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The Legacies of Powerful Men #3
Zarif's Convenient Queen
For one year only
Once, Ella Gilchrist had the gall to turn down playboy prince Zarif al Rastani's proposal. To ensure peace and stability to his country Zarif must now marry, so when Ella returns begging for his help, he'll give it...on one condition.
Three years ago, Zarif needed only moments to ignite a passion in her that left her breathless, until his adamant declaration that he could never love her broke her heart. But if she is to rescue her family from imminent and permanent ruin, Ella must agree to a year of marriage, on his arm and in his bed!
192 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 15, 2014
95 people are currently reading
324 people want to read
About the author
Lynne Graham
1,763 books1,448 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Lynne Graham was born on July 30, 1956 of Irish-Scottish parentage. She has livedin Northern Ireland all her life. She grew up in a seaside village with herbrother. She learnt to read at the age of 3, and haven't stopped since then.
Lynne first met her husband when she was 14. At 15, she wrote her firstbook, but it was rejected everywhere. Lynne married after she completed adegree at Edinburgh University. She started writing again when she was athome with her first child. It took several attempts before she sold herfirst book in 1987 and the delight of seeing that first book for sale in thelocal newsagents has never been forgotten. Now, there are over 10 million ofher books in print worldwide.
Lynne always wanted a large family and has five children. Her eldest and heronly natural child is 19 and currently at university. Her other fourchildren, who are every bit as dear to her heart, are adopted. She has two9-year-olds adopted from Sri Lanka and a 5- and a 3-year-old adopted fromGuatemala. In Lynne's home, there is a rich and diverse cultural mix, whichadds a whole extra dimension of interest and discovery to family life. Thefamily lives in a country house surrounded by a woodland garden, which iswonderfully private. The family has two pets. Thomas, a very large andaffectionate black cat, bosses the dog and hunts rabbits. The dog is Daisy,an adorable but not very bright white West Highland terrier, who loves beingchased by the cat. At night, dog and cat sleep together in front of thekitchen stove. Lynne loves gardening, cooking, collects everything from oldtoys to rock specimens and is crazy about every aspect of Christmas.
Lynne Graham was born on July 30, 1956 of Irish-Scottish parentage. She has livedin Northern Ireland all her life. She grew up in a seaside village with herbrother. She learnt to read at the age of 3, and haven't stopped since then.
Lynne first met her husband when she was 14. At 15, she wrote her firstbook, but it was rejected everywhere. Lynne married after she completed adegree at Edinburgh University. She started writing again when she was athome with her first child. It took several attempts before she sold herfirst book in 1987 and the delight of seeing that first book for sale in thelocal newsagents has never been forgotten. Now, there are over 10 million ofher books in print worldwide.
Lynne always wanted a large family and has five children. Her eldest and heronly natural child is 19 and currently at university. Her other fourchildren, who are every bit as dear to her heart, are adopted. She has two9-year-olds adopted from Sri Lanka and a 5- and a 3-year-old adopted fromGuatemala. In Lynne's home, there is a rich and diverse cultural mix, whichadds a whole extra dimension of interest and discovery to family life. Thefamily lives in a country house surrounded by a woodland garden, which iswonderfully private. The family has two pets. Thomas, a very large andaffectionate black cat, bosses the dog and hunts rabbits. The dog is Daisy,an adorable but not very bright white West Highland terrier, who loves beingchased by the cat. At night, dog and cat sleep together in front of thekitchen stove. Lynne loves gardening, cooking, collects everything from oldtoys to rock specimens and is crazy about every aspect of Christmas.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
April 25, 2019
I’m running out of Lynne Graham books to read, so I’m scraping down to her sheikh books. (not my favorite) Hero is king of a desert country marrying the Brit sister of his university bff.
They have a track record. Hero asked h to marry him three years before and she refused because she wasn’t sure if she was cut out to be queen. Also, this hero has been married before and heroine had a lot of jealousy and mistaken ideas about that relationship. Hero didn’t try to convince her of his love, he just dumped her with his ego damaged.
Heroine has remained a virgin in those three years. Hero went off the rails and became a bit of a playboy.
In order to save her family, heroine has to ask hero for help after her evil brother spent all of the loan money the hero had given him while they were dating.
Hero blackmails her into marrying him for a year. On the day of her wedding the evil brother sold an untrue story about the heroine’s active sex life to the tabloids and the hero doesn’t know what to think. That problem is quickly resolved.
Then LG adds in aphylactic shock after heroine eats shrimp. Also resolved. Then the heroine drives to protest the country’s sexist ban. There’s also an unexpected pregnancy and lots of family background.
Drama, yes. But no deep dives into any one aspect/feeling. Hero is very shutdown emotionally and heroine is very combative, so a lot of their interactions go nowhere. Evil brother never got a comeuppance.
Not her best but not terrible, either, since this is Lynne Graham.
They have a track record. Hero asked h to marry him three years before and she refused because she wasn’t sure if she was cut out to be queen. Also, this hero has been married before and heroine had a lot of jealousy and mistaken ideas about that relationship. Hero didn’t try to convince her of his love, he just dumped her with his ego damaged.
Heroine has remained a virgin in those three years. Hero went off the rails and became a bit of a playboy.
In order to save her family, heroine has to ask hero for help after her evil brother spent all of the loan money the hero had given him while they were dating.
Hero blackmails her into marrying him for a year. On the day of her wedding the evil brother sold an untrue story about the heroine’s active sex life to the tabloids and the hero doesn’t know what to think. That problem is quickly resolved.
Then LG adds in aphylactic shock after heroine eats shrimp. Also resolved. Then the heroine drives to protest the country’s sexist ban. There’s also an unexpected pregnancy and lots of family background.
Drama, yes. But no deep dives into any one aspect/feeling. Hero is very shutdown emotionally and heroine is very combative, so a lot of their interactions go nowhere. Evil brother never got a comeuppance.
Not her best but not terrible, either, since this is Lynne Graham.
July 6, 2014
This was my least favorite book in this series.Why? because of the hero,I did not like him at all! Usually, LG's heros are total asshats ,but they redeem themselves beautifully at the end.This guy! sorry,was not buying his bull.I hated his backstory and his deceased wife was his first cousin,no,no,no!!!!
For a change,I loved this heroine,she put this guy thru his paces and took no crap from him,trust me,he needed it.
I did enjoy the epilogue as I am a sucker for them.
I hope the next book the hero is a better one.I really need to read an older LG to wash away the taste of this one.
For a change,I loved this heroine,she put this guy thru his paces and took no crap from him,trust me,he needed it.
I did enjoy the epilogue as I am a sucker for them.
I hope the next book the hero is a better one.I really need to read an older LG to wash away the taste of this one.
November 22, 2023
I can’t believe that you’ve loved me all this time,’ Ella admitted apologetically.
I couldn’t believe, either because after they separated 3 years ago due to his idiocy, he had kept mistresses till they get together again!
I couldn’t believe, either because after they separated 3 years ago due to his idiocy, he had kept mistresses till they get together again!
July 9, 2016
I can't do this anymore I hate Ella with all my heart *spoilers alert*
The heroine is such an hypocrite! At the beginning of the book, because of some stories the tabloids published on her wedding day about her "sex exploits" (that were her evil brother's lies) the hero asked her if those stories were true. She went hysteric (because he didn't trust her without her confirming or denying the stories) and didn't answer him. Then, when her brother told her that the hero had some mistresses she went and demanded the hero to confirm or deny accusations and was indignant when the hero didn't answer her! And after some drama on her part the hero had to tell her he had had some mistresses BEFORE her. And that is not half of what I hated about the heroine but I have better things to do.
The heroine is such an hypocrite! At the beginning of the book, because of some stories the tabloids published on her wedding day about her "sex exploits" (that were her evil brother's lies) the hero asked her if those stories were true. She went hysteric (because he didn't trust her without her confirming or denying the stories) and didn't answer him. Then, when her brother told her that the hero had some mistresses she went and demanded the hero to confirm or deny accusations and was indignant when the hero didn't answer her! And after some drama on her part the hero had to tell her he had had some mistresses BEFORE her. And that is not half of what I hated about the heroine but I have better things to do.
July 3, 2014
Ella and prince Zafir are a couple madly in love but when he proposes marriage Ella turns him down. Three years later Ella is desperate to save her family from ruin. The only man who can help her is Zafir but only if she agrees to a year or marriage.
Great read. LG did it again. I loved the arrogant but vulnerable stalker hero and the strong but not bitchy heroine. They never stopped loving each other and I was very touched by Zarif's loss of his first wife and child and the guilt he feels. Epilogue was heartwarming and a great HEA!
Great read. LG did it again. I loved the arrogant but vulnerable stalker hero and the strong but not bitchy heroine. They never stopped loving each other and I was very touched by Zarif's loss of his first wife and child and the guilt he feels. Epilogue was heartwarming and a great HEA!
July 4, 2014
Maybe I've been reading too many romances with badass mofo alpha heroes and having read LGs older books maybe I wrongly expect her heroes to be consistently badass mofo alpha's because Zarif's Convenient Queen went from that to beta in such a flash it was a disappointment.
What I liked- the heroine was nice. She was a virgin. She didn't argue with the hero all the time. I liked the storyline- second chance at love. The storytelling was ok. I liked the hero in the beginning when he was badass mofo. I loved the epiligue! Perfect ending. I loved the last few chapters. LG writes memorable scenes and conversations. I liked LG tried to make the hero's country seem more like it was a genuine arab one. Most authors don't even bother to make their fictional arab countries like the real ones. They just make up an arab name and write the plot. And I liked that they talked and cleared up their history. LG always does that right.
What I didn't like- the hero after his marriage. He went from interesting to blah. He kept apologizing! I. Hated. That. I even stopped reading cause it annoyed me so much!!! His inner dialogue which whined about the past. That didn't work for me. Most of the time I don't want to hear a hero agnozing over history. Sadly, the hero's metamorphosis from alpha to beta really impacted how I felt about the story. Usually the heroine does that but this time the hero turned a potentially great book into a just ok book.
Wish I could love Zarif's Convenient Queen. I've read better LG books. In fact I feel a need to reread Bond Of Hatred. I loved how that hero metamorphosised into a guy who loved his wife.
What I liked- the heroine was nice. She was a virgin. She didn't argue with the hero all the time. I liked the storyline- second chance at love. The storytelling was ok. I liked the hero in the beginning when he was badass mofo. I loved the epiligue! Perfect ending. I loved the last few chapters. LG writes memorable scenes and conversations. I liked LG tried to make the hero's country seem more like it was a genuine arab one. Most authors don't even bother to make their fictional arab countries like the real ones. They just make up an arab name and write the plot. And I liked that they talked and cleared up their history. LG always does that right.
What I didn't like- the hero after his marriage. He went from interesting to blah. He kept apologizing! I. Hated. That. I even stopped reading cause it annoyed me so much!!! His inner dialogue which whined about the past. That didn't work for me. Most of the time I don't want to hear a hero agnozing over history. Sadly, the hero's metamorphosis from alpha to beta really impacted how I felt about the story. Usually the heroine does that but this time the hero turned a potentially great book into a just ok book.
Wish I could love Zarif's Convenient Queen. I've read better LG books. In fact I feel a need to reread Bond Of Hatred. I loved how that hero metamorphosised into a guy who loved his wife.
August 1, 2024
Enjoyable read, second chance romance.
August 5, 2014
Just so so and probably only got the 3 stars because it's Lynne Graham and I'm a fan. What to say? The hero seemed like a bit of a weinie. Just not alpha enough for me and not beta either. The heroine was okay within the realm of the eternal sacrificing herself for her wimpy parents. However, the trilogy was a fun read all in all.
March 8, 2015
3.5 - 4 stars.
Major plot spoilers ahead. Read at your own risk.
This the is the final book in in The Legacies of Powerful Men miniseries by Lynne Graham, and I can now officially say that I've read this whole miniseries. I wanted to finish this series out since the last two books were fresh in my mind, and I knew who was who and what happened in the previous stories without having to go back and look in up. And I'm glad that I did it that way.
This story features the love story between Ella and Zarif, the youngest of the three brothers in the series. Zarif was king of his own country while Ella was living her normal life in London, but these two crossed paths before. Three years to be exact, and a marriage proposal between them. Zarif was friends with her brother then later on her family, and was instantly enamoured by the young beauty even at the young at of 17, knowing that he couldn't pursue her because of her young age, Zarif sat back and waited for her. And waited for her for years and years, watching her from afar while Ella was slowly falling in love with him, but figured he wasn't interested in her because he never showed any interest in her. But then once she turned of age at 21, the pursuit began and they started dating and soon after Zarif proposed to the young Ella, and wound up disappointed and hurt when she turned him down flat then the anger ensued and he went about sowing his wild oats because of Ella's rejection and cut ties with her in and her family.
Zarif didn't know was that Ella was deeply in love with him, or the reason that she turned him down flat. She was scared, not by the process of the marriage but the fact that she believed that he would never love her while she loved him so terribly that it nearly hurt. It didn't help matters that during the proposal, he seemed totally indifferent to her on an emotional level and even spoke about how he would always love his late wife and never love her. What girl would turn that proposal down? LOL. Then take in the fact that Ella thought that he was only after her body and nothing more and the only way he would find acceptable to do so was to offer marriage to assuage his conscious and what their relationship would be. So with what she believed, she knew she had to turn him down otherwise he would break her. And Zarif had no clue.
Three years passed, Zarif sowing those wild oats with mistress after mistress, getting his fill of pleasure before he had to do his duty and marry and produce an heir for his country sake. Plus he was trying to get a certain blonde out of his system, though it wasn't working. And he was still hurt and very angry by her rejection of him all these years ago, but he never believed he would see her again.
Fate had a funny way of working. Ella's brother, Zarif's former friend, had borrowed massive amounts of money from Zarif because he believed that Ella would marry Zarif and that would be that. He never meant to pay Zarif back nor did he believe that Zarif would call in the loan and force him to pay it back especially since he would be married to his sister. He never figured that she wouldn't marry him. But obviously that didn't happen, and her brother was in massive debt and even put her family's home and business on the line with his debts, combining that Zarif was calling in his loan. The family was in big trouble.
This was where Ella came in. She was sent to talk to Zarif and get him to take it easy on her family especially since their stress levels were high causing them various health problems that either her dad or mom could have died from. So her only thought was helping and protecting them not her selfish brother.
Once Zarif and Ella came back together again, sparks flew and it was like no time had passed. They still wanted each other. And Zarif now having Ella in the palm of his hands vowed to get his revenge on her by using her as his mistress for as long as he wanted her, a year to be exact, until he was finally sedate and got her out of her system, one last time before he had to marry. So basically they struck a bargain where she would become his wife, the only way it would be acceptable in the eyes of his country, when he was really just taking her as mistress for a year so he could use her for his pleasure and in return he would help her family out of financial straits. Then the story took off from there and that was the basic set up.
I will say that this book was good, and definitely readable. Didn't skim at all or skip any parts because I just wanted to get through it, but at the same time I wasn't wowed. It was the same old, predictable story that I've read a thousand times before in these types of books. There was not a spark or something unique to bring out the specialness of the book. Now, does that mean I didn't like it? No, and it was good, not the best book I read from Harlequin Presents because it was just missing something that I can't quite put my finger on. There wasn't that spark that I was looking forward. That's why I wavered between what to give this book. So I just decided on a range of 3.5-4 stars. Because it wasn't bad just there was a missing something.
I think what was missing for me was the angst factor. Though the angst was there and caused some necessary tension in the story, I just thought the angst could have been upped tenfold to add more friction to the story and up the emotional intensity to the story. Give it that up and down roller coaster kind of feel. There was that potential there and bits of here and there, but I think it could have went to the next level that just made it that much more enthralling especially with the whole late wife that Ella believed that Zarif was still in love with. It was addressed and presented, but I felt it was glossed over at the same time and brushed away too quickly. I wanted to feel deep down what Ella was thinking and feeling and how insecure that made her and how fearful she was that she wouldn't be able to touch Zarif's heart. Just digging deep beneath her surface, and I didn't get that so much. On a surface level? Yes, but not as deep as I would have liked to see and see the tension that it caused between them and their relationship especially with her not wanting to get to close to him for fear of being hurt.
I was glad that there was a backstory between the two of them, which made the dynamic of their relationship interesting, but I would have liked to see more than being told about their relationship. For instance, their first kiss and feelings that were going on for both of them during that kiss to indicate that it was a different kind kiss than they ever experienced before in their life. Or even the proposal I would have liked to have seen and feel from her point of view especially when he told her that wouldn't love her and always love his late wife. That's rich emotional material, but that wasn't really shown and just more told but that would have showed me the place that Ella was at during that proposal and how hurt she was. That would have upped up the angst quite a bit. But I did like the fact they had a history and already had this connection to one another before they met again in the present. I was glad for that established connection both physically and emotionally. And it was great set up as well, and the fact that there were hurt feelings on both sides of the past were going to cause obstacles in their relationship. And it wasn't going to be smooth sailing for them. Plus the anger on his side over her rejection amped up the story as well and showed why he was treating her the way that he treated her.
The chemistry was definitely there and sparks flew from them whenever they were in the same room. It was all the built up lust from all those years coming to the forefront until it finally got released and exploded. I could feel what they both wanted and how much they wanted each other. How they were dying for one another, and soon they would get it. Though Ella hated the fact that all their relationship was going to be about was sex and nothing more. She wanted that emotional piece, but she couldn't deny the chemistry between them, and it was hard for her to resist him.
The love scenes were definitely hot and full of steam factor backed up by their heightened chemistry towards each other. The first time scene was great because all that sexual tension got released for both of them but also showed Zarif that Ella wasn't the woman that he thought she was. She was innocent in every sense of the word. And I liked that he regretted how he treated her and how he made the offer of her body for the bailout of her parents. I could tell he felt totally bad about it and was cursing himself and his stupidity especially in the way he took her virginity like a "rutting bull" as he called when she was so untouched just because he couldn't keep his hands off of her and couldn't resist her allure any longer. But he blamed himself which I like especially how he treated her after their first coupling, which I was glad that he did because I wanted slap him myself the cruel way that he got up afterwards, barely saying a word to her, and just left her laying their all by herself with all those rolling emotions going through her. He didn't even cuddle with her, which was what Ella needed after this emotional overload. But he did make up for it afterward and showed he did care and was sorry for how he treated her. First cuddle with her then made love to her gently and tenderly, though no less passionately, and showed that in fact he did respect her. And the rest of the love scenes followed accordingly. They were passionate and hot but tender as well as emotional as well. That's where they seemed to have their most emotional connection, was in bed was when they were the closest. So I liked seeing that.
Again as I stated above I thought more would becoming an issue with not only his late wife, but his late wife's cousin who was clearly jealous of poor Ella, and wanted Zarif for herself. But aside from the wedding there wasn't too much going on in that aspect. I thought there would have been a lot more sabotage on the cousin's part as well as her telling stories to Zarif about Ella that were just totally untrue but caused him to maybe question his choice of her as a bride/mistress and maybe think he made a mistake in having Ella in his life. But again aside from the wedding nothing really happened on that front, and I think if it did then it would have made the story more interesting as well as give it a welcome edge to it that was needed. The spark. There was much potential there on this angle.
I wished that the brothers were in it as well, Nik and Cristo. I mean there were but just on a periphery way and just mentioned. There was no real interaction between Zarif and his brothers and I really wanted to see that especially since knew the brothers from the stories. So kind of disappointed with that, however there were the appearance of the wives in this story and their interaction with Ella. And that was amusing and funny especially Belle. She was quite a character in this story, though I don't remember her being that humorous in her book, but I found her hilarious here even the brief shot that we see her. I thought the interactions between the wives was great.
The love story aspect was okay. Could have used a bit more development I thought from an emotional stand point because it did seem like sex took over at times. And since it was a major component of their deal, I understand why, but I wanted to see them grow more as a couple outside the bedroom and we don't get to see a lot of that. Though there were glimpses here and there, but not enough to convince me that he was in love with her, or was in love with her ever since he met her three years ago. I didn't get that sense. I definitely knew he cared about her and was worried about her especially during their wedding she became very ill and nearly died and that nearly gutted him at the realization that he could loose her and he didn't want to, but then after that it was back to the sex again. I wanted to see them spend more time outside of the bedroom and see that connection grow. Though their intimacy in the bedroom did grow so maybe that was the telling aspect that pointed to their love story and their love for one another. I just needed to see a bit more romance from them.
I hate the brother with a passion. I thought he was a jerk the entire time through and couldn't care less that he was basically telling his sister to sell herself to Zarif in order to get him out of financial trouble. What kind of brother was that? Then he sold those stories to the tabloids about his sister that branded her a slut. Really? He wasn't even grateful that she got him out of financial ruin. Granted she didn't ask Zarif to help her brother out when he needed more money, but then she shouldn't. He was just a selfish brat. He needed a good slap. I wish that him and Zarif had a confrontation and Zarif kicked the snot of him and basically protect Ella from her brother evil ways. That would have been good.
As for the couple themselves, I did like them and enjoyed them on the page. They weren't favorite couple in the whole world but I didn't enjoy them together as did I enjoy them separately as characters.
I would say I really enjoyed Zarif. There was just something about him that screamed sexy. And that was probably because he was a very sexy man. He just had that aura about him that I found hard to resist and made me understand why Ella had trouble resisting him. Now don't get me wrong there were times I wanted to slap him up side the head, but for the most part he was a sweet guy. I could have stand to see more beneath his surface and dig deep to see what was underneath it all that he hid from the world. I just wanted to see and feel more of his pain on a deeper level instead of surface especially when it came to his brothers as well as his father. But he just seemed indifferent to it almost. Maybe it had to do with the fact that he was isolated away in this Arabic country with his grandfather and uncle lovingly raising him as a boy and showing him nothing but love and respect and how to be a good man and ruler of the country. They taught him how to be a man, and developed that tender side to him. I wished that was explored more as well as more with his mother and how she basically left him to start her own career and not care about the mother-son relationship. It didn't seem to bother him, but that could be because of his grandfather and uncle. Just wanted to touch on the hard emotions there.
Her, I liked as well. I liked that there were two sides to her. The strong side, which would do anything she had to do for the sake of her parents, as well as the vulnerable side of her with her insecurities of not being beautiful enough for Zarif as well as believing she would never have his love because he loved his late wife. Just showing the full range of emotions coming from her to make into a believable character and more real. I got a little more emotional off of her than I did him as the layers got pulled more and more back as the story progressed, though I thought could have gone a bit deeper. I liked that she had a backbone yet had that sweet, innocent side to her. Overall I did like her.
Overall I did like the story, and did enjoy it. It was a little predictable and I thought that the story just touched the surface and needed to go a bit deeper and dig beneath surface both from a character stand point as well as the love story part. I needed to feel more of the emotions going on and feel that rawness. More angst was needed as well just to add a spark to the story that was missing and desperately needed to make the story unique and less predictable. Just that special little something that made this story stand out. But that didn't make this story not readable or enjoyable, it just something that would have made me say "oh wow. This is one of my favorite stories now." None of that. But it was okay and I enjoyed it.
I think this was the favorite out of the miniseries with a big part of that being Zarif because I enjoyed him as a character. There was just something about the guy that pulled me in. I was drawn to him for some reason unlike the other two. That was one of the sparks in the book was him, so that's probably why I enjoyed this one out of the three in this miniseries. I was definitely more invested and enjoyed more because of him. The other two brothers were good but that draw me and weren't my favorite alpha males of all time in a romance. Zarif wasn't exactly a favorite alpha of mine but he was definitely close. Plus I think this story had a bit more angst, even though it wasn't much as I liked, than the other two.
Overall Lynne Graham did a good job with this miniseries and creating these stories based on the brothers and their love stories. And for most part I did enjoy the miniseries as a whole and was glad that each of the brothers' tales were told and I could see their happily ever after with the women of their dreams. I was glad I read them. Hopefully her other miniseries that she has written and that I have on my shelves currently are good if not better than this one was. I am hoping for better, but she did a nice job on this one.
Major plot spoilers ahead. Read at your own risk.
This the is the final book in in The Legacies of Powerful Men miniseries by Lynne Graham, and I can now officially say that I've read this whole miniseries. I wanted to finish this series out since the last two books were fresh in my mind, and I knew who was who and what happened in the previous stories without having to go back and look in up. And I'm glad that I did it that way.
This story features the love story between Ella and Zarif, the youngest of the three brothers in the series. Zarif was king of his own country while Ella was living her normal life in London, but these two crossed paths before. Three years to be exact, and a marriage proposal between them. Zarif was friends with her brother then later on her family, and was instantly enamoured by the young beauty even at the young at of 17, knowing that he couldn't pursue her because of her young age, Zarif sat back and waited for her. And waited for her for years and years, watching her from afar while Ella was slowly falling in love with him, but figured he wasn't interested in her because he never showed any interest in her. But then once she turned of age at 21, the pursuit began and they started dating and soon after Zarif proposed to the young Ella, and wound up disappointed and hurt when she turned him down flat then the anger ensued and he went about sowing his wild oats because of Ella's rejection and cut ties with her in and her family.
Zarif didn't know was that Ella was deeply in love with him, or the reason that she turned him down flat. She was scared, not by the process of the marriage but the fact that she believed that he would never love her while she loved him so terribly that it nearly hurt. It didn't help matters that during the proposal, he seemed totally indifferent to her on an emotional level and even spoke about how he would always love his late wife and never love her. What girl would turn that proposal down? LOL. Then take in the fact that Ella thought that he was only after her body and nothing more and the only way he would find acceptable to do so was to offer marriage to assuage his conscious and what their relationship would be. So with what she believed, she knew she had to turn him down otherwise he would break her. And Zarif had no clue.
Three years passed, Zarif sowing those wild oats with mistress after mistress, getting his fill of pleasure before he had to do his duty and marry and produce an heir for his country sake. Plus he was trying to get a certain blonde out of his system, though it wasn't working. And he was still hurt and very angry by her rejection of him all these years ago, but he never believed he would see her again.
Fate had a funny way of working. Ella's brother, Zarif's former friend, had borrowed massive amounts of money from Zarif because he believed that Ella would marry Zarif and that would be that. He never meant to pay Zarif back nor did he believe that Zarif would call in the loan and force him to pay it back especially since he would be married to his sister. He never figured that she wouldn't marry him. But obviously that didn't happen, and her brother was in massive debt and even put her family's home and business on the line with his debts, combining that Zarif was calling in his loan. The family was in big trouble.
This was where Ella came in. She was sent to talk to Zarif and get him to take it easy on her family especially since their stress levels were high causing them various health problems that either her dad or mom could have died from. So her only thought was helping and protecting them not her selfish brother.
Once Zarif and Ella came back together again, sparks flew and it was like no time had passed. They still wanted each other. And Zarif now having Ella in the palm of his hands vowed to get his revenge on her by using her as his mistress for as long as he wanted her, a year to be exact, until he was finally sedate and got her out of her system, one last time before he had to marry. So basically they struck a bargain where she would become his wife, the only way it would be acceptable in the eyes of his country, when he was really just taking her as mistress for a year so he could use her for his pleasure and in return he would help her family out of financial straits. Then the story took off from there and that was the basic set up.
I will say that this book was good, and definitely readable. Didn't skim at all or skip any parts because I just wanted to get through it, but at the same time I wasn't wowed. It was the same old, predictable story that I've read a thousand times before in these types of books. There was not a spark or something unique to bring out the specialness of the book. Now, does that mean I didn't like it? No, and it was good, not the best book I read from Harlequin Presents because it was just missing something that I can't quite put my finger on. There wasn't that spark that I was looking forward. That's why I wavered between what to give this book. So I just decided on a range of 3.5-4 stars. Because it wasn't bad just there was a missing something.
I think what was missing for me was the angst factor. Though the angst was there and caused some necessary tension in the story, I just thought the angst could have been upped tenfold to add more friction to the story and up the emotional intensity to the story. Give it that up and down roller coaster kind of feel. There was that potential there and bits of here and there, but I think it could have went to the next level that just made it that much more enthralling especially with the whole late wife that Ella believed that Zarif was still in love with. It was addressed and presented, but I felt it was glossed over at the same time and brushed away too quickly. I wanted to feel deep down what Ella was thinking and feeling and how insecure that made her and how fearful she was that she wouldn't be able to touch Zarif's heart. Just digging deep beneath her surface, and I didn't get that so much. On a surface level? Yes, but not as deep as I would have liked to see and see the tension that it caused between them and their relationship especially with her not wanting to get to close to him for fear of being hurt.
I was glad that there was a backstory between the two of them, which made the dynamic of their relationship interesting, but I would have liked to see more than being told about their relationship. For instance, their first kiss and feelings that were going on for both of them during that kiss to indicate that it was a different kind kiss than they ever experienced before in their life. Or even the proposal I would have liked to have seen and feel from her point of view especially when he told her that wouldn't love her and always love his late wife. That's rich emotional material, but that wasn't really shown and just more told but that would have showed me the place that Ella was at during that proposal and how hurt she was. That would have upped up the angst quite a bit. But I did like the fact they had a history and already had this connection to one another before they met again in the present. I was glad for that established connection both physically and emotionally. And it was great set up as well, and the fact that there were hurt feelings on both sides of the past were going to cause obstacles in their relationship. And it wasn't going to be smooth sailing for them. Plus the anger on his side over her rejection amped up the story as well and showed why he was treating her the way that he treated her.
The chemistry was definitely there and sparks flew from them whenever they were in the same room. It was all the built up lust from all those years coming to the forefront until it finally got released and exploded. I could feel what they both wanted and how much they wanted each other. How they were dying for one another, and soon they would get it. Though Ella hated the fact that all their relationship was going to be about was sex and nothing more. She wanted that emotional piece, but she couldn't deny the chemistry between them, and it was hard for her to resist him.
The love scenes were definitely hot and full of steam factor backed up by their heightened chemistry towards each other. The first time scene was great because all that sexual tension got released for both of them but also showed Zarif that Ella wasn't the woman that he thought she was. She was innocent in every sense of the word. And I liked that he regretted how he treated her and how he made the offer of her body for the bailout of her parents. I could tell he felt totally bad about it and was cursing himself and his stupidity especially in the way he took her virginity like a "rutting bull" as he called when she was so untouched just because he couldn't keep his hands off of her and couldn't resist her allure any longer. But he blamed himself which I like especially how he treated her after their first coupling, which I was glad that he did because I wanted slap him myself the cruel way that he got up afterwards, barely saying a word to her, and just left her laying their all by herself with all those rolling emotions going through her. He didn't even cuddle with her, which was what Ella needed after this emotional overload. But he did make up for it afterward and showed he did care and was sorry for how he treated her. First cuddle with her then made love to her gently and tenderly, though no less passionately, and showed that in fact he did respect her. And the rest of the love scenes followed accordingly. They were passionate and hot but tender as well as emotional as well. That's where they seemed to have their most emotional connection, was in bed was when they were the closest. So I liked seeing that.
Again as I stated above I thought more would becoming an issue with not only his late wife, but his late wife's cousin who was clearly jealous of poor Ella, and wanted Zarif for herself. But aside from the wedding there wasn't too much going on in that aspect. I thought there would have been a lot more sabotage on the cousin's part as well as her telling stories to Zarif about Ella that were just totally untrue but caused him to maybe question his choice of her as a bride/mistress and maybe think he made a mistake in having Ella in his life. But again aside from the wedding nothing really happened on that front, and I think if it did then it would have made the story more interesting as well as give it a welcome edge to it that was needed. The spark. There was much potential there on this angle.
I wished that the brothers were in it as well, Nik and Cristo. I mean there were but just on a periphery way and just mentioned. There was no real interaction between Zarif and his brothers and I really wanted to see that especially since knew the brothers from the stories. So kind of disappointed with that, however there were the appearance of the wives in this story and their interaction with Ella. And that was amusing and funny especially Belle. She was quite a character in this story, though I don't remember her being that humorous in her book, but I found her hilarious here even the brief shot that we see her. I thought the interactions between the wives was great.
The love story aspect was okay. Could have used a bit more development I thought from an emotional stand point because it did seem like sex took over at times. And since it was a major component of their deal, I understand why, but I wanted to see them grow more as a couple outside the bedroom and we don't get to see a lot of that. Though there were glimpses here and there, but not enough to convince me that he was in love with her, or was in love with her ever since he met her three years ago. I didn't get that sense. I definitely knew he cared about her and was worried about her especially during their wedding she became very ill and nearly died and that nearly gutted him at the realization that he could loose her and he didn't want to, but then after that it was back to the sex again. I wanted to see them spend more time outside of the bedroom and see that connection grow. Though their intimacy in the bedroom did grow so maybe that was the telling aspect that pointed to their love story and their love for one another. I just needed to see a bit more romance from them.
I hate the brother with a passion. I thought he was a jerk the entire time through and couldn't care less that he was basically telling his sister to sell herself to Zarif in order to get him out of financial trouble. What kind of brother was that? Then he sold those stories to the tabloids about his sister that branded her a slut. Really? He wasn't even grateful that she got him out of financial ruin. Granted she didn't ask Zarif to help her brother out when he needed more money, but then she shouldn't. He was just a selfish brat. He needed a good slap. I wish that him and Zarif had a confrontation and Zarif kicked the snot of him and basically protect Ella from her brother evil ways. That would have been good.
As for the couple themselves, I did like them and enjoyed them on the page. They weren't favorite couple in the whole world but I didn't enjoy them together as did I enjoy them separately as characters.
I would say I really enjoyed Zarif. There was just something about him that screamed sexy. And that was probably because he was a very sexy man. He just had that aura about him that I found hard to resist and made me understand why Ella had trouble resisting him. Now don't get me wrong there were times I wanted to slap him up side the head, but for the most part he was a sweet guy. I could have stand to see more beneath his surface and dig deep to see what was underneath it all that he hid from the world. I just wanted to see and feel more of his pain on a deeper level instead of surface especially when it came to his brothers as well as his father. But he just seemed indifferent to it almost. Maybe it had to do with the fact that he was isolated away in this Arabic country with his grandfather and uncle lovingly raising him as a boy and showing him nothing but love and respect and how to be a good man and ruler of the country. They taught him how to be a man, and developed that tender side to him. I wished that was explored more as well as more with his mother and how she basically left him to start her own career and not care about the mother-son relationship. It didn't seem to bother him, but that could be because of his grandfather and uncle. Just wanted to touch on the hard emotions there.
Her, I liked as well. I liked that there were two sides to her. The strong side, which would do anything she had to do for the sake of her parents, as well as the vulnerable side of her with her insecurities of not being beautiful enough for Zarif as well as believing she would never have his love because he loved his late wife. Just showing the full range of emotions coming from her to make into a believable character and more real. I got a little more emotional off of her than I did him as the layers got pulled more and more back as the story progressed, though I thought could have gone a bit deeper. I liked that she had a backbone yet had that sweet, innocent side to her. Overall I did like her.
Overall I did like the story, and did enjoy it. It was a little predictable and I thought that the story just touched the surface and needed to go a bit deeper and dig beneath surface both from a character stand point as well as the love story part. I needed to feel more of the emotions going on and feel that rawness. More angst was needed as well just to add a spark to the story that was missing and desperately needed to make the story unique and less predictable. Just that special little something that made this story stand out. But that didn't make this story not readable or enjoyable, it just something that would have made me say "oh wow. This is one of my favorite stories now." None of that. But it was okay and I enjoyed it.
I think this was the favorite out of the miniseries with a big part of that being Zarif because I enjoyed him as a character. There was just something about the guy that pulled me in. I was drawn to him for some reason unlike the other two. That was one of the sparks in the book was him, so that's probably why I enjoyed this one out of the three in this miniseries. I was definitely more invested and enjoyed more because of him. The other two brothers were good but that draw me and weren't my favorite alpha males of all time in a romance. Zarif wasn't exactly a favorite alpha of mine but he was definitely close. Plus I think this story had a bit more angst, even though it wasn't much as I liked, than the other two.
Overall Lynne Graham did a good job with this miniseries and creating these stories based on the brothers and their love stories. And for most part I did enjoy the miniseries as a whole and was glad that each of the brothers' tales were told and I could see their happily ever after with the women of their dreams. I was glad I read them. Hopefully her other miniseries that she has written and that I have on my shelves currently are good if not better than this one was. I am hoping for better, but she did a nice job on this one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 24, 2018
"Zarif’s Convenient Queen" is the story of Ella and Zarif.
Three years ago, Ella had refused King Zarif's marriage proposal, knowing he would never love her.
She however did not know that he had loaned a billion dollars to her spendthrift brother, and that when her brother blows it all- leading to both her parents having a health crisis- she would have to be the one to beg for Zarif's money!
Zarif has been losing himself in faceless women since Ella dumped him, and now that it is time for him to remarry, he finds the perfect opportunity by blackmailing Ella.
A marriage of convenience, a sprinkle of blackmail, some hot lovemaking, a shred of hymen, an expectation of drama, mild amount of angst, a bun in the oven and HEA.
It was enjoyable in parts!
Unsafe
3.5/5
Three years ago, Ella had refused King Zarif's marriage proposal, knowing he would never love her.
She however did not know that he had loaned a billion dollars to her spendthrift brother, and that when her brother blows it all- leading to both her parents having a health crisis- she would have to be the one to beg for Zarif's money!
Zarif has been losing himself in faceless women since Ella dumped him, and now that it is time for him to remarry, he finds the perfect opportunity by blackmailing Ella.
A marriage of convenience, a sprinkle of blackmail, some hot lovemaking, a shred of hymen, an expectation of drama, mild amount of angst, a bun in the oven and HEA.
It was enjoyable in parts!
Unsafe
3.5/5
April 12, 2025
Mamma mia bruttino proprio .
Cioè datemi una macchina che guido . E investo tutti
Cioè datemi una macchina che guido . E investo tutti
December 5, 2019
4.75 stars
Really love this book. The downside is this involved a H's dead wife and son. I prefer a H with no past spouses/kid but this is really enjoyable. H was madly in love with h but did not want to admit it. He loved her since three years before this taken place. He proposed to her but didn't say he love her and instead he told her he still loved his dead wife. She was devastated and refused to marry him. The present day she was pretty much blackmailed to marry him to safe her parents' business and house. They got married, he was really attentive and quite an alpha male. They both agreed to a loveless but full of passion one year marriage but then later on she was pregnant. Stuff happens and he confessed to her he wasn't in love with his dead wife since it was an arranged marriage and he was in love with h since the first time they met but did not show any action that indicated his feeling to her since she was quite young (17 years old) and she has been in love with him since then. Love the sweet ending too. Good job Ms. Graham.
Really love this book. The downside is this involved a H's dead wife and son. I prefer a H with no past spouses/kid but this is really enjoyable. H was madly in love with h but did not want to admit it. He loved her since three years before this taken place. He proposed to her but didn't say he love her and instead he told her he still loved his dead wife. She was devastated and refused to marry him. The present day she was pretty much blackmailed to marry him to safe her parents' business and house. They got married, he was really attentive and quite an alpha male. They both agreed to a loveless but full of passion one year marriage but then later on she was pregnant. Stuff happens and he confessed to her he wasn't in love with his dead wife since it was an arranged marriage and he was in love with h since the first time they met but did not show any action that indicated his feeling to her since she was quite young (17 years old) and she has been in love with him since then. Love the sweet ending too. Good job Ms. Graham.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 26, 2017
I really wanted to like this book but failed!yes its an LG book so I'm bound to read it!it just didn't click with me because both hero and heroine had many stupid misunderstandings and emotional baggage!I just dont like my heros to be married before.I know its stupid but I like my romances to be extra mushy.
January 4, 2015
El último de una serie y el mejor de los tres. Excelente para pasar el rato y como toda novela Harlequin,se lee en un suspiro.
January 19, 2015
3.5 stars
February 4, 2021
Setelah sekian purnama gak baca ttg raja di Arab, baru skrg baca lagi dan ketemu dgn Zarif al Rastani, Raja Vashir, entah kerajaan fantasi antah berantah di daerah Yaman yg mana. Tapi raja ini sialnya pernah ditolak oleh seorang gadis perawan dari Inggris bernama Eleonora alias Ella tiga tahun yg lalu.
Keluarga Ella lagi terpuruk hingga ke dasar. Ibunya sedang sakit parah, ayahnya depresi, dan kakak laki-lakinya yg gak tau diri hedonis tulen sama sekali gak bisa diandalkan. Satu-satunya solusi adalah Ella hrs menyetujui pernikahan yg disodorkan Zarif.
Zarif adalah duda yg ditinggal mati anak dan istrinya dlm kecelakaan mobil. Usianya masih relatif muda tapi sudah jelas dirinya kesengsem sejak lama dgn Ella dan tidak melepaskan kesempatan utk mencengkeram gadis ini. Dgn penawaran pernikahan setahun, akhirnya Ella takluk. Tapi ternyata ada hal-hal di luar perkiraan mereka yg mengubah perjanjian setahun tsb.
Sudah gampang ditebak sih plot ceritanya dari awal sampai akhir. Keluguan dan kenaifan Ella yg mengira dirinya hanyalah istri pengganti yg tidak dicintai Zarif. Sakit, lupa minum pil, kehamilan gak direncanakan itu spt pakem cerita yg gak habis-habis utk bahan romansa novel pendek begini. Yasudahlah... Lumayan aja mnrt saya.
Keluarga Ella lagi terpuruk hingga ke dasar. Ibunya sedang sakit parah, ayahnya depresi, dan kakak laki-lakinya yg gak tau diri hedonis tulen sama sekali gak bisa diandalkan. Satu-satunya solusi adalah Ella hrs menyetujui pernikahan yg disodorkan Zarif.
Zarif adalah duda yg ditinggal mati anak dan istrinya dlm kecelakaan mobil. Usianya masih relatif muda tapi sudah jelas dirinya kesengsem sejak lama dgn Ella dan tidak melepaskan kesempatan utk mencengkeram gadis ini. Dgn penawaran pernikahan setahun, akhirnya Ella takluk. Tapi ternyata ada hal-hal di luar perkiraan mereka yg mengubah perjanjian setahun tsb.
Sudah gampang ditebak sih plot ceritanya dari awal sampai akhir. Keluguan dan kenaifan Ella yg mengira dirinya hanyalah istri pengganti yg tidak dicintai Zarif. Sakit, lupa minum pil, kehamilan gak direncanakan itu spt pakem cerita yg gak habis-habis utk bahan romansa novel pendek begini. Yasudahlah... Lumayan aja mnrt saya.
March 15, 2021
For one year only
Once, Ella Gilchrist had the gall to turn down playboy prince Zarif al Rastani's proposal. To ensure peace and stability to his country Zarif must now marry, so when Ella returns begging for his help, he'll give it...on one condition.
Three years ago, Zarif needed only moments to ignite a passion in her that left her breathless, until his adamant declaration that he could never love her broke her heart. But if she is to rescue her family from imminent and permanent ruin, Ella must agree to a year of marriage, on his arm and in his bed!
Once, Ella Gilchrist had the gall to turn down playboy prince Zarif al Rastani's proposal. To ensure peace and stability to his country Zarif must now marry, so when Ella returns begging for his help, he'll give it...on one condition.
Three years ago, Zarif needed only moments to ignite a passion in her that left her breathless, until his adamant declaration that he could never love her broke her heart. But if she is to rescue her family from imminent and permanent ruin, Ella must agree to a year of marriage, on his arm and in his bed!
August 23, 2014
For the first time in a very long time I was able to read an LG novel without skimming. Sexual tension between the leads was palpable and I loved the display of hero's jealousy and vulnerability.
P.S.I do still think there are too many inner thoughts and descriptions. Nonetheless I hope her next one is just as good or even better.
P.S.I do still think there are too many inner thoughts and descriptions. Nonetheless I hope her next one is just as good or even better.
May 4, 2015
İçinde Arapların olduğu hikayeleri sevemiyorum elimde değil..Çok sevdiğim Lynne Graham'ın hikayesi bile olsa..Dük olsun düşes olsun Şeyh olmasın..Özellikle şu ara..
December 14, 2014
Zarif <3
November 19, 2020
Kisahnya Zarif dan Ella menjadi penutup trilogi Ravelli bersaudara. Zarif adalah raja dari timur tengah, sementara Ella adalah gadis Inggris. Tiga tahun yang lalu, Zarif melamar Ella namun ditolak dengan alasan Ella tak sanggup menjadi ratu di kerajaan Zarif yang masih menomor duakan wanita. Padahal sesungguhnya Ella tak mau menjadi bayang-bayang mendiang istri Zarif yang takkan pernah dilupakan pria itu.
Kini, karena kesalahan kakaknya, Ella harus menemui Zarif untuk krisis finansial yang dihadapi keluarganya. Zarif menawarkan bantuan dengan syarat Ella menikah dengannya selama setahun. Ella tak punya pilihan dan mengikuti persyaratan yang diajukan itu. Kenyataannya di antara keduanya masih ada perasaan lama yang tersimpan.
Saya ga suka karakter Zarif. Mungkin karena didikan bangsawan yang kaku di kalangan kerajaan membuatnya selalu dominan. Dia bahkan tak segan memarahi Ella, agar tidak melewati batas terhadap raja. Sementara Ella sendiri dibandingkan Belle dan Betsy pada buku #1 dan #2, nyaris tidak ada istimewanya. Kecuali rela berkorban demi orangtuanya dihitung sebagai kelebihan. Interaksi keduanya juga ga semanis dua buku sebelumnya.
Kini, karena kesalahan kakaknya, Ella harus menemui Zarif untuk krisis finansial yang dihadapi keluarganya. Zarif menawarkan bantuan dengan syarat Ella menikah dengannya selama setahun. Ella tak punya pilihan dan mengikuti persyaratan yang diajukan itu. Kenyataannya di antara keduanya masih ada perasaan lama yang tersimpan.
Saya ga suka karakter Zarif. Mungkin karena didikan bangsawan yang kaku di kalangan kerajaan membuatnya selalu dominan. Dia bahkan tak segan memarahi Ella, agar tidak melewati batas terhadap raja. Sementara Ella sendiri dibandingkan Belle dan Betsy pada buku #1 dan #2, nyaris tidak ada istimewanya. Kecuali rela berkorban demi orangtuanya dihitung sebagai kelebihan. Interaksi keduanya juga ga semanis dua buku sebelumnya.
March 30, 2021
I’m not going to go into a long review, as I feel Danielle’s review was thorough and closely matched my feelings. This was a third in a series, and for me, although it was a pleasant read I was always waiting for that oomph of feelings I like to experience! I enjoyed the characters more from the other two stories and they made a brief appearance in this book.
January 1, 2018
AKA the one where she gets mad, steals his car, and violate's his country's no-women-driving ban? That's pretty much the only thing I remember about this book.
January 7, 2019
I enjoyed Ella and Zarif's story. They wasted years by not openly telling the other, their feelings. Love the HE A.
November 21, 2020
MUUYY aburrido, no lo terminé de leer.
Por eso no lo agrego a mi reto de lectura
Por eso no lo agrego a mi reto de lectura
December 22, 2020
Baca yg versi gramedia online
August 20, 2021
I read it twice by now... by accident.. it was part of a series so read the other stories too, otherwise it feels little too fast. Its good for one time read.
November 8, 2023
Lovely story
August 18, 2025
I will make you pay
I love Ms. Graham's stories! Miscommunication, misconduct and misunderstandings are apparently my spice of life and she never fails to fulfil that!!
I love Ms. Graham's stories! Miscommunication, misconduct and misunderstandings are apparently my spice of life and she never fails to fulfil that!!
August 9, 2024
Good read
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