Review by bribreez - The Bad Boy Rule

bribreez 's review for:

The Bad Boy Rule by Maren Moore

4.5

emotional funny lighthearted sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: N/A

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

4.5⭐️/ 4🌶️

*Thank you to Valentine PR and Maren Moore for this ARC, I greatly appreciate it!

*Check trigger warnings before reading

I’ve read a couple of Maren Moore’s books and each one had been great and full of amazing stories. This one though is probably my new all time, number one favorite! I love sports romance/ hockey romances, and with the way Maren wrote Lennon and Saint’s story it was absolutely perfect! An enemies to lovers story with a hockey player and a figure skater, but also add in he’s the bad boy on campus, and she’s the golden girl, this is chef’s kiss! As if this book wasn’t already great, the emotional angst, deep, and tug on your heartstrings moment, Maren made me an emotional wreck while reading. Without a doubt, I loved this book, and I cannot recommend it enough!

Lennon and Saint definitely DID NOT like each other at the start of this book. When it came to Lennon and Saint’s different personalities and ironically having to share the ice rink for their private skating time, those two pushed each other’s buttons, and it was always snarky back and forth between them. There was still tension underlying in each scene between Lennon and Saint that was perfectly brewing the whole time. I genuinely think that the way this enemies to lovers story was written was done seamlessly because, it gave us enough time to see Lennon and Saint at odds with one another, but also gradually showed them lowering their walls when it came to them falling for each other.

I’d be lying if I said I was initially unsure about Saint with the way his whole bad boy persona was. In the beginning, Saint didn’t care what anyone thought of him, and did whatever he pleased. Even when that meant leaving a trail of broken hearted girls after hooking up and not caring about anything other than hockey, school, and work, Saint was a bit of an…a-hole. In all fairness though, there was a reason why Saint was the way that he was. Behind closed doors, Saint was trying to keep his mom safe, and trying to juggle responsibilities on top of the ones he was already trying to manage. The more I read, the more I got to see just how much Saint tried to keep a handle on things that many people didn’t know about. As much as Saint was a bad boy, at his core he was a genuinely caring person who gave his everything to ensure the safety and stability for his loved one(s).

I don’t think I have any complaints about this book, it was all written and executed perfectly to illustrate Lennon and Saint’s story together. You got the bad boy and the good girl going from enemies to lovers in such a natural way that the development in their romance was great. This has become my new favorite Maren Moore book and I loved Lennon and Saint! Saint was a tough and closed off type of guy, but seeing him vulnerable and raw in front of Lennon was not only heartbreaking, but made me want to hug him and protect him. Even the toughest people need a hug and comfort just like Lennon did for Saint. Lennon also found herself reclaiming her life as she saw fit and not following in the steps that her parents had planned for her. Lennon and Saint came from different backgrounds, but they understood each other so deeply and intimately that they made the perfect couple/ team. This book is an automatic recommendation to read! I really enjoyed it!

Content Warnings