Just got bored. It didn't keep my interest.

Recommended by Cherie

3.4 stars

The first 5 chapters of this was dark, gothic, and vastly intriguing but as the story went on, it lost me. Ian and Eva spend most the time running and though they internally think about their connection, until the last 20% or so when they start the touching/coming together, I didn't feel their passion for one another. The middle was greatly stretched out and the ending rushed as Eva's addiction wasn't dealt with and the asylum storyline left hanging for future books.
There's something here to the author's writing, though. She was great at creating atmosphere but her characters need a more structured plot line to follow.
The fresh take and tone for this time period has me continuing on in the series, this author's voice has me very interested.
Thanks for the rec, Cherie! ( )

The first word that came out of my mouth as I’ve finished reading this story was WOW… and then I exhaled.

‘The Dark Lady’ by Máire Claremont is her début, and what a début it is!

If you’re like me, one of those bookworms that have a need for the book to grab them from the first page, then you’re in luck if you decide to read this book. You’ll be on pins and needles ‘till the end.

For a change this story develops in 1865, Victorian era and what a contrast to Regency era it is. For some reason it looks like women suffered even worse than in the earlier years. This is the case with our heroine. This woman, as the story opens, is in hell and she’s hanging by a thread.

Lady Eva Carin not only lost her husband, but soon after suffered a loss even greater than that, a loss of her son in an accident of her making. Thomas, her brother-in-law who is now the new Lord Carin, uses her pain and devastation to his advantage and commits her to an asylum in which for the past two years she’s endured many ‘disciplinary’ treatments ordered by the woman who runs the place, such as a regular dose of opium to a point of addiction, many beatings and more.

Lord Ian Blake is back from India and as much as he dreads coming face to face with Eva, he knows that he ows her the truth about Hamilton’s death, and feel that this as his only opportunity of redeeming himself in her eyes and coming to terms with his role in it. He’s been haunted with memories of not just Hamilton’s death but also with their life as children as all three have grown up together in a wonderful home provided by Hamilton’s father, Lord Carin. He took in both Eva and Ian after their individual parents died. As they grew together, boys were always vying for love and approval of the old man but it was Hamilton who started envying the bond that had developed between his father and Ian.

Ian on the other hand hadn’t realized that his earnest admiration and love for Lord Carin was a sore point to his best friend so whatever he did to please him, Hamilton viewed it as a challenge and affront to his own character. Even Eva was in some way touched by their rivalry. While they all were aware of her duty to marry Hamilton, they also realized that she had more in common with Ian than Hamilton, but neither Eva nor Ian voiced their thoughts or feelings out loud as that would be a breach of duty and bring much hurt to the man who they both loved like a father.

Ian is shocked to find out that she’s been committed, but once he enters the hell she’s been living, he is livid and enraged. The only thing stopping him from committing murder is the thought ....Thanks for jumping over to b2b to finish reading the rest of my review...

http://bookworm2bookworm.wordpress.com/2013/02/01/the-dark-lady-by-maire-claremo...

Mel for b2b

*Book provided by the publisher through NetGalley. ( )

Lord Ian Blake had gone to India to save his best friend, Hamilton, from himself. With Hamilton finally killed because of his cruelty, Ian returns home 2 years later to face his widow, Lady Eva Carin. He is shocked to learn of her infant son Adam's death and her subsequent commitment to an asylum by Hamilton's older brother, Thomas. Having loved Eva from afar for as long as he can remember, he determines to at least see her, and what he finds upon his arrival at the facility shocks him to the core. She has been living a nightmare, and before the night is over he rescues her from her captivity. However, it will take much more to save her from her own guilt and from the laudanum she had been sedated with. Eva isn't the only one who needs saving, as Ian is wracked by his own guilt over Hamilton's death. Is Eva truly mad? Can they save each other before Thomas's henchmen can find them and return her to the asylum?

I enjoyed this book and plan to read the rest in the series. I literally didn't want to put it down from the very beginning and cheered for Eva and Ian the entire time. The end was a nice surprise. ( )