Naomi's Reading Palace: Rebel Heart by Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward ~ Review & Teaser (@ViKeeland, @PenelopeAuthor)

Rebel Heart is part of a duo, so don't pick up this one if you haven't read the first book, Rebel Heir. It was a good sequel to the series and I was happy with how it all wrapped up.

Title: Rebel Heart

Author: Penelope Ward and Vi Keeland

Series: Rush Duet #2

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Published: May 22nd 2018

Buy Now - Amazon US | Amazon Aus

Rush and Gia's story continues in the gripping conclusion to the New York Times bestseller, Rebel Heir...

How to screw up a great summer in the Hamptons:

Sleep with your boss. Check.

Blow all your money on a rental you can't afford. Check.

How to walk away from a man you fall in love with at the end of a summer:

...I'll let you know when I figure it out.

Rebel Heart follows on directly after the cliff-hanging end of Rebel Heir. Gia was torn with the new twist in her life and she was uncertain how to open up to Rush without breaking everything that had built between them.

Lets just say that the crap hit the fan early on in this one, and Gia and Rush had to overcome the newest development on their own. Gia worked hard to be independent and was planning her new life whether or not Rush was in it. She still loved him, despite everything that happened and always showed him that she cared, but was reluctant to accept help from him unless he was all in.

I understood the heartbreak that Rush was going through, as he struggled to move through his own emotions and the feelings that he had for Gia. I could see that he still loved her but it annoyed me that he couldn't see the damage that he was doing to Gia. He was constantly pushing her away and then pulling her back in, so much so that it was starting to get annoying. I would've liked to see him man up when it came to Gia and set things straight a little earlier.

The ending was ok, but I was disappointed that it had to come down to what Rush did. I would've thought a man in his thirties would’ve come up with a better plan than he did, especially due to the family he was trying to build. He wanted peace and it was the quickest and easiest way he could do so.

This is probably the first read by Ward and Keeland that hasn't blown me away. I didn't really understand Rush in this second book and he got on my nerves at times. The twists were kind of predictable and a few moments actually annoyed me. Anyway, it won't stop me from reading their work again in the future!

I loved these teasers! How Rush liked control and would tell Gia his feelings!

“Why are you walking along this road, Gia?”
I was still moving as I answered him, “My car broke down.”
He nudged his head. “Get in.”
Picking up my pace a little, I walked backwards and said, “I don’t want to, Rush. I’m trying to handle things as I would if I were living alone in the City, and you wouldn’t be around to pick me up. So I’d like to walk.”
“Gia…”
“Yeah?”
“Get the fuck in the car.”

Kindle Page 161

“Will you let me watch next time?”
My body was heating up. “Are you serious?”
“Look fucking down. Do I look like I’m kidding?”
I laughed. “No, you don’t.”
“Okay, then. Next time you go clothes shopping, I wanna come.”

Kindle Page 163

Vi Keeland is a native New Yorker with three children that occupy most of her free time, which she complains about often, but wouldn't change for the world. She is a bookworm and has been known to read her kindle at stop lights, while styling her hair, cleaning, walking, during sporting events, and frequently while pretending to work. She is a boring attorney by day, and an exciting smut author by night!

Penelope Ward is a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestselling author. She grew up in Boston with five older brothers and spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor, before switching to a more family-friendly career. She is the proud mother of a beautiful 10-year-old girl with autism and a 9-year-old boy. Penelope and her family reside in Rhode Island.