Review: The Harlot and the Sheikh by Marguerite Kaye

First a disclaimer of sorts: I've been having some trouble reading romance novels lately. Once, they were my perfect escape, but now, what used to work so well does not. I'm finding it more difficult to disconnect from the real world and slip into these fantasy worlds. But I'm trying.

I selected this book because I wanted something indulgent. Something completely unrelated to anything in my real world. I needed a dirty, sexy fairy tale. The title made this sound like what I needed. I was thinking escape to Arabian Nights or something like that.

I found the beginning of the book to be slow. (But see my disclaimer at the beginning, this could be a me problem and not necessarily a book problem.) The book wasn't grabbing my interest. Too much about the horses, not enough about the characters or any sort of development in their relationship. I was beginning to think the book was entirely too tame for what I was wanting.

But then, somewhere around the 40 to 50 % mark, the book became exactly what I needed.

This is the story of a strong, intelligent heroine trying to move beyond her past mistakes, and a sexy prince, looking to redeem his family name and bring honor back to his kingdom.

After a mysterious illness strikes his prized horses, Prince Rafiq sends for an English veterinarian. Stephanie Darvil arrives in her father's place. She views this as a fresh start, and a way to spare her family disgrace. She foolishly fell in love and allowed herself to be seduced by a man who used her, thus earning her the reputation of a harlot. The prince isn't quite sure what to make of her at first, having not expected a woman to appear to tend to his horses, but her skill quickly wins him over. Rafiq though is having trouble seeing her as only his horses' veterinarian, and the attraction is mutual as Stephanie realizes that there are advantages and an element of liberation to her ruined reputation.

What really won me over with these characters was Rafiq's reflections on how women are treated by society. He's furious when he finds out about what happened to Stephanie, certain there must be a way to punish the man who lied to her to get her into his bed. Also, he becomes aware of how she's treated in her profession, and how she has to work harder than a man to earn any sort of respect. At the same time, he's guilt-ridden about his deceased wife, who married him as part of an arrangement and had to give up so much of what she loved to satisfy a deal made by her father. Suffice it to say, Rafiq is understanding and respectful, reflective and willing to change, as well as being an attentive and skilled lover. This, along with being a prince, makes him just about perfect. Strong women and men who love and
appreciate strong women are essential for me to like a romance novel, and this book does well in that area.

While the book may have started out slow for me, in the end, I really liked it. Great, strong, intelligent characters; angsty backgrounds the characters need to overcome, and some very steamy sex scenes.

I received a copy of this via NetGalley.

Review: Bound to the Warrior King by Maisey Yates

I wanted to read this book because I'm a big fan of Maisey Yates' Presents books and I thought the cover was gorgeous. In this case, completely safe to judge the book by its cover as the story was equally gorgeous - hmm, can you call a story gorgeous?

On a different day, in a different mood, I might have been rolling my eyes at parts of this modern day, grown-up version of Beauty and the Beast with a bit of Lion King. (I'm not going to explain it, but it will make sense if you read the book). However, today, as I spent my third consecutive day sick in bed, realizing that if I succumb to this fever, it will be at least nine days before anyone even thinks to look for my body, this story of two people who felt completely alone in the world finding each other and falling in love through a somewhat arranged marriage was a really beautiful story.  If I wasn't so dehydrated, I probably would have cried through parts of it.

There were a few parts of the story that I didn't like all that much. Parts in which the characters behavior didn't seem to fit with their previous behavior.  A few too many times they went from so wrapped up in each other to a strange, nope, don't want you. It was as if the conflict was obligatory and not natural to the story. I won't go into detail because I don't want to spoil the story, and it's probably not something that would bother other people that much. But anyway. All that being said, I still really liked this book. The great parts of this book totally make up for any parts I didn't like.

Two years after Olivia's husband - a king of a Scandinavian country - dies, she agrees to meet with Tarek. the new leader of an oil rich Middle Eastern country, in hopes of procuring a marriage. Her husband's brother is now king and he thinks it would be a good way to strengthen ties between the two nations, and Olivia no longer feels at home at the palace she once shared with her husband, so she's completely willing to go.

At first there seemed to be something a little pathetic about Olivia, seeking out a marriage to "find her place" as if a woman can't do that without a husband. But seeing her move beyond that kind of thinking added to my interest in this story. Olivia felt neglected as a child, and her marriage had been happy, but after her husband's death, she found herself alone again, an outsider in the palace she'd once called home. Tarek also has some issues. He's spent the last fifteen years living in the desert, acting as a warrior for his brother and their country. He knew nothing of palace life or running a country when he suddenly found himself in that position following his brother's death. He's very focused on his new job and views marriage as nothing more than a way to produce an heir. He's not very impressed with Olivia at their first meeting, but she convinces him that he needs her to help figure out all the details of running a country and living in a palace - something she knows a bit about.

I very much enjoyed reading about how these two fell for each other. As I said in the beginning, it's quite reminiscent of Beauty and the Beast (one of my favorite movies). And it's very, very romantic. I don't just mean the sex is good - it is, of course - but it's so much more than that. It's the thoughts running through their heads as they discover each other and in turn, themselves and become aware of these feelings they didn't even think were possible. This is two people who weren't at all sure about each other who gradually reach a point in which they can't bear to be away from each other. Two people who had nothing and no one who find everything in each other. I know that's what all romances are to some extent, but this is so good. Yates does a great job of showing just how alone these two people were before meeting each other.  You aren't just told they were alone, you can feel their emptiness as well as feel them finally moving away from that. As I warned in the beginning, I'm running a fever and I'm taking all kinds of cold medicine, so maybe I'm feeling a little extra sappy today, but some of these scenes rank among the best I've ever read with regard to pure, indulgent romance.  Swoon-worthy. The scene out in the desert when Tarek takes Olivia to show her the place he lived for the fifteen years he was away. Wow.

It's a quick read, perfect for a brief escape from reality. Highly recommend this book if sexy, romantic modern day fairy tales are your thing.

I received a review copy via NetGalley.
  

Review: To Defy a Sheikh by Maisey Yates

Maisey Yates' Harlequin Presents novels are some of my favorite romance novels.  Lots of romance and angst in extreme settings.

To Defy a Sheikh started a bit slow, but even so, for much of the book, I was thinking Ferran was one of my favorite heroes.  But that didn't last.

Things got a little too complicated toward the end.  He was switching emotions every five seconds, he wanted her to be happy, but he didn't want to her to want him, he wanted to be married, but he couldn't love her.  For me, it didn't make sense and didn't fit in with the character that we'd been reading about for the first 60-70% of the book.  Also, it was all so quick.  We had all this build up and development of their relationship and then it all fell apart.  I remember my kindle saying I only had ten minutes left in the book and thought, how in the world are they going to resolve all of this so quickly?

They did, but not in a way I found satisfying.  If anything, in the end, I didn't feel like their love was geniune at all.  For her it was simply the result of him being the first guy she'd ever been with and for him, it was more out of obligation than anything else.

I still enjoyed the book, but not quite as much as I usually enjoy these books.  Still provides all the necessary ingredients for a fun, quick, escape: a palace setting, tragic history, passionate characters.

If you're a fan of Yates' Sheikh books, then you'll probably enjoy this.  If you haven't read any of them yet, and want to try some, I'd suggest Heir to a Desert Legacy or Forged in the Desert Heat, those are some of my favorites.

I received a review copy via NetGalley.