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escapetoerilea's reviews
202 reviews
The Sultan's Favorite: A Phantom of the Opera Story by Anne Burnside
5.0
I loved ‘The Sultan’s Favorite.’ I picked it up and didn’t set it down again until I was finished. Set in the Ottoman Empire, it delves into the culture and practices of a world that held me fascinated. The characters were enjoyable and I connected with them all. I hoped for Erik and Alexandria to be together even while I felt for the sultan and the position he was in. It was a good romance with an antagonist who is human, not just evil.
Erik, the mysterious Phantom of the Opera ghost, is running from his bitterness of his love’s rejection of him. Throwing himself into designing and building architectural masterpieces, the man in the mask is currently building the new lavish palace for the Ottoman Empires’ sultan.
During the building of the palace, Alexandria, the new widow of the ruler of Constantinople, is brought to be the third wife of the sultan. The world she finds herself thrust unwillingly into is very different than the life she had come from. While she used to be her husband’s only beloved wife, she is now the third, and the lowest of wives. The first wife proves to be friendly and welcoming, but she quickly meets the ridicule of the sultan’s second wife and harem when the sultan establishes her as his favorite wife.
Working with the sultan’s newest wife to design her court is the last thing Erik wants to do, but he is surprised to learn she is a well educated woman with a quick mind who loves to read and whose opinion was respected in her last home. As he teaches her about architecture he also sneaks her books and debates with her, treating her as an equal. He soon comes to care for her far more than he will admit.
When Alexandria is kidnapped for ransom while on a journey, Erik is the one who rides to her rescue and in the heat of the moment they reveal to each other the depths of their feelings for one another. When they try to go back to the way things were before they know it is impossible. Somehow they must find a way out of the hopeless situation.
Erik, the mysterious Phantom of the Opera ghost, is running from his bitterness of his love’s rejection of him. Throwing himself into designing and building architectural masterpieces, the man in the mask is currently building the new lavish palace for the Ottoman Empires’ sultan.
During the building of the palace, Alexandria, the new widow of the ruler of Constantinople, is brought to be the third wife of the sultan. The world she finds herself thrust unwillingly into is very different than the life she had come from. While she used to be her husband’s only beloved wife, she is now the third, and the lowest of wives. The first wife proves to be friendly and welcoming, but she quickly meets the ridicule of the sultan’s second wife and harem when the sultan establishes her as his favorite wife.
Working with the sultan’s newest wife to design her court is the last thing Erik wants to do, but he is surprised to learn she is a well educated woman with a quick mind who loves to read and whose opinion was respected in her last home. As he teaches her about architecture he also sneaks her books and debates with her, treating her as an equal. He soon comes to care for her far more than he will admit.
When Alexandria is kidnapped for ransom while on a journey, Erik is the one who rides to her rescue and in the heat of the moment they reveal to each other the depths of their feelings for one another. When they try to go back to the way things were before they know it is impossible. Somehow they must find a way out of the hopeless situation.
The Last Train from Paris by Stacy Cohen
4.0
“The Last Train From Paris” is set in Nazi-occupied Paris in 1944. It tells the story of Jean-Luc and Natasha. Jean-Luc is a struggling French artist who hates the German occupants but remains largely in the dark of what all is going on, especially to the Jews in France. He considers chasing women more important than work, but grudgingly takes a job when his landlady tells him she badly needs his rent money. His mentor gets him a job apprenticing for Henri Matisse, painting the scenery for a ballet.
There he meets Natasha, the beautiful Russian ballerina. He wins her heart only to have a German officer fixate on her. The officer becomes more and more insistent and there is nothing Natasha can do without angering him and endangering both her and Jean-Luc’s lives. Soon the officer discovers Natasha’s secret and she becomes his prisoner. Jean-Luc is still set on freeing her and running away with her, and she knows she must take action to save his life. She tells the press, right in front of Jean-Luc, after her ballet performance that Jean-Luc’s work is that of an amateur and was not worthy of their ballet. Now without hope, she resigns herself to a life as the officer’s captive, fearful every day that he will send her away to Auschwitz.
Meanwhile a heartbroken Jean-Luc joins the French Resistance. He almost gets several of them killed when he hesitates to kill a teenage German soldier, but they find a better use for him. He joins another of the Resistance who is trying to save the art from the Louvre that is being stolen by the Nazis. When they get word that the Allies are on the way he resolves to fight for his country’s freedom, for the art that is being stolen by the Germans, and for Natasha.
I did like “The Last Train From Paris,” but it seemed like a redo of Moulin Rouge set during the war. He was just an artist instead of a writer, and she a ballerina instead of an actress. And she had no choice but to act like she was in love with the bad guy while the good guy tried to think of a way to sneak her away to marry her.
Regardless, it did keep my attention and the characters were well developed. The Resistance fighting was a change from the plot I was already familiar with and was a chance for Jean-Luc to grow up. While I was less than happy with the ending, it still ended well I’m sure others would argue.
There he meets Natasha, the beautiful Russian ballerina. He wins her heart only to have a German officer fixate on her. The officer becomes more and more insistent and there is nothing Natasha can do without angering him and endangering both her and Jean-Luc’s lives. Soon the officer discovers Natasha’s secret and she becomes his prisoner. Jean-Luc is still set on freeing her and running away with her, and she knows she must take action to save his life. She tells the press, right in front of Jean-Luc, after her ballet performance that Jean-Luc’s work is that of an amateur and was not worthy of their ballet. Now without hope, she resigns herself to a life as the officer’s captive, fearful every day that he will send her away to Auschwitz.
Meanwhile a heartbroken Jean-Luc joins the French Resistance. He almost gets several of them killed when he hesitates to kill a teenage German soldier, but they find a better use for him. He joins another of the Resistance who is trying to save the art from the Louvre that is being stolen by the Nazis. When they get word that the Allies are on the way he resolves to fight for his country’s freedom, for the art that is being stolen by the Germans, and for Natasha.
I did like “The Last Train From Paris,” but it seemed like a redo of Moulin Rouge set during the war. He was just an artist instead of a writer, and she a ballerina instead of an actress. And she had no choice but to act like she was in love with the bad guy while the good guy tried to think of a way to sneak her away to marry her.
Regardless, it did keep my attention and the characters were well developed. The Resistance fighting was a change from the plot I was already familiar with and was a chance for Jean-Luc to grow up. While I was less than happy with the ending, it still ended well I’m sure others would argue.