Reviews

Bombshell by Sarah MacLean

juliermiller's review against another edition

funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

goodjollymissmolly's review against another edition

funny lighthearted tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

baeta's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

bookladysreviews's review

adventurous challenging funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

laurentalevski's review

4.0

⭐⭐⭐.5 It was good and would recommend to most.

Lady Sesily Talbot revels in her scandalous reputation, relishing the freedom it affords her to indulge in clandestine trysts during Mayfair balls. However, her exploits haven't gone unnoticed by her brother's best friend, Caleb Calhoun, who has long tried to resist her charms. Yet, when Caleb finds himself tasked with keeping Sesily out of trouble, their close proximity reignites undeniable feelings. Despite his efforts to forget her, Caleb realizes that Sesily is not easily erased from his heart, forcing him to confront the risks of pursuing a forever with her.

Sarah MacLean writes some bad ass women and I love that in a historical romance. I felt sometimes like I was high reading this but something didn't let me fully connect. I do think this was slightly too long and should have been faster paced to really grab my attention. All the action happened at the end so I kinda zoned out the middle. It did have that pining and chemistry that I need from a historian romance and I can definitely see myself reading more this author again.

Tropes: second chance, forced proximity, class difference
Triggers: violence, murder

lizzicampdux's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

cassandrat's review against another edition

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.5

A fast read, but I did skip some of the banter between our lovers. I like a sweet romance, but the main characters are just alright and I wasn't totally invested in them getting together. All the other characters were more interesting. I liked the American in the Bareknuckle Bastards, but I didn't care so much for him here.

They bantered a lot and it was more annoying than cute

Especially when there is a dead body situation in the street and no one is like, hello guys, keep this nonsense to a page?

The banter just felt like filler because there wasn't much to the relationship besides lust.

As often, I loved reading the author notes and learning a little of the writing process and inspiration. I am excited to read the romances of the other two Hell's Belles.

schweibertsm's review

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

soniaandstories's review

3.0

This was meh.
My sentiments are similar to other reviews. The important points it made felt calculated rather than a natural conclusion to scenarios/situations. Also, we get it, the heroine is a goddess. She's badass and hot and sexually aware. Which I normally like in a heroine but it was stated over and over. She didn't feel like a person, she felt like a formula. The action felt like antics and I didn't care about any of the characters. I did find the ending amusing and I may still continue the series because I have hope in the author, but this one was a let down.

julianship's review

3.0

I wanted to like this more than I did- but I think that's on me for not DNFing earlier! Bombshell is full of engaging characters who do have some chemistry, but I found the dialogue grating (in part because everyone talks like modern characters) and the plot fine-to-meh. The barriers in between their relationship seem flimsy at best-- at page 115 I found myself wondering, okay, so why are they not together already? In part this is because the love interest is keeping a Deep Dark Secret that is not actually particularly deep or dark and takes way too long to be revealed. We also spend a great deal of time being told how society feels about these characters, but there are very few scenes where we actually see evidence of this. 

The way things wrap up is fun, and the side characters are enjoyable if a bit one-note, but it's not what I look for in historical romance.