Caroline Willis, Rock Canyon Idaho's notorious bad girl, is back in town. Twelve years ago, Caroline left town to escape a miserable home situation. She ended up in Nevada, stripped for a year, worked as a bartender, saved enough money, and the high school drop-out got a BA. Now she has a consulting business for struggling bars. Her father had a heart attack, and even though he said he never wanted to see her again, she goes to see him When she reaches her father's home, her worst enemy opens the door: Kyle Jenner. A Senator's son, Kyle is now her father's right-hand man; no one but Caroline knows about the crime he committed against her years ago.

When Caroline goes to pick up the keys to her new apartment, she is told that there was some confusion and someone else is also moving in. She meets the new tenant: Gabe Moriarty, all hotness, tattoos and piercings. Gabe has secrets of his own: he is an ex-con. Neither of them likes the idea of sharing their lodgings, but it's cheaper for Gabe and Caroline to try to be roommates than any other alternative.

RETURN OF THE BAD GIRL is the latest instalment in Codi Gary's Rock Canyon series but it can easily be read as a standalone. Although it does refer to some characters from previous books in the highly dysfunctional Willis family, Gabe and Caroline's story is complete.

The road to love is a hard one for Caroline and Gabe; they resist even though they're attracted to each other because they simply don't know how to love and be loved. They are extraordinary characters: flawed, broken, determined to get their life back on track; they are works in progress. They both have heartbreaking stories, and Codi Gary does a remarkable job at making us care for them in spite of all their imperfections. They are definitely not always nice, especially Caroline, but they are profoundly human, and Ms. Gary does a splendid job at slowly building their romance.

The characters in RETURN OF THE BAD GIRL are even more complex than any others in this exciting series, and secondary characters play a huge part in the story. Kittens play a major role in Caroline and Gabe's road to acceptance, trust, and love; in fact, the felines constitute a plot point, and are not there for the cute factor. RETURN OF THE BAD GIRL is a moving and intense story of two people who do not conform to the accepted norms but that love will find you, if you open your heart.