Review: Rival by Penelope Douglas

Rival  - Penelope Douglas



♥♥♥ 3.75 STARS ♥♥♥








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“Nothing that happens on the surface of the sea can alter the calm of its depths.”

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This story is about two eighteen year old teenagers who fell in love with each other without knowing it. They hated each other during the day and in front of everyone else. But at night, Fallon would leave her bedroom door unlocked so that Madoc and she could sleep together. Why couldn't they tell anyone about their relationship?? Because they were step siblings. Fallon gets sent away once their parents find out, and Madoc is left alone, each being told lies by their parents as to why the other doesn't want see him/her. Two years later, Fallon comes back to get revenge for what happened in the past.

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“Fight. Fight through everything. Don’t leave the house angry or go to bed mad. Fight until it’s settled. The end of fighting is the beginning of giving up.”

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This was not that bad of a read. I will admit it did take me a while to get into it, though. The reason for that was because this back and forth 'I-hate-you-but-I-love-you' thing, was a little too much like Bully. I just thought this one would be different in that the forbidden aspect of their relationship would be up front and center. Unfortunately all of the forbidden parts had already happened when this book begins. We did get glimpses of it, but I definitely wanted more. I did love the tension between these two. Seriously, the chemistry between them was quite intense.





Once Fallon and Madoc got over their hate for each other, I truly began to enjoy them as a couple. That is not to say that I didn't enjoy how their stubbornness fueled their passion. But I absolutely loved all those heartwarming moments between them. It did take a while for these characters to come together as a real couple, and I definitely wished Madoc would have fought harder to have Fallon, but it was very enjoyable. I liked having Tate, Jared and Jax be a part of their story. I liked knowing what was new with them after their book ended.


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"You were my first everything. And my only love."

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The writing was really great. I enjoyed the story for the most part, well with a few exceptions. I just wasn't sure how much Madoc truly loved Fallon, especially when he did some things that I totally didn't like. I liked how the story flowed, I just could have done without the crazy drama and all those unbelievable over the top scenes. I did love the steamy scenes. Holy cow were they smoking hot!! The steam just kept getting better. The only question I had was, where the heck were their parents? They knew Fallon had returned and they were adamant of Madoc and her having a relationship, but not once did they show their faces until very later on. So yeah, I did not like their parents very much, especially Fallon's mother *cringes*, she was the worst. Overall, it was good read. I wasn't too happy about what Jax did in this book, but I am totally excited for his book next. I cannot wait!





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