I enjoyed Bad Reputation so much. Zagging away from her prickly characters in Funny Guy, Emma Barry gives us two sweetheart characters and puts them in a situation where they must pine respectfully for a big chunk of the book. The yearning is delicious. When they are done with the yearning, they make consent sexy.
When the book begins, Maggie’s beloved career as a high school drama teacher is over and she is tired of being the face of the fight against censorship. When she meets a television producer on a talk show, she’s encouraged to explore becoming an intimacy coordinator. Cole was a star of a soapy teen drama and is still closely tied to the character he played. He is trying to build a career he can be proud of and prove that he has outgrown his too famous too young behavior. He’s cast in a historical romance television series as a cad who grows up and becomes a better man. Maggie is hired as the intimacy coordinator. They both feel like they have a lot to prove.
Though there is an immediate attraction, Cole knows from his own past that image is everything and Maggie can’t afford for him to act on his attraction. We never get much in the way of specifics about Cole’s past behavior, and that’s ok, because what matters to the story is how he feels about it and the choices he’s made to be a better person. Cole makes an effort to get to know and become friends with Maggie. I love that they spent time together and built a friendship while discretely pining. They don’t even talk about it until her contract is over.
“Some days,” he finally managed to get out, “kissing you is the only thing I want to do.”
A pause. An endless, endless pause. Then, “Cole.”
Emma Barry remains in my top tier of romance authors. I love the way she writes about characters falling in love. If she wrote a royal romance, her prince would definitely consider giving up his crown for the woman he loves. What Cole has to give up is his invisible crown of thorns, and he does it to give Maggie the space and safety to build her own castle. Now I begin the wait for the next Emma Barry romance.
I received this as an advance reader copy from Montlake and NetGalley. My opinions are my own, freely and honestly given.