A review by beckyyreadss
The Fall of Bradley Reed by Morgan Elizabeth

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I wanted to read this book because I read the first book in book club and when there is a series, I will carry on with it even if I didn’t enjoy one in the series. However, this hadn’t happened so far until now. This book was mid and so slow. Olivia was a character I liked in Cruel Summer, but this book was missing something.  

As stated, this book is based on Olivia Anderson and she has just been left at the alter, and she decides to do what all modern women do – hit up Google. When a couple of searches land her in a support group for jilted brides, she immediately takes the reins and decides they all deserve to get revenge on their exes. She is tired of being a people pleaser and wants to do something for her and her alone, and that is to get revenge on Bradley Reed and to stand up against her mother’s wishes of getting back together with Bradley. The second point of view is Andre Valenti, and he is an FBI agent that has been watching Olivia’s every move online and in person for over a year and he is tired of it, she is a spoiled brat, but his career depends on putting Bradley Reed behind bars. He's managed to stay off her radar until one day he realises that her search history is peppered with revenge that will land her in prison and ruin her status as a reliable witness. As Andre gets more involved in Olivia’s schemes, will he be able to keep it professional? Or will the subject of his work assignment become something more.  

Unlike the other books in this series, I struggled with this one. It was very slow and all over the place. Andre just seemed selfish about the perfect witness and instead of being honest, he lied about being a bodyguard instead of just telling her the truth. I’m sure she would have been more than happy to help the FBI to put her ex in prison and instead he let it build and build until it exploded. Multiple times during this book, I wanted to slap both main characters, they did drive me a bit up the wall. Like Olivia was using Andre to get back at her ex and to keep the paps away and got pissed when Andre had a motive for using her like it’s the exact same thing. I felt like there needed to be more kicking and screaming at Olivia’s mother. She has been a nightmare for 2 books, and she got off the hook way too easy for my liking. I usually like spice within books, but this was just the same thing repeatedly and then I found myself skimming over the smut especially after all the drama, like you both need to cool off and talk, not have make up sex.  

I liked how the friendship was growing, and the Halloween party is still a thing and that we got to see all three men be overprotective of their girls and the group. I liked Olivia’s character growth and how she was determined to stand up for herself and I would have liked her to stand up to Andre at times. I liked the autumn vibes and how it's based on pumpkin picking and Halloween and thanksgiving.  

This book could have been 200 pages and had most of the smut and most of the plot, but it was just a lot of repeated information and dialogue at times, and I wanted more of the revenge of Bradley not the lying and deception between the pair of them. 
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