I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. |

Book Info
Released: July 30th 2019
Series: The Bareknuckle Bastards #2
Published by Avon
Format: eARC
Recommended Read!
“If you want a strong heroine, a broody, grumpy hero (and who doesn’t want that!?) and a fast paced and interesting plot then this is the book you have been craving.”
~ Under the Covers
Lady Henrietta “Hattie” Sedley has a plan. It’s to be the Year of Hattie. She has a plan and by the time she has executed it she will have everything she’s ever wanted. Point one of the plan involves visiting a notorious brothel. However, her first steps to independence are derailed when she finds an unconscious man tied up in her carriage. Determined to proceed as planned, she unties the startlingly handsome, and now conscious, man…kisses him…then kicks him out her carriage. However, Whit, more widely known as Beast, isn’t as willing to let her go.
I went into this book with some sky high expectations. One, because I already love Sarah Maclean and her books and I especially loved the first book in this series. Two, it has a curvy heroine and there’s nothing I love more than a curvy heroine. Three, did I mention it was written by Sarah Maclean and I adore her and her books? Reading Brazen and the Beast just reinforces my aforementioned points. I loved it.
Romance has changed a lot over the years, gone are the days of very young, simpering and virginal heroines. Thank goodness for that. Even though I do enjoy some of the classic romances, if romance was still written in 2019 in the same way it was in 1999 I’m not sure I would still be reading it. But, that is also part of why I love romance so much; it evolves as we do and changing attitudes are reflected almost immediately in the types of characters and books that are released. Which, is my really long winded way of saying that I really loved the heroine Hattie. She was resourceful, smart and required no man to rescue her. She had her own plan.
Then we have the hero. Beast. With a name like that there are certain expectations, he’s primal, he’s alpha, he’s kinda homely. Well as Meatloaf would say, two out of three ain’t bad. Beast aka Whit is an alpha hero and any man that grunts more than he cares to talk is definitely primal. However, homely he isn’t, in fact I would go as far as to say he was beautiful. Which makes his familiarity with violence all the more striking. You just don’t expect pretty people to punch you in the face. I loved Beast, he was a complex character and when he did speak, he spoke dirty.
If you want a strong heroine, a broody, grumpy hero (and who doesn’t want that!?) and a fast paced and interesting plot then this is the book you have been craving. It was a fantastic read, so if you haven’t started this series yet you need to bump it up your TBR.
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I liked the first book, too but I think I may like hattie and whit more.
Great review Suzanne. I can’t wait to read it
looking forward to this
I loved the audiobook for this book