|
|
Debbie Taylor ListingsIf you cannot find what you want on this page, then please use our search feature to search all our listings. Click on Title to view full description
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2 |
Ms Debbie Taylor The Fourth Queen (Om)
Penguin Books Ltd 0141016590 / 9780141016597 PAPERBACK Fine
0141016590 From Publishers Weekly nInspired by true stories of 18th-century kidnappings, debut novelist Taylor produces an imaginative and bawdy romp through the harem of the emperor of Morocco. Young Helen Gloag, bound from Scotland to the colonies in 1769, is captured by pirates and brought to the slave markets of Tangiers. There, she is purchased for the emperor's harem by the dwarf Microphilus, who procures and manages the hundreds of women selected as royal chattel. Instantly smitten with Helen's pale skin and red hair, Microphilus conceals his passion for her as she learns to make her way in the languorous-and competitive-world of the harem. Initially at a loss in terms of language and culture, she is dismissed by the emperor; under the tutelage of Queen Batoom (the first of the emperor's four wives), she eventually charms him and is soon his favorite. But with favoritism comes danger: one of the other queens has succumbed to a mysterious wasting illness, and when Helen is chosen as the emperor's fourth wife, it appears that she is also doomed. Instrumental in unraveling the mystery is Microphilus, who-having long been Queen Batoom's secret lover-eventually becomes close to Helen as well, as the two take comfort in remembering their shared homeland. Alternating between third-person sections from Helen's perspective and entries in Microphilus's diary, Taylor conjures up the shimmering exoticism of the emperor's court. Most notable is the concentration on fleshy exuberance (the emperor's women must be fat, and nearly all of them, including Helen, become giddy with sex in their forced idleness). Amid all the rolling rumps and alliterative saucy sex talk, Taylor manages to tell a highly unusual and satisfying love story. nCopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition. n nFrom Booklist nFirst-novelist Taylor has crafted a foray into eighteenth-century Morocco full of intriguing characters. Helen Gloag escapes her dire life in Scotland aboard a ship bound for the American colonies, but she is confronted with an uncertain destiny when the barge is accosted by a band of violent pirates thirsty for riches and bloodshed. Helen's copper hair and fair skin earmark her for the slave trade, and she is sold to a gentlemanly dwarf named Microphilus, who is keeper of the Moroccan emperor's harem. Helen's ethereal beauty catches the eye of the insatiable emperor and that of the kindly Scottish dwarf responsible for acquiring the fire-haired beauty. After a precarious initial meeting, the emperor becomes enamored of Helen, now known as Aziza, and names her his fourth queen. The women of the harem are cruel and catty, viciously vying for the emperor's attentions, and Helen's life, despite her new lofty position, is in imminent danger. Taylor's spellbinding flair for storytelling is heady with spicy erotica. Elsa Gaztambide nCopyright ? American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Price:
2.00 EUR
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart |
|
|
|
