This is my first time reading Courtney Milan's work and I don't know why it has taken me this long. I saw a couple of reviews for this novella the other day. I like historical romance and the premise of the novella sounded interesting. Plus it was $.99. You can't beat that price, right?It's rare that a book and its characters touch me so deeply but the characters of Unlocked truly did. There were many times while reading Unlocked, that I found myself tearing up. The story of Evan (Lord Westfield) and Elaine is raw and emotional. Whether in the 1800s or the 2000s every woman can relate to Elaine's story. We've all experienced being teased by the cute boy in school. The boy would call you names and his friends would join in the fun. You'd run home and tell your parents and what would they normally say? "Oh he's teasing you because he likes you." Most of the time, it turns out to be true. But what a funny way of showing it.Evan was one of those boys. He wanted to get Elaine to notice him. In order to get her to notice him, he would make fun of her laugh. You see, Elaine has a loud, boisterous laugh. A laugh that is unbecoming of a lady. Evan's teasing caught on and as he continued to tease Elaine, she did begin to notice him - for all the wrong reasons. Evan eventually starts to feel terrible and realizes that he has completely ruined his chances with Elaine so he flees England. He returns 10 years later older, maturer and ready to apologize. Only Elaine doesn't want to hear the apology and doesn't trust it. Evan is determined to prove to Elaine that he is not the man he used to be and wants to eagerly gain her trust and forgiveness.Unlocked was so eloquently told that it was if I was there, witnessing Elaine's pain and humiliation. There is one scene, where Evan's cousin, Lady Cosgrove, 'mistakenly' dumps wine on Elaine's dress and Elaine finally lets the anger out. She has always been careful to put on a brave face and to show that the teasing and the jokes do not affect her. I felt so bad for Elaine and I was in tears right along with her. I wanted to punch Lady Cosgrove in the face. I was hoping that somewhere during the book, someone would teach her a lesson with a good right hook. Oh that woman was nasty! Elaine's mother, Lady Stockhurst, is utterly clueless to the teasing, ridicule and nastiness that Elaine has been forced to endure. Instead of Lady Stockhurst protecting Elaine from the ton, Elaine is protecting her mother.For a novella, Unlocked packs a punch. It's a story about maturity, forgiveness, redemption, trust and love. Both characters must overcome the damage of their past. It's not all about Elaine forgiving Evan. Evan must forgive himself for what he did to Elaine. As much as Evan continues to prove to Elaine that he is not the young man he used to be, she has to find it within herself to trust him, something that she is scared to do.I highly recommend this novella. I was on the verge of tears the entire time I was reading it. The writing is beautiful, the characters are multi-layered and complex. You want Elaine to trust Evan and you pray that Evan will not do anything to break her heart. You can't help but root for them and hope they find their way.Unlocked is a fantastic, emotional read. I can't believe I haven't read Milan's other historical romances. That will soon change.P.S. I love the cover. LOVE!
