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Kismet (2010)

by Monica Burns(Favorite Author)

3.75 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

0425232158 (ISBN13: 9780425232156)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Berkley Trade

review 1: If this book is a good example of her work, Monica Burns is an addition to my favorite authors list. Allegra Synnford (a bit much with the choice of name but I was over it fast) is in Morocco to witness the wedding of a good friend. She encounters Sheikh Shaheen of a local Bedouin tribe and can't seem to put him out of her mind, even though she senses from the start that he's exactly the kind of guy she should avoid. She's a celebrated courtesan, able to choose the men she beds, and she's careful to choose men who won't control her or win her heart. Shaheen has a secret identity and a history of being ill-treated by the English in general and courtesans in particular, so he doesn't like the way this woman makes him feel. When Allegra is abducted by his tribe's worst ene... moremy, Shaheen has to rescue her, and he does it in a way that awakens some of her worst experiences in life. His identity is compromised, and now he has to hold Allegra prisoner in order to protect his mission--or so he tells himself. The story is complicated, and there are some truly harrowing moments. It seems like, between Burns and McCarty, I'm on a roll for great books to read!
review 2: Everything about this book screamed unusual; the setting, the heroine's occupation, a hero in hiding, so it was a given once I got past the rather brilliant cover that this one would be high up on my 'gotta read it' list. And I'm ever so glad that I did as I thoroughly enjoyed it.Allegra, the heroine, had a horrid young life. She was sold to a brothel by her mother who also sold her older sister into the same kind of life. She was rescued from this life by a 'patron' when she became his mistress. And Allegra is not a 'fake' mistress. She's the real deal. After her first 'patron' died, she was determined to rule her own life and she was the one who would be choosing her protectors. She became what they needed, not only skilled in the art of seduction, but also offered her intelligence. She traveled to Marrakesh to attend a friends wedding and to delay the inevitable task of telling her young niece what she really does for a living. She first notices the hero, Shaheen when she tries to buy an extraordinary horse from him. Shaheen notices her, but when he finds out her true occupation, he leaps to conclusions about her based on a tragic experience that led to his self-imposed banishment to Morocco. But still he is drawn to her in ways he doesn't like. And he is not the only one drawn to her. Nassar, the brutal and vicious brother of the Sheik he works for, kidnaps Allegra and it is Shaheen that comes to her rescue.Allegra is everything admirable in a heroine. She is strong and independent, yet shows flashes of vulnerability. She has had a tough life, but has become her own person and won't let anyone tell her what to do. Although deeply attracted to Shaheen, she is determined to resist him and does a pretty good job through-out much of the book, knowing that he can have power over her she's not willing to give.Shaheen is also pretty darn yummy. An Englishman by birth, he was willing to die because of the guilt he felt over an incident in his past. But now he has made a name for himself and a new life and family in Morocco. He has brokered many a treaty between warring tribal Sheiks and united them together. When a relative shows up looking for him, he refuses to let Allegra go after rescuing her, believing that all the work he has done will be for naught. I had some issues with him for being a bit too mired in the wrong he was done by a former courtesan. While he soon realizes that Allegra is nothing like his former paramour, at times he does seem to forget and acts accordingly - treating Allegra most unfairly. Still, overall, he makes for a good alpha type hero who suffers ghosts of his own. And we do get that grovel at the end.The way the author has written the setting is excellent. Most of the book takes place in either Marakesh or in tribal camps and the atmosphere is excellent. When reading this book, the author made me really feel like I was there. There are fewer things finer than discovering a new author! less

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