship with Arwen. He never swayed in his love for her. Arwen was an interesting character, and I liked how independent she was. She was also bi, I believe, and only liked girls before she started to like Aidan as more than a friend. I do not know how well this part of her character was written and developed, as I have never gone through this situation. I don't know if this representation of someone who likes both genders was accurate. It was certainly interesting to read about, having not read many books with girls who are bi. I thought the book was well written and there were so many cute scenes between Aidan and Arwen. There were also many steamy scenes between them. I liked the chapters in the past, when they were 13, as well, and it added to the connection they had. I had an issue with just how wishy-washy Arwen was. She made Aidan put up with so much sh*t and I felt bad for him. But I also felt bad for Arwen and her total lack of self-confidence in being with him. I think there just one too many scenes with her pushing him away deliberately. Aidan had a strained relationship with his father that was part of the conflict throughout the book, and I felt like it died off only to be resolved at the very end. This is super random, but I really didn't understand Arwen and Cole (one of her best friend's and part of the Westbrook Three) love for Violet. They were best friends with Thatcher first, only to be all over Violet and I felt weird with that whole situation. I really liked Violet, but it felt odd that they were more protective of her and worried about her and losing their friend than they were about Thatcher. Just a random side thought. Overall, I definitely enjoyed this book and I read it fairly quickly. I am excited for Cole's story.
3.75 stars