Review: Originally Released as "Captured Love"  **Somewhat Spoilerish**
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 29, 2014
This novella was originally released under the title "Captured Love."  I read it back in September of last year and wrote a review at that time.  Imagine my surprise when I started reading this book and it seemed so familiar.  After a little research, I uncovered the reason for the familiarity...I'd read the book before!  According to the book blurb this novella will be offered for free, so I guess readers can't get too worked up if they discover they've downloaded the same book twice.  Although, IMO, a warning in the blurb about the previous title would still be nice.The heroine, Meredith, is one of the most pathetic heroines I've ever encountered.  I don't mean that in a bad way, I mean she was truly pathetic as in the true sense of the word--you know pitiable, heartrending, moving...  The only child of a businessman in trade, a cold, unfeeling parent, who cared nothing for her, Meredith's presence in the ton is barely tolerated, and only because of her father's business dealings with many of the nobility.  Meredith is very much aware of her status of persona non grata.  She has only one friend, and that is Lady Rowena, the hero's sister.That is Meredith's life...unwanted at home, and unwanted in society.  It's no wonder she's such a sad creature.  Ms. Lark did an excellent job portraying Meredith as a sympathetic person.  There were times when my heart literally ached for her.  I felt Meredith's sorrow and desperation keenly.  So much so, that even when she does something despicable later in the story, that results in her marriage to Rupert, I was still rooting for her to get her HEA.Rupert, the Earl of Morton, is a typical aristocrat; he's arrogant and overbearing.  He also intensely dislikes Meredith, who he believes she is an upstart, whose only reason for befriending his sister is to advance herself socially.  Of course that doesn't prevent him from noticing how attractive Meredith is--albeit reluctantly.Despite his obvious disdain for her, Meredith can't help but love Rupert--I mean we can't help who we love right?  But honestly, her love for Rupert just made Meredith even more heartrending.  I can't remember ever feeling more sympathetic towards a character.  For me, Meredith's loving Rupert, a man who treated her with barely disguised disdain, was overwhelming evidence of her lack of self-worth.  She didn't seem to believe, or even to realize, that she was deserving of love.  It's as if she accepted Rupert's attitude towards her as par for the course--she'd never experienced anything better from anyone else, except Rowena.The reason I only gave the book 4 stars instead of 5, is because IMO the HEA came about too quickly.  Considering how Rupert initially felt about Meredith and how their marriage came about, his sudden change of heart, a mere three days after they married, seemed ridiculously unrealistic.  I couldn't credit why Rupert was suddenly so in love...the only possible reason is because he and Meredith were compatible in bed.  Nothing else had changed between them--and that seemed an awfully weak reason.This aside, the book is extremely well written.  When I originally reviewed this book I gave it 3 1/2 stars, but now that I've read it a second time, I rated up.  Because really, Ms. Lark does an excellent job with the emotional aspect of the story.  Her characters are so extremely well drawn--especially Meredith--and Ms. Lark manages to overcome their flaws (Rupert's pride and Meredith's extremely low self-esteem) with superior skill, and make me like and care about them.  Overall a very nice read.  5 Stars, but for the sudden, somewhat unrealistic, HEA, so alas, only 4 stars.  FYI, I guess technically this is not a clean romance.  However, the sex is, IMO, minimally described and easily skipped, should one choose to do so.  Happy reading!