MacLean, Sarah. Heartbreaker. HarperAudio. (Hell’s Belles, Bk. 2). Aug. 2022. 12:16 hrs. ISBN 9780063055896. $27.99. HISTORICAL ROMANCE

Adelaide Frampton lives unnoticed in the bright ballrooms of Mayfair, her wallflower status hiding her former life as London’s best cutpurse and the daughter of dangerous criminal Alfie Trumball. In her new life, plain Adelaide has a secret identity as the Matchbreaker, helping brides avoid the altar and allowing her access to the most powerful men’s secrets. When the impeccably handsome and stern Duke of Clayborn realizes that the woman he’s always noticed is now racing to Gretna Green to break his own brother’s match, he must follow to ensure his brother’s happiness and to prevent his family’s legacy from being upended in the wake of Miss Adelaide, agent of eternal frustration, chaos, and beauty. VERDICT This cinematic, road-trip historical is brought to impeccable and swoon-worthy life by skilled romance narrator, Mary Jane Wells. Wells’s deft characterizations and range are on full display with Adelaide and the Duke’s banter, making this audio the perfect way to experience the second book (following Bombshell) in MacLean’s best-selling “Hell’s Belles” series.—Elizabeth Gabriel