Romance

Bombshell

Bombshell

  • Downloads：3680
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-09-08 11:21:38
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Sarah MacLean
  • ISBN：166510158X
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

New York Times bestselling author Sarah MacLean returns with a blazingly sexy， unapologetically feminist new series， Hell’s Belles， beginning with a bold， bombshell of a heroine， able to dispose of a scoundrel—or seduce one—in a single night。

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。

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Reviews

Nicole Pelcher ，

Sesily dubbed Sexily by the ton has been a walking scandal since the moment her and her sisters joined London society。 While her love interest Caleb is the reserved brooding sort of American with dark secrets。 Dark secrets she will have to uncover to ensure her secrets stay hidden。Both characters have longed for each other long before the book starts。 So when they are thrown back together sparks fly and spice ensues。 There is a closet scene that is going to go down as one of my favourite scenes Sesily dubbed Sexily by the ton has been a walking scandal since the moment her and her sisters joined London society。 While her love interest Caleb is the reserved brooding sort of American with dark secrets。 Dark secrets she will have to uncover to ensure her secrets stay hidden。Both characters have longed for each other long before the book starts。 So when they are thrown back together sparks fly and spice ensues。 There is a closet scene that is going to go down as one of my favourite scenes for a long while。I adore both characters and they are so perfectly matched。 And the fact that Sesily is in a vigilante group is somehow so her and I love it！Also I need our explosive loving Imogen's book。 Cause her hero looks like he is going to be in for the ride of his life！⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 。。。more

Skippypeanuts ，

Thank you to librofm for the audio book。 I didn't know much about the characters going into this book， but I was able to follow along pretty easily。 In this first book of the new "Hell's Belles" series， we follow Sesily as she and her friends wreak havoc among the aristocracy。 The dialogue between the characters was fun and the pace of the book moved along nicely。 The narrator， Mary Jane Wells， did a great job of giving the various characters unique voices。I'm looking forward to reading more of Thank you to librofm for the audio book。 I didn't know much about the characters going into this book， but I was able to follow along pretty easily。 In this first book of the new "Hell's Belles" series， we follow Sesily as she and her friends wreak havoc among the aristocracy。 The dialogue between the characters was fun and the pace of the book moved along nicely。 The narrator， Mary Jane Wells， did a great job of giving the various characters unique voices。I'm looking forward to reading more of this series。 。。。more

Jenica ，

I have waited years for this book。 For Sesily and Caleb to finally， finally have their moment and with all of that anticipation， Sarah MacLean delivered。 Caleb calls Sesily Athena in this book and honestly， the woman IS a goddess。 I love her so much。 She is everything I already knew her to be and so much more。 This book is a wild ride and the most fun， but also， MacLean perfectly crafted the angst in this one so that it was never over-bearing but kept you gripped。 Even if you could argue that Ca I have waited years for this book。 For Sesily and Caleb to finally， finally have their moment and with all of that anticipation， Sarah MacLean delivered。 Caleb calls Sesily Athena in this book and honestly， the woman IS a goddess。 I love her so much。 She is everything I already knew her to be and so much more。 This book is a wild ride and the most fun， but also， MacLean perfectly crafted the angst in this one so that it was never over-bearing but kept you gripped。 Even if you could argue that Caleb maybe needed to spend a bit of time in cold storage， I ultimately found the pacing of this book to work perfectly。 I will attempt to craft a more eloquent review at a later date because right now all I feel like doing is shouting about how much I love Sesily。 Lol。 Anyway， thanks to Avon and Netgalley for the e-ARC I didn't read and to Barnes and Noble for that pre-order sale， which is how I got my finished copy that I DID read。 。。。more

K ，

I wanted to L O V E this book。 I truly did。 And， sometimes it absolutely NOT the book and it’s me — the reader。 Sarah MacLean is an excellent writer， her characters and world building have depth。 She is one of my favs。 This book just didn’t have the “oomph” some of her other books have had for me。 If I rated this in the “MacLean universe” it would be three stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️。 This is going to sound odd， but this book was too “good”。 I found myself thinking “oh， Sarah， this too？ It wasn’t the wild， i I wanted to L O V E this book。 I truly did。 And， sometimes it absolutely NOT the book and it’s me — the reader。 Sarah MacLean is an excellent writer， her characters and world building have depth。 She is one of my favs。 This book just didn’t have the “oomph” some of her other books have had for me。 If I rated this in the “MacLean universe” it would be three stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️。 This is going to sound odd， but this book was too “good”。 I found myself thinking “oh， Sarah， this too？ It wasn’t the wild， insane ride of MacLean’s other writing。 It hit the tropes ✅ only one bed ✅ stuck in a supply cupboard ✅ … and it included moments/scenes/statements that should be in our romance novels。 But so many of these moments took me out of the story。 I wasn’t along for the ride， I was along for a book that did the work。 For others， that might be wanted and it might set this book apart in a great way。 For me， I was less-invested in the story of Sesily and Caleb。 In fact， Detective Inspector Peck was my favorite character！ All of this is within the scope of the MacLean universe。 I would highly recommend Sarah MacLean novels， including Bombshell， to any reader。 And， Sarah does a wonderful job of hiding Easter eggs and giving her readers a third quarter twist。 So， all is definitely not lost。 I’ll be reading Adelaides book next year （though I’m looking forward to Imogen’s book if it had the hero I’m rooting for）。 。。。more

Christina Milucky ，

I loved this book！ I loved the characters and the flow of the book was perfect。 I’m looking forward to the next installment

Jess with Pour Me Another Romance ，

I knew from the first Sexily that this wasn't going to be the historical romance for me。 I literally almost DNF three pages in and the entire book ended up being a struggle。 And that’s just how it goes sometimes。 You’re not going to like every book and this wasn’t my cup of tea。 To start with， Bombshell is a very modern feeling story with historical trappings。 I saw a review that compared it to Sex and the City and Charlie’s Angels and I definitely see it。 And when I critique the modern feel， I I knew from the first Sexily that this wasn't going to be the historical romance for me。 I literally almost DNF three pages in and the entire book ended up being a struggle。 And that’s just how it goes sometimes。 You’re not going to like every book and this wasn’t my cup of tea。 To start with， Bombshell is a very modern feeling story with historical trappings。 I saw a review that compared it to Sex and the City and Charlie’s Angels and I definitely see it。 And when I critique the modern feel， I don't need a Jane Austen recreation but I do need a little more authenticity to get into the story。 And as I tried my best to finish the book， the writing and the characters fell flat for me。 The writing had lots of short， fragmented sentences and relied too much on the use of ellipses for effect。 As for the main characters， Sesily and Caleb， they were former side characters from previous books by the author that didn’t work as leads for me。 I honestly wanted to read more about Imogen and Adelaide than Sesily and Caleb。 And they did that annoying new thing in romance novels where we overkill a nickname。 I didn’t need to hear Caleb be called “American” for the umpteenth time。 So three stars for Bombshell by Sarah Maclean。 Even though this book did not work for me， it was not a terrible book needing a one star。 The side characters were good。 There was definitely some fun and witty moments。 And even though it didn’t work for me， I can definitely see other readers enjoying it so kept it a 3 star book for me。 。。。more

Kelly_Instalove ，

I haven't tried a MacLean in a long time， and now I remember why。 They're just。。。too much。 Very in-your-face with zero subtlety。 This one had some serious pacing problems - endless episodes of repetitive mental lusting and angsting。 I found myself thinking "oh for god sake， just end this scene already and get to the violence。" This author just isn't for me。 I haven't tried a MacLean in a long time， and now I remember why。 They're just。。。too much。 Very in-your-face with zero subtlety。 This one had some serious pacing problems - endless episodes of repetitive mental lusting and angsting。 I found myself thinking "oh for god sake， just end this scene already and get to the violence。" This author just isn't for me。 。。。more

IndyGirl ，

DNF at 50%。 Too boring and unbelievable。

Catherine ，

Gosh， I LOVE how Sesily brings Caleb to his knees。 MacLean keeps ratcheting up the feminism in her books， and while sometimes I found certain phrases or moments a bit too explainy or repetitive （especially in the first few chapters）， MacLean's tension and buildup， as usual， worked really well （also， just chef's kiss for the focus on female pleasure， also a MacLean trademark）。 The opening scene in Vauxhall in particular felt really dark and mysterious - I can definitely imagine a Bridgerton-style Gosh， I LOVE how Sesily brings Caleb to his knees。 MacLean keeps ratcheting up the feminism in her books， and while sometimes I found certain phrases or moments a bit too explainy or repetitive （especially in the first few chapters）， MacLean's tension and buildup， as usual， worked really well （also， just chef's kiss for the focus on female pleasure， also a MacLean trademark）。 The opening scene in Vauxhall in particular felt really dark and mysterious - I can definitely imagine a Bridgerton-style treatment of it。The other thing that I had mixed feelings about was the fierce group of women。 In theory， I love it！ Women friendship against the patriarchy， heck yeah！ But it felt a bit ~too~ trope-ish。 Listen， maybe I'm too much of a Caleb， or maybe it's because the narrative was through Sesily's。。。uh。。。~not~ reckless eyes， or maybe I just sigh when I see the Quirky One and the Quiet Wallflower appear in a group of Unusual Women， but I had moments where their endeavours felt a bit immature or underdeveloped， despite all the book's claiming to the contrary。 However， even with that being said， this group isn't trying to get each other married off， and I am genuinely interested in knowing more about them - yes， even the Quirky One - but ESPECIALLY the mysterious Duke of Trevescan， who of course we'll have to wait until book 4 to meet。。。（also， I'm assuming we should be able to piece together who the Duchess is from past books？ Hannah， going to ask you next time I see you！ ;） ） 。。。more

Jacki ，

Did not do what it said on the package。I've been waiting for MacLean to write Sesily's book for a long time。 Sesily is the give-no-fucks， go-for-broke sister--in other words， the best one。 Sadly， her story had little plot， plenty of going-nowhere conversations （who gives a shit what Sera thinks about Sesily's choices？）， and no tension。 After two years of discipline and restraint and way too much agonizing over whether he'll upset his business partner by boning her sister， Caleb collapses quickly Did not do what it said on the package。I've been waiting for MacLean to write Sesily's book for a long time。 Sesily is the give-no-fucks， go-for-broke sister--in other words， the best one。 Sadly， her story had little plot， plenty of going-nowhere conversations （who gives a shit what Sera thinks about Sesily's choices？）， and no tension。 After two years of discipline and restraint and way too much agonizing over whether he'll upset his business partner by boning her sister， Caleb collapses quickly under the weight of his own libido and the rest is a forgone conclusion。 Even the Greek mythology connection made no sense。 Sesily isn't Athena！ WTF！ I can't believe I'm saying this， but Reader， I skimmed it。 And now I'm sad。 。。。more

HappyBookWorm2020 ，

This is book 1 of the Hell's Belles series。 Some characters were previously introduced in the Scandal and Scoundrel and the Barenuckle Bastards series。 I had not read any of those books but was able to enjoy this story as there were just enough references to past events that I wasn't lost。 I liked it so much that I am planning on reading the books in the Scandal and Scoundrel series that feature Sophie and Seraphina Talbot， two of Sesily's five sisters。 Sesily is 30 years old， bold， and a brilli This is book 1 of the Hell's Belles series。 Some characters were previously introduced in the Scandal and Scoundrel and the Barenuckle Bastards series。 I had not read any of those books but was able to enjoy this story as there were just enough references to past events that I wasn't lost。 I liked it so much that I am planning on reading the books in the Scandal and Scoundrel series that feature Sophie and Seraphina Talbot， two of Sesily's five sisters。 Sesily is 30 years old， bold， and a brilliant strategist。 This book was a surprise to me at first because the women were so bold and unconventional， a rarity in the Victorian period where women were safer when they remained respectable and unremarked。 Sesily and her friends were well named as the Hell's Belles。 They rescue women in danger and at times， dish out retribution。 I was shocked at first， as this is *not* what most people think of society women doing in Victorian England， but I ended up loving it， and am planning on reading the Scandal and Scoundrel series。 I highly recommend this book to any lover of independent， strong women in Victorian romance。 I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley and was pleased to voluntarily read and review it。 。。。more

Rachel ，

I’m so excited that Sarah MacLane is starting a new series and this hero and heroine really start it off right。 I adored Cecily and I cannot wait for the rest of the Hells bells series to see the rest of her girl gang go on their own journeys。

Aly ，

Lady Sesily Talbot and the importance of fighting patriarchy！ She is known for being scandalous and reckless。 But underestimate the sexpot at your own peril。 In a room full of people， tavern owner Caleb Calhoun always notices her。 But she's his friend and business partner's sister and her name is spelled T-R-O-U-B-L-E。 Bombshell was a wild ride and I enjoyed every second of it ！ Lady Sesily Talbot and the importance of fighting patriarchy！ She is known for being scandalous and reckless。 But underestimate the sexpot at your own peril。 In a room full of people， tavern owner Caleb Calhoun always notices her。 But she's his friend and business partner's sister and her name is spelled T-R-O-U-B-L-E。 Bombshell was a wild ride and I enjoyed every second of it ！ 。。。more

Lauren Holly ，

Just too sickly sweet for me！

bennettreadsinatx ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Outside of Felicity/Devil， I did not enjoy the Bareknuckel Bastards series by MacLean。 This book is masterful and I loved it setting the stage for the others in the series！ We have Sesily， aka as Sexily， the most scandalous of the Talbot sisters。 She's the only unmarried one， and she's a part of a girl gang that takes down awful men。 Sesily's fellow gang members are the Duchess， Adelaide Frampton， and Imogen Loveless。 The Duchess is estranged from her husband and uses her power in London to brin Outside of Felicity/Devil， I did not enjoy the Bareknuckel Bastards series by MacLean。 This book is masterful and I loved it setting the stage for the others in the series！ We have Sesily， aka as Sexily， the most scandalous of the Talbot sisters。 She's the only unmarried one， and she's a part of a girl gang that takes down awful men。 Sesily's fellow gang members are the Duchess， Adelaide Frampton， and Imogen Loveless。 The Duchess is estranged from her husband and uses her power in London to bring these ladies together。 Adelaide is plain， which makes her the perfect spy。 The Duke of Claybourn was rude to her （but protective behind closed doors！） so she is out to get him。 Imogen is small and pudgy， likes to blow things up， and lacks a moral compass。 Of course she's going to be paired with the sexy， bearded Scotland Yard detective， who is obsessed with her brand of chaos。 Caleb is a bit of a letdown。 He loves Sesily but has this complex where he must save the day， always。 He's keeping a big secret， which is why he can't go all in with Sesily。 He just tries to sacrifice himself three times for the point of the plot。 You'd think he'd learn to work with Sesily， but her and her gang have to save the day。 Also， Sesily is openly bisexual and does not want children。 I like this fictional historical world where she is accepted for who she is。 。。。more

oitb ，

DNF @ 65%。 Could not BEAR to hear one more time how Caleb loved Sesily and therefore could not be with her and has to run away to America。

Linda ，

This makes me think of The A Team from the 1980s。 Hell’s Belles is the 1800s female version， & Sesily is Face。 Loved it！

Sadie Hope ，

Honestly。 Brilliant。 I don't think I can say more about this that hasn't been said。 The world needs more powerful women owning their sexuality and taking down the Patriarchy - sometimes literally。 The female friendships are really top-notch and I can't wait for more of the Bells！ Sesily is badass。 Caleb is a delight - if a bit of an idiot at times but don't worry Sesily has it well in hand。 Honestly。 Brilliant。 I don't think I can say more about this that hasn't been said。 The world needs more powerful women owning their sexuality and taking down the Patriarchy - sometimes literally。 The female friendships are really top-notch and I can't wait for more of the Bells！ Sesily is badass。 Caleb is a delight - if a bit of an idiot at times but don't worry Sesily has it well in hand。 。。。more

Zunaira Ghazal ，

I'd say that Bombshell was rather trite， recycled， and overdone with a tinge of spice， which just wasn't enough to leech away the cliche of the romance。 Plus， the amount of times MacLean repeats the phrase "soft and lush and beautiful" literally makes up half of this book。I did， however， read that this book was inspired by the （mis）adventures of Diamond Annie， who seemed like a character that I'd want to read about。 Here're a few things that sparked my irritation:- I liked Sesily more when she w I'd say that Bombshell was rather trite， recycled， and overdone with a tinge of spice， which just wasn't enough to leech away the cliche of the romance。 Plus， the amount of times MacLean repeats the phrase "soft and lush and beautiful" literally makes up half of this book。I did， however， read that this book was inspired by the （mis）adventures of Diamond Annie， who seemed like a character that I'd want to read about。 Here're a few things that sparked my irritation:- I liked Sesily more when she was in Seraphina's book。 Reading her point of view just made her feel rather brash and uninspiring。 She seemed a rather cookie-cutter type。- I was very intrigued by the character of Duchess。 I would like to read more about her and the Duke she is married to。 How did they ever come to be and how is it that he is reclusive enough not to notice her being the ringleader of a group of revolutionary women？- Caleb。 If I remember correctly， didn't he have a love-lost mentioned in Sera's book？ Whatever happened to that loose thread。- Also， I've read Sophie's book， and does MacLean have a habit of reiterating her sex scenes？ Because the one between Sophie and King was quite similar to the one between Sesily and Caleb。 。。。more

Kristina ，

I mean。 What is there to say？ This is a perfect summation of a journey that gives Caleb and Sesily’s love centre stage。 And it is a beautiful and rollicking kick off to what will be a delicious series。 Caleb was always a favourite。 And while I don’t think he quite is wholly comparable to the Bastards he certainly is so vexed and completely gone for Sesily that it makes their love story modern and feminist in a Victorian package and that I wholly enjoyed。 Sesily is a full bodied woman and person。 I mean。 What is there to say？ This is a perfect summation of a journey that gives Caleb and Sesily’s love centre stage。 And it is a beautiful and rollicking kick off to what will be a delicious series。 Caleb was always a favourite。 And while I don’t think he quite is wholly comparable to the Bastards he certainly is so vexed and completely gone for Sesily that it makes their love story modern and feminist in a Victorian package and that I wholly enjoyed。 Sesily is a full bodied woman and person。 She has taken ownership of her life and has agency over how she lives it。 In a rapidly changing Victorian world there’s no doubt she would stand out。 And who wouldn’t love her？ As for the girl-gang; while Imogene’s book isn’t next I will surmise it’s going to be the best。 She and Mr。 Peck are gonna burn down the house。 Quite literally I suspect too。 Can’t wait for that。 Sarah is an auto buy for me。 There are all kinds of modern tellings and contemporary romance doing patriarchal dismantling but so far as historical romance， Sarah is the go to for that。 She doesn’t disappoint。 。。。more

Denise ，

Historical romance is just doing it for me right now。 Sesily has been a complete badass for years in Sarah MacLean’s books and it was so good to see her continue to be and even better to find a hero who can keep up with her and not try to stifle her。 I love everything about this book。

Geise Leal ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Eu esperava bem mais pra história da Sesily e Caleb。 Tudo se resume em NINGUÉM FALA O QUE PENSA OU SENTE

Firstpella ，

I sobbed。3 times。The only thing that keeps this story from 5 stars is。。。well， I'm that bitch and I want my Heros to be Dukes （or some such）。 The next heroines are intriguing。 Auto-buy！ I sobbed。3 times。The only thing that keeps this story from 5 stars is。。。well， I'm that bitch and I want my Heros to be Dukes （or some such）。 The next heroines are intriguing。 Auto-buy！ 。。。more

Julie ，

Fantastic！ May be my favorite MacLean book yet; I love this girl gang！ Can’t wait for the next in the series！

Jacqueline ，

LOVED LOVED LOVED IT！！！

Theresa ，

Was super excited to win a Goodreads giveaway for this， but I’ve just not been in the mood for historicals basically this entire summer。 After reading like 15 contemporaries in a row I finally gave this a shot and WOW…。 what a banger。 Feels like Sarah is really setting the bar for historicals with a modern sensibility。 So much to love about this。 We’ve got a literal girl gang， mutual pining and AnGsT， heroine who rejects society’s expectations in a really fresh and relatable way and of course a Was super excited to win a Goodreads giveaway for this， but I’ve just not been in the mood for historicals basically this entire summer。 After reading like 15 contemporaries in a row I finally gave this a shot and WOW…。 what a banger。 Feels like Sarah is really setting the bar for historicals with a modern sensibility。 So much to love about this。 We’ve got a literal girl gang， mutual pining and AnGsT， heroine who rejects society’s expectations in a really fresh and relatable way and of course a swoony tortured hero who is GONE for the heroine from minute 1。 Really excited to see where the rest of this series goes （and already shipping the detective inspector and Imogen）。 Now that my historical slump has been cures I’m off to go read more of Sarah’s backlist ;） 。。。more

figuranta❤️addicted❤️to❤️books❤️ ，

DNF at 57%To say that this book is a historical romance it's an actually joke。 I understand that this is fiction but please keep it close to reality。 DNF at 57%To say that this book is a historical romance it's an actually joke。 I understand that this is fiction but please keep it close to reality。 。。。more

Mrs Deborah ，

Good ReadI love Sarah MacLean books and maybe that’s why I’m tougher on my scoring here。 Really enjoyed the book and read it quickly。 Loved the leading ladies strong women friends and the passion between the leads。 However I felt that the leading characters relationship could have been explored further to really feel the personality attraction rather than all physical。 There was just something lacking which is why I couldn’t give a 5 rating。

Iza Soares ，

I was very anxious about this book。 But Sarah did very good。 I'm glad。 Also Caleb is amazing sighs I was very anxious about this book。 But Sarah did very good。 I'm glad。 Also Caleb is amazing sighs 。。。more

Ali ，

Epic！This book had everything！ Such and amazing story by an author that makes you laugh， cry， sweat， and just feel like you have read something masterful。 Going into my favorites forever。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Bombshell

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Bombshell&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Bombshell&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0