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The First Night

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Join New York Times Best Selling Authors Lexi Blake and M. J. Rose as they take you to ancient Persia—a land of magic, erotic delights and exotic danger.

Discover the beginnings of 1001 Dark Nights…

The First Night
Trapped in the body of the legendary Scheherazade, a young woman named Camille, finds herself in a land of harems, wizards, and ruthless rulers. A student of time travel, a descendant of a witch, and a curious and sensitive soul, Camille is trapped by the king’s order. Night after night she’s forced to tell stories of her travels across the planes in order to keep herself alive. Tales of the erotic, the romantic, the magical, and the sensual, she entertains the king in the hopes that he will spare her life. Desperate to get back to her own time, she turns to the one man who might be able to save her.

Khalid is a member of an ancient order of mages, his power granted to him by a Djinn. The most feared man in the kingdom, he is still forced to do the king’s bidding and the king wants to know if Scheherazade is a witch. Khalid sees through the mask Camille wears and knows she’s the one woman promised to him by fate. He’ll do anything to have her, anything to love her. But to save her means losing her forever…

51 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2015

12 people are currently reading
1149 people want to read

About the author

Lexi Blake

182 books6,379 followers
NY Times and USA Today bestselling author Lexi Blake lives in North Texas with her husband, three kids, and the laziest rescue dog in the world. She began writing at a young age, concentrating on plays and journalism. It wasn't until she started writing romance and urban fantasy that she found the stories of her heart. She likes to find humor in the strangest places and believes in happy endings no matter how odd the couple, threesome, or foursome may seem.

Her first novel, Their Virgin Captive: Masters of Ménage, Book 1, was a collaboration with New York Times bestselling author Shayla Black. There are five more books available in the series: Their Virgin's Secret, Their Virgin Concubine, Their Virgin Princess, Their Virgin Hostage, and Their Virgin Secretary. The next book in the series, Their Virgin Mistress, is releasing this April.

In addition to the Masters of Ménage series, she is the author of the Masters and Mercenaries series. There are eight full-length novels and four novellas available now, with more coming in 2015.

In 2013, Lexi also began releasing her urban fantasy series, Thieves. The first five are available now, with Ripper, a spin-off to the series, coming in 2015.

Sign up for Lexi's newsletter at http://lexiblake.net/contact.html#new....

For more information about her books, her appearances and her wacky life visit her Facebook page (http://goo.gl/q2IHnJ) or her website (http://www.lexiblake.net).

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5 stars
113 (26%)
4 stars
114 (27%)
3 stars
122 (29%)
2 stars
50 (11%)
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21 (5%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
Profile Image for Nadine Bookaholic.
3,730 reviews527 followers
June 2, 2020
I have been reading some of the books in this series for a while now and I do not know how I missed the book that started it all. Oh what an intriguing tale, we learn all about Camille being trapped in the body of Scheherazade and she has to tell a story to the king every night but she ends them on a cliffhanger so that he will not do her harm and call for her again the next night to complete the story. Only she will begin another and end that one on a cliffhanger as well. She's a smart one that's for sure.

Khalid is a mage and the King wants him to find out if Scheherazade is a witch, only Khalid knows exactly who she is. EEEKKK

Such a great quick read that had some spice but a whole lot of suspense. If you are looking for something to dive into that can be read in just a couple of hours this is a perfect read or listen, which is what I did. Natalie Ross did a wonderful job bringing this book to life.

Happy Reading or Listening!!!
Profile Image for Darcy.
14.4k reviews543 followers
February 14, 2015
I like how this story twists the classic 1001 Nights Tale and brings about how all the authors have been working with this series. I loved how the past authors series made a guest appearance. With how this one ended it makes me hope that there is more, I really want Camille to find a way to be happy.
Profile Image for Megan Riverina Romantics.
1,367 reviews75 followers
February 14, 2018
Rating: 3/5
Heat Rating: 3/5
Narrator Performance: 3/5

Even though the 1001 Dark Nights series has been out for a few years now I'm just starting to read the novellas. This is a prequel to the series and wasn't even released until after like 9 or 10 of the novellas were published but me being the anal person I am I chose to read this first. I think it was a good choice.

I liked the way that this story sets up the series even though every novella in the series is a standalone read. Each one is written by a different author and set in a different world and we learn in this story how they are tied together within the series.

We also learned how Camille became "stuck" in Scheherazade's body and a bit about what her life was about before she landed where she was. Camille's kindness was readily apparent and made her likeable. Unfortunately Camille's sensitivity came across as naivety and I wasn't quite convinced that her behavior and words matched what her background was. That may have been due to the narrator though. I wasn't overly find of her. Anyways Camille apparently can walk through time and sort of possesses people. She then lives in their bodies and experience their lives as if they were her own. She's done this tons of times and that's where she gets the stories that she tells the king. However if she had experienced all that then wouldn't she be sort of worldly? Yet when she meets someone that she knows can help her she acts all shy and scared. That part didn't make any sense to me.

Khalid was an interesting character. He was somewhat progressive yet he was obviously from the time period the story was written in. I liked him and I felt a bit bad for him too. He knew everything about Camille but she didn't know him. He finally gets to meet her in real life and things don't work out the way he expects them to.

The love story between Camille and Khalid was an insta-love sort of thing but I thought that it was entirely plausible the way the authors wrote it. That was cool since insta-love isn't something I generally like. I just wished there was a bit more to it. He was so into her and she had to catch up to him. It was a bit off balanced and like I said I felt bad for him.

All in all I'm happy I read/listened to this novella. Although I haven't read any of the other stories I sort of knew how the series is set up. Reading this clarified it for me and made me excited to read the other novellas in the series.

About the narrator....
I've got mixed feelings about the narrator. Her pace was pretty good. I didn't really like her voice though. And there was literally no difference in the way she performed the characters. I don't think I'd want to listen to another of her performances.
Profile Image for Zita.
874 reviews
February 6, 2017
A tale with no ending…

Camille is an observer through time and the astral planes stuck in the body of another from a previous age. She has taken the place of Scheherazade; the spinner of tales for her survival to a king who will take her life if he is not satisfactorily entertained by her stories each night. She sees no favorable end to this existence and fears the day she runs out of stories to tell him. Then one day she meets a mysterious mage who brings her hope and much more, a gorgeous man who sees through to her hidden soul, a man who has waited for the day of their destined meeting his whole life. She cannot help but be drawn to him body and soul and she shares her dilemma.

Khalid is a mage who having been found worthy was blessed with the powers of the Djinn and has always had premonitions of his soul mate whom he recognizes as the woman within Scheherazade’s body. He sees through the façade, he sees her true self. His powers allowed him to share much in her life through time and space unbeknownst to her or rather not remembered by her until they became one. There is no doubt that this would have happened for destiny had written their paths. She wants to go home and he we will try to send her there even though it means losing her. Will he succeed?

This is a short story of about 50 pages or so. Yet there was enough depth for you to feel the plight and the emotions of the two main characters. The descriptions were vivid enabling your imagination to picture the surroundings. It was an enjoyable twist on the tale of Scheherazade. The ending though is no ending; you are left wanting more and feeling that the story is unfinished with no idea if it ever will be. These authors did a Scheherazade on the readers; we are left with a status quo. This reader was not amused by the irony. The weaver of tales deserves a conclusion to her own tale and it would not have detracted from the premise of the series if this story had a true conclusion and an HEA for these destined lovers.

The work ends at 61% on a kindle the rest being previews of other books, fillers which are never appreciated and were ignored on purpose.
Profile Image for Debi.
655 reviews
October 15, 2016
This was one of the most boring stories I've ever read. In honesty, I ended up skimming most of it because it was putting my brain to sleep. It was so very close to a DNF. I wanted to read it as an introduction to the other stories and that's all that pushed me through to the end. Unnecessary and extremely boring. I love this concept of these books. I just hope the stories themselves are better than this hot mess. Skip it and move right on to the stories.
Profile Image for Alaina.
7,374 reviews203 followers
November 16, 2019
OMG when I found these on audible.. I slightly freaked out because I've been dying to dive into the rest of the series. Heck, even the beginning was worth it.

The First Night is the first little novella of the 1001 Dark Nights series. It was an okay book and I don't think I've ever listened to one of Lexi's books beforehand either. Or read one. In all honesty, I wasn't hoping for everything to be spectacular because not every book is. I was, however, hoping for something to hold my interest.

This book just seemed like background noise really. I liked it because it short and sweet to the point but it didn't really rock my world. The characters were okay but nothing really stuck out or wowed me. The romance was hot and steamy when it needed to be but I was rather board with this one.

Doesn't mean I won't get through most of this series because I'm honestly hoping I can knock them all out one day. Just to say I did it because honestly.. it's a lot of novellas in a series.
Profile Image for Tina.
792 reviews1 follower
October 24, 2018
Characters - 3
Story - 4
Pace - 4
Quality - 3.5
Cover & Blurb - 3
Overall - 3.5

Excited to read the next in the series. And eventually, find out what happens to Camille and Khalid. I don't know when, or if, they'll get their own book, but I hope so.
Profile Image for Ha7723 Ha.
2 reviews
August 10, 2018
هاي
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Queen Akanno.
10 reviews8 followers
February 21, 2020
Just when the story got so good... Really looking forward to reading more of Khalid and Camille's story.
Profile Image for Lynn.
198 reviews
October 7, 2020
Loved this sneak peek into the story of the Traveler :)
Profile Image for Ruth Mackay.
474 reviews
March 8, 2024
A short novella to give you a taste/ snippet of Lexi’s stories and style of writing.
Profile Image for  Thea™.
3,784 reviews11 followers
7-tbr-ooit
March 24, 2017
A gift from the author for joining the newsletter
1,115 reviews
January 1, 2024
A quick sexy read that brings more details to the 1001 night series. This is a very short story with no real ending. What saved it for me - it was super short, it made me feel for Camille and how she was trapped like Scheherazade. I didn't like feeling like the king with no ending to the story.
Profile Image for Karen Laird.
114 reviews4 followers
September 16, 2017
Say the name Scheherazade and strains of the immortal music come floating through my mind. As a young girl my mother had a two album LP of Scheherazade by the Berlin Orchestra that I played till it was so scared and worn that it would play no longer. It wasn’t until I was in high school that I truly read some of the stories of Scheherazade and fell even more in love with the wonderful story of this young lady. In my innocence I did not understand the brilliance of her stories and the true story of what she was accomplishing. But her stories were captivating to my young mind and I fell into her web and was drawn into the land of endless time.
I am so excited about the project of the recreation and retelling of the story of Scheherazade. It is such an immense undertaking and such an opportunity to share between authors with a common theme. It will be a joy to read and see where a twenty-first century woman’s spin on an old story takes us. Who better to start the game than the formable Lexi Blake and M. J. Rose.
Having read several of M. J. Rose’s previous works, I knew that I would be in for a treat and a sensuous trip back in time. From the start, two new elements were introduced that guaranteed captivation of the audience and a new spin - time travel and a bloodline to La Lune a “witch” and enchantress dating back in time who played a central role in M. J.’s book The Witch of Painted Sorrows.
Limited to novella length, The First Night, still took major steps towards back story and character development of the major characters in the story. By the end of the book, I had fallen under the spell of the central characters and was finding myself fascinated with the king, who we only met from a distance. This first story stayed focused on Scheherazade (Camille in another time and place) and Khalid the king’s mage.
Hints of themes were scattered and introduced throughout the work much like dangling participles, but these were dangling hopes of stories to come. These hints guaranteed to captivate the literary soul who longs for closure. Despite these wonderful hidden gems and glimmers, Lexi and M. J. still shared a complete story between the pages of this short work in a masterful way that still managed to leave this reader sated, but with a hunger for the potential of what might come with the next book. Have they indeed given us a taste of what Scheherazade did with the king each night?
Lexi Blake and M.J. Rose worked well together. Their writing was so seamless, that this reader could not sense when one or the other writer was at work. The ebb and flow of the storyline kept the reader eager to turn the next page, ready to see where the plot would be taking them, hoping that the next page would not herald the dreaded words – THE END. Needless to say, they have set the bar for the rest of the series. I look forward to reading the continuing series.
I would give this novella a solid FIVE STAR rating. The book was a free offering and no review was required or requested in exchange
Profile Image for Steph.
993 reviews90 followers
October 2, 2015
After more than a dozen books in the 1001 Dark Nights series, we finally get a glimpse into the king's harem where Scheherazade weaves her tales.

Camille is a student of time travel, but she gets more than she bargained for when she gets stuck in the king's harem in Scheherazade's body. Scheherazade is called a witch by the wives, but the king is entranced by her storytelling, allowing her to live another day so he can hear the conclusion to each amazing tale. When the king calls in Khalid, a most fearsome magician, to determine Scheherazade's true motives, Khalid recognizes his souls mate immediately. Even though Camille wants nothing more than to be able to return to her land and time, Khalid's presence is enough to make her second guess that choice. But he is the only one that can send her back home, will he allow the other half of his soul to leave him?

THE FIRST NIGHT is a very short novella in the innovative and fun 1001 Dark Nights series featuring magical and mystical erotic stories by a variety of popular authors inspired by the classic The Arabian Nights tale. This book was different than the others in this series in that it actually told the Scheherazade's story. It mentioned her retelling of several actual 1001 Dark Nights stories within THE FIRST NIGHT, which I could appreciate having read (and LOVED) many of the stories myself. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and getting to know the inspiration behind this excellent series...it's not often you see so many acclaimed authors contributing individual stories from existing series to a completely different audience, which I personally think is a brilliant thing. Although I wish there would've been more of Camille and Khalid together, the tension and longing between the two was tragic. It sounds like there will be a follow up to their story at some point and I'm looking forward to devouring it.
Bottom Line: Excellent and necessary addition to the 1001 Dark Nights series, THE FIRST NIGHT will get you even more invested in this terrific series.
Profile Image for Stacey.
968 reviews13 followers
January 23, 2015
Camille is a traveler and a story teller . she comes to be in another womans body who is to be the kings bride . but one day Camille comes to meet a man a djinn and Khalid whom changes her world forever . does she stay in not her time and still in habit the woman she is . or go back where Khalid is not or will he . and how long until the king takes her the witch though that is not what she is .
Profile Image for Conny.
1,137 reviews35 followers
June 13, 2015
I have seen the 1001 Dark Nights books around and have been wanting to read them all, so when I got the chance to download this book for free I jumped on it. Now this is a fairly quick read that was well written and I liked the characters and the steamy romance, but the books left things unfinished and that was disappointing. However I know I will jump at the chance to read anything else by Lexi Blake again.
Profile Image for Madison Warner Fairbanks.
3,445 reviews495 followers
January 6, 2015
The First Night by Lexi Blake and M. J. Rose

Novella. Erotica? Quasi time travel. Harem. King. Magic. Spirit walking.
Written in present tense.
Not a real ending. Theoretical. Mystic? Not a resolution.

“If I do nothing else, I will give Khalid what he needs. I will be his to command at the very least in the intimacy of his bedchamber.”
Excerpt From: Lexi_Blake_and_MJ_Rose.
Profile Image for Andrea (mrsaubergine).
1,584 reviews92 followers
January 25, 2016
Lovely introduction to 1001 Dark Nights, which cleverly references some of the later books in the series while telling the story of a woman stuck in the body of Sheherazade. Her timeless love affair with magician Khalid is hot, and I hope this couple will make a reappearance sometime. Definitely makes me want to read others in the series.
Profile Image for Book Monitor.
871 reviews14 followers
September 22, 2016
This is a very enjoyable little tale with a clever idea at it's heart. Camille has travelled through time and landed in the body of Scheherazade, the teller of tales. She is introduced to the King's mage, and this is the story of their devloping relationship.. A good story that is well written, well paced and credible. I will be reading more of this series and these authors.
Profile Image for Sapphire.
95 reviews14 followers
January 2, 2015
I'm loving the 1001 Dark Night Novellas. I think her decision was a little selfish in the end, but it was a good story. I feared for her life right along with her. I liked the twist from the original story.
Profile Image for Angie.
2,456 reviews3 followers
January 2, 2015
This was a good short story and has me looking forward to reading the rest of 1001 Dark Nights.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews

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