Rebel Heir by Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward Review

5 SMOOCHES!

SYNOPSIS:

From New York Times Bestselling authors Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward, comes the first book in a new, sexy duet.

How to kick off a great summer in the Hamptons:

Snag a gorgeous rental on the beach. Check.

Get a job at a trendy summer haunt. Check.

How to screw up a great summer in the Hamptons:

Fall for the one guy with a dark leather jacket, scruff on his face, and intense eyes that doesn’t fit in with the rest of the tony looking crowd. A guy you can’t have when you’ll be leaving at the end of the season.

Check. Check. Check.

I should add—especially when the guy is your sexy, tattooed God of a boss.

Especially when he not only owns your place of employment but inherited half of the town.

Especially when he’s mean to you.

Or so I thought.

Until one night when he demanded I get in his car so he could drive me home because he didn’t want me walking in the dark.

That was sort of how it all started with Rush.

And then little by little, some of the walls of this hardass man started to come down.

I never expected that the two of us, seemingly opposites from the outside, would grow so close.

I wasn’t supposed to fall for the rebel heir, especially when he made it clear he didn’t want to cross the line with me.

As the temperature turned cooler, the nights became hotter. My summer became a lot more interesting—and complicated.

All good things must come to an end, right?

Except our ending was one I didn’t see coming.

Rebel Heir is the first book in the Rush Series Duet. Book Two, Rebel Heart, will release six weeks later on May, 22, 2018.

REVIEW:

I’m a big fan of both Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward, and I especially love their co-written work. Two of Vi’s books landed on my 2017 favorites list, and she’s already claimed a spot on this year’s list. Keeland and Ward are a perfect pairing because they clearly work well together. Not only do their writing styles mesh seamlessly, but the transitions between the two authors are also virtually undetectable. As someone who’s read several of each author’s individual works, I can’t discern who is writing what, and that’s exactly how a co-written novel should read. Together, they consistently turn out stories that are not only well written and plotted, but that flow smoothly and draw the reader in, holding their attention with hard won yet beautiful, sexy love stories that are difficult to put down.

I’ll be honest, I’ve always shied away from cliffhangers because I’ve considered myself to be the kind of reader who needed the instant gratification of a complete story. I’ve been a strictly romance reader for the last 8 years, averaging about a book a day. I’ve read thousands of romance novels, avoiding cliffhangers like the plague. But over the last year or so, I’ve read a couple of stories that ended in a cliffhanger, and with a few caveats, I might have changed my stance somewhat. As long as the wait between books isn’t too long, I’ve found that I enjoy the actual experience of anticipating the release of the next book. I know, I know—color me surprised, too. I knew going into the Rush Series duet that a cliffhanger was involved, but the blurbs intrigued me enough that I really wanted to read these books. Most surprisingly, though, is that I think the fact that I have to wait for more of Rush and Gia’s story is genuinely ramping up my excitement. Of course, part of me wants the next book to suddenly appear on my Kindle, say, like right now. But, there is another part of me that is content with delaying that satisfaction and simply relishing in the opportunity to look forward to the release of Rebel Heart. Without going into too much detail, I’ll just say that while I am definitely eager to know what happens next, the authors gave me enough while still managing to leave me hungry for more—a feat I am certain was not easy to pull off but one that they did and did well.

Rush and Gia’s story started with a rush, that’s for sure. This wasn’t a typical boy-meets-girl, run-of-the-mill romance at all. Despite not having known each other for long, they definitely clicked, and a friendship built quickly and easily—or as easily as it could have built between two friends who had this kind off-the-charts chemistry sparking between them. I was swept right up into this romance along with Rush and Gia. They clearly enjoyed each other’s company, they had a lot of fun together, and this translated into some fantastic banter. But there was more than just a friendship forming here. The undeniable physical attraction pulsing between them, practically demanding acknowledgment, kept me invested in this couple and tapping my Kindle hoping for more.

A rebel in every sense of the word, Rush wasn’t looking for a relationship at all. His history clearly messed with his thought process on them, and while part of him definitely wanted to corrupt Gia in the most delicious ways, another part of him wanted to protect her—even if what he thought she needed protecting from was him. His confusion where she was concerned was evident and clearly communicated, which made his feelings and fears something that the reader could sympathize with. Gia had her own issues, and she certainly wasn’t the falling-at-his-feet bombshell he usually hooked up with. Her frank honesty, and the way she called him out, giving as good as she got, not to mention her curves, her looks and those glasses, sealed the deal though, and they were soon crossing the line. A surprise bump in the road pushes them back into the friend zone, but it isn’t long before Rush realizes that’s not where he wants to be. Too bad that bump in the road will feel like a pebble in their path compared to the boulder that’s just been dropped in front of them.

Keeland and Ward penned a sexy, surpise-filled page-turner in Rebel Heir that was complex and positively engrossing. This was the kind of story that I found myself devouring, but as the pages turned and I neared the end, I was slowing my reading simply because I didn’t want it to be over. I’m on the edge of my seat waiting for Rebel Heart to release, and the kicker is that I’m perfectly happy to be here. Rebel Heir by Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward gets five smooches from me!

~ Danielle Palumbo

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