Lady Delilah Ashbrook is looking for a boy named Oliver. They believe he was kidnapped. She is following a clue and finds herself in a dangerous position. Sebastian St. Allen has come to her rescue and they enter into a partnership of sorts. We follow Sebastian & Delilah looking for Oliver, the duchess's dog and some missing diamonds.

This was a fun read filled with romance, some spice, and a little mystery. I wish there had been a little more suspense. I found myself bored in some parts. Otherwise a good read.

Not my favorite but I still enjoyed. Thank you to the publisher and the author for the eARC! I like an adventure, sneaky take on my historical romances and this one was no exception!

I enjoyed the group of ladies this series is built around and want to read the beginning of the series as well.

This historical romance book was just as much fun to read as its predecessor, Duchess If You Dare. I think the only thing I was disappointed with was how predictable and abrupt the ending was; however, the overall plot surrounding the mystery of Oliver’s abduction and the romance between Delilah and Sebastian was really enjoyable!

Overall, if you like historical romance books that have a lot of mystery and action, check this book out!

*I received an ARC from Kensington Books in exchange for my honest opinion.

A nice entry into a series about ladies with gumption, a hunger for social justice, and trousers. It wasn't until a good ways in that I realized I think I read the first one a while back, will be rummaging around to reread it.

I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

When Lady Delilah Ashbrooke's maid's son is kidnapped in broad daylight when out shopping, she will stop at nothing to find young Oliver, and return him home. Even if that means going into the slums in the dead of night. Luckily, she crosses paths with Sebastian St Allen, who is also looking into the kidnapping - and dog-napping of a Duchess's prized pet - and he is on hand to save her from attack. Deciding to work with Sebastian, and ask for his help, Delilah tells him everything she knows, and soon finds herself crossing paths with the Maidens of Mayhem, uncovering more behind the abduction than she could ever imagine, and finding herself in danger. But she soon discovers that rather than shying away from the danger, she realises the adventure, and being able to spend more time with the handsome and mysterious Sebastian.

I quite enjoyed the first book in this series, and had high hopes for book 2. Though I didn't love The Lady Loves Danger, I did enjoy it, and found Delilah to be a refreshing heroine. She was quite a privileged young lady, whose aunt had brought her to London following the deaths of her parents, and was ready to give her a season, and see her happily married. Delilah, though, had other ideas. While she might enjoy having a family one day, she had no intentions of settling down just yet, and had no real need to do so either. She loved her maid, Beth, and Beth's son Oliver, who were like family to her, and so she thought nothing of it take Oliver shopping for a birthday present in the middle of the day. After a commotion on the street, Oliver got away from her, and he and the duchess's dog were bundled into a waiting carriage, and haven't been seen from since. Delilah, in my opinion, was really brave to journey into Seven Dials alone, at night, but she thought only of Oliver, and wanting to see him returned. Her first meeting with Sebastian was full of action, but the attraction was clear from the beginning, and both brought out the best in the other. Sebastian was full of secrets. An agent for the crown, he had a special interest in helping the orphans and strays in London, after he found himself one of them at the age of 5. Hearing about Oliver's abduction, he hopes to find him before anything happens, and though Delilah is an outsider, he's willing to work with her. I really enjoyed the chemistry between the couple, and that their relationship felt like one of equals. There were some scenes with another agent which were unnecessary in my opinion, but seemed to be included for the drama. A much better book than the first, and I think I'd probably continue with the series.

Another great story in this series. Ms. Bryant did a wonderful job pairing Delilah and Sebastian together. Joining forces to help find the missing boy, only put them together more and as they spent more time together, love does have a way of slipping in and catching them unaware. Add in mystery and danger and you have a great story. Looking forward to the next book in the series..

The lady loves Danger is the second book in the Maidens of Mayhem series by Anabelle Bryant. This story is the perfect blend of historical romance and adventure. I loved the interactions between Delilah and Sebastian from the beginning and was rooting for them the whole time too. I loved how Delilah wasn’t weak and helpless like most women characters in a historical romance. She had no qualms with putting herself in danger in order to help someone, especially someone she cares about. I absolutely recommend The Lady Loves Danger to any historical romance lover out there. I can’t wait to read the next story in this great series.

I love how so many things happened in the book. I could not keep myself from the book because it was so good

I read the first book in the Maidens of Mayhem series, and loved it a lot! so ofc I had high expectations from this book too. In Seven Dials, Delilah Ashbrook and Sebastian St. Allen run into each other while attempting to foil a conspiracy to sell children. She is searching for the lost kid of her maid, and he is seeking to remedy society's wrongs.


Great start since in the first few pages we're moaning about the tight corsets, explaining instead of showing, and switching points of view in the midst of a scenario. It took too long to tangentially connect Delilah to the Maidens of Mayhem, even though I am aware that this is book two in a series. Unfortunately, there was little information provided about the Maidens of Mayhem's objectives or identity. While we do learn a little in the first book, I was hoping we'd be learn more about the ladies but we didnt.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Anabelle Bryant continues her Maidens of Mayhem series with an exciting, emotional and immensely enjoyable new historical romance: The Lady Loves Danger.

Lady Delilah Ashbrook is beside herself with worry. A mundane excursion into London to buy a gift for her lady’s maid and friend Beth ended in horror when young Oliver was abducted. Delilah will do anything to have her maid’s son back home with them safe and sound and the gently reared young lady will leave no stone unturned in her search for the missing child – even venturing to some of London’s less salubrious areas. When she finally finds Oliver, Delilah is absolutely delighted – only her happiness is short-lived when she inadvertently alerts the kidnappers and they flee with the child. Delilah doesn’t know which way to turn, but could the enigmatic – and devilishly handsome – Sebastian St. Allen help her find Oliver?

Brooding and mysterious Sebastian St Allen might look like a gentleman, but having experienced first-hand the cruelty of the aristocracy, he is perfectly content living in the shadows and focusing on his work helping those in need. Sebastian is familiar with the seamier side of London and hearing of a racket involving stolen children, he is keen to do whatever it takes to put a stop to it – using whatever means necessary. Hearing of Delilah’s plight, Sebastian vows to help her out and to return Oliver to her. Sebastian usually has no problem focusing on the job at hand, but the more time he spends with Delilah, the more he finds himself distracted by her…

Delilah’s aunt Helen might be keen to marry her off, however, marriage is the last thing on her mind. A chance encounter with the Maidens of Mayhem makes Delilah even more determined to assert her independence and exact justice – and besides, none of the men her aunt introduces her to could possibly hold a candle to the dashing Sebastian St. Allen.

As Delilah and Sebastian find themselves thrust in one another’s path, their feelings for one another intensify. But could they possibly have a future together when they are from two different social classes? Will their love find a way to thrive when there are so many obstacles standing in their way? Or is Delilah and Sebastian’s relationship simply not meant to be?

Anabelle Bryant knocks it out of the park with her latest historical romance, The Lady Loves Danger. Spiced with danger, intrigue, passion and drama, The Lady Loves Danger effortlessly combines exquisite period detail with brilliantly realized characters, red-hot sensuality and nail-biting tension and suspense.

In Lady Delilah, Anabelle Bryant has created a modern, unconventional and complex heroine on a journey to finding herself. Sebastian was a bold, brooding, charismatic and gorgeous romantic hero it is impossible not to fall for.

An excellent historical romance from a writer who delivers every time, Regency fans will not be able to resist Anabelle Bryant’s latest, The Lady Loves Danger.

The Lady Loves Danger is the second book in Bryant's Maidens of Mayhem series. This is a historical romance with some definite spice. Sebastian St. Allen is out to right the wrongs of the world and while investigating stolen children he crosses pass with Lady Delilah Ashbrook who is searching for her maid's son, Oliver, whom she was in charge when he was taken. Together they try to find Oliver but she can't do it alone and the Maidens of Mayhem find her and help her along the way. I enjoyed the story but felt there were some holes that were not filled. I don't feel like I missed anything from not reading the first book in the series as the Maidens are more of a side helpers than any real part of the story. 3.5 stars for things left unsaid and undone.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dear Fellow Reader,

Why do people read romance novels? According to Book Riot (https://bookriot.com/why-women-read-romance-novels/), one of the reasons is that romance novels are “the most optimistic, hopeful genre in the market”. In July of 2021, Esquire Magazine proclaimed in an article that “Better for You Than Porn: Why Men are Reading Romance Novels” and “They can revitalize your sex life, leading to some good, not-so-clean fun.” (https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/a37094392/men-reading-romance-novels/)

So, why aren’t you reading Romance? It is uplifting and feels good. It has what we all need these days, a happy ending.

“Romance novels reflect the world around us, and that world is a lot different than it was when your grandma was buying bodice-rippers. These novels aren’t paperback relics of the past; they’re more progressive and inclusive than ever before. “Whatever is going on in the world, and whatever is happening to women or marginalized people, is happening in the pages of romance novels,” said novelist Sarah MacLean. “But with the promise that everything will be okay. That no matter how bad it gets, happily ever after will come.” Romance is pure entertainment, designed to be enjoyed, that can expand your interior life along the way. What’s not to like?” Esquire Magazine

I have reviewed several sub-genres of romance novels in my posts. After all, there are historical romances, regency romances, fantasy romances, sports romances, erotic romances, LGBTQ+ romances, and paranormal romances to mention a few of the subcategories. You can take your pick. Look how popular the Bridgeton series has been on television: it is based on the regency romance book The Duke and I which came out in the year 2000.


This week, I have read The Lady Loves Danger by Anabelle Bryant. This book is the second in the Maidens of Mayhem book series. (See my review of the first book in the series.) As the book opens, we meet the handsome Sebastian St. Allen who is trying to catch a child trafficker at night in a bad part of town. He is thwarted because of a woman who calls out at the last moment. While he loses the bad guys, he chases after the woman to see who she is and why she is there. Lady Delilah Ashbrook runs from the man pursuing her but ends up trapped by a dirty vagrant with ill intentions. She is definitely in the wrong part of town, and it looks like she will pay for her mistake. But at the last second, she is saved by the handsome St. Allen. He takes her to his carriage where he asks her why she is there and why she ruined his chance to save the child.

Lady Ashbrook’s story comes out over two visits with St. Allen. She was out with Oliver, the son of her lady’s maid when he was stolen off the street. She feels responsible and is out looking to find the child.

This is the beginning of the irresistible draw that Lady Ashbrook and St. Allen have for each other. But Lady Ashbrook, who is new to the city, meets several new people in her quest to find Oliver. And alas, St. Allen is not of an equal class to Lady Ashbrook and should be forbidden fruit.

The book is a fun read. It is quick moving and while not surprising, it is satisfying.

Thanks for reading!

In Anabelle Bryant’s The Lady Loves Danger, the second installment in the Maidens of Mayhem historical romance series, this historical romance is enriched with drama and intrigue will sweep you off your feet on every page. Lady Delilah Ashbook is looking for Oliver, a young boy who had been snatched under her care in the dangerous streets of London. Everywhere she looked, she couldn’t find him and needed all the help she could get to find him before it was too late. That’s when she met a mysterious man named Sebastian St. Allan, who knew the streets like the back of his hand as a secret agent for the prince regent. When they worked together to find the missing boy, he had his own mission to locate the queen’s diamond collar for her missing dog. Could both cases be linked together to the same culprit? While Delilah sought out the Maidens of Mayhem’s help, she became intrigued on how they operated and wanted to join them to help out with her causes to save London’s impoverished children who had no families to call their own. Sebastian worked with his colleagues and Eva Fields, the only agent in their team, who worked undercover to unearth a startling link to the queen’s paramour himself. The chemistry between Sebastian and Delilah were fiery hot, though her Aunt Helen wishes she would find more suitable like a lord to court her. But Sebastian had stolen her heart. When they worked together to find the culprit, it became life and death for Delilah when an unforeseeable foe reared their ugly head to turn against her. During her recovery from that harrowing ordeal, she wondered how Sebastian felt for her before she had find her happy ever after ending.

This lovely historical romance is passionate, daring, and wonderful. I cared for Delilah who wanted to do something to change London’s poverty state and take daring risks to locate Oliver and to go above and beyond to find her true calling. I’ve found Sebastian as a sexy debonair man, who had a sordid childhood past, and became his own true person. This awesome twosome make quite a pair and a lovely duo that would scorch the pages. The location of London and its surrounding neighborhood were picture perfect for the scenic settings. The theme of the story is be your own true self by becoming our own person to make things happen.

This sensational historical romance is so hot, it sizzles with a capital S. I didn’t find anything to nitpick on this book. I rated this book, four out of five stars because of no reason. If you love historical romance with daring non-stop action, a tidal wave of sexy romantic drama, and heart-stopping suspense on every page, The Lady Loves Danger is the one for you. This book is recommended for readers who love Bridgerton and Downtown Abbey, classical historical romance movies, and intriguing historical romance authors like Lisa Kleypas, Eloisa James, and Teresa Mederios.

**SPOILER ALERT** Five-year-old Oliver, the son of her friend and lady's maid, is kidnapped while on an outing with Delilah. Her guilt and fear have her out on the streets searching for the boy. Sebastian, an intelligence agent in service to the Crown, is out one night too looking for the kidnappers. They meet and Sebastian agrees to help search for Oliver. Sebastian has a murky history. He was born the bastard of a peer. When his mother leaves him with his father hoping for a better life for her son, his father pushes five-year-old Sebastian out of the carriage to survive on his own. We know terrible things happened to him during his childhood but nothing is clearly stated. This has made him have a special interest in bringing to justice anyone attempting to sell or purchase a child. Delilah is a strong and independent. She isn't about to sit at home while Sebastian searches. The Maidens of Mayhem take an interest in the case and Delilah joins their cause. A kidnapped dog, along with a missing diamond studded dog collar also play a role. I enjoyed the aspect of women not sitting around wait for the man to come to the rescue. A little nitpicky, but I thought Oliver recovered from his trauma too quickly. It was instantaneous. Also, if Sebastian was having Delilah's house watched for security, why didn't they see Oliver being returned in a bag on the doorstep and stop or identify the kidnappers? Overall, I enjoyed it.

Lady Delilah Ashbrook has been devoting her time and resources to finding Oliver, the son of her lady’s maid and friend, who disappeared while in her care. Afraid he’ll be sold, Delilah accepts the help of the Maidens of Mayhem when they approach her to offer their aid. Her efforts also bring her into contact with Sebastian St. Allen, a mysterious man who’s also trying to locate missing and stolen children. Given his access to many more resources than Delilah has, she accepts his help but not his attempts to keep her on the sidelines of the search.

Sebastian's attempts to help the children of the street are personal for him and he uses his experience to seamlessly navigate London’s seediest streets and grandest ballrooms. Having always eschewed personal relationships, he finds himself unprepared for his own reaction to Delilah. Her headstrong independence infuriates him as much as it attracts him, and he can’t help but want to be closer to her. As they work together to get to the bottom of things, it becomes clear to both of them that they’ve come to need each other as well.

I wanted to love this book, especially since I really enjoy some mystery and suspense in my romance, but sadly this one just didn’t work for me, for several reasons. Mostly, I found Delilah to be absolutely infuriating. She did and said a lot of things in the name of being an independent woman that were just nonsensical. She was annoyed at having to accept help from a man when she should’ve just been grateful to have help at all, especially after she ruined his investigation. She’d also already been turned away by Bow Street and hadn’t even yet met the Maidens, so I would’ve expected her to just be happy to take any help she could get. Delilah also gets very repetitive in her arguments that Sebastian is trying to protect her and is thereby excluding her. She realizes how vulnerable she really is and how much she needs to learn, and yet she somehow still thinks she can help the Maidens of Mayhem. She has all these inner monologues about her self-reliance and such, but I never actually saw any examples of her being self-reliant without getting into some sort of trouble or life-threatening situation. Delilah talks a good game about how bold she is and while that was true, she often confused boldness for simple foolhardiness. She’s prepared to fight but since she’s an aristocratic lady with no training, I could never figure out how this was supposed to work. It was almost as if she was meant to have some sort of training in her backstory and that just got left out.

This is a bit of an unrelated quibble, but I was also quite confused about Delilah’s backstory. She says she’s only gentry, but for her to be styled as Lady Delilah (not Lady Ashbrook as she’s often referred to in the ARC and which will hopefully be corrected), she has to be at least the daughter of an earl. Along these lines, I also wanted more information on how the maid has a son who’s such an accepted part of the household. Oliver’s father or how he came to be are never mentioned. I was also very confused about how we have an aristocratic household with only a cook, a maid, the aunt, Delilah, and the maid’s son. It just didn’t quite all add up. It might’ve made slightly more sense if the maid was a companion instead but even then, I’d still be scratching my head about how all these genteel ladies are living alone without even a footman.

These little complaints aside, Delilah was just a puzzle to me in general. We’re told all these things about her character and convictions, but not much backs it up. When she’s threatened, she doesn’t tell Sebastian the most pertinent facts about the intruder, despite her supposed intelligence and even though Sebastian has done so much to help her, but she tells the Maidens despite that they have accomplished nothing demonstrable. This definitely hurt the romance for me, and it already wasn’t very strong. In her activities with the Maidens, Delilah just seems like she’s out for a lark, never taking the risk seriously and mostly just getting in Sebastian’s way and either undoing his investigative work or causing him to come to harm, but somehow, she never sees this as a problem. I also wasn’t a big fan of the attempt to throw in some other woman drama here, especially given that it was resolved like an afterthought, and I was left wondering what the point was and wanting Sebastian to put her in her place more firmly. The same is true of much of the mystery aspects as well now that I think of it. The solution becomes fairly obvious fairly quickly, but I was still left feeling like some things were unresolved and given that the case was the basis for nearly every conversation between Sebastian and Delilah, their feeble romance suffered.

The connection between Sebastian and Delilah didn’t really grab me and he mostly seemed like just another lark to her, a bit of rough and something different from the few lords she’d met in her short time in London. She often jumps to conclusions and doesn’t display the intelligence she’s purported to have. Delilah is often so fixated on not being dependent on a man or ceding her perceived control that she habitually makes poor decisions, disregards safety, and the classic, jumps to conclusions about her man’s behavior around other women. This last is slightly understandable given the lack of depth in the conversations between herself and Sebastian, but I’m still not a fan of this plot device in place of mature communication, which we never really got. Mostly, she just proclaims about how capable she is but none of her actions back that up. If anything, she shows Sebastian time and time again that she needs to be rescued and/or can’t help herself, and her expectations of her own capabilities aren’t remotely realistic. She’s only just moved to a new city, much larger than any she’s dealt with before, and yet we’re supposed to believe that she can navigate even its worst areas with no problems, and I just didn’t buy that. She comes off as a spoiled young aristocrat engaging in a rebellion, rather than actually accomplishing anything and I don’t think that was the intention. Even in the end when the mystery was solved and the danger had passed, I still never saw much in the way of romance or a connection between Delilah and Sebastian. Instead, they were just rather flat and there was a lot of telling here but not much in the way of showing. Sebastian mentioned his hesitancy to connect with anyone on a deeper level, but he felt differently about Delilah, which was great, but I wanted to know why. I wanted to see the emotion and why he felt that way and it was never really demonstrated very well.

I’ve read and loved this author’s writing previously, but this book just didn’t fit that mold for me and had too many things that annoyed me enough to pull me out of the story. I may continue the Maidens series, but I’m not sure as of now.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

i loved this book so much! It captured me on the first page! A wonderful historical romance filled with intrigue! Delilah is a wonderful character! So much detail and suspense make this a real page turner! Delilah is searching for a kidnapped little boy, Oliver, and meets up with St. Allen and and the sparks fly! She later meets the Maidens of Mayhem. Lots of twists and turns, interesting, complex and quirky characters.This is a must read!

I enjoyed this second book in Anabelle Bryant's Maidens of Mayhem series. It's another fast-paced story with plenty of suspense, adventure, and romance.

Delilah tugged my heartstrings from the get-go. I loved her determination, her bravery, her willingness to do whatever it took to find a little boy snatched in broad daylight. Sebastian won my heart right along with Delilah's. He was so supportive of her in her quest; determined to keep her safe by teaching her how to keep herself safe. They were likeable, well-developed characters who engaged both my interest and my emotions. I loved them individually and as a couple. I appreciated the respect that developed between them as they worked together and the slow-burn romance that deepened as they came to know one another better. I loved their chemistry, passion, and sparkling banter.

I wish the Maidens of Mayhem had been more present in this story. I very much enjoyed them in the first book and would have liked to have seen more of them in this one. But that's a small quibble.

The secondary characters were also well developed and added to the progression of the story, as well as the conflict. Young Oliver was a special delight.

I figured out the mystery about halfway through the book but there were still surprises that kept things interesting. And a romance to keep me flipping pages.

Though the Maidens of Mayhem appear in both the first and second books, each can be read as a standalone and in any order. I'll be back for more of Anabelle Bryant's Maidens of Mayhem.

ARC received for fair and unbiased review

The Lady Loves Danger by Anabelle Bryant, the second in the Maidens of Mayhem series, gripped me from page one. A distraught, guilt-ridden, but determined heroine out to rescue a young boy encounters our hero also out to rescue young children in a dark and unsavory part of London. Sebastian St. Allen isn’t about to blindly trust Lady Delilah Ashbrook, but he is instantly drawn to her and soon becomes entangled in her plight to rescue her maid’s son who was lost on her watch. St. Allen is an agent of the crown who also has spent his life protecting people in need particularly children.

While St. Allen is willing to help Lady Delilah, he prefers to leave her behind while he does the searching which will put him in harm’s way. Delilah will have none of that and insists that she be an active participant in the search, fully aware of the danger, but driven to make sure that Oliver was safely returned home. To hedge her bets, Lady Delilah begins working with the Maidens of Mayhem and eventually joins their group. St. Allen also works with another agent of the crown, Eva, on another case which turns out to intersect with the disappearance of Oliver. Eva has her sights set on St. Allen and is not pleased with his interactions with Lady Delilah, almost to Delilah’s detriment.

I enjoyed Delilah’s moxie and determination. She was not going to be sidelined, she was going to be an integral part of the search and if St. Allen wasn’t going to support that, the Maidens were then going to be a perfect fit. I appreciated St. Allen’s recognizing Delilah’s grit and fortitude. He respected her and included her even when he’d prefer not to. I enjoyed their banter and their interactions particularly when he began teaching her self-defense. I loved that they treated each other with respect and discussed what was going on, no hidden secrets that lingered throughout the book, no twisted misunderstandings. Two adults who found each other through a series of events and even when St. Allen had doubts about their future, it was clear that they had a future.

I enjoyed the secondary characters including Delilah’s aunt who gave her great advice on love and happiness outside of society’s strictures. I enjoyed the other agents of the crown and the other Maidens. Having a supporting cast is something I enjoy in a book and this didn’t disappoint. I truly loved Delilah and St. Allen’s story, so much that I’ve read the book twice already. I am looking forward to the next book in the series and highly recommend this story and the Maidens of Mayhem series. Oh, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the steam between Delilah and St. Allen, smoking hot. Great story overall.

I received an ARC of The Lady Loves Danger by Anabelle Bryant from NetGalley and voluntarily read the book.

I really enjoyed Delilah and Sebastian's story. It was fun watching them solve the mystery of the missing child and realizing that they were meant for one another.