Brazen and the Beast is an epic second book to MacLean's Bareknuckle Bastards series. While Wicked and the Wallflower was great fun, Hattie became my immediate favorite right from the start. The dialogue crackles with wit and chemistry. MacLean's talent for building worlds and characters gets better and better with each book. Reading Sarah MacLean's Rule of Scoundrels was my first dive into the romance genre, and I will continue to recommend her work as a touchstone and must-read for anyone interested in empowering women, adventure, and sizzling romance.

**4.5 Stars**
Thank you to HarperCollins and NetGalley for giving me this opportunity to read this eArc.

Whenever I want to read a historical romance novel there are only a handful of authors I turn to, one of them being Sarah MacLean. Her books always come through for me, ticking every box I need in a historical romance: humor, delicious banter and sex, and of course, a happy ending.

Book two of the Bareknuckle Bastards series definitely came through on all the things I love in a romance novel. And I love, love, love Hattie.

Lady Henrietta Sedley, or Hattie has concluded that her twenty-ninth birthday be christened the Year of Hattie. She has plans to accomplish and no one will get in her way of them. Well, at least that’s what she thinks. A dangerous and gorgeous man by the name of Beast, puts a wrench in her plans – but I blame her brother for that.

Hattie is funny, smart, brave, ambitious and determined. Her best friend Nora who is basically a sister to her helps her along the way with her plans. I love their friendship and glad Hattie had someone believing in her dreams. As for Beast, who is Saviour Whittington or Whit for short, he has a harsh past which makes it difficult for him to believe he deserves love. Least of all Hattie’s love. But these two are a perfect match. He admires her mind and ambition. She loves that he believes in her.

I really enjoyed their banter and there are some very sexy scenes between them. Hattie managed to accomplish all her goals in the end, bravo for her. She did it all with class and sass!

This is a wonderful second installment to the Bareknuckle Bastards and am looking forward to the next one!

Well written book with great characters that had fabulous chemistry. The story was unique and so fun to read. I did feel like the last 25% was rushed but the ending is obviously setting up the next book in the series. Overall another fabulous Sarah MacLean novel!

I LOVED the heroine of this book. Love, love, love Hattie. Whit is also great (a growly Beast!) but aughhhh Hattie is everything I wanted in a heroine and didn't realize until I read Brazen and the Beast.

The book opens with Hattie finding Whit unconscious and tied up on the floor of her carriage. She's got plans though, so her BFF Nora takes her to her appointment at a brothel anyways. She recognizes her brother August's clumsy rope knots on the man who regains consciousness on the way, but doesn't let him know she knows who is responsible for where he is. Whit gets kicked out of the carriage but shows up in the room Hattie is waiting in at the brothel, and they strike a bargain; she'll help him get his goods back that were stolen during the night's ambush and he'll help her with her pesky virginity, rendering her marriageable and helping her towards her Year of Hattie plans.

The story goes from there and I love how they of course fall for each other despite themselves. The problem is Whit's brother, Ewan, who vows to go after Hattie when he realizes Whit loves her, and subsequently causes Whit to be overcome with stupidity and break it off. It would've been much more interesting if at that point they had teamed up to take him down instead of the story going down the predictable road.

I think my love for Hattie was clear in the first sentence but let me expand on why. Hattie is considered on the shelf and the discussion points in the book where she talks about others' expectations for her life/her future are so spot-on; her vulnerability in her appearance because other people are jerks; her pride in her ability to do the job well and keep others employed in her father's shipping company. I love how Whit sees her as a warrior. It means a lot to her when every other man in her life has just seen her as a woman who just needs to hurry up and marry a man to fulfill herself.

The romance is so nicely developed as they learn about each other and care for each other in their own little ways. There is a very cute secondary romance in the book involving Nora, Hattie's carriage racing BFF. There isn't a lot in the book so I wonder if they'll get a novella?

I really enjoyed this book despite the frustratingly predictable conflict with Ewan and recommend it regardless if you've read the first one (Wicked and the Wallflower). Hattie and Whit's romance is wonderful and I love the setting of Covent Garden and the docks as business places.

I loved this book. I loved Beast. He was one of the best hero's ever. The story was great between Hattie and Beast. This is a must read, Cannot wait for the next in series , but this will probably remain my favorite.

Brazen and the Beast is the second book in the Bareknuckle Bastards series. This book features the story of Whit the "King of Covent Garden" also known as the Beast. His love interest in the story is Hattie Sedley who is the brains behind her family's shipping business. Hattie wants her father to leave the business to her and decides that her best option is to get "ruined" so that he won't merely marry her off and bequeath the business to her idiot brother. Of course, the idiot brother has made some very bad and illegal business decisions that have brought him the wrath of the Beast. What ensues is a love story between a fiercely independent woman and a man who wants to give his woman what she desires as long as it doesn't go against the vendetta he has against his step brother, the Duke. This book was a fun and satisfying continuation of the Bareknuckle series and sets up the next installment about Grace. I have the feeling that book is going to Rock!!!!

I love a historical romance novel that pairs an aristocrat with a commoner and I also love when the heroine is not a simpering, empty-headed virgin. Hattie is a virgin but considers it a burden so her first action in the story is to find a brothel that caters to women in an attempt to rid herself of that impediment. Hattie is a complex, fascinating character in that she successfully runs her father’s shipping business. Whit is a crime boss with a heart of gold and a lifetime of baggage. Their witty banter and scorching chemistry made this book a delight to read. I blazed through it in record time. I also loved meeting Hattie’s best friend Nora and getting a glimpse of her budding romance with Annika. I would have loved a full length novel featuring those two. Or a novella. The world needs more historical romance featuring ladies loving ladies. Anyway, MacLean is a very talented writer and I cannot wait to read Grace’s story.

Henrietta Sedley wants to inherit her father's shipping business. She deserves to inherit it. However, Henrietta Sedley is a woman, so her brother August will be the one to take over the company. Hattie won't stand for that. She embarks on the year of Hattie to claim the things she wants - body, business, home, fortune, future. Unfortunately, her idiot brother has angered the local gang, The Barenuckle Bastards. Hattie intervenes and finds herself caught up with Beast.

Sarah MacLean has always written a STRONG book if a little heavy on the romance scenes. This book was no exception. The characters are well-developed and Hattie is going to take the business world by storm, despite the historical setting. I don't care how anachronistic it is, I like feminism in my historical romance novels, and Sarah does not disappoint.

I heart this one so much. First of all, I love Sarah Maclean. This is her second in the bare knuckle bastards series, and it did not disappoint. It focuses on Beast and Henrietta Sadley, who is a freaken warrior heroine. I loved everything about it. The writing is impeccable, the story line exciting, and the love story swoon worthy. I can’t wait to read the final book. Thank you to netgalley for the ARC!!

This was a great book!! Loved Hattie right from the beginning for making it her year. Great story. I was afraid I would be lost reading this second book in the series without having read the first book yet. No problem. I will be reading the first one next though. Whit and Hattie definitely drew me in right from the beginning.

I am a sucker for a wounded but dangerous hero and a strong heroine who fights for what she wants. Sarah MacLean got this hero/heroine combo just right.

Beautiful and intense. This is the second in the Bareknuckle Bastards series but it can be read as a stand alone. This was an deeply emotional story. I loved Hattie and Whit and how perfect they were for each other. She's strong and intelligent but not what society values until Whit sees exactly who she is and what he needs. I loved every minute.

I loved absolutely everything about this book, which is no surprise given that it's Sarah MacLean. But for real, Hattie and Whit are just, amazing. Whit is obviously dealing with some childhood trauma (this is set up in book one of the series, Wicked and the Wallflower) and Hattie is determined that this is the year where she gets everything she wants out of life. When their paths cross, neither expects the other to derail their neat plans. It's adorable how Whit tries so hard to keep thinking that he can follow the plan and that making opportunities to see Hattie again is nbd. And Hattie is definitely not waiting on the sidelines! She's out there trying to make it all happen.

Also, I have a mighty need for both book three of this series and Sesily's story!! That's happening, right? I'm ready for it. Just saying.

(Also, also, the cute f/f side character relationship? PRECIOUS. I wish we'd gotten a little more of them, but I get that may have been difficult to pull off.)

I loved this book so much. I stayed up until 3AM on a weeknight because I just couldn’t put the book down. I loved the heroine Hattie. The hero was great too, but the heroine was the real star of the book. She was smart and a great businesswoman and should have been running her father’s company. The heroine decides to take matters into her own hands and go after what she wants. She could more than hold her own against the hero and the banter between the two of them was wonderful.

Devil and Felicity make an appearance in this book and we also get glimpses of some characters from the author’s previous series. Can't wait to read the next book in this series!

Another great by Sarah MacLean! One of my favorite authors and a series I'm loving. This book had it all, the funny laughter enduring moments, the shock and awe, as well as the scintillating romantic scenes. I loved this story from beginning to end and am dying to read the next installment of the Bareknuckle Bastards. Written with wit, charm, and feminine audacity it's the perfect summer romance read. A definite keeper for historical romance lover's bookshelves.

This book was too wordy, too repetitive, and the alpha hero's overprotectiveness was so annoying.

And I loved it. I loved every minute of it. Every imperfect minute of it. Something about the way MacLean is writing her main relationships right now just REALLY works for me. Overprotectiveness and all. There's something that thrills me about the way she's bringing two strong characters together. YMMV; these aren't for everyone, I bet.

Anyway, thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

As a long-time historical romance reader, this one is a tricky book to review. When I enjoy Sarah Maclean; when I don't, I really don't. On the one hand, Brazen and the Beast is well-written and the characters are engaging with strong banter amongst them. On the other hand, while romance always requires a strong suspension of disbelief, I couldn't disengage my brain enough to fully enjoy a novel that hangs on the concept of not one bastard but three being born on the same day/time-ish to one duke. That's some magic, prolific stuff he's got there! All of the characters have a bit too much Mary Sue to them, and there was too much insta-lust from the male hero for the heroine, who sees herself as too tall and unattractive--too much telling but not enough support from the rest of the novel.

Netgalley provided an ARC for my review; all opinions are my own.

Sarah MacLean doesn’t disappoint with this one. Hattie is a woman with a mission and she isn’t going to let the Beast stand in her way (well maybe she will let him stand by her side). The Beast doesn’t know what hit him (well maybe he does know that it was her brother, but....). Waking up in Hattie’s carriage just before she pushes him out starts the Beast on a new path so long as his brother doesn’t ruin it.

My fault for not realizing this is in the Bareknuckle Bastards series, which I find emotionally heavy and I need to be in the right headspace to read. Hattie was a character I connected with. I enjoyed how she went toe-to-toe with mean brutes (including Whit) but the rest of the story just wasn't for me.

I really enjoyed this novel by Ms. MacLean. Hattie was such a unique character during this era, for she had intelligence and business smarts. Hattie did not back down from a challenge, outspoken, and is a loyal person. She wants to run her father's shipping business and has worked hard to prove it to him. If only she was born a man instead of a woman. Beast, aka Whit, in intrigued by Hattie from the moment he wakes. tied up in her carriage. Beast never backs down and has a reputation to uphold. Beast sees Hattie as an equal, not someone to whom he can dictate orders to. He agrees to help Hattie with her plan if she gives him the information he needs to stop those stealing his cargo. After all, everyone knows the reputations of the barenuckle bastards. Hattie is a bit harsh on herself, which explains why she has not married, but Beast sees so much more of her and respects her. Hattie and Beast fall in love with each other, but they are both still business rivals. Beast's choices push Hattie away, but Hattie knows how to get her points across. When Hattie's life is in danger, will Beast finally realize the best and safest place for her is by his side? Cannot wait to read about the next barenuckle bastard!