Bombshell
by Sarah MacLean
Narrator: Mary Jane Wells
Release Date: August 24, 2021
Publisher: Avon
Book #1 in the Hell’s Belles series
Number of Pages: 400
Historical Romance
CW: misogyny, violence, patriarchy
Domestic abuse, rape, and pedophilia off-page and implied
After years of living as London’s brightest scandal, Lady Sesily Talbot has embraced the reputation and the freedom that comes with the title. No one looks twice when she lures a gentleman into the dark gardens beyond a Mayfair ballroom…and no one realizes those trysts are not what they seem.
No one, that is, but Caleb Calhoun, who has spent years trying not to notice his best friend’s beautiful, brash, brilliant sister. If you ask him, he’s been a saint about it, considering the way she looks at him…and the way she talks to him…and the way she’d felt in his arms during their one ill-advised kiss.
Except someone has to keep Sesily from tumbling into trouble during her dangerous late-night escapades, and maybe close proximity is exactly what Caleb needs to get this infuriating, outrageous woman out of his system. But now Caleb is the one in trouble, because he’s fast realizing that Sesily isn’t for forgetting…she’s forever. And forever isn’t something he can risk.
If you are a completionist, like me, and feel the need to read an author’s books in order of publication, even if they are not from the same series, you have probably been waiting for this book. Ever since meeting Caleb Calhoun in The Day of the Duchess, I’ve been hoping the author would do the right thing and give him an HEA with Sesily. (Don’t worry, you do not have to read that book or any of the previous books in this author’s catalog in order to enjoy this book. It’s just an added bonus.)
Oh, the way Caleb has longed for Sesily. Not that she hasn’t longed for him, too. Yet, the way they dealt with their longing was drastically different. Caleb couldn’t be sure Sesily felt the same for him, but he had his suspicions. Because he has spent his adult life running from his past, because he thinks he’s keeping the people he loves safe that way, he runs back to America as soon as possible after meeting Sesily. Of course, this has Sesily feeling rejected when she thought they had a connection. The next couple of years are spent with Caleb avoiding England as much as possible, and the pair butting heads when he has to be in town and interact with her.
Unlike the rest of Sesily’s family and society as a whole, Caleb does not believe Sesily is spending her nights partying and wasting her days away. He knows she’s up to something, but cannot figure out what. Sesily’s secret life and Caleb’s secret past eventually collide, and the chemistry is too much to resist when they keep running into each other.
I love that Sesily and her ragtag group of ladies find a way out of Caleb’s troubles that he has never been able to do himself. This group of women, who fight for social justice in a stealthy yet dangerous way, was a joy to read about. Their wit, their grit, their lack of ‘give-a-f***’ and their abundance of brains had me rooting them on in their crazy schemes. While the hero did get Sesily out of a few scrapes, it can be argued that he also got her into some of them. Meanwhile, Sesily and friends are there to save themselves and others, and even Caleb in the end.
This story is a lot of fun, but it doesn’t skimp on romance. I was rooting for Sesily and Caleb. I was cheering on the women in Sesily’s circle. I was swooning for the way both the main characters sacrificed for those they love, especially each other. Bring on the rest of the Hell’s Belles!
As I said in my review, this book stands alone. It’s a great series starter, too. But if you’re curious about when Sesily and Caleb first met, that was in the Scandals & Scoundrels series. My review of the specific book they met in is below. Sesily also makes cameo appearances throughout the series previous to this one, The Bareknuckle Bastards.
#4 in the Scandals & Scoundrels series
The Day of the Duchess
All In Good Time 
