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Brides for Billionaires #3

Married for the Sheikh's Duty

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The playboy sheikh’s last temptation…

Thanks to a recent scandalous exposé, the damage to Sheikh Zayn Al-Ghamdi’s reputation is threatening his family’s future.

So when fiercely independent Amalia Christensen has the gall to blackmail him with further ruination to ensure her innocent brother’s freedom, Zayn chooses to keep his enemies close…and make Amalia his temporary fiancée!

Zayn’s only duty is to his country. He can’t allow himself any emotional ties. But the hunger Amalia unleashes in him soon tempts the playboy sheikh to take their relationship from business to the bedroom…

224 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2016

65 people are currently reading
94 people want to read

About the author

Tara Pammi

500 books194 followers
Tara Pammi can't remember a moment when she wasn't lost in a book, especially a romance which, for a teenager, was much more exciting than mathematics textbook. Before long, she was hiding romance novels within bigger textbooks, smuggling them into the home through her unsuspecting younger cousin’s school bag, and cycling more than a few miles to her favorite library to borrow more.

Through numerous ‘true’ loves :-) and traveling thousands of miles from family and friends, her attachment to books and especially romance novels stayed constant.

One fine day, toiling away as a grad student in a basement lab, Tara started typing the beginning of a story instead of her thesis. But it wasn’t until years later, encouraged by her real life hero, Tara realized what she truly wanted to do was to write.

Tara lives in Texas with her real life hero and her two little girls. When she isn't writing or reading, Tara can be found failing in the kitchen, watching TV or making resolutions to exercise more, or even a little.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
Profile Image for StMargarets.
3,204 reviews630 followers
September 14, 2018
Married for the Sheikh's Duty, A Retelling

Sheikh hero: I’ve been outed as a manwhore by a tabloid and now my beloved sister’s engagement is in jeopardy. I’ll just have to find a virgin broodmare to marry so everyone in my imaginary kingdom will think I’ve turned over a new leaf.

Personal Assistant heroine: I’m here in this imaginary kingdom to bust my twin brother out of jail for drug dealing. He was set up by the Sheikh’s cousin. I can’t ask my dad for help since he left me and mommy after the acrimonious divorce. He is a prominent historian and a citizen of this country, making me half “Arab,” but –

Hero: You there. Where’s your application to be a virgin broodmare?

Heroine: !?

Hero: I’m so attracted to you.

Heroine: But you’re a manwhore and my father broke my heart.

Reviewer: zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz for forty pages

Hero: So we’ll fake an engagement.
Heroine: That’s blackmail.
Hero: But first a makeover. Don’t cut your golden locks.
Reviewer: zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz for forty pages

Hero: Who is that guy?
Heroine: My boss. He was worried about me.
Hero: I’m insanely jealous.
Heroine: Don’t be. Let’s have sex.
Hero: you were a virgin?
Heroine: *bliss for three pages*
Hero: My sister is safely married and we’ve had sex, so see ya.
Heroine: But what about my brother?
Hero: My bad. He was innocent.
Heroine: But –

Hero: I screwed up. She not answering my texts, so I’ll pretend to have a wedding ceremony. That will draw her in.

Heroine: How could you marry another virgin broodmare when I was a virgin broodmare?
Hero: You cut your hair. Everyone in the kingdom thinks you’re too outspoken, but I want us to marry. And your hair will grow out, I suppose.

Epilogue: Five years later
Two kids and everyone now loves the heroine.

Reviewer: ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ


Profile Image for Rgreader.
734 reviews54 followers
March 19, 2017
Dnf'd on page 54...why because the heroine was very annoying and unlikeable.
She's judgemental towards the hero based on tabloid stories. That's unbelievable now. Tabloids carrying such weight when they are known to publish fake news...strike one against heroine.
The Virgin shaming in this book a huge turnoff. The matchmaker being so judgemental when its her job to find spouses the client wants...so not professional. She and the heroine involved in virgin shaming...making it a bad thing for a woman to choose to not be promiscuous....who benefits from this the most...the men...these virgin shaming women judge as manwhores....strike two against the heroine.
The way the heroine attacked the hero as she tried to get him to believe her defense of her brother....stupid. She didn't try to win him over in a soft manner.. It was hard and accusatory towards the hero...strike three against the heroine.

This author has more misses than hits with this reader and Married for the Sheikh's Duty is a miss. Big time..
Profile Image for Jenny.
3,160 reviews558 followers
November 8, 2016
It was ok I guess I'm not into this author's writing:(
Profile Image for Bibi.
1,287 reviews133 followers
November 9, 2016
Zayn and Amalia's story is quite typically, standard Harlequin fare, yet, Pammi succeeds in making it a fast-paced story. Thankfully, she also gives us gorgeous characters, beautiful locations, and really great dialogue. All done so adeptly and in a manner that will keep you engrossed until the very end!
Profile Image for Maria Rose.
2,631 reviews267 followers
November 10, 2016
Married for the Sheikh's Duty is the third book in the Brides for Billionaires series, one which deals with the scandal that four wealthy, international businessman have found themselves embroiled in when an untrue article surfaced in a tabloid. To regain their reputation, these four men have come up with the solution of marrying quickly, with the help of a matchmaker. In this story, it's Sheikh Zayn Al-Gahmdi's turn. He's the ruler of the small Arab country Khaleej and any woman he chooses to marry will have to understand the country and its customs, plus be a suitable bride for a royal such as himself. His requirements? “Beautiful, young, malleable, not particularly smart and a virgin.” When Amalia Christensen crashes his match matchmaking parade (so to speak), he's quick to realize she's not one of the woman he's supposed to interview for the position. But she intrigues him and when she tells him her real reason for being at the palace, to help her brother who has been wrongly imprisoned, he's quick to seize on it as an opportunity for them to get something they both want. If she'll play at being his fiance, at least until his sister is married (satisfying her conservative soon to be in-laws that her brother is reforming his playboy ways), he'll look into the case of Amalia's brother's imprisonment. Amalia has no choice but to accept. But as they spend time together, days and sultry nights, will their fake engagement turn into something real?

I loved this story! It's my first by this author, and definitely won't be my last as I thoroughly enjoyed every detail, from the characters to the setting to the plot. Amalia is a delightful heroine – yes, she fits the virginal requirement of the Sheikh's list, as well as being beautiful and young (at age 26). However malleable she is not. She's feisty and smart, willing to stand up to Zayn when needed. She’s a business woman too, currently on leave from her job as a personal assistant to a multi-millionaire. Amalia comes from a split family, her father, an historian and native of Khaleej having divorced her mother, an international model. Amalia stayed with her mother, moving away from Khaleej while her brother stayed with their father. She and her brother had kept in touch over the years which is why she'd returned to Khaleej to try to help him in his predicament. But she is still estranged from her father, and bitter that he was so easily able to cut her out of his life when she and her mother left the country. It's made her wary of getting involved in any kind of relationship. However because of her connection to the country she has a keen understanding of its politics, laws and customs, which is certainly a boon to Zayn.

The Sheikh is exactly the kind of dominant, alpha hero that I like. His position and his culture not surprisingly might make him somewhat misogynistic and indeed he has a bit of that kind of attitude at the beginning. But he definitely respects women, cares deeply for his sister and her happiness (to the extent that he's willing to marry to protect her reputation), and is quick to realize that Amalia might be more than he bargained for. He likes her wit, her strength, her courage and her intelligence. Her business acumen and her understanding of his country and his personal challenges as a ruler and a man go far to make him realize just how fortunate he is to have met her. He definitely has a possessive streak (as evidenced by his jealousy when they meet Amalia's former boss) but it just serves to cement his feelings for her. Zayn has degrees in architecture and business, and it's the former that can be seen in the designs of his palace. He might wish that he could have pursued a career in architecture but he knows his place in the royal lineage and his duty to his country. Having a woman like Amalia to share these things with is not something he takes lightly.

Amalia and Zayn share an intense attraction to each other, one that is quickly realized in some sensual love scenes. Their fake engagement starts to feel very real as they interact with family and friends and are under the media spotlight. But both have reasons for trying to keep their hearts from being involved, and there are some ups and downs before they get to that happy ending, which is thoroughly deserved and comes with a lovely epilogue. I highly recommend this story, and plan to seek out more books by this author.

Note: a copy of this story was provided by the publisher for review.

This review can be found at Harlequin Junkie: http://harlequinjunkie.com/review-mar...
Profile Image for Corinna | Corinnas World of Books.
2,602 reviews67 followers
January 23, 2018
Meine Meinung :

In“ Liebesstern über dem Wüstenpalast“ geht es um Amalia, die als sie Scheich Zayn Al-Ghamdi gegenübersteht nicht versteht warum dieser ihr so verwirrende Fragen stellt. Bis sie begreift, er sucht eine Frau... Warum will er gerade sie als Frau ???

Amalia & Scheich Zayn Al-Ghamdi sind zwei Charaktere, die unterschiedlich nicht sein könnten. Sie eigentlich eine normale Angestellte und hofft auf einen Job im Palast. Doch Zayn hat ganz andere Pläne.

Der Schreibstil ist angenehm flüssig und wird im Wechsel aus der Perspektive von beiden Charakteren erzählt. Der Leser kann so beide intensiver kennen lernen und ihre Gedanken und Gefühle erfahren während des Lesens. Die Kulisse des Palasts und der Wüste ist eindrucksvoll und man kann seinen Alltag für ein paar Stunden vergessen.

Die Spannung und Handlung wird mit jeder Seite mehr und man hofft, dass beide zueinander finden. Obwohl es das Schicksal mit Amalia Bruder nicht gut meint und sie ihrem Bruder helfen will. So kommt es, daSs sie ihn durch ihren Erpressungsversuch heiraten muss, damit Zayn die Unschuld ihres Bruders herausfindet. Was passiert wenn sie sich wieder trennen müssen?

Das Cover finde ich sehr schön und es weckt direkt Lust in die Geschichte zu starten. Die Farben passen einfach zusammen.

Fazit :

Mit „ Liebesstern über dem Wüstenpalast“ gelingt der Autorin eine fesselnde Kurzgeschichte, die den Leser in die Welt der Scheichs führt. Ich freue mich schon auf, das nächste Werk aus dem Verlag.

Profile Image for Dini Annisa Humaira.
187 reviews6 followers
April 27, 2020
Amalia dgn nekat berusaha menemui Syekh Zayn Al-Ghamdi guna menyelidiki ulang dan membebaskan adiknya yg menurut Amalia menerima tuduhan palsu. Dengan koneksi boss nya, Amalia berhasil memasuki istana. Saat sedang berkeliling istana dikarenakan bosan menunggu, Amalia tidak sengaja memasuki ruang kerja sang Syekh. Sang Syekh yg salah paham mengira Amalia adalah salah satu dri calon mempelai Syekha merasa tertantang oleh Amalia yg suka membantah dan menentang dirinya.

Zayn menjanjikan akan menyelidiki kembali kasus adik Amalia, tpi karena tahu Amalia tdk akan rugi apa2 bila membocorkan mengenai rahasia kerajaan ke media dan tidak ingin mengambil resiko, Zayn menawarkan untuk menjadi tunangan pura2nya sementara waktu sampai adiknya menikah.

Lambat laun Amalia terpesona oleh Zayn, tpi mengetahui Zayn dan keluarga kerajaan tidak menganggapnya pantas sebagai Syekha, Amalia memendam sakit hatinya. Di lain pihak, semakin lama Zayn bersama Amalia, ia jatuh cinta. Padahal itu tdk pernah ada dlm perhitungannya.

...
overall ceritanya seru! dan tinggal satu buku lgi yg belum ku baca dri seri ini. Tpi sayang gaada ebooknya di gramedia digital ataupun play book :)))
634 reviews
March 13, 2018
The playboy sheikh's last temptation… Thanks to a recent scandalous exposé, the damage to Sheikh Zayn Al-Ghamdi's reputation is threatening his family's future. His sister’s fiancée’s conservative family is threatening to call of the wedding because they don’t want to be involved with a salacious family. He wants to assure she experiences a true love match, since he can only marry for duty. So, when fiercely independent Amalia Christensen has the gall to blackmail him with further ruination and exposure to the gossip rag, to ensure her innocent brother's freedom, Zayn chooses to keep his enemies close…and make Amalia his temporary fiancée! Zayn's only duty is to his country. He can't allow himself any emotional ties. But the hunger Amalia unleashes in him soon tempts the playboy sheikh to take their relationship from business to the bedroom…
Profile Image for Debra.
3,464 reviews13 followers
February 7, 2018
Married for the Sheikh's Duty

One of four men vilified by the media the hero here now needs a wide so that his sister can marry the man she loves. This is the third of four connecting stories of high profile men who were trashed by a certain tabloid. Now here he is blackmailed by a woman who needs his help to get her brother out of his prison. But with each having their own issues with relations it seems that there will not be love involved. But this is HP so there is guaranteed an HEA ending.
Profile Image for Amie Doughty.
398 reviews5 followers
May 21, 2019
I kind of liked Amalia's character (she's stronger than a lot of the female leads in Harlequin Presents), but I am baffled by the dialog in many places. People don't declaim in lengthy paragraphs as Pammi presents in a number of places in the novel. Very odd and confusing at times when I would read the new paragraph as a change in speaker only to realize that, no, she hadn't ended the last speaker's quote yet.
Profile Image for Marissa.
304 reviews29 followers
May 12, 2019
This was pretty much what I expected. Playboy Sheikh falls in love with a good woman and changes his bad boy ways. Zayan Al-Ghamdi is a typical alpha male hero in this romance. When he meets Amalia Christensen, the two end up in a fake relationship and engagement. He needs to clean up his image and she needs to free her brother from jail over false accusations.
Profile Image for Jule.
284 reviews6 followers
January 14, 2018
Ich habe fertig!
Schöne kurze Geschichte, die im arabischen Raum spielt. Erinnert sehr an Susan Mallery "Märchen unter den Wüstenhimmel" & genau das brauchte ich im Moment.
Das Cover ist immer noch eine Katastrophe 😅
Profile Image for MaryD.
1,737 reviews2 followers
June 24, 2020
This is the third in the series about four billionaires who need to "clean up their act" publicly and so agree that each needs to marry someone suitable enough to convince the world that they are no longer playboys & reprobates.

Amalia Christensen dares to blackmail Sheikh Zayn Al-Ghamdi into helping set her brother free from his prison, but Zayn turns the tables on her and forces her to act as his "beloved fiance" and fool his critics into believing that he has renounced his loose ways.

Decent story,but not my favorite of the three.
Profile Image for The Dragon Den Book Blog.
2,947 reviews65 followers
April 1, 2023
I got introduced to the romance world reading the graphic novel of this book and went into the actual book itself eventually. I was originally just into young adult and popular fictional reads, but this was an opening to a door that has now led me to the romance reader I am.
Profile Image for E..
732 reviews6 followers
June 14, 2017
2 and 1/3 stars out of 5 stars. Skimmed through.

There was one part that confused me, but the rest of the book was a nice read. Strong, sassy heroine. Brooding hero. Good book.
Profile Image for Calysta.
843 reviews8 followers
March 29, 2019
dnf - as if I'm to feel sorry for a billionaire king who is also a sexist ass, no thanks
710 reviews12 followers
November 22, 2016
Sheikh Zayn Al-Ghamdi's has a problem when an  expose on him and his close friends is destroying his reputation.  His main concern is the gossip will in some way interfere in the marriage of his sister to the man she loves.  Enter Amalia Christensen who confronts Zayn to ask him to free her brother from jail as he was framed by the sheikh's cousin. When it doesn't seem like he will help she uses blackmail to force his hand.  Zayn to keep his secret makes Amalia pretend to be his fiancé and in return at the end of her usefulness he will free her brother.  At the end of her usefulness he will set her free.  Ms. Pammi has written a fantastic story about a sheikh that is so sure love doesn't exist and a strong willed women.  Amalia makes him question his belief that all he has is his kingdom and no room for love.  Wonderful story.
Profile Image for Charlisa.
83 reviews5 followers
February 7, 2017
Loved it

A strong woman refusing to let the man she precariously falls in love with walk all over her. She's everything the sheik doesn't want not realizing she's everything he needs
1,508 reviews51 followers
November 14, 2016
An excellent read with characters that had a lot of red tape to get through to find their happy ever after, well written and enjoyable.
Profile Image for RomLibrary.
5,789 reviews
hq-to-read
March 13, 2018
The playboy sheikh's last temptation…

Thanks to a recent scandalous exposé, the damage to Sheikh Zayn Al-Ghamdi's reputation is threatening his family's future.

So when fiercely independent Amalia Christensen has the gall to blackmail him with further ruination to ensure her innocent brother's freedom, Zayn choses to keep his enemies close… and make Amalia his temporary fiancée!

Zayn's only duty is to his country. He can't allow himself any emotional ties. But the hunger Amalia unleashes in him soon tempts the playboy sheikh to take their relationship from business to the bedroom
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews

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