A solid follow up with a lovely development of the romances from the first book!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc! Opinions are my own.

📖: The Viscount St. Albans -Love in Netherford #2

✍🏾 Author: Natania Barron-I read Netherford Hall gave it 4 ⭐. You need read book#1 first!

📅Publication date: 2-14-25 | Read 2-14-25

📃: eBook 356 pgs.

Genre:
*Fantasy
*Adult Fic
*Historical
*Romance

Tropes:
*marriage of convenience
*witches, vampires, werewolves, Fae
*forbidden romance
*opposites attract
*open door
*LGBTQ+ rep
*magic
*Sense and Sensibility loose retelling

👆🏾POV: 3rd person, multiple

🌎 Setting: London

Summary: Viola Brightwell is a fledgling vampire trying to get through her bloodlust staying with the Viscount of St. Albans-Silas Drake. Silas's BFF and cousin Roland joins him at Burkley after being accused of murdering a diplomat's son in France. The Dowager Viscountess St. Albans disapproves of Viola and Silas as he faces disinheritance.

👩🏾 Heroine: Viola Brightwell, 20s-new vampire, needs to fix relationship w/ sister Poppy after controlling urges.

👨🏾 Hero: Silas Drake-the new Viscount St. Albans, 29 is a secret writer of the Sibylle Voltaris -The Lady of the Lost Kingdom-under alias D.B. Mansfield.

🎭 Other Characters:

* Poppy-Viola's younger sister feeling lost because she's not a vampire or witch, Edith's partner
* Lady Petronilla Rookwood-Nourse-a gentlewitch, helped Viola but has a secret of her own.
* Edith-a gentlewitch, helps Roland with the werewolves
* Ophelia and Laertes-Viola's vampire mentors live@ Howarth House
* Roland de Grateloup-Sila's cousin/werewolf, The Grey Moon stalking him to join them.
*Tailte-A Faerie queen looking for her changeling son, bargains with Edith
*Fintan-Silas's valet/guardian
*Maurice-the King of Vampires
*Virgina Cawley-The High Witch who has gone missing

🤔 My Thoughts: There were a few too many subplots for me. Viola and Silas were the main couple, but Roland and his "affliction" became a big part of the book. Also, the Fae were thrown in with Queen Tailte and Edith. I would have been good with just Viola and Silas as forbidden lovers with the Dowager Viscountess St. threatening to disinherit him. It was still a fresh take on historical fantasy with a little Shakespeare retelling. I can't wait for Roland and Basil's story!

Rating: 3.5/5⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice level 4/5 🔥🔥🔥🔥

🙏🏾Thanks to NetGalley, Solaris| Solaris Nova, and Natania Barron for this ARC! I voluntarily give my honest review, and all opinions are my own.

This is a wonderful follow up to the first book in the series and is a delightful mix of Jane Austen and the paranormal. It if filled with the witty writing we’ve come to expect with Natania’s work. I really enjoyed exploring Viola’s growth on multiple levels, seeing Poppy and Edith’s relationship change here, and the new characters were great additions to the story. There’s love, danger, beautiful clothes, Regency vibes, and a whole lot of vampires! What more can you ask for?

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

No second book syndrome here! This continued to be wonderfully written, and I actually found this book more interesting and fun to read than the first book. However, it was sort of difficult to follow along with all the plot changes because of how quick the plot was and how many points were touched upon in the book.

The Viscount of St. Albans picks up after the events of Netherford Hall, the first book in the Love in Netherford series. This review will reveal some plot points from that first story.

Edith and Poppy have vanquished an ancient evil; made friends and allies of Warders, Vampires, Viscounts, and Modistes; and declared their love for one another. The only darkness left yet unconquered is the fate of Viola, Poppy’s sister, who was rescued from death by the vampire siblings, Ophelia and Laertes.

Poppy’s turning has left her tangled in her feelings, and it’s now up to Ophelia and Laertes to try to teach her how to be a vampire. However, they themselves were never turned, being instead born as vampires, and are at a loss as to what to do with their new daughter. Adding to the difficulty is the Viscount Silas who was, and still is, quite madly in love with Viola. However, Silas’s aunt, his only remaining family, is determined that he marry and continue on the St. Albans line — and that marriage will not be to a vampire!

Edith and Poppy head to London in hopes of finding some cure for Viola’s condition. There they meet Roland, illegitimate son of the High Witch, who is missing, and who has himself been framed for murder. He needs Edith’s help and, being the person she is, she of course invites him back to Netherford where she can protect him from the werewolves hunting him.

And then there is the plot to replace the missing High Witch with someone more … malleable by the coven, some of whom may be in on the disappearance. There’s a fae queen looking for a lost child, an order of witch hunters skulking about, and worst of all, there’s the fact that Edith has been lying to Poppy, and just got caught.

There’s a lot of plot in this book, a lot of POV characters, a pair of romances with hints of another one that will probably show up in the third book, and more world building! It’s a fast-paced story and there’s quite a bit to talk about. However, be aware of trigger warnings for grooming, possible coercive sex, mind control, gaslighting, and possible emotional abuse. If any of these subjects cause you discomfort or distress, this may not be the book for you; however, all of these scenes are non-graphic, plot relevant, and brief.

The main focus of this book is the romance of Viola and Silas. They have been in love with one another for years; Viola has been Silas’ aunt’s companion, has helped her refurbish the house and gardens, and is now cast aside by the woman who wants nothing to do with her. Viola is not only coming to terms with being a vampire, but no longer being human, and it’s hard. Especially when she still loves Silas so much, and struggles to accept that he loves her back.

Silas doesn’t want to fight with his aunt, the only member of his family he has left. He understands her need for control and power, and he doesn’t like confrontations. But he loves Viola, and wants to marry her, vampire or not. When he’s told Viola needs human blood, Silas all but rips his shirt off to bare himself, ready to be devoured by the woman he loves. And yet he knows that she’s struggling, that she needs time; she needs to be with her parents, Laertes and Ophelia, who love Viola no less than he does.

Laertes loves having a daughter. He frets over her, fights for her, and would do anything to make her happy. He’s a first-time parent and doing his best, and I love him for that. His sister, Ophelia, takes a more book oriented approach and goes in search of the oldest vampire to find out how the hell do you raise a baby vampire? Moritasgus is powerful, beautiful, and Ophelia hates him, even as she physically craves him. It’s hinted, but not directly stated, that Moritasgus is using a powerful magic to captivate her, even as he knows she hates him, something he continues to do to her through the book.

Then there’s Roland, a debauched rake of a man who has no magic … which makes being the son of the High Witch difficult. He’s an open secret in London, safe because of her power, but his true secret is something much worse. Roland is a werewolf, and has learned from his mother from his childhood that it’s a wrong, horrible, awful thing to be. She procures for him tonics to keep his wolf side in check, tonics he is now afraid to go without. She has lied to him about many things, but she’s still his mother and he wants her back from whoever has taken her.

And, last, Edith and Poppy, whose romance feels … slightly toxic. Because the liminal magic is what caused much of the chaos of the first book, Poppy has asked Edith not to use it. Edith lied and agreed not to use it, but has been continuing to use this magic, and even using it on Poppy. When caught, her response is: “I shouldn’t have done that. But I was afraid you’d try and stop me.” It’s not exactly an apology, or a promise to not do it again. Later in the book, at a dinner, Edith is prickly at being surrounded by so many people. Poppy has become familiar with Edith’s tempers and is the one who must manage them for her, to — in her own words — “ease the gentlewitch through it.” Edith’s love for Poppy is a thing made of magic and physical attraction, and she’s all about big, grand gestures, like inviting Poppy to join her in a dangerous confrontation knowing Poppy won’t come, but it’s not about being trustworthy or an equal partner. Edith has magic, which Poppy doesn’t. She has power over Poppy and she uses it. However, Poppy is aware of it, and not entirely thrilled with Edith. I have hopes that the third book will show some growth on Edith’s part, some maturing, because both of these moments that I highlighted were brought up by Poppy, and it’s clear that Poppy isn’t going to stand around and be used.

The writing is good, the plotting is focused and well put together, and the pace is lightning fast. Because so many events are happening involving vampires, witches, fae, werewolves, warders and so much more, a lot of world building gets nicely dropped in necessary conversations. I enjoyed this book more than the first one, and cannot wait for the third book in the series!

Thank you to Solaris & NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts!

It has taken me some time to get back into fantasy, but this book definitely brought me back. The language is lush and the world building is stellar— the intricacies of the magic system and creature origins were clearly very detailed and well thought out. The characters stick with you, and the queer love especially impacted me due to its genuine nature. One thing I worry about with many queer works is an (unnecessary) homophobia plot, especially in fantasy. I often wonder why someone would create a fictional world and add dragons or magic, but keep homophobia or other bigoted mindsets as well. I'm glad that this book did not fall victim to that, and found the queer characters to be well-developed and realistic. I overall enjoyed this book, although I found it to drag at times. I will be tuning into book 3!

Similar to a couple of other readers, I assumed that this could be read as a standalone due to its marketing as an Austen retelling. While it technically can be read as one, skipping book one leaves a lot of missing context that takes a moment to figure out in book two.

This brings me to my biggest problem with the book-- and only reason that I have rounded it to 3 stars when I really feel that it’s 3.5-- which is the marketing. This book was marketed online as a romance novel inspired by Sense and Sensibility, a famous romance book. I was expecting a full retelling closer to the initial story, and one that was dual POV at most between the primary characters. Although there was romance in this novel, it was not at all focused on the main couple (Viola/Silas). This did enrich the story through multiple POVs, but completely disqualified it from the romance category as the fantasy world and problems were the clear focal point. I did enjoy Viola and Silas’ relationship, but was expecting much more and believe that the author’s description of them as “a quiet love” does not equate to their lack of time or focus in the story. If the marketing was changed to describe the book a little more accurately, this would have been an easy 4 stars.

A big thanks to Netgallery, Solaris and Natania Barron for this ARC.


I loved Jane Austen growing up and this series drew me in with the crossover of one of my favourite genres, fantasy. I definitely recommend reading book 1, Netherford Hall, to get to know all the characters and how it leads to the plot of book 2.


This book focuses on Viola, though Edith and Poppy have importent parts to play. Viola and Silas are struggling with themselves and expectations from society, which creates a divide in their growing love.


I enjoyed the continuation of wording building, opening up to Fae and Werewolves which will provide more story opportunities, especially Roland and Basil who book 3 will clearly focus on.


I would recommend this to those who love Jane Austen and Bridgerton for the regency setting, and those who love a romance fantasy for the inclusion of vampires, witches, Werewolves and fae.


The Viscount St Albans is out 14th February.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

The Viscount St Albans by Natania Barron is a third person multi-POV Regency fantasy romance inspired by Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility and continuation of Netherford Hall. When Viola is transformed into a vampire, Silas looks after her while trying to balance his duties as the viscount and finding a wife. But it's Viola he wants and her feelings for him in return can only be held back for so long.

This is the kind of vampire romance I'm looking for: the biting aspect has a very, very strong sexual component and the one who is bitten also derives pleasure from the act. Silas is really into Viola drinking his blood and doesn't really want her to drink from anyone else while Viola isn't interested in finding someone else to drink from. Their romance is more on the quiet side but there is definitely passion there.

This book is not as claustrophobic as some fantasy romances. There's a lot of POVs (including the return of Edith and Poppy) and a set up for the next book between Basil and Roland, perhaps. Most of the POVs outside of Silas and Viola are focused on the world at large and how the fae, vampires, witches, and werewolves are interacting in and outside of the Ton. We get more lore and a deeper understanding of how all the threads are connected from the first book, particularly in how it relates to the fairy realm and the politics of this iteration of fantasy England.

I actually have not read Sense and Sensibility, so I cannot say if the book hits those key characteristics that Netherford Hall hit with Pride and Prejudice, but it is still very Austen-ish.

I would recommend this to readers looking for a vampire romance where the woman is the vampire, fans of Jane Austen wanting a fantasy romance set in a fantasy Regency England, and those looking for more historical fantasies with vampires, werewolves, witches and fae mixed together

Thank you to Natania Barron and Solaris Nova for the ARC!

I adored book one of Love in Netherford so I was very excited to start this second in the series. The things I love the most about this series are the rich world, the diverse/unique characters, and the complex lore. All of that on top of the lovely language is a total delight every time I pick up one of these novels.

Two things I'll say: so may people reference having dived into this without reading book one, and that's a big mistake. These novels have continuous lore and are not to be read separately. It made me so angry to see people giving this book lower ratings who had not read book one.

The other thing is that I did find this had just a few too many characters for my preference - I started to get confused about halfway through, and the lore seemed to keep coming. I wish more of the lore had more hints or that it was easier to anticipate the greater threads. Sometimes the plot felt arbitrary for the sake of moving things along.

Book one is my preference between the two, but I'm still invested and excited to read the third book in the series!

Thanks again for the arc, and can't wait to continue this journey.

Regency drama, vampire angst, and a dash of political intrigue—this one has it all. Silas and Viola’s romance is full of longing and impossible choices, with plenty of supernatural tension to keep things interesting. A solid sequel with just the right mix of romance and gothic flair.

A cozy sequel novel, the Viscount St. Albans continues the story of Viola Brightwell and gives plenty of updates on Poppy and Edith. If you enjoyed the first book, you’ll enjoy this too!

Ooooh I see you! I’m actually happy to report (was given an eARC) that the second book IS actually better than the first one.

The first one felt a bit slower and kinda dragged on, but I loved the theme and vibe too much to give it less than 5 stars overall. But I saw some of the faults other people had pointed out.

Hoooowever, this second one def picked up the pace (imo) and fully immersed us in the story!!! Def recommend holding on to this series because the second book is def. Worth it!

This book did not suffer from second book syndrome AT. ALL! Giving this a 4.5 out of 5 stars. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

After reading Netherford Hall, I remember feeling a bit let down by the romance but I was absolutely in love with the world that the author had built, so I was ecstatic with The Viscount St. Albans. This book picks up more or less right after the end of the previous (SO PLEASE MAKE SURE TO REACH NETHERFORD HALL FIRST), but had the added perspective of following Silas and Viola as they navigate Viola's sudden change in circumstance and how it does (or does not) alter their budding relationship. However, if you are reading this book expecting a true "romance book," then you may be a bit disappointed because this is a book that has PLOT and some romance (not the other way around). But this is fine by me because the fantasy elements of this Regency England is super intriguing to me.

While watching the two of them figure their crap out, I must admit that it was many of the supporting characters that really made this story worthwhile. The found-family sub-plot involving Laertes and Ophelia was an amazing character arc for them both, was one of the highlights of the story for me, and the introduction of Roland was just *chef's kiss.*

Maybe it's my general dislike of Edith and Poppy's relationship, but I honestly was excited to see the story focus on the many other characters that were on the periphery of Book 1. The supporting cast in this world are so nuanced and loveable and perfectly imperfect.

Overall fantastic follow up and I am already jonsing for book 3!

"Sense and Sensibility and Vampires.

Silas Drake, the Viscount St. Albans, is one of the most desirable bachelors in England: approaching thirty, wealthy, and poised to inherit his father's seat in Parliament. His aunt, the dowager viscountess, insists he marries well, and soon - or she'll take matters into her own hands.

But his love belongs to Viola Brightwell, who is a commoner of modest means...and a vampire. Newly transformed after the recent battle to save Netherford, Viola rages in a locked room in Silas's mansion, wrestling with the violent passions of her new affliction.

As Silas struggles to balance the demands of his rank with the desires of his heart, he finds himself at the centre of a conspiracy by ancient and terrible powers..."

Regency Magic!!!

What happens when a most eligible viscount falls for a vampire in Regency England? The Viscount St. Albans by Natania Barron delivers passion, peril, and plenty of bite! Silas Drake, a dashing viscount, finds himself torn between societal expectations of a proper marriage and his forbidden love for Viola Brightwell, a newly turned vampire of common birth. Together, they navigate the challenges of their complex relationship while uncovering a dangerous conspiracy involving ancient supernatural forces that threatens them both.

I quickly realized that not having read the first book in this series, Netherford Hall, was a misstep. Based on the description of this book as Sense and Sensibility with vampires, and the first as Pride and Prejudice with witches, I assumed these were standalone Austen inspired retellings set in the same universe with overlapping characters. However, this is not the case, as the story here builds directly on the events of the first book.

While I appreciated Barron's explanation of her inspiration in the acknowledgements, this is not a direct retelling and bears little resemblance to Sense and Sensibility beyond its Regency setting. This is not the story of Silas and Viola falling in love as that occurred in the previous novel. Instead the plot focuses on the impossibility of their match and a mysterious conspiracy that prominently features the main couple from Netherford Hall alongside the supporting cast. This mismatch of expectations, combined with a lack of grounding in the established world, made the novel somewhat disappointing for me.

That said lovers of regency romances and cozy mysteries will find much to love here. Barron's lush and immersive world building intricately weaves tender romance with the allure of supernatural intrigue. While the falling in love portion is absent, the romance between Silas and Viola remains both sweet and electric. I highly recommend starting with book one to fully appreciate the depth of the story and its richly developed universe.

Book 2 continues this vampire/witch/fae fantasy series. Pride and Prejudice like, with multiple love stories of many types within. I like that authors present us with different things. Here the narrative is slower than many books in this genre, lots of detail, and I think this is much more like Austen like (but definitely a book for the current era reader) than many fantasy books with this sort of setting. There’s love and longing, angst, confusion, declaration, and that never to be (well maybe). There is humour, there is spice, and an immensely enjoyable climactic ending where …….. (ahh, no spoilers but it’s good!) which ends this part of the story. But also suggests the next chapter for these characters. Read book one first, or you may be a little lost settling into the story. In fact, having read the first book some months ago, it took me a little while to remember where the previous book ended. Thank you to Solaris and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

This was a strong sequel in the Love in Netherford series, it had that feel that I was looking for from the previous entry. I enjoyed how this worked with the historical setting and how it was use for the fantasy romance. Natania Barron wrote this well and had improved on the elements of this world, I'm excited to read more as this was really well done.

I had the chance to read an ARC of the first book of the series, and got lucky again with the second.

'The Viscount St Albans' follows up directly after the events of book 1, but this time the focus is on Silas and Viola. We still have a great deal of the other characters, protagonists or secondary characters of book 1. The series is constructed in a way that leave space for everyone, as they are all join together by the plot, the romance being an important part of the series but not the only important event happening. This lack of focus on Viola and Silas romance, which started in book one, might be a weakness in the overall book, given that the romance is supposed to be quite at the forefront. Nonetheless, the overall story is still an entertaining one, with multiple threads, new characters and preparation for the third book, as the threads making this tome finally come to their ends.

It's an enjoyable read, with great lore and magic system, faithful to it's regency setting, with lush description. The characters are well enough developped, though I must I don't really get much involve with their struggles. Still, following their journey is quite interesting, especially because Natania Barron made sure to keep things challenging, even for our settled couple from book one.

I'll read book 3 with pleasure (Roland is a fun character), and recommend this series for people looking for a mix of magic, cosy mystery and love in a fantasy regency setting.

I got this as an arc on Netgalley and it will come out in February. Thank you Solaris for the arc invite! I loved this even more than part 1. Barron is clearly getting into her rhythm with the story, the characters are really coming alive. I loved Violas pov, I am obsessed with Roland. I also enjoyed revisiting Edith and Poppy. Both headstrong as ever. So yes I recommend.

If possible, I actually think I loved this sequel even more than the first book. In this Sense & Sensibility reimagining with witches, werewolves, and vampires, we see Violet struggling to come to terms with her new reality as a vampire, and Silas has to find out how to reconcile his love for Violet with his duties as the viscount.

What I loved about this book :

- Seeing more of Edith and Poppy’s relationship, and the fact that “happily every after” doesn’t necessarily mean that everything goes smoothly, it still requires work to make the relationship work no matter how much they love each other. This is such a realistic way of writing a HEA and I adore that.

- Roland. That’s it, just his character.

- Roland and Basil’s undeniable chemistry and antagonism at war with each other - it’s absolutely delicious and I’m hoping the next book will be about them.

- Laertes and Ophelia, and how they look after and dote on Violet, much to their own surprise

- The fact that Laertes and Ronald occasionally give me Robert Burns in “Bright Star” vibes. I love that movie.

- The neurodivergence in the characters is AMAZING. I really love that representation and how well it is written as part of the characters without it being their entire personality.

Natania Barron is becoming one of my favourite authors and I’m going to be reading all of her books.

The Viscount St. Albans comes out 14 February 2025 ♥️