Cruel Hearts

King's Crossing #2

by V.M. Rheault

Revenge is never free, and this time it will cost my heart.

Zane

I know the second Stella’s back in King’s Crossing, and I want nothing more than to tear her into pieces the way she did to me the day she ran away with another man.
But I’m not the only one who wants her dead, and when she risks her life visiting my sister, I realize that Ash isn’t as innocent as he wants me to believe.
Now Stella and I must work together to find justice for my parents, and maybe I can prove to her that despite all these years of hating her, I still love her, too.


Stella

When Zarah watched Ashton Black kidnap me, she snapped, and for five years, we were both Ash’s me at Black Enterprises, Zarah locked away in a sanatorium.
Until I escape.
Now someone wants to kill me, and they almost succeed until Kagan Maddox’s old business partner saves me.
He’s been trying to uncover who murdered Zane’s parents.
I have proof.
We need Zane’s help to destroy the Blacks and avenge Zane’s parents’ deaths, but working with Zane is strictly business.
I trusted him once with my heart . . . I won’t do it again. Author’s This series is better described as a serial, and you must start with book one. Also, books one, two, four, and five end in cliffhangers, and if you dislike those, please be warned because I hate saying, “I told you so.” :) These books are full of delicate material, and a complete list is available on the author’s website for your convenience.

338 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 28, 2024

About the author

VM Rheault writes billionaire romance and contemporary romance under Vania Rheault. She's lived in Minnesota all her life, and fall is her favorite season. You'll always find her with a cup of coffee in hand while writing, reading, or snuggling with her cat.

If you want a free billionaire ugly-duckling full-length novel, sign up to her newsletter.

https://vmrheault.com/subscribe/

Reviews

[Paula (in & out)]

Wow. This is a new low for GR. I wrote a full review the other day about this one and GR just deleted it today with absolutely no reason and no warning. My review was respectful and not offensive to author or anyone else, so why is it lately that GR is deleting my reviews? Third review this month. And here I thought we were all entitled to our opinions......LOL

So now I'm pissed and I am going to keep posting my review and they can keep deleting it!

Let me preface that I went into this based on an email conversation I had with author when asking if book was safe. I wouldn't outright say she lied but neither did she admit the truth because author said "Hero HAD to move on with OW but not all is as it seems as she is helping him with a crime that was committed". My fault for thinking that "not all as it seems" meant that perhaps the relationship he has with this OW is fake in some sort of manner. And a reviewer stated that "it's not what it seems with the OW" so I decided to wait for honest reviews before I bothered and thank God my friend Katie gave me the deeds so that I didn't waste my time with this crap as I only skim-read this nonsense to see what is truth and what is not.

See Katie's review here - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

SPOILERS BELOW

So we basically have a Zero who claimed that the Doormat zeroine was the only woman he ever loved and could ever love, yet he has a childhood BFF who is killed his parents, kidnapped & held FMC for 5 years, abused, drugged & gang-raped his sister, etc but the asshole believes & trusts him more then the supposed woman he loves who tried to warn him that all is not what it seems with his BFF. He chose to believe & trust the lies of his BFF and literally destroyed his family & FMC for it and in the present when FMC escapes and comes to warn him and to save his sister, he is vile & abusive to her until she shows him concrete proof and he is able to see it for his eyes. He couldn't take her word, nope.

Then we have this zeroine sacrificing her ass to help zero's kid sister only to get kidnapped for 5 yrs while he in turns spends it fucking OW who is a prostitute and who fucks many OM too but he is okay with it because he cares for this poor innocent woman who got a bad rap in life. He is so grateful to this OW for her skills in bed, her friendship and for saving him from his loneliness, because you know, we can't ever have a Zero who can remain faithful. He HAS to move on per author. God forbid he doesn't!

So if you are wondering what happens here in this story, it's basically Zero trying to off zeroine in the beginning because he hates her and doesn't give a rat's ass that someone is trying to kill her - multiple times. This is how loyal, devoted and what love looks like folks.

But wait... it get's better. After doofus Zero learns what zeroine did for him, how much she sacrificed for him, how she saved his kid sister (another woman he lets down), how does he repay her? Oh yes, he brings the OW to live with him, along with zeroine and her 2 friends in hopes they can catch & stop the bad dude.

And do they catch the bad dude? NOPE. NADA. All this masterpiece has is Zero fucking zeroine & telling her just how much he missed & loved her, all while kissing & touching OW, being affectionate with her, caring for her, making excuses for her, allowing her to sit on his lap & straddle him several times throughout the story, touching her cheeks so sweetly, giving her his credit card to buy stuff, buying her diamond earrings and putting them on her like a lover would and constantly listen to his POV of how he will give OW a real chance and be with her if zeroine doesn't forgive him. All this while the doofus zeroine has a front row seat to this.

And then we have him deciding that the best way to catch his former BFF is to pretend to kill off zeroine and get faked engaged to OW. He tells bad dude that he loves & wants to marry the OW (because OW is bad dude's personal property who loaned her to him after zeroine was kidnapped) and zeroine overhears and is hurt slightly but then he fucks her and all is okay. And this repeats the pattern here. Every time she gets hurt based on what he does, acts or says to OW, all he has to do is fuck zeroine and all is forgiven.

So during this fake engagement of him & OW, he takes zeroine to dinner where he cruelly says stuff that she believes are his true feelings and he is about to hit her when zeroine is shot. Afterwards, he takes OW to dinner with his former BFF/bad dude and is all affectionate & loving towards her. Again, zeroine has a front row seat to all this and during her hissy fits, all he has to do is fuck her and she is okay with everything. And of course, we get his constant POVs during all these times how he will end up with OW permanently if she doesn't learn to forgive him.

And this my friends is the epic love story of the best fictional romance of this century. Go ahead GR and delete it again.

[Katie]

This is going to be a long rant and MAJOR SPOILERS, so if you plan to read it, STOP NOW.

I have never been so disgusted reading something as I was reading this garbage dump. I skipped Book 1 because I wanted to see if Book 2 was worthy of my time & money to read this entire series. I read a review that Book 2 had OW drama but that "it is not as it seems" which is a bunch of shit. Pardon my french!

The MCs are suppose to be so much in love. MMC in particular states over and over again that FMC is the love of his life and the only woman he would ever love. I mention this because this is how much this MMC cares for the FMC:

Plot: We have a bad dude who is Hero's BFF who killed his parents and is trying to kill heroine. He is running a prostitution ring and is also drugging & whoring Hero's sister and Hero is clueless. He is not only clueless, but the most stupid, selfish and gross character I ever read.

Five yrs prior MCs were together and in love but his BFF hated heroine. She tried over & over again to tell him that all is not well with his BFF but he refused to listen to her and was very loyal to his friend. So when she comes across the BFF abusing, drugging and trying to sell the sister to the black market, she sacrifices herself in exchange for letting the sister go. But they both get kidnapped and the BFF makes it look like heroine left him for an OM and MMC believes it.

Heroines is imprisoned for 5 yrs, sister is drugged up and in a hospital in a semi-coma and Hero is living it up having fun with OW for 5 yrs. From the time heroine disappeared up to when heroine returns back to the picture, OW does not disappear at all in this book. We have her in the picture from start to finish but while he is no longer having sex with her, he very much cares for her as you will see below.

Oh, and BTW, she is a prostitute who works for his BFF. He loaned her to him after FMC left so MMC would not be "lonely" but she is also fucking others too, including Hero. MMC never looks for FMC because he believed his BFF that she left him for OM. He cares deeply for OW because she saved him from his loneliness and has become a good friend & confidant to him but supposedly doesn't love her.

Now I am not going to go through the whole plot because it is boring, ridiculous and downright pathetic writing. All I am going to say is MMC in the beginning directed someone to kill heroine. Yep the love of his life. He doesn't believe a word she says when she tries to warn him or even asks where she has been or try to help her when the BFF attempts to kill her multiple times.

It's not until he sees her helping his sister and having a confrontation with his BFF that he decides he may have been wrong and tries to help both his sister and FMC. How lovely of him.

So then we have him moving FMC & her 2 friends who are helping her take down the BFF, his sister and of course the OW into his apartment so that they can take down the bad dude.

He is all so sorry and regretful that he didn't believe the FMC and knows that she will never forgive him. So what the fuck does he do to win her forgiveness? Of course, have sex repeatedly with her (FMC) and also kissing OW, showing OW caring, compassion & affection, allowing her repeatedly to straddle & sit on his lap, touching her cheek repeatedly, giving her his credit card to buy clothes, buying her diamond earrings, taking her on dates, expressing in several POVs how she is so very beautiful, sexy, innocent and how their sex life was not as tame as his with FMC and so on.

And if that is not enough, we also have him going into a so-called fake engagement with OW to fool his friend and heroine hears him on phone expressing to his BFF how much he loves OW and wants to marry her. Yes it's fake, but OW is in love with him and he knows it and also knows he hurt FMC but he doesn't give a crap. Then they decide to fake "kill" FMC so that BFF doesn't kill her for real and they stage a scene where he is so vocally brutal to her that she believes every word he is saying and he is about to hit her when she is shot. We never get confirmation if he would have hit her for real BTW but it's implied...

Then he & OW go on a double date with BFF to make him believe he moved on from FMC where he again proceeds to constantly touch & kiss OW while photos are taken so that FMC can have a visual of that too, along with all the other REAL times she's seen him with OW.

And FMC BTW if you are wondering is a pathetic moron. She says to herself & him in the beginning that she will never forgive him for not believing in her and for not looking for her. She expresses a slight jealousy when she sees him with OW but all is forgotten instantly because she feels so very sorry for the OW and wants to help her.

And if you are wondering about the end? Nothing gets resolved. NADA. We have a bit of an attitude from OW who is now in love with him and jealous of FMC and the attention she is getting from MMC. Author leads readers to think that she may have turned on him and helping the BFF, but again we have a clueless MMC because even though he has been fucking FMC again and telling her he loves her & wants to marry her, in his POV we also have him stating yet again that if things don't work with him & FMC that he will give OW a real chance.

And I should also mention that when he first fucked FMC, he didn't use a condom and at all other times they had sex, he does use one and even tells her that he may have contacted an STD or some other disease but does he get checked out? Nope. Does FMC care? Nope.

Reading this garbage made me wonder how this could be labeled as Fictional Romance. A so-called "Hero" who tries to kill the woman he supposedly loves. One who believes the friend over the woman he supposedly loves. Who never bothered to look for her or view the "evidence" carefully to see it was all lies. One who gave no shit for his own sister until someone (FMC) saved her from the continued abuse, drugs and actions of the OM. One who cares more for the OW's feelings than the one he supposedly loves and who sacrificed her own life to save his & his family. One who showed him nothing but love and devotion and he re-payed her back by not only forgetting her, but moving on so quickly even before the bed sheets were cold and staying with OW for 5 freaking years! One who knew he was in the wrong and what she sacrificed and went through for him, only for him to constantly say that if FMC didn't forgive him, he would move on with the OW. A woman who was a whore, was sleeping with others, was using him for his money, was trying to ruin anything he may have started back with FMC and yet it's not her fault because OW is so innocent & a victim and he still cares for her. 🙄

Lastly, I saw a message from author somewhere where she states that MMC supposedly believed that FMC betrayed him so he rightfully had to move on with the OW and that the OW is helping him to take down the bad dude. I have to laugh at that. No author, he did NOT "rightfully" have to move on with OW. FMC didn't, so why should he? FMC had more rights than he to move on after the way he treated her before & present. And as for the OW "helping" him, show me where she was helping him? Was it when she was straddling & kissing him? When she was taking his money to buy herself clothes and whatnot? Or was it when she told heroine how they were together for 5 yrs and that she knew he was in love with the FMC but then proceeds to try to ruin their relationship by expressing jealousy and possessiveness? Was it when she gave him the attitude at the end of not wanting to help him but was okay with all the gifts & affection he was bestowing on her? Again, what & when did she do anything to lift a finger to help him?

Maybe you are making her into a bad guy in the next book. I don't really care because reading this garbage was enough to put me off anything you write forever, but I'm ticked off at authors who lie to their readers. That is not cool. What's even worse is this fake attempt to call this crap as "Romance".

I will never again read anything by this author. Her idea of fictional romance is sick and I want no part of it.

[Miki’s⚠️ Safety Reviews & Rants⚠️]

Complete garbage
Author misled her readers
Never read this author EVER
HERES A GOOD REVIEW FOR SAFETY AND WHY I WILL NEVER TOUCH THIS AUTHORS WORK.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Chem&Comp]

 I read reviews from trusted friends on Goodreads, and this book reminds me of authors like Danielle Steel, who often writes about heroes that repeatedly cheat on the heroine. I read three of Danielle Steel's books when I was younger, back when I didn't find cheating as devastating as I do now. Each of those books featured unfaithful heroes. One story was about a hero whose wife, the heroine, was battling cancer. Instead of supporting her, he lost hope, had an affair, and stayed in a relationship with the other woman. Another book, Star, was set during the Kennedy era. Most of her books seem to have cheating characters.

The most recent book I read of hers featured a screenwriter husband who cheated on his heroine wife with an actress, even getting the actress pregnant. He begged his wife for forgiveness but continued to sleep with the actress.

When I looked up Danielle Steel, I found out that she's been married and divorced five times. It makes me wonder—what kind of romantic perspective and quality an author like this can offer?

The book has no cheating [Hero Penis inside OW Vagina], or maybe there is, kissing, but a Hero who. plans a future with OW if the heroine will reject him, or a POV about "how very beautiful, sexy, innocent the OW is and how their sex life was not as tame with the heroine."

This story, based on my trusted reviews, give off the same vibes.

[sashenka 🖤]

Not safe + lies to readers
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[TTP]

Note to myself

Not read, an ow is kissing and all over him while he’s with fmc, not a treatment front a fictional character I will tolerate

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Brandi-Lynn Weiser · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book 2 was so good…. BUT… I hated seeing how affectionate Zane was w/Nathalie. Even after Stella was back in the picture, I didn’t like how he’d allow her to snuggle up to him, or kiss him. He was constantly telling Stella how much he loved her & wanted a future w/her after everything was dealt with, yet he’d turn around & allow Nathalie to crawl all over him. It was disrespectful, especially after kissing Nathalie he kissed Stella. And I really didn’t like when he gave Nathalie those earrings & put them on her. Something about it was too personal & I felt like he should’ve respected Stella more & set boundaries w/Nathalie. I can sense she’s going to be a big problem in book 3.
This book was good & I’m curious to see how everything turns out. Stella & Zane have a lot to work through & I don’t think it’s going to be easy. One thing I will say about Stella is I love how she doesn’t just brush Zane & Nathalie’s relationship off like it’s nothing, she knows there’s years there & isn’t blind to the fact Nathalie wants him. I also liked when she spoke up & said that if he missed her that much over the years then why he’d turn to Nathalie.

[ravenblackbird74 · Rating 5 out of 5]

♟ The intrigue continues, the stakes becoming higher ♟

📚Review ~ Cruel Hearts (King's Crossing Book 2)
🖋Author ~ VM Rheault
🖋Features: Billionaires & Millionaires Romance, serial, cliffhanger, mystery
⭐️Rating: 5/5

Zane ~ I’ve been treating Ash like my best friend. I think now it’s time I don’t.

The tension increases in the next installment of the King’s Crossing saga. Zane has finally realized that Ashton Black is an evil and manipulative criminal. Once he considered Ash his best friend, now it’s clear that Ash is set on destroying everything Zane loves…his parents, the woman he loves, his sister, his business.

Ash will stop at nothing to take it all from Zane.

Can Zane and his unlikely group of collaborators defeat Ash, who would crown himself the false prince of King’s Crossing?

🖋Enjoyment: 5. Readability: 5. Writing: 5.
🖋Setting: 5. Plot: 5. Characters: 5.

https://linktr.ee/ravenblackbird74

#writer #editor #review #books #bookstagrammers #bookreviewer #reader #MustRead #bookclub #bookish #booklover #bookworm #readers #currentlyreading #readersofinstagram #brokenwingbookreviews #ravenblackbird74 #booktok #VMRheault #Billionairesromance #Millionairesromance #Romance #serial #cliffhanger #mystery #CruelHearts #KingsCrossing

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zane and Stella. Parents killed in plane crash leaving Zarah his sister to care for. Ash is his best friend. Stell befriends Zarah. Zarah introduces Zane and Stella and they become close pushing her to make a hard decision. Ash isnt who he seems to be. .... Zane knows when she returns. He wants her dead for leaving him for another man breaking his heart. So many les and misunderstanding at play here. Zarah witnessed something that broke her and she remains in the psych hospital. When Stella risks her life to visit his sister he realizes that Ash isnt trustworthy. His parents were murdered and Stella has the proof and therefore someone is tryiong to kill her. She and Zane must work together to uncover the mystery. He still loves her but she cant trust him, in her eyes he betrayed her. The author brings all the charecters to life so that you get to know them quit well. This is a dark suspensful mysterious romance that keeps you on the edge wanting to see what happens next. Cant wait for the next enstallment.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Nicole Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an Advanced Reader Copy and am voluntarily reviewing it. Readers are thrown into the thick of things with this one. Somehow, someway, Stella is able to get away from Ash Black after five years. The only thing on her mind is getting back to Zane. Unfortunately, that is not going to be as easy as it seems. Not only is Ash after Stella so is Zane. Zane is heartbroken after finding out that Stella ran away with a prince. He is finally coming up for air and now he wants revenge. Stella is ducking and dodging trouble left and right. She still has some people she can count on. Quinn believed her right away. Zane will be a different story. Stella has proof. She just needs Zane to hear her out.

When Zane finally gets over the hurt and listens to Stella, he realizes that all is not what it seems. He can now see Ash for who he is. Can he act like that friend he is supposed to be until he can take the Blacks down for good? Zane is also fighting hard to win the affections of both Zarah and Stella. Their family grows with the common goal of taking down the Blacks. So much more to come. I am here for each and everything.

[Ildikó · Rating 5 out of 5]

*** ARC review ***

MUST READ BOOK ONE FIRST!!

TRIGGER WARNING : gun violence, murder, emotional and sexual abuse (prostitution ring) and mental health issues mentioned

Book two picks up five years later and a lot has changed for everyone. Not even halfway through chapter one and I was totally sucked into the story! It’s such a page turner that I couldn't put it down because I NEEDED to know what was going to happen next! We meet a new character who will help Zane, Stella and their friends find evidence the FBI can’t seem to find. It’s suspenseful and gripping, a lot of emotional bombs and the hits just keep coming the moment you think things are going to be okay. So much drama, angst and an emotional rollercoaster that I often wanted to get into the story and slap / shake some sense into some characters! Thankfully, the five year gap between the two books is mentioned from everyone’s perspective, so I didn’t feel like we missed out on anything. Please note that this book ends on a cliffhanger!!

[Laura Moylan · Rating 5 out of 5]

After being taken in the first book, Stella escapes her jailer, after five years of careful planning. Everyone believes her to be elsewhere. Zane hates her because of he believes the Tabloids, etc. Ashton Black is not Zane’s best friend. He just makes believe he is. He has used both Zane and Zarah for years as had his father. See book 1 for details. More reveals and revelations happen in this book. We find out that someone in the first book wasn’t what they seemed and ends up helping Stella. Poor Zarah. I cried a lot throughout this book at what has happened to all of the characters that I’d fallen for in the first book (does not include Ashton.) We get to see Quinn again, yay. Things go to heck quickly. I had to put the AC on because I had a lot of fear sweat and I chewed on my nails and beat my pillow. So much happens in the book that is heartbreaking. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Nate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cruel hearts was Zane and Stella’s story. This was the second book in the kings cross series. All books end in a cliffy so looking forward to the next book so I can continue the story. This book was about revenge. An intriguing read. I got a copy of the book. And voluntarily leaving this review.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

The suspense builds, and the betrayal becomes obvious. There is so much going on to get the truth exposed. The passion and intense chemistry are still thick and holding on. I need the next book!

[Linda and Mike Daniels · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I trusted him once with my heart . . . I won’t do it again.”

“Revenge is never free, and this time it will cost my heart.”


All I can say is wow. What a way to leave us wanting more.

First off. I am falling more in love with Zane as the story progresses. I am falling more in love with the story line of Zane and Stella as the story progresses.

I also feel more connected to each of the characters. Quinn, tough and fierce. Zarah, strong and resilient, a survivor and a fighter. Stella, humble and fierce in her own ways. Ash, well, I won’t post spoilers. We will leave Ash right there.

This book is written so well you just can’t put it down and leaves you NEEDING more. I NEED the 3rd book. When this one ended I kept turning the pages on my kindle wanting more and just sat there dumbfounded. I was like SERIOUSLY! What!!!!?????

This book is the 2nd in serious and not a standalone. You HAVE to read this series in order to understand the storyline and to become one with each character. Each character adds their own flare to the story and without one it just doesn’t work. I love the way this book brings you closer to really knowing and understanding the importance of each character and the storylines and how each of them need to be part of the story.

Anticipating the 3rd book in the series and will be adding this series to my bookshelf.

Must read!!!!