Reviewed by Valerie
TITLE: Bad at Love
AUTHOR: Aimee Nicole Walker
PUBLISHER: Chasing Rainbows Press
LENGTH: 378 pages
RELEASE DATE: October 14, 2021
BLURB:
Bad at making decisions or bad at love? Either way, Kendall Blakemore doesn’t trust his judgment. He falls too hard, too fast, and always for the wrong guy. Needing a major shakeup, Kendall moves into his own place for the first time and seizes a new career opportunity. But everything he thought he wanted turns out to be the last thing he needs. When loneliness threatens to derail Kendall’s good behavior, he decides to rent out his spare bedroom. What could go wrong? Try a tenant who’s temptation incarnate.
Bad at commitment or born to roam? Either way, US Deputy Marshal Kurt Dandridge feels trapped. Maybe staying in one place for too long is the source of his unhappiness, or maybe it’s because he’s engaged to the wrong person. Finding his fiancé in bed with another man takes care of one problem but creates another. Ridge needs a place to live. He’d leave Savannah altogether if not for his vow to apprehend an elusive fugitive. Renting a room from Kendall Blakemore seems like the perfect solution until Ridge finds himself falling for the alluring man. Would one kiss derail his course? And could he stop at just one?
Hurts so good. Chemistry burns between them—hot, consuming, and impossible to ignore. And why should they? Kendall and Ridge are consenting adults who know the score. Being bad has never felt so good, but it’s a slippery slope to navigate. One misstep could have disastrous consequences for both men.
Bad at Love is a standalone novel within the Sinister in Savannah universe where both characters first appeared. It is not necessary to read that series first. Bad at Love is a romantic suspense that’s heavier on the romance than the suspense.
REVIEW:
Ridge is a US Deputy Marshal in Savannah, Georgia, with plans to transfer out of town once he closes out the three-year-old case of a child murderer he’s been unable to catch. He’s obsessed with getting justice for the girl’s family, and can’t move on until he does. After a grueling day in which he finds his fiancé in bed with another man, Ridge ends up at a gay club where one of the sexy waiters catches his eye. Thus begins the romance of Ridge and Kendall. Kendall has a lot going on his life. He quits one job and starts another, he needs to find new living arrangements, his estranged mother wants to reconcile, and his feelings for Ridge are conflicted.
I actually liked the law enforcement aspects of the book more than the romance. There are multiple take downs of the bad guys, including one involving Kendall showing off self-defense skills, another with an unexpected twist, and an exciting manhunt. Ridge’s close bonds and bantering with his co-workers/friends adds a fun element.
Ms. Walker’s supporting cast is excellent, so much so that I enjoyed the parts of the book where the main characters spent time with friends, family, and co-workers more than their time together. Kendall’s evolving relationship with his mother, and Ridge’s close ties to his parents were especially rewarding. Other standout characters are Kendall’s parents’ housekeeper, and his former and current bosses.
Kendall repeatedly infers he is bad at love, but aside from one relationship, there wasn’t enough background information provided to support the title of the book. If this is supposed to be a substantial part of his history, details on other failed relationships – and why – are warranted.
Many novels require readers to suspend their disbelief over some aspect. It is fiction, after all. My problem with Bad at Love is that the improbable part of the story is so fundamental to the narrative. Ridge has a solid, well-established career he loves. Yet, he does something to jeopardize his job as well as risk blowing a federal investigation with actions he should be able to refrain from as a professional. This egregious ethical transgression is so out of character to his commitment to law enforcement and the concept of right and wrong. I was disappointed and, frankly, my likability for Ridge took a nosedive. However, without this action there would be no plot, so it’s a necessary evil.
The last chapter and the epilogue are good enough to save this book for me. I felt more of the connection between Kendall and Ridge once the focus turned toward their future. While some might find it romantic for Ridge to put love first, I thought it was improbable and dumb. There’s enough good in this book, however – including character development and Ms. Walker’s skilled writing – for me to recommend it, with one caveat: make sure the suspension of disbelief part of your brain is more flexible than my own and you should enjoy it.
RATING: 
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