Customer Reviews

The Sheikh and the Virgin Princess (Desert Rogues)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is a sequel to Susan Mallery's book "The Sheik and the Runaway Princess (Silhouette Special Edition, No. 1430)" with Rafe Stryker, Prince Kardal's head of security, as the man Princess Zara falls in love with.

Professor Zara Paxton never knew who her father was until after her mother died & papers were discovered that lead her to believe her father was King Hassan of Bahania. When she visits the country with her adopted sister Cleo to learn more about her father & his family she is accidental discovered by Rafe who tells the King about her.

As she begins to get to know her family and the news becomes public Zara gets overwhelmed with everything. Rafe is the man who is there for her but doesn't want any romantic complications. They fall in love after a few surprises things work out in the end. :)

This wasn't as good as any of the other Sheikh books I have read. The heroine, Zara, recently found out she was a princess and is trying to transition from nobody to royalty. The depressing part was that she had possessed many of the negative qualities we associate with princesses. She was self-centered and whiny. All she did was complain. By the author's description, Zara was not unattractive and yet all she did was compare herself to other women (and in her own mind, come up lacking).

I would have much rather read about her adopted sister, Chloe. Chloe probably has just as many issues about her body (all women have them) as well as a more difficult past and yet she had a much better outlook on life. While the hero, Rafe, wasn't a fairy tale prince, he deserved someone so much better than Zara. I say this even though I feel as though I never really got to know his character. After the first 100 or so pages, I just couldn't get passed how annoying she was. I didn't even understand how Rafe could begin to love her when everything she said asked for pity.

I think any fan of romances is better off not reading this book. But for those who do, I suggest not taking it too seriously or else you may end up feeling unfulfilled like myself.

In the Sheik and the Runaway Princess, you are introduced to Rafe Stryker who is in charge of security for the City of Thieves and an honorary sheik. Rafe is a "closed" man, who is strong, sexy and independent. In this story, Rafe has been assigned to the King of Bahania, King Hassen.

Zara and her foster-sister Cleo have one mission and that's to find out if Zara's father is in fact the King of Bahania. So the girls travel to Bahania to do a little investigating. Upon their arrival and tour of the Pink Palace, they literally "bump" into Rafe who later finds out their reason for being at the palace.

Rafe finds Zara sweet, soft and interesting. He also feels protective of her due to her vulnerability to the situation. The King puts Rafe in charge of Zara when he finds out that she is the daughter he never new existed.

Is Zara ready to become a Princess? Can Rafe fight his attractions for the sweet Zara? Theirs is a love story not to be missed. The way Susan Mallery tells their story is just plain wonderful. I also enjoyed how she described the difference between the sisters, Cleo and her also new found sister, Princess Sabrina. A very enjoyable addition to Susan's Desert Rogue series.

Book Summary:

When prim professor Zara Paxton ventures to distant Bahania, she wants only to find the father she'd never known. But her father turns out to be King Hassan of Bahania. The desert king promptly put his "princess" under the protection of a muscular, mesmerizing Sheik, who sets Zara's sense aflame, yet he refuses to quench the fire!

Steely security liaison Rafe Stryker scorns lasting love. But before he knows it, the bespectacled brunette sneaks into his heart, making him throb with the urge to taste her sweetness. Clearly, innocent Princess Zara wanted to be his woman, but taking her was tantamount to treason. Rafe knows the consequences, but even he can stand so much temptation.

I have liked all the books in the Desert Rogues series until now. This book was so boring I went to the end after the third chapter, just to get it over with. I have read the next book in the series already and loved it. NOT this one though. The only reason to read this one at all is if you insist on reading them in order.

The Sheik and the Virgin Princess may not be all the hot and sizzingly style of Mallery that readers have grown to love, but it definately carries all the heat of her monarch romances in the continuation of The Dessert Rogues series.
Princess Zara and Rafe Stryker bring their contemporary personalities to this tale of age-old classical love.
As Zara struggles to find her place among her new and diverse family, she manages to fall in love with the one person who doesn't want the princess' love......Rafe. Who is secretly fighting a losing battle to wrap the innocent temptress in his arms, and show her what all the fuss about making love is about.
The Sheik and The Virgin Princess, is a safe and soothing read, with tons of lovable characters that you'll definately hope to see more of.

This book was sweet from beginning to end. Rafe and Zara didn't fight all the time and Rafe wasn't a complete ass throughout the book like many of the harlequin novel lead men tend to be. Yes he was afraid to love but that was well explained but he did not treat Zara like left over trash, which I personally thought was great. Their love story was just very sweet. I like that about Susan Mallery books. Her main characters have sweet relationships for the most part. I highly recommend this book. Enjoy!

As with the other Desert Rogue books by Susan Mallery, this is a winner! She follows the same format with all her sheikh stories, but changes enough details to keep it interesting.

Back Cover description: She was seeking roots and relatives-not royalty! When prim professor Zara Paxton ventured to distant Bahania, she wanted only to find the father she'd never known. But Dad proved to be a desert king--and he promptly put his "princess" under the protection of a muscular, mesmerizing sheik who set Zara's virginal senses aflame...yet refused to quench the fire! Bedding a virgin princess would mean his beheading! Steely security liaison Rafe Stryker scorned lasting love. So how did one bespectacled brunette sneak into his heart and make him throb with the urge to taste her sweetness? Clearly, innocent Princess Zara wanted to be his woman. But taking her was tantamount to treason. Still, even a sheik could only stand so much temptation...

Fun read if you can suspend disbelief that any of this would even happen. This book is part of the author's Desert Rogues series. It moves along and the characters are OK. The princes personalities are not that developed, but they are probably waiting for their own stories.