The Rebel (Hqn) [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

Frankie (Frances) Moorehouse has been taking care of her family ever since her parents died. While only 31, Frankie is worn out with caring for her younger sister, Joy; her grandmother, who has dementia; and the crumbling bed & breakfast that has housed Moorehouses for six generations. To top matters off, the cook has quit. Frankie has reached the end of her rope when she hires Nate Walker. Nate, a 4 star chef, is passing through when his car breaks down. While Nate is in the process of using his life savings to find a restaurant to call his own, Frankie's little bed & breakfast looks like the perfect answer for the summer months.

Nick and Frankie have plenty of problems to work through. Both parties have been burnt in the past and bring numerous issues to the table. In fact, at one point, I got frustrated, because everytime one problem got solved, another problem arose. Because of all the old baggage, sometimes the romantic conflict seemed a little forced. I enjoyed the character of Nick, who was wonderful, although sometimes I couldn't understand why he was attracted to Frankie, who seemed too guarded and too stubborn. The book was very well written and I liked the ending, but I was able to set it down and walk away several times. While not a J.R. Ward entry in quality, a nice book for a pleasant afternoon.

*THE REBEL is a re-issue of Jessica Bird's (J.R Ward's) BEAUTY AND THE BLACK SHEEP which she wrote for Harlequin.*

I don't read a lot of Harlequin but I am a huge fan of JR Ward and her Black Dagger Brotherhood which is how I discovered Jessica Bird. I enjoyed this, her debut novel and could definitely `hear' Ward's voice in the writing particularly when it comes to her sexy yet somewhat tortured male characters. And although this is a predictable, feel good romance Bird kept my interest throughout the engaging love story with interesting secondary characters and multiple POV's. In fact she's left me curious enough that I'm going to have to read the rest of the Moorehouse Legacy series to find out what happens to them all. Cheers!

Ten years ago Frankie's parents died in a boating accident leaving her to raise her younger brother and sister and care for Grand-Em who suffers from dementia (I loved Grand-Em) To help pay the bills Frankie's turned the family's 6th generation mansion into a Bed & breakfast/restaurant. Unfortunately without the money for upkeep the walls are literally crumbling down on top of them. Tonight the chef's quit and Frankie's reached the end of her endurance, she's exhausted and if business doesn't pick up soon she's going to have to sell.

As fate would have it chef extraordinaire Nate Walker's beloved car Lucille has just broken down leaving him stranded on the side of the road. In his search for a phone so he can continue on to New York, Nate unknowingly enters the chaos of Frankie's kitchen. And before she can say "no soup for you" he's saved the night, putting her naïve staff to work and whipping up a fancy chicken dish for the starving guests.

The attraction between our pair is instantaneous (this is Harlequin after all) but Frankie's not going to be taken in by Nate's green and gold flecked eyes or his athletes body easily she's been burned once too many. That's a good thing too because in Nate's opinion Frankie really needs to dial down the attitude although he can't help wondering what lies beneath the glasses and baggy clothes or how she'd look if she would just smile. Maybe he'll postpone buying that restaurant in New York, just for the summer of course, help Frankie get back on her feet before he leaves. I mean what's the worst that could happen? It's not like he's going to fall in love or anything. It's not like he'll mow her lawn wearing nothing but a pair of cut-offs, sweat trickling down his muscled chest.

Here's the correct reading order for the series;
(The Moorehouse Legacy)
1-Beauty And The Black Sheep (reissued as THE REBEL)
2-His comfort and Joy (reissued as THE PLAYER)
3-From The First
4-A Man In A Million

(The O'Banyon Brothers)-Bird/Ward has never completed series
1-The Billionaire Next Door

Jessica Bird is a pseudonym used by the author who also writes as J.R. Ward (the "Black Dagger Brotherhood" novels). If you're considering buying this book because of that, be aware that it's nothing like the other series. The blurb says this is her debut book with Silhouette Special Edition, and it reads like it. It's very pleasant, entertaining, and certainly worth buying, but it's not memorable. As the other reviwer mentioned, it's just not clear at all why the hero falls for the heroine. She's spunky, and he likes women with that quality, but that still doesn't answer the question 'why her?' However, the hero is sexy, handsome, and well drawn, so it's fun to read for him alone.

I plan to read the others in this series only because I love J.R. Ward's books, and I'm curious about her evolution as a writer. If it weren't for that connection, I probably wouldn't buy another by Jessica Bird.