Valued by the Viscount (Second Sons of Lond Book 6)

As Lady Vanessa Hughes prepares for her come-out, her brother betroths her to Lord Hockley, who physically and verbally abuses her. Lord Hockley then deserts Vanessa to the country, and when he dies, she is moved to the dower house. Vanessa’s stepson later tells her she must vacate the house. So, Vanessa angrily goes to her husband’s grave, not knowing what to do. Luckily, she meets Lady Danbury at the gravesite. Lady Danbury is planning a house party to which she invites Vanessa and Reed Davenport, Viscount Boxling. When Reed and Vanessa meet, there is instant attraction. Vanessa, though, doesn’t think she’s worthy of Reed, especially since she has nothing to bring to the relationship. Reed must convince Vanessa she is worthy of him while fighting off the other men at the party who also want her.  

Ms. Alexa Aston writes a highly poignant Georgian novel that definitely will make anyone cry. Readers will immediately sympathize with the characters. The story, however, feels jarring, and there are big time gaps throughout. The villains never get punished and are unceremoniously dropped from the book. Even though the book can stand alone, it might help to read the other books in the series just to understand the relationships of the minor characters. Vanessa, the unconfident heroine, doesn’t show much gumption when dealing with others. Even when Vanessa interacts with Reed, who is a wonderful hero and will do anything to protect her, she still seems a bit afraid of him even though he doesn’t do anything to scare her. The book is still an interesting tale that is a pleasantly amusing read!

Roslynn Ernst