Helpful Score: 5
Because I enjoyed the first few volumes in this series so much, I bought this one in hardcover -- and I'm sorry. It did not hold my interest. Perhaps it was because some of the zip had gone out of the Emily/Colin relationship; perhaps because the latitude in facing danger that Colin gives his wife Emily seems improbable to me (especially in that era); perhaps because I just don't like the setting (it's set in a harem culture in which women are owned like furniture with little chance to develop as human beings and zero chance of freedom or escape). It's not that the author ignores the last aspect I have listed -- indeed, the contrast between Emily's relative freedom and the harem women's imprisonment is the central theme of the book -- it is a personal reaction on my part -- if that particular aspect of male culture fell off the face of the earth, I wouldn't grieve one single instant. For whatever reason, I couldn't stay interested, and I wound up skimming the book just so I wouldn't feel I had entirely wasted my money.
I have read the others and enjoyed this one too. The story was different as it was set in Turkey and the plot was very developed and at time abit hard to follow. Thought Emily was abit whinny and over sensitive to her "freedom" now that she is married. Still a good read
I've loved this entire series and book four did not disappoint! Alexander does an amazing job of blending history, sense of location and time, intriguing plot, and a touch of love and romance. Finishing this fourth book only made me want to go back to the first one and begin reading the series all over again while I wait for book five!
