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Nan Ryan. Burning Love. New York: HarperCollins, 1996.
This historical romance has all the ingredients of a classic Sheikh novel. When a Western blonde beauty, Temple DuPlessis Longworth, finds herself under the protection of sexy, brooding Sheik Sharif in a desert camp, sparks fly between the two of them as she feigns dislike for him...at first. Her half-hearted attempted escape from Sharif is quickly thwarted, but the climax of the story really occurs when Temple is abducted by Sharif's enemy, and forced to become [repulsive] Mustafa's unwilling bride. The subsequent rescue of Temple is awesome, wrapping up a story worthy of our ranking as an editor's pick.
Diane Dunaway. Desert Hostage. New York: Dell Publishing Co., Inc., 1982.
The novel, which spans two generations, is searing hot. Beginning with Englishwoman Anna's capture by a powerful desert sheik, the story unfolds to tell the story of her son who is born during her captivity--though unbeknownst to anyone but Anna, the boy is not the sheik's biological son. Raised as an Arab, Karim soon finds himself on a mission of revenge when the sheik is murdered by an English soldier, Clayton. He vows to avenge his death by detroying Clayton, as well as his family. The story takes a sharp twist when the very woman he falls deeply in love with, Juliette, is the daughter of the hated Clayton. Naturally he imprisons her in his harem, but his feelings for Juliette run deep. There is no way she could just be another concubine destined to live the lonely harem life...and plenty of hot encounters between them make it abundantly clear that she will soon become his one and only. Good fun, and a great read!
Isabel K. French. Beauty and the Sheikh. Lincoln, NE: iUniverse, 2005.
Beauty and the Sheikh is a sweetly romantic, engaging and witty novel about a young virgin on the last leg of a business trip in Moldhar. When her plane crashes in the desert, an accident that would have killed a lesser woman, she is rescued from the wreckage by handsome, rugged, chiseled Sheikh Asad al Sayyid. The story moves at an engaging pace and offers an array of numerous peripheral characters that are very enjoyable. Most entertaining is Princess Sara of Zol, the spoiled daughter of a rich sultan who has had her heart set on becoming Asad's bride. Also unforgettable is the humor and wit of Asad's brother, Prince Tariq whose bluntness is sure to get many laughs from readers. A very fun read.
Emma Darcy. The Sheikh's Revenge. New York: Harlequin, 1993.
The Sheikh's Revenge is a true classic of the sub-genre, and an entertaining story of a revenge plot that manages to blossom into a pretty hot romance. When the wife-to-be of Sharif al Kader elopes with an English pilot, Sharif decides that the pilot's sister, a beautiful blonde named Leah, will take her place. Under the roof of a lavish desert palace, dislike towards the Sheikh is feigned by Leah, an escape from her "captivity" is attempted, then love is eventually declared--in time for a traditional happy ending.
Brittany Young. The Sheik's Mistress. New York: Silhouette, 1998.
The most appealing quality of The Sheik's Mistress is the sweet relationship that develops between fair-haired beauty Jensen O'Hara and Michael Hassan. When Jensen arrives in Sumaru to save her imprisoned brother, she meets his friend Michael and joins forces with him. Unlike the typical brooding, possessive Sheikh, Michael is respectful, kind, and considerate of the woman with whom he finds himself falling in love. But it is the surprise twist towards the end of the story that puts this book a notch above many of the others.
Susan Mallery. The Sheik's Secret Bride. New York: Silhouette, 2000.
The heroine of this story, Liana Archer, is perhaps the only fictional character we know of, who actually professes a love for Sheikh romance novels. And she is one of the few romance heroines described as being twenty pounds overweight--we love her, don't we?! While in the Middle East, she and her daughter are taken off a plane by the Crown Prince of El Bahar, Malik Khan, and brought to his lavish palace. Liana's insecurity about her appearance is kind of charming, and her wedding night (though at the time the wedding is unbeknownst to her) is easily one of the best love scenes of the sub-genre.
Barbara Faith. Lord of the Desert. New York: Silhouette, 1990.
Lord Ali Ben Hari feels disapproval at first sight when he meets beautiful blonde public relations executive Genevieve Jordan in New York. But Genevieve stands up to the chauvenistic Prince, and never betrays the strong, confident woman she is. She bravely travels to Ben's dangerous homeland, Kashkiri, to plan an economic conference of international importance. And even while Ali's neanderthal attitude is a chronic annoyance to Genny, the two of them slowly become drawn to one another amid the dangerous backdrop of a primitive, repressive desert land.
Jane Porter. The Sultan's Bought Bride. New York: Harlequin, 2004.
Malik Roman Nuri of Baraka is sexy, kind, very likable and committed to marrying the Ducasse princess who travels to his faraway kingdom. Throughout the book he is almost goaded by Nicolette to prove wrong her belief that men don't know how to adequately please a woman. And, of course, we find out he can do this extremely well! There is a nice little twist at the very end of the book, which explains a lot and makes Malik even more endearing...and proves that he's nobody's fool.
Nalini Singh. Desert Warrior. New York: Silhouette, 2003.
This book is hot. Hot! When lovely Jasmine Coleridge steps foot into the desert kingdom of Zulheina, she is swiftly lured into Sheik Tariq's private car and brought to his royal palace. To keep her from leaving him the way she did four years ago, he arranges a quickie wedding and lays down a series of ground rules that almost ruins their smoldering passion for each other. When he realizes he has gone too far in keeping her at arm's length, his heart softens and the mood finally loosens between them.
Barbara Faith. Desert Man. New York: Silhouette, 1994.
Prince Kumar Ben Ari is arrogant, manipulative, and determined to have beautiful (redhead not blonde) Josie McCall assigned to work in his native country, Abdu Resaba. Resentful, Josie finds herself in a dangerous land, relying on Kumar to keep her safe. This enjoyable, easy read is enhanced by the brief peripheral storyline that centers around improving health conditions for women--not something that is typically addressed in books of this ilk.
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