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Carrying the Sheikh's Baby
Hired by the sheikh...
And expecting the royal heir!
When shy, academic Cat Smith is hired as a researcher by Sheikh Zane, she's thrilled--and completely dazzled by their overwhelming chemistry! Cat knows a fling could compromise her professional credibility, but resisting Zane's sensual caress feels utterly impossible. Until their passionate encounter has lasting consequences... Now carrying the heir to the kingdom means one thing--Cat must become Zane's queen!
Enjoy this scandalous royal baby romance!
And expecting the royal heir!
When shy, academic Cat Smith is hired as a researcher by Sheikh Zane, she's thrilled--and completely dazzled by their overwhelming chemistry! Cat knows a fling could compromise her professional credibility, but resisting Zane's sensual caress feels utterly impossible. Until their passionate encounter has lasting consequences... Now carrying the heir to the kingdom means one thing--Cat must become Zane's queen!
Enjoy this scandalous royal baby romance!
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2018
64 people are currently reading
100 people want to read
About the author
Heidi Rice
602 books412 followersMy name's Heidi Rice, I'm a USA Today Bestselling author. I'm married with two sons (which gives me rather too much of an insight into the male psyche!).
I love my job because it involves sitting down at my computer and getting swept up in a world of high emotions, sensual excitement, funny feisty women, sexy tortured men and glamourous locations where laundry doesn't exist ...
I also tutor a 14-week in-depth online Write a Romance Novel course. So, if you have ever wanted to learn how to write romance from a bestselling author, check it out here: www.profwritingacademy.com/course/wri...
Now I believe wholeheartedly that readers should give honest and open reviews on Goodreads and Amazon and elsewhere. If you didn't like a book you are entitled to say so (even if it's mine! ouch). But you may notice that none of my book reviews are less than four-stars. That's simply because as an author myself I know how pathetically sensitive I am about bad reviews and with that in mind I prefer to spread the love among other authors — and don't do public reviews of books I didn't like. Just thought I'd clarify that!
You can find out about my latest releases and all my other books at www.heidi-rice.com
I love my job because it involves sitting down at my computer and getting swept up in a world of high emotions, sensual excitement, funny feisty women, sexy tortured men and glamourous locations where laundry doesn't exist ...
I also tutor a 14-week in-depth online Write a Romance Novel course. So, if you have ever wanted to learn how to write romance from a bestselling author, check it out here: www.profwritingacademy.com/course/wri...
Now I believe wholeheartedly that readers should give honest and open reviews on Goodreads and Amazon and elsewhere. If you didn't like a book you are entitled to say so (even if it's mine! ouch). But you may notice that none of my book reviews are less than four-stars. That's simply because as an author myself I know how pathetically sensitive I am about bad reviews and with that in mind I prefer to spread the love among other authors — and don't do public reviews of books I didn't like. Just thought I'd clarify that!
You can find out about my latest releases and all my other books at www.heidi-rice.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
December 7, 2018
4.5 Cutie Christmas Countdown stars !
That's because this novel has the distinction of being voted ( by me ) as MY #1 FAVOURITE HARLEQUIN PRESENTS ROMANCE FROM AMONG ALL OF THE 2018 RELEASES !
Before I'd read this novel, I'd already decided that the following were my personal contenders for the #1 spot:
Lynne Graham's Castiglione's Pregnant Princess; Da Rocha's Convenient Heir; The Greek's Blackmailed Mistress; The Italian's Inherited Mistress . LG is obviously my fav HP author but I don't write biased reviews, or skew my ratings, in her favour. Proof of this can be seen from my 3 star review of The Secret Valtinos Baby.
Jennie Lucas' The Bride the Billionaire Demands
Heidi Rice's Bound By Their Scandalous Baby
Tara Pammi's Sheikh's Baby of Revenge
Kate Hewitt's Desert Prince's Stolen Bride with it's awesome sexy H who'd been celibate for 10 whopping years !
Caitlin Crews' The Bride's Baby of Shame with a H to die for ! ( But an exasperating heroine... )
Dani Collins' Sheikh's Princess of Convenience
Sharon Kendrick's The Italian's Christmas Housekeeper
Abby Green's An Innocent, A Seduction, A Secret
Carol Marinelli's The Innocent's Shock Pregnancy
But then this novel came and blew them all out of the water because it had everything that worked so well for me, personally:
1. The right amount of angst without being a sappy trainwreck;
2. An intelligent, beautiful, very educated heroine with a troubled past, who was feminine and NOT a harping, bitter shrew;
3. No cheating;
4. Spectacular sexual chemistry between the MC's;
5. A strong, silent type of gentleman H who was an alpha male without being a jerky asshole - although I do admit that some of the jerky asshole H's from this year's other novels are supremely sexy too;
6. A coherent plot that didn't meander into boring waters;
7. A storyline that stuck to the main issues and dialogue that wasn't written just for the sake of filling page space. I confess that some of my least fav HP's for this year contained pointless dialogue that contributed nothing to the story or to character development;
8. Solid, well written prose with a healthy balance between the informative/descriptive and narrative elements;
9. The narrative flows seamlessly, from the H's internal monologues to the heroine's. I always get very frustrated when other authors are unable to deal with this transition effectively, in a non clumsy manner;
10. Beautiful, romantic and sexy scenes set in the desert with the MC's riding the H's black stallion Pegasus and an awesome description of their wedding and wedding night;
11. The H's sexy and intriguing half brother Kasim, who was the chief of a nomadic Kholadi desert tribe. Kasim is so sexy that I hope he gets his own book ! The heroine's cute and endearingly funny maid Kasia was another wonderful minor character in this story.
And yes, I've come to my decision after examining all the novels released in 2018 in the HP category. Harlequin releases 8 new HP's each month and I think July or August had included a couple of extra books. Some of these books do not appear on my bookshelves but that's only because my reasons for disliking them were personal, superficial, silly and not justifiable. When a novel is well written but my shallow personal prejudices and beliefs lead me to find it unappealing, I usually refrain from including it in my GR's bookshelves. I give low ratings to novels only when I feel I can validate my opinions, with actual evidence from the books. I am totally capable of being an annoying asshole, but I try my best to avoid ranting on a regular basis. A couple of my GR friends, can verify that I am speaking the truth when I say that I have indeed viewed/skimmed/read all the HP's that were released each month for this year. That's because we often speak about these "unreviewed books" via personal messages.
Moving on to my review of this, my fav, HP novel for 2018...
Not only is this novel my 2018 fav, but it's H Zane is also my fav HP hero for this year. Sheikh Zane Ali Nawari Khan, the H of this novel, is:
1. Sexy as hell, with his tall muscular body, ice blue eyes and raven hair, sleek sheikh clothing, macho sabre swords that he always wears and manly knee high leather boots;
2. Tormented - so much so that he makes a woman want to comfort him and bang him at the same time. LOL;
3. Not a manwhore;
4. Chivalrous;
5. Kind;
6. The perfect combination of old world Arabian Nights manliness and arrogant, modern hotness.
In fact, I think he is he is the most scrumptious of all hottie alpha male H's in 2018's HPlandia and I'm gonna award him with a special prize:
The Winking Pussy Award For Sexiest H in HPlandia - 2018
LOL.
And YES, there are perverted connotations to the term "Winking Pussy Award."
This is actually the first time that I've chosen a H who's not been created out of the imagination of Lynne Graham. LG's H's are usually my favs because she's incomparable when it comes to describing my perfect idea of what a hot handsome man looks like. Unfortunately for LG, though, Heidi Rice upped the stakes when she came up with Zane.
This is the H, Zane:
Zane is the billionaire king of Narabia; it's a very private kingdom that restricts the entry of foreign travellers. It's described as beautiful in an utterly old world manner with all the necessary modern technological conveniences. I think the author's world building was commendable in this novel. Narabia didn't come across as just another one of those replaceable sheikhy desert kingdoms that populate HPlandia.
This is the H's stallion, Pegasus:
Zane's late father had been a tyrannical ruler who had him whipped severely, during his teenage years, when he tried to return to his mother in the U.S.A. Zane still bears the horrible scars of those whippings on his back. The H's mom had been a famous Hollywood starlet whose alcoholism had led to the ruination of her career. Zane meets the heroine, Dr. Catherine Smith, after she requests permission to gain accreditation for an investigative research paper that deals with the history/customs/culture etc of his kingdom. Catherine is a 24 year old lecturer at Cambridge. She's a little nerdy and is totally unaware of her physical attractiveness.
This is the heroine, Catherine:
Zane hires Cat to write a book on the history of Narabia because it's part of his modernization plan to introduce his very private kingdom to the rest of the world. Narabia is cloaked in secrets and governed by a somewhat archaic code of laws. The king ( Zane ) is treated as a divinely appointed absolute monarch and his people practically worship him. There's even a clause in the ancient constitutional scrolls that state that the king's sperm is sacred !
The H is hiding certain shameful family secrets that he hopes will never become public. These secrets are like an albatross around his neck because he's unable to love and trust another human being. He feels, and rightfully so, that these horrible issues will taint the image of his country in the eyes of the outside world. It's not any fault of his own but entirely due to his late father's tyranny and his parents' failed, scandalous marriage. The heroine figures out that he's keeping secrets from her but she doesn't push him to reveal anything. She merely tells him that these secrets are interfering with her ability to write a book that will reflect a truthful story of Narabia and it's history.
The MC's are soon unable to fight their feelings for each other and their relationship is consummated. The sex is fantastic but the H continues to shield his heart from the heroine. Cat was one of the most considerate, understanding and compassionate heroines. She knew that he was hurting but she was patient and decided to give him time to deal with his issues. The revelation of her pregnancy meant that they were forced to get married. Zane's proposal was very sweet and chivalrous: he actually proposed to her on bended knee ! And, he did this long before he told her that he loved her. He didn't blame her for the pregnancy or accuse her of trying to trap him and he didn't see it as a huge issue.
The main conflict between the MC's occurred after their marriage. The H was determined to have a cordial and civil relationship that included lots of steamy sex but he was reluctant to engage in emotional intimacy. He was also resentful of the strong feelings he had for her and worried about the fact that he was obsessed with her. She'd gotten under his skin and that was an untenable situation for a man who prided himself on his self control. When Cat confessed her love for him, he was shocked and pulled away from her:
His gaze became hooded, wary. ‘I told you I can’t offer you that,’ he said, as if he were reciting a treatise to a foreign power.
It's at this point that Cat finally took off the kid gloves, because she realized that compassion and patience were not working to build a stronger marital relationship. She was heart broken, angry, frustrated !
The only option was for her to leave him:
He’d made it very clear this was a constitutional arrangement—and tonight had proved his feelings weren’t ever going to change. Walking into the adjoining chamber, which she had been using as a study, she scribbled a short note—she owed him this much.
The most dramatic and romantic scene occurs at the end when Zane chases after Cat after she leaves him and drives off into the desert. The H swoops down in his black helicopter to intercept her, declare his love, confess his final big family secret and beg her to give him a second chance:
‘How could I not love you, Catherine?’ he murmured, his voice hoarse with need. ‘You’re smart and courageous and compassionate and determined and so sweet...’
He grasped her bottom and dragged her towards him until her thighs widened and her core was flush against the already prominent ridge in his pants.
‘And every time you’re in my arms, I know I can never have enough of you.’
He wasn't an asshole type of H, but he did grovel a lot for all the times when he had pulled away from her and refused to communicate verbally. In the epilogue, set a little over a year in the future, the MC's are happily married with their toddler daughter Kaliah. Zane is no longer filled with guilt over his mother's death and is now free to love his wife and child unconditionally.
Safety: No cheating, no OW, no OM, the heroine was a virgin and the H had been celibate for a while before meeting the heroine.
On a different note, I'd like to piggyback on this review and list my year end 2018 choices for the Best and Worst in HPlandia:
1. Runners up for the Best H in the "Winking Pussy Award" category were:
Adir from Tara Pammi's Sheikh's Baby of Revenge.
Xan from Lynne Graham's The Greek's Blackmailed Mistress.
Zayed from Kate Hewitt's Desert Prince's Stolen Bride.
Allisandru from Lynne Graham's The Italian's Inherited Mistress.
Vitale, that suave and urbane hottie from Lynne Graham's Castiglione's Pregnant Princess.
Jared, the tortured hunk from Heidi Rice's Captive at Her Enemy's Command.
Zac, the tattooed bad boy billionaire, from Lynne G's Da Rocha's Convenient Heir.
Ethan from Carol Marinelli's The Innocent's Shock Pregnancy.
Salvio, that sexy asshole from Sharon Kendrick's The Italian's Christmas Housekeeper.
Sebastio from Abby Green's An Innocent, A Seduction, A Secret.
Renzo, the smoldering Italian hottie from Caitlin Crews' The Bride's Baby of Shame.
Stefano, another sexy asshole from Jennie Lucas' The Heir the Prince Secures.
Lukas from Heidi Rice's Bound By Their Scandalous Baby.
2. My fav heroine of HPlandia 2018 is Lola from Jennie Lucas' The Baby the Billionaire Demands.
3. The least interesting novels of the year were written by Lucy Monroe, Louise Fuller, Cathy Williams, Susan Stephens, Andie Brock, Trish Morey and Jennifer Hayward. There are probably more but these are the ones that come to mind immediately. I honestly have no idea if I'll be reviewing books by these authors in the future. At this point my decision is veering towards a "no", especially for Lucy Monroe and Cathy Williams but I never can tell if I'll be tempted by a blurb that sounds exciting.
4. Most disappointing HPlandia author for 2018 is Lucy Monroe because both of her novels for this year were uninteresting and unromantic with unlikable MC's. Cathy Williams' The Tycoon's Ultimate Conquest was also a DNF for me because it was super boring and contained one of my biggest personal triggers: the dowdy, bland and extremely plain Jane heroine. And yes, I AM an ass for being so shallow but I'm not gonna pretend to be something I'm not just so that people will like me...
5. Most consistent authors, in my opinion, for 2018 were: Lynne G, Heidi Rice, Abby Green and Kate Hewitt.
I hope that 2019 is a better year in HPlandia and I can't wait to see what my fav authors have in store for us. Lynne G, Jennie Lucas, Heidi Rice, Abby Green and Kate Hewitt end the year as my top HP authors but only time will tell if they will maintain that position in the future.
Minor pet peeve: This has nothing to do with the author since HP authors do not select the titles for their novels. This is something that the Powers That Be at HP vis a vis "The Book Title Generator" need to be more careful about when selecting titles for novels. In this novel, the "baby" becomes a factor way down after chapter 7. The novel has 10 chapters. I found it a little weird that the book should be called "Carrying The Sheikh's Baby" when the baby wasn't significant for most of the story.
That's because this novel has the distinction of being voted ( by me ) as MY #1 FAVOURITE HARLEQUIN PRESENTS ROMANCE FROM AMONG ALL OF THE 2018 RELEASES !
Before I'd read this novel, I'd already decided that the following were my personal contenders for the #1 spot:
Lynne Graham's Castiglione's Pregnant Princess; Da Rocha's Convenient Heir; The Greek's Blackmailed Mistress; The Italian's Inherited Mistress . LG is obviously my fav HP author but I don't write biased reviews, or skew my ratings, in her favour. Proof of this can be seen from my 3 star review of The Secret Valtinos Baby.
Jennie Lucas' The Bride the Billionaire Demands
Heidi Rice's Bound By Their Scandalous Baby
Tara Pammi's Sheikh's Baby of Revenge
Kate Hewitt's Desert Prince's Stolen Bride with it's awesome sexy H who'd been celibate for 10 whopping years !
Caitlin Crews' The Bride's Baby of Shame with a H to die for ! ( But an exasperating heroine... )
Dani Collins' Sheikh's Princess of Convenience
Sharon Kendrick's The Italian's Christmas Housekeeper
Abby Green's An Innocent, A Seduction, A Secret
Carol Marinelli's The Innocent's Shock Pregnancy
But then this novel came and blew them all out of the water because it had everything that worked so well for me, personally:
1. The right amount of angst without being a sappy trainwreck;
2. An intelligent, beautiful, very educated heroine with a troubled past, who was feminine and NOT a harping, bitter shrew;
3. No cheating;
4. Spectacular sexual chemistry between the MC's;
5. A strong, silent type of gentleman H who was an alpha male without being a jerky asshole - although I do admit that some of the jerky asshole H's from this year's other novels are supremely sexy too;
6. A coherent plot that didn't meander into boring waters;
7. A storyline that stuck to the main issues and dialogue that wasn't written just for the sake of filling page space. I confess that some of my least fav HP's for this year contained pointless dialogue that contributed nothing to the story or to character development;
8. Solid, well written prose with a healthy balance between the informative/descriptive and narrative elements;
9. The narrative flows seamlessly, from the H's internal monologues to the heroine's. I always get very frustrated when other authors are unable to deal with this transition effectively, in a non clumsy manner;
10. Beautiful, romantic and sexy scenes set in the desert with the MC's riding the H's black stallion Pegasus and an awesome description of their wedding and wedding night;
11. The H's sexy and intriguing half brother Kasim, who was the chief of a nomadic Kholadi desert tribe. Kasim is so sexy that I hope he gets his own book ! The heroine's cute and endearingly funny maid Kasia was another wonderful minor character in this story.
And yes, I've come to my decision after examining all the novels released in 2018 in the HP category. Harlequin releases 8 new HP's each month and I think July or August had included a couple of extra books. Some of these books do not appear on my bookshelves but that's only because my reasons for disliking them were personal, superficial, silly and not justifiable. When a novel is well written but my shallow personal prejudices and beliefs lead me to find it unappealing, I usually refrain from including it in my GR's bookshelves. I give low ratings to novels only when I feel I can validate my opinions, with actual evidence from the books. I am totally capable of being an annoying asshole, but I try my best to avoid ranting on a regular basis. A couple of my GR friends, can verify that I am speaking the truth when I say that I have indeed viewed/skimmed/read all the HP's that were released each month for this year. That's because we often speak about these "unreviewed books" via personal messages.
Moving on to my review of this, my fav, HP novel for 2018...
Not only is this novel my 2018 fav, but it's H Zane is also my fav HP hero for this year. Sheikh Zane Ali Nawari Khan, the H of this novel, is:
1. Sexy as hell, with his tall muscular body, ice blue eyes and raven hair, sleek sheikh clothing, macho sabre swords that he always wears and manly knee high leather boots;
2. Tormented - so much so that he makes a woman want to comfort him and bang him at the same time. LOL;
3. Not a manwhore;
4. Chivalrous;
5. Kind;
6. The perfect combination of old world Arabian Nights manliness and arrogant, modern hotness.
In fact, I think he is he is the most scrumptious of all hottie alpha male H's in 2018's HPlandia and I'm gonna award him with a special prize:
The Winking Pussy Award For Sexiest H in HPlandia - 2018
LOL.
And YES, there are perverted connotations to the term "Winking Pussy Award."
This is actually the first time that I've chosen a H who's not been created out of the imagination of Lynne Graham. LG's H's are usually my favs because she's incomparable when it comes to describing my perfect idea of what a hot handsome man looks like. Unfortunately for LG, though, Heidi Rice upped the stakes when she came up with Zane.
This is the H, Zane:
Zane is the billionaire king of Narabia; it's a very private kingdom that restricts the entry of foreign travellers. It's described as beautiful in an utterly old world manner with all the necessary modern technological conveniences. I think the author's world building was commendable in this novel. Narabia didn't come across as just another one of those replaceable sheikhy desert kingdoms that populate HPlandia.
This is the H's stallion, Pegasus:
Zane's late father had been a tyrannical ruler who had him whipped severely, during his teenage years, when he tried to return to his mother in the U.S.A. Zane still bears the horrible scars of those whippings on his back. The H's mom had been a famous Hollywood starlet whose alcoholism had led to the ruination of her career. Zane meets the heroine, Dr. Catherine Smith, after she requests permission to gain accreditation for an investigative research paper that deals with the history/customs/culture etc of his kingdom. Catherine is a 24 year old lecturer at Cambridge. She's a little nerdy and is totally unaware of her physical attractiveness.
This is the heroine, Catherine:
Zane hires Cat to write a book on the history of Narabia because it's part of his modernization plan to introduce his very private kingdom to the rest of the world. Narabia is cloaked in secrets and governed by a somewhat archaic code of laws. The king ( Zane ) is treated as a divinely appointed absolute monarch and his people practically worship him. There's even a clause in the ancient constitutional scrolls that state that the king's sperm is sacred !
The H is hiding certain shameful family secrets that he hopes will never become public. These secrets are like an albatross around his neck because he's unable to love and trust another human being. He feels, and rightfully so, that these horrible issues will taint the image of his country in the eyes of the outside world. It's not any fault of his own but entirely due to his late father's tyranny and his parents' failed, scandalous marriage. The heroine figures out that he's keeping secrets from her but she doesn't push him to reveal anything. She merely tells him that these secrets are interfering with her ability to write a book that will reflect a truthful story of Narabia and it's history.
The MC's are soon unable to fight their feelings for each other and their relationship is consummated. The sex is fantastic but the H continues to shield his heart from the heroine. Cat was one of the most considerate, understanding and compassionate heroines. She knew that he was hurting but she was patient and decided to give him time to deal with his issues. The revelation of her pregnancy meant that they were forced to get married. Zane's proposal was very sweet and chivalrous: he actually proposed to her on bended knee ! And, he did this long before he told her that he loved her. He didn't blame her for the pregnancy or accuse her of trying to trap him and he didn't see it as a huge issue.
The main conflict between the MC's occurred after their marriage. The H was determined to have a cordial and civil relationship that included lots of steamy sex but he was reluctant to engage in emotional intimacy. He was also resentful of the strong feelings he had for her and worried about the fact that he was obsessed with her. She'd gotten under his skin and that was an untenable situation for a man who prided himself on his self control. When Cat confessed her love for him, he was shocked and pulled away from her:
His gaze became hooded, wary. ‘I told you I can’t offer you that,’ he said, as if he were reciting a treatise to a foreign power.
It's at this point that Cat finally took off the kid gloves, because she realized that compassion and patience were not working to build a stronger marital relationship. She was heart broken, angry, frustrated !
The only option was for her to leave him:
He’d made it very clear this was a constitutional arrangement—and tonight had proved his feelings weren’t ever going to change. Walking into the adjoining chamber, which she had been using as a study, she scribbled a short note—she owed him this much.
The most dramatic and romantic scene occurs at the end when Zane chases after Cat after she leaves him and drives off into the desert. The H swoops down in his black helicopter to intercept her, declare his love, confess his final big family secret and beg her to give him a second chance:
‘How could I not love you, Catherine?’ he murmured, his voice hoarse with need. ‘You’re smart and courageous and compassionate and determined and so sweet...’
He grasped her bottom and dragged her towards him until her thighs widened and her core was flush against the already prominent ridge in his pants.
‘And every time you’re in my arms, I know I can never have enough of you.’
He wasn't an asshole type of H, but he did grovel a lot for all the times when he had pulled away from her and refused to communicate verbally. In the epilogue, set a little over a year in the future, the MC's are happily married with their toddler daughter Kaliah. Zane is no longer filled with guilt over his mother's death and is now free to love his wife and child unconditionally.
Safety: No cheating, no OW, no OM, the heroine was a virgin and the H had been celibate for a while before meeting the heroine.
On a different note, I'd like to piggyback on this review and list my year end 2018 choices for the Best and Worst in HPlandia:
1. Runners up for the Best H in the "Winking Pussy Award" category were:
Adir from Tara Pammi's Sheikh's Baby of Revenge.
Xan from Lynne Graham's The Greek's Blackmailed Mistress.
Zayed from Kate Hewitt's Desert Prince's Stolen Bride.
Allisandru from Lynne Graham's The Italian's Inherited Mistress.
Vitale, that suave and urbane hottie from Lynne Graham's Castiglione's Pregnant Princess.
Jared, the tortured hunk from Heidi Rice's Captive at Her Enemy's Command.
Zac, the tattooed bad boy billionaire, from Lynne G's Da Rocha's Convenient Heir.
Ethan from Carol Marinelli's The Innocent's Shock Pregnancy.
Salvio, that sexy asshole from Sharon Kendrick's The Italian's Christmas Housekeeper.
Sebastio from Abby Green's An Innocent, A Seduction, A Secret.
Renzo, the smoldering Italian hottie from Caitlin Crews' The Bride's Baby of Shame.
Stefano, another sexy asshole from Jennie Lucas' The Heir the Prince Secures.
Lukas from Heidi Rice's Bound By Their Scandalous Baby.
2. My fav heroine of HPlandia 2018 is Lola from Jennie Lucas' The Baby the Billionaire Demands.
3. The least interesting novels of the year were written by Lucy Monroe, Louise Fuller, Cathy Williams, Susan Stephens, Andie Brock, Trish Morey and Jennifer Hayward. There are probably more but these are the ones that come to mind immediately. I honestly have no idea if I'll be reviewing books by these authors in the future. At this point my decision is veering towards a "no", especially for Lucy Monroe and Cathy Williams but I never can tell if I'll be tempted by a blurb that sounds exciting.
4. Most disappointing HPlandia author for 2018 is Lucy Monroe because both of her novels for this year were uninteresting and unromantic with unlikable MC's. Cathy Williams' The Tycoon's Ultimate Conquest was also a DNF for me because it was super boring and contained one of my biggest personal triggers: the dowdy, bland and extremely plain Jane heroine. And yes, I AM an ass for being so shallow but I'm not gonna pretend to be something I'm not just so that people will like me...
5. Most consistent authors, in my opinion, for 2018 were: Lynne G, Heidi Rice, Abby Green and Kate Hewitt.
I hope that 2019 is a better year in HPlandia and I can't wait to see what my fav authors have in store for us. Lynne G, Jennie Lucas, Heidi Rice, Abby Green and Kate Hewitt end the year as my top HP authors but only time will tell if they will maintain that position in the future.
Minor pet peeve: This has nothing to do with the author since HP authors do not select the titles for their novels. This is something that the Powers That Be at HP vis a vis "The Book Title Generator" need to be more careful about when selecting titles for novels. In this novel, the "baby" becomes a factor way down after chapter 7. The novel has 10 chapters. I found it a little weird that the book should be called "Carrying The Sheikh's Baby" when the baby wasn't significant for most of the story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 24, 2020
Really liked this one..Zane and Catherine were a good match.
January 2, 2019
Slow burn romance but never boring. Ivy’s review was so great, I cannot surpass it. I just want to say that it was really hot book and hero was sweet.. My friends know that I prefer cruel Heroes but I loved Zane. I may be getting older, lol.
January 5, 2019
3.5 average
Really quick points.
I liked this but didn't love it.
The beginning was good and engaging, but found midpoint was a little slow and dragged.
The characters were average to me and the story line was fine.
I just couldn't really fully engage with the characters, not sure why.
But nice epilogue and ending.
Really quick points.
I liked this but didn't love it.
The beginning was good and engaging, but found midpoint was a little slow and dragged.
The characters were average to me and the story line was fine.
I just couldn't really fully engage with the characters, not sure why.
But nice epilogue and ending.
December 7, 2018
I thought it was kind of boring. I guess I am not into Sheikh stories. Epilogue with their baby was sweet though and it's a totally safe read.
December 9, 2018
Lovely sexy slow burn romance with good pacing.
An endearing heroine.
A wonderful hero who fights his feelings without resorting to grouchy insults.
I loved the way these two gradually bonded and appreciated the fact that sex didn't happen too early in the story!
An endearing heroine.
A wonderful hero who fights his feelings without resorting to grouchy insults.
I loved the way these two gradually bonded and appreciated the fact that sex didn't happen too early in the story!
May 4, 2023
One of the best , well written romances I have ever read in years -mind I read my first romance when I was 12 years old in 1989 and it was in my native language Arabic ! .. Ms Heidi Rice is becoming my number one modern author now who I follow and she very kindly responds 💜 Thanks our lady author .. Back to the novel,I won't write a review as Ivy H wrote the best wholsome review ever - as usual giving Zane the Hero "The Winking Pussy " award for the best Hero in 2018 ,which I strongly advise her of making it an established award every year ,I will give only my take on it and the whole series as I am an Arab myself and a Romance junkie who never preferred that Sultan/ Sheikh Hero as I found it too stereotypical and mostly wrong !.but Heidi Rice here took it to the right next level of this Hero type in this series ..Well done lady *applaude* ..Zane the H is simply MrMan , very well written character as a human and half Arab who chooses to be his Arab identity more for several reasons ,which you will find while reading this complex character ..Even more satisfying is having an Arab heroine (Kasia ) in another book in the series which is quite revolutionary if you ask me in romance writing .
To make a long story short ,whatever your nationality and culture is ;read this series if you are a romance junkie or love a well written one as it sends a universal message of love and its amazing power ..
My only pet peeve ; I wish Harlequin would stop imposing those kind of tacky titles ,I miss the vintage ones à la Violet Winspear , Ann Mather , Margret Rome ..etc type
To make a long story short ,whatever your nationality and culture is ;read this series if you are a romance junkie or love a well written one as it sends a universal message of love and its amazing power ..
My only pet peeve ; I wish Harlequin would stop imposing those kind of tacky titles ,I miss the vintage ones à la Violet Winspear , Ann Mather , Margret Rome ..etc type
December 9, 2018
A passionate romantic read, loved it.
December 21, 2020
"Carrying the Sheikh's Baby" is the story of Cat and Zane.
A beautiful romance with a very scarred but protective hero, and a shy, academic heroine. He hires her as a researcher for his kingdom, but wants to keep her away from the real truth. She slowly ingraines herself into his heart, and they end up having a wild sexual relationship, which soon has its consequences. But the hero has never dealt with childhood trauma, and is now projecting those feelings into the newfound bond with the heroine. Will she help him heal?
Traumatized but kind hero, caring and kindhearted heroine, loads of passion, angst, romance- some pushing away which leads to resolution, confessions and HEA.
The epilogue was *swoon*
Enjoyed it!
Safe
4/5
A beautiful romance with a very scarred but protective hero, and a shy, academic heroine. He hires her as a researcher for his kingdom, but wants to keep her away from the real truth. She slowly ingraines herself into his heart, and they end up having a wild sexual relationship, which soon has its consequences. But the hero has never dealt with childhood trauma, and is now projecting those feelings into the newfound bond with the heroine. Will she help him heal?
Traumatized but kind hero, caring and kindhearted heroine, loads of passion, angst, romance- some pushing away which leads to resolution, confessions and HEA.
The epilogue was *swoon*
Enjoyed it!
Safe
4/5
December 21, 2020
My first Heidi Rice, but it’s won’t be my last. I really enjoyed this one. Main characters of equal strength, a heroine who was intelligent, educated, innocent but determined. A hero who did not indulge in other women or needless cruelty. He didn’t blame Catherine for her pregnancy like so many of these heroes do. He was understanding and loving except for recognising that he was indeed capable of love. Ivy H has done a fabulous review of this book and I cannot top that - so I will merely give the book a hearty recommendation.
January 21, 2019
Five stars because I Luuurve the hero’s name.
Zane Khan just did it for me. It just screamed hot and sexy. Don’t ask me why, I read the preview of this book and the H’s name sold me.
Luckily the book was a good one. I loved the heroine, Cat. She’s smart, sexy, innocent and compassionate. The perfect HP heroine. She’s also feisty and found the gumption to stand up to Zane when he became overbearing.
He was a bit of an ass in the way he tried to hide his feelings, but his relationship with his parents, and the trauma his father inflicted on him left scars. Literally and figuratively.
There’s a lot to love in this book. The journey that both characters had to take to finally find what they were both looking for. The obvious love between them that they couldn’t see because of the trauma of their pasts. The joy they found in each other in those rare moments when they let their guards down.
It was a sweet read with lots of hope and misguided self protection. I highly recommend.
Zane Khan just did it for me. It just screamed hot and sexy. Don’t ask me why, I read the preview of this book and the H’s name sold me.
Luckily the book was a good one. I loved the heroine, Cat. She’s smart, sexy, innocent and compassionate. The perfect HP heroine. She’s also feisty and found the gumption to stand up to Zane when he became overbearing.
He was a bit of an ass in the way he tried to hide his feelings, but his relationship with his parents, and the trauma his father inflicted on him left scars. Literally and figuratively.
There’s a lot to love in this book. The journey that both characters had to take to finally find what they were both looking for. The obvious love between them that they couldn’t see because of the trauma of their pasts. The joy they found in each other in those rare moments when they let their guards down.
It was a sweet read with lots of hope and misguided self protection. I highly recommend.
December 9, 2018
Slow and boring , the only good part was the epilogue .
November 25, 2020
The H was passionate and not unkind and the h was kind and honest. I’d say the story is much much sweeter than I prefer my Harlequins to be, but it was lovely and captivating, and I liked it.
December 15, 2018
Lovely story! One of the best heroes that I've read in the HP releases for 2018. Also, an endearing heroine. Not all HP authors can do justice to a 'sheikh' romance, but this one was well written.
February 11, 2019
This was a really quick read. I enjoyed the story of Cat and Sheikh Zane.
February 13, 2020
Companion to "Claimed for the Desert Prince"
Decent story. I liked that Cat was willing to give up her marriage with Zane when he would not commit to loving their expected child.
Decent story. I liked that Cat was willing to give up her marriage with Zane when he would not commit to loving their expected child.
July 1, 2022
***Rating 3.25***
I enjoyed this story but the main drawback is the slow progress. It just moved too slowly to hold my attention. That is something I sometimes struggle with.
I didn't feel the flow of the story kept it moving forward.
It was okay but it isn't one I would read again.
I enjoyed this story but the main drawback is the slow progress. It just moved too slowly to hold my attention. That is something I sometimes struggle with.
I didn't feel the flow of the story kept it moving forward.
It was okay but it isn't one I would read again.
August 22, 2021
(read in french, under the title « Le bébé de Narabie »)
Don't rely on the title nor the french blurb, the pregnancy plotline doesn't starts before the last third of the book. Heidi Rice takes her time to build her story, her characters, and even to outline a background, without the story feeling rushed. What, in short novels, isn't the case that often.
If the characters are driven by their past, the author mostly focused on what happens here and now. If their romance's growth isn't really romantic, Zane cares for and respects Cat, making him a good hero, even if his acts aren't always logical. Cat is a practical woman, she knows what she expects of a relationship and won't accept crumbs when she needs the whole thing. So these two sometimes disagree, but their story always feels believable.
In exchange, say goodbye to details : while we do follow Cat during her reseach about Narabia, we won't learn anything about the country or its traditions. There are only two sub-characters, but we'll have to satisfy ourselves with their only presence. A bit shame, because Cat's helper, Kasia, has a bright personality and we'd have loved to discover more about her.
On the same subject, we don't even see the wedding, summed in like ten lines. Problem : reading a few english reviews, I found enthusiastic comments about its description... Did some cuts happened during the translation ? Hard to say without the original book to compare. Anyway, except at this point of the story, if there are some, we don't notice it.
Overall, it's a good read, with all the ingredients of a delightful oriental romance (the palace, the trip in the desert...), a respectful romance (which isn't so frequent), but lacking of sub(plots, characters...) which would have made it unforgettable.
Don't rely on the title nor the french blurb, the pregnancy plotline doesn't starts before the last third of the book. Heidi Rice takes her time to build her story, her characters, and even to outline a background, without the story feeling rushed. What, in short novels, isn't the case that often.
If the characters are driven by their past, the author mostly focused on what happens here and now. If their romance's growth isn't really romantic, Zane cares for and respects Cat, making him a good hero, even if his acts aren't always logical. Cat is a practical woman, she knows what she expects of a relationship and won't accept crumbs when she needs the whole thing. So these two sometimes disagree, but their story always feels believable.
In exchange, say goodbye to details : while we do follow Cat during her reseach about Narabia, we won't learn anything about the country or its traditions. There are only two sub-characters, but we'll have to satisfy ourselves with their only presence. A bit shame, because Cat's helper, Kasia, has a bright personality and we'd have loved to discover more about her.
On the same subject, we don't even see the wedding, summed in like ten lines. Problem : reading a few english reviews, I found enthusiastic comments about its description... Did some cuts happened during the translation ? Hard to say without the original book to compare. Anyway, except at this point of the story, if there are some, we don't notice it.
Overall, it's a good read, with all the ingredients of a delightful oriental romance (the palace, the trip in the desert...), a respectful romance (which isn't so frequent), but lacking of sub(plots, characters...) which would have made it unforgettable.
March 19, 2021
Wow , I really can’t improve on the reviews out there praising the book...I especially liked Ivy’s review!
My 3rd HR book in less than 48 hours. I had to read this book after reading Innocent’s Desert Wedding contract which included the protagonists from this book. I love when an author lets us see characters a few years down the road.
Therefore, I’m going backwards in the timeline but I didn’t know that and the books are stand alone, so it’s all good! It looks like Kasia has her story, so I will be reading that next.
So what am I liking about the books I have read so far by HR?
POV - We see both the hero and heroine’s point of views and the things they don’t say out loud but are too afraid to voice
Letters- There is a lot of angst one can get from a letter written by the h or H
Evil OW- She hasn’t reared her ugly head yet in the books I have read, and don’t get me wrong, I like a good evil ow...but it’s nice that the angst in the book is not driven by that
Tortured Hero- Our hero is a victim/witness to the highly dysfunctional relationship his parents have had...and at some point feels guilt about his inability to stop adult problems...he takes this to his own adulthood and doesn’t pursue love as he feels he doesn’t deserve it
Loving Heroine- she may have some dysfunction in her past but hasn’t lost compassion, empathy , or the ability to love...however she will not settle for less than she deserves, which makes her strong!
Sexual situations - Vivid imagery here...very hot...in this book especially there was a scene where the heroine is watching the hero and here I am reading the book like I’m behind a curtain watching her watching him😳
Epilogue- These just weren’t a thing in the earlier harlequins, in fact some of the earlier ones barely got to the h and H’s happily ever after moment(I still love the vintage though) I just like a good epilogue, I mean we know the h and H will be together forever and ever, but it’s nice to see them happily settled with a kid or two and maybe a cat or dog....
My 3rd HR book in less than 48 hours. I had to read this book after reading Innocent’s Desert Wedding contract which included the protagonists from this book. I love when an author lets us see characters a few years down the road.
Therefore, I’m going backwards in the timeline but I didn’t know that and the books are stand alone, so it’s all good! It looks like Kasia has her story, so I will be reading that next.
So what am I liking about the books I have read so far by HR?
POV - We see both the hero and heroine’s point of views and the things they don’t say out loud but are too afraid to voice
Letters- There is a lot of angst one can get from a letter written by the h or H
Evil OW- She hasn’t reared her ugly head yet in the books I have read, and don’t get me wrong, I like a good evil ow...but it’s nice that the angst in the book is not driven by that
Tortured Hero- Our hero is a victim/witness to the highly dysfunctional relationship his parents have had...and at some point feels guilt about his inability to stop adult problems...he takes this to his own adulthood and doesn’t pursue love as he feels he doesn’t deserve it
Loving Heroine- she may have some dysfunction in her past but hasn’t lost compassion, empathy , or the ability to love...however she will not settle for less than she deserves, which makes her strong!
Sexual situations - Vivid imagery here...very hot...in this book especially there was a scene where the heroine is watching the hero and here I am reading the book like I’m behind a curtain watching her watching him😳
Epilogue- These just weren’t a thing in the earlier harlequins, in fact some of the earlier ones barely got to the h and H’s happily ever after moment(I still love the vintage though) I just like a good epilogue, I mean we know the h and H will be together forever and ever, but it’s nice to see them happily settled with a kid or two and maybe a cat or dog....
February 4, 2019
An academic heroine and a Sheikh. Cat was the academic that wrote to the Sheikh's country regarding it's history and bringing it into the here and now. The shiekh offered Cat a job in writing a book about the country, but she had to go to the country for 3 months to write the book. Of course as any good HEA, the sparks flew and they ended up in bed with consequences. This is a well written book and the story is fun. A good read.
January 7, 2019
Love it
Read
November 3, 2019La Herencia Del Jeque (Versión)
July 28, 2022
Hired by the sheikh…
And expecting the royal heir!
When shy, academic Cat Smith is hired as a researcher by Sheikh Zane, she’s thrilled—and completely dazzled by their overwhelming chemistry! Cat knows a fling could compromise her professional credibility, but resisting Zane’s sensual caress feels utterly impossible. Until their passionate encounter has lasting consequences… Now carrying the heir to the kingdom means one thing—Cat must become Zane’s queen!
Enjoy this scandalous royal baby romance
And expecting the royal heir!
When shy, academic Cat Smith is hired as a researcher by Sheikh Zane, she’s thrilled—and completely dazzled by their overwhelming chemistry! Cat knows a fling could compromise her professional credibility, but resisting Zane’s sensual caress feels utterly impossible. Until their passionate encounter has lasting consequences… Now carrying the heir to the kingdom means one thing—Cat must become Zane’s queen!
Enjoy this scandalous royal baby romance
May 11, 2020
I was told to read this book first, but forgot and read it now, but all good. This book takes us back to the desert, where Catherine (Cat) has come to write a book about the Narabia people. She finds out more with Shiekh Zane. Can their lives be joined with all the differences or should she go back to England.
May 6, 2023
I wrote this book! So clearly my rating is biased... But just wanted to inform readers this is the 1st book in my series The Khans, which are linked books about neighbouring (fictional) desert kingdoms, the Princes who rule them and the women who they cannot live without!
The last book in the series, Stolen for His Desert Throne, which released in May 2023, is my first 2nd generation romance and features Princess Kaliah, the daughter of my first Khan couple Zane and Catherine in Carrying the Sheikh's Baby...
Princess Kaliah, is in fact the baby in that book. Here is the series in order, if you want to read the rest of them and catch other glimpses of Kaliah along the way..
#1: Carrying the Sheikh’s Baby – Zane and Catherine
#2: Claimed for the Desert Prince’s Heir – Kasim (Rafe) and Kasia
#3: Innocent’s Desert Wedding Contract – Karim and Orla
#4: Banished Prince to Desert Boss – Dane and Jamilla
#5: Stolen for His Desert Throne – Kaliah and Kamal
The last book in the series, Stolen for His Desert Throne, which released in May 2023, is my first 2nd generation romance and features Princess Kaliah, the daughter of my first Khan couple Zane and Catherine in Carrying the Sheikh's Baby...
Princess Kaliah, is in fact the baby in that book. Here is the series in order, if you want to read the rest of them and catch other glimpses of Kaliah along the way..
#1: Carrying the Sheikh’s Baby – Zane and Catherine
#2: Claimed for the Desert Prince’s Heir – Kasim (Rafe) and Kasia
#3: Innocent’s Desert Wedding Contract – Karim and Orla
#4: Banished Prince to Desert Boss – Dane and Jamilla
#5: Stolen for His Desert Throne – Kaliah and Kamal
September 7, 2025
No conflict except for the demons in their heads. *sigh*
Thank goodness there are a whole bunch of vintage category romances I still have not read, because if the current HP stories are all I have to look forward to, I'd be one depressed reader.
This isn't a bad story - in fact the pacing, characterization, and setting are all on point. But it's sooooo boring. Hero has trauma he's never addressed. Heroine has trauma she's never addressed. Having sex with the right person seems to be the key that opens the vault in most of these HPs and it just gets old.
I liked both the H/h. I'm glad all is well in their desert kingdom. But I will forget them as soon as this review is written.
Thank goodness there are a whole bunch of vintage category romances I still have not read, because if the current HP stories are all I have to look forward to, I'd be one depressed reader.
This isn't a bad story - in fact the pacing, characterization, and setting are all on point. But it's sooooo boring. Hero has trauma he's never addressed. Heroine has trauma she's never addressed. Having sex with the right person seems to be the key that opens the vault in most of these HPs and it just gets old.
I liked both the H/h. I'm glad all is well in their desert kingdom. But I will forget them as soon as this review is written.
December 30, 2018
I had never read a book like this before! not sure it’s for me tho I definitely understand what it’s going for. also super easy to read, like no information lost when you skim. read it in like 2 days. it was a relief to not have to pay intense attention to something and just understand what a thing is going for and watch it accomplish it. I don’t necessarily wanna check out this kind of thing again and I didn’t find it particularly awful either but yeah just like. neat or whatever
March 10, 2019
I love sheikh stories. Always have.
Just not this one. I couldn't warm up to both the heroine and hero. The plot was average and just never propelled me from one chapter to another.
I'm not sure exactly what was 'off' about the story, maybe it was the hero being half American and coming from such a dysfunctional maternal situation. it just didn't ring true (or probable) to me.
There are a bunch of sheikh Presents on my Keeper Shelf - just not this one.
Just not this one. I couldn't warm up to both the heroine and hero. The plot was average and just never propelled me from one chapter to another.
I'm not sure exactly what was 'off' about the story, maybe it was the hero being half American and coming from such a dysfunctional maternal situation. it just didn't ring true (or probable) to me.
There are a bunch of sheikh Presents on my Keeper Shelf - just not this one.
April 25, 2020
3.5 Sterne
December 10, 2018
This was a quick read, and honestly nothing unique. This is a sheikh story that has been told, retold, reworded and told again by numerous Harlequin authors. Sheltered academic h is overwhelmed by the all powerful, most handsome ever, pushy and grouchy sheikh with deep dark secrets. He's an ass, she melts at his look, he's an ass again, she falls into bed with him because her virgin self wants him, he's a major ass, and she's in love, etc.
On the other hand, this is a Harlequin Presents title. It follows the formula very well, provides the virginal h and alphahole H, and the obligatory commoner-becomes-sheikh's-queen HEA. One doesn't read a Presents title looking for new and original material, but rather expects and actively hunts for the formula. In that regard, the book meets expectations and the writing was decent.
On the other hand, this is a Harlequin Presents title. It follows the formula very well, provides the virginal h and alphahole H, and the obligatory commoner-becomes-sheikh's-queen HEA. One doesn't read a Presents title looking for new and original material, but rather expects and actively hunts for the formula. In that regard, the book meets expectations and the writing was decent.
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