Book Two in the bestselling ‘The Lost Lords’ Series! Read for free in Kindle Unlimited!Elizabeth Masters has put her scandalous and painful past behind her. She’s taken a position as companion to the tragic Lady Vale and her primary duty is to dissuade the woman from believing that everyone from the butcher’s delivery boy to the ostler at an inn is her missing son. But a late night visit to an … late night visit to an alleged mystic in the city of Bath results in near tragedy as Elizabeth is nearly abducted by ruffians waiting for them outside. They are rescued by a handsome and mysterious stranger who calls himself Benedict, the very name of Lady Vale’s lost son.
Benedict has his own reasons for being in Bath—to locate his missing sister and see her safe once more. Waylaid by a pistol ball from the men who attacked Miss Masters, he finds himself dependent upon the assistance of Lady Vale to rescue his Mary. In exchange, he must consent to her investigation of his past to determine if he is, in fact, her missing son, an unlikely scenario in his mind.
As their investigation unfolds, it becomes clear that the danger they face, the attempted abduction of Elizabeth and Mary’s disappearance are all connected to the fateful night twenty-four years earlier when Lady Vale’s son was ripped from her arms, never to be seen again. Forced to work together, Benedict and Elizabeth cannot fight the attraction they feel for one another. Yet with every piece of evidence uncovered, the truth of Benedict’s identity threatens their burgeoning relationship… and the danger that brought them together looms larger at every turn.
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Setting aside her scandalous past and retreating from society, Elizabeth Masters has taken a position as companion to Lady Sarah Vale, though her real job is ensuring the lady doesn’t get swindled by unscrupulous men claiming to be her long-missing son. But when an evening visit to a psychic sees Elizabeth nearly kidnapped, she’s fortunately rescued by a dashing man who just so happens to be called Benedict, the name of Lady Vale’s missing son, and bears an uncanny resemblance to the lady.
Benedict is in Bath searching for his missing adoptive sister. When he sees another woman being accosted, he steps in to help, receiving a pistol ball for his trouble. Weakened, he finds himself recovering in Lady Vale’s home and dependent on her resources to continue the search for his sister, Mary. Lady Vale is happy to help, but only if Benedict agrees to also allow her investigator to look into his past and determine if he could truly be her son. Benedict thinks the idea ludicrous but goes along for his sister’s sake.
As both investigations develop, it becomes increasingly clear that everything is connected to the night Lady Vale’s son was kidnapped. As they work together, Benedict and Elizabeth find themselves yielding to the attraction simmering between them. But as it seems increasingly likely that Benedict truly is Lord Vale, their relationship is threatened and they are both still in danger from the fiend who started this whole mess.
This is another reread I’m visiting through audio. It’s a fast-paced read with mystery and intrigue, and a disturbing peak into the dark world of human trafficking. Elizabeth was rather annoying given how caustic her manner was and her staunch refusal to think outside of herself or change her opinions at all was a bit tiresome, though I suppose her behavior was understandable given how everyone in her life had utterly failed her. Overall I found Benedict’s character to be the saving point for this book, and I thoroughly enjoyed the witty banter between him and Elizabeth’s employer. Benedict was a fine hero and I appreciated his resolve and lack of care for the opinion’s of others. He knew what he wanted and went for it without question. I liked Benedict and Elizabeth as a couple and I’m looking forward to finally getting to Mary’s story on this audio revisit.
Chastity Bowlin succeeds at drawing one into a story and not letting up until the end. In The Vanishing of Lord Vale, a tragedy at the beginning turns into a story of reclamation (our hero) and redemption (our heroine) by the end. Mix in mystery, danger, and some reprehensible characters. There is a bit of a cliffhanger at the end regarding one of the secondary characters, which I trust will be resolved by the author in a later series. This in no way detracts from the HEA of this story.
This read was most intriguing. We all know you can’t rearrange the person you are by simply changing your hairstyle and clothes. Elizabeth Masters is determined to do just that. Her scandalous past no longer is a part of her. She seems prim and proper and does well in her new job, companion to Lady Vale. But…
Lady Vale is heart-broken, having searched for her abducted son for the last ten years. Her husband, Lord Vale, wouldn’t let her search for him, therefore she had to wait until after his death to try to find her dear boy. The trail has long been cold. She’s a woman who is weary of the search, but she doesn’t want to give up, even searching through unconventional means. Even when her brother-in-law saddles her with a companion to watch her actions (reporting back to him) for young men who would take advantage of her search.
Circumstances are quickly propelled forward when someone tries to abduct Elizabeth. Luckily, a young man, who had been looking for his sister, happened upon the abduction. He (his name is Benedict – coincidentally, the same name as Lady Vale’s son) aborts the abduction receiving a bullet. He’s taken back to Lady Vale’s home and cared for by Elizabeth.
Lady Vale is convinced the man is her long, lost son. Elizabeth sees him as an imposter. He doesn’t want to have anything to do with the mad old woman and Elizabeth who stirs his emotions. He needs to find his sister, Mary, and get back to the gaming hell he owns.
Bowlin writes a fast-paced, action-packed story keeping my interest. The story tells of the burgeoning relationship between Elizabeth (who just wants to go back to the prim and proper lady) and Benedict who’s led a life of hardship and has no particular liking for the ton.
The story shifts into high gear, as Benedict cares more for Elizabeth than he wants when Mary isn’t to be found, when men are sniffing around Elizabeth and those characters in play provide bits of information about the head pin who is responsible for trafficking of human flesh.
I’ve enjoyed reading this series. Bowlin’s stories are entertaining, with an edge of fear, danger, and mystery I love in a Regency/Victorian read.
This was so good…until the cliffhanger!
As with the first book in this series (The Lost Lord of Castle Black), this book has a great plot and is well written. I didn’t find the heroine endearing but I could appreciate her motives. The hero was nice enough but nothing really stood out aside from his actions. There are quite a few characters to keep track of, but it served to make the plot more interesting rather than confusing. I still consider the story a HEA, but the cliffhanger detracted from it somewhat. A less suspenseful Epilogue leading into the next story would have made a better ending.
I purchased this as part of a bundle the author offered called THE LOST LORDS BOX SET: Books 1-3.
This was a 5 star read for me until the ending. Our H’s sister is kidnapped, escapes only to be abducted again and it ends. The poor H has no idea where she is and we are left with a cliffhanger for the sister. Her story is in book 5 of the series called THE MYSTERY OF MISS MASON. It is also part of a bundle called THE LOST LORDS BOX SET: Books 4-6.
Couple stories within a story. Part of the story, the H was kidnapped as a child and 24 years later, may or may not be Lord Vale. Another part of the story is about human trafficking of women and children. Rape of innocents, off page, many nasty villains throughout the story.
I found the story very suspenseful and held my interest from beginning until the ending. Great main and secondary character’s to keep the story from dragging.
There is lovemaking, outside of marriage, heat level 2.5 out of 5.
No cliffhanger for our couple, but is for the H’s sister, no cheating, HEA but not a smooth road, some romance and a tad of spice. We are not informed how Society viewed the H/h either. Still packs a punch for a story. (ljb)