Free download Untouched ueen by Royal Command

Kelly Hunter ´ 8 Free read Untouched ueen by Royal Command Free read ò 108 He must choose a ueen But will his desire outweigh his dutyKing Augustus is shocked when his country delivers him a courtesan The only way to set her free is t 45 STARSThe cute doggy agrees with me This book was so amazing that I had to amend my book review of The Spaniard s Stolen Bride and edit it slightly because it s no longer my favourite from this month s newest HP releases I d honestly never expected that this novel by Kelly Hunter would trump The Spaniard s Stolen Bride but it actually did This novel drew me in from the first page of the prologue which showed the adolescent H touring the abandoned chambers that housed the courtesans who d served his ancestors many centuries ago It s an innocent foreshadowing of things to come because the young hero Prince Augustus is filled with awe when he wanders into these forbidden chambers My personal musical score for this novel SHE WAS A gift from her people to the King of Arun An unwanted gift if the King s expression spoke true but one he couldn t refuse Not without breaking the laws of his country and severing seven centuries of tradition between his people and hers Modern romance reminiscent of a fairytale escapist fantasy story complete with sexy flimsy concubine clothing chains manacles rings whipsOnce upon a time about 700 years ago in the kingdom of Arun there lived a group of people in the north in a place called The High Reaches And within The High Reaches there was a special group of women who belonged to The Order of The Kite women who were trained to be the concubines and courtesans of kings Seven centuries ago it was ruled and written in the law of the kingdom that an unmarried king who reaches the age of 30 will receive the gift of a beautiful virgin courtesan to serve him and provide counsel A concubine of noble birth charged with attending the King s needs and demands until such time as he acuires a wife and produces an heir I ve read a few HP s by Kelly Hunter pre Goodreads and didn t like them too much so I didn t hold out much hope for this one In fact I d already concluded that The Spaniard s Stolen Bride was my fav book for this month LOL I was pleasantly surprised therefore to find myself enthralled by this tale from the prologue all the way to the end I liked both MC s a lot in this novel but the star of the story for me was the heroine Lady Sera She s a bit of an anomaly because she s a courtesan who s been educated formally at Oxford is trained in diplomacy the sensual arts martial arts and is so socially adept that she might be eligible for a Best Pupil prize at a Swiss young ladies finishing school This is the heroine Sera Chosen for the beauty she possessed and the uickness of her mind Taught to serve to soothe and how to dance fight and dress One for every King of Arun and only one A possession to be treasured She was lean and lithe in all the right places and generously voluptuous in others It was a body designed to bring a man to his knees and keep him there for eternity And this is the H Augustus He was a handsome man if a tall lean frame firm lips a stern jaw and wayward dark hair appealed which it did Augustus was a sexy debonair and conservative non manwhore H I assume the author was working with the theory that opposites attract and that this story might not have succeeded had the H been one of those playboys who grace the halls of HPlandia with their concupiscent hotness I liked Augustus He s not as sexy as Diego from The Spaniard s Stolen Bride but he s a man with a lot responsibility so he can t afford to be a reckless ne er do well bad boy billionaire In fact Augustus was filled with bemusement anger and shock when Lady Leanthe the elder stateswoman of The High Reaches brought Sera to him The primitive manly part of him was intrigued by the idea of having a beautiful woman to serve all his needs but his intellectual and modern mind felt that it was wrong for such an archaic tradition to be upheld in the 21st century His castle s old concubine uarters complete with domed glass roof and other accoutrements that catered to the sybarite needs of his ancestral kings ladies of pleasure had been abandoned and closed for than a century This is the interior of Sera s courtesan s chamberWhat I loved most about this book was the heroine it was awesome to see a heroine of such spectacular beauty grace and other accomplishments throw a H s ordered life into chaos and unwelcome lust In most HP novels except for the vintage books by Margaret Way it s rare for an author to craft a heroine whose physical beauty is a perfect complement to the H s hot handsome and hunky sexiness I thoroughly enjoyed seeing this H lose his cool and become a bit discombobulated even if he never showed it to her whenever they were in the same room I m a very visual person and I love pretty things so it s awesome to read a book with MC s who are both so beautiful Sera is a very confident and self assured heroine She is a virgin courtesan but she s not the blushing wilting stammering type of Mary Sue virgin who melts like butter or loses her composure when her H flexes his well defined muscles or twitches his sensuous sculpted lips She might feel inner pangs of lustful desire but she never allows him to see any outward manifestations of her libido s response as long as he keeps her at arms length Sera s childhood backstory is uite tragic Her mother Yuna had been a courtesan who d fallen in love with her protector and then broken the biggest rule of them all she d chosen to run away give birth to her daughter and live a life of impoverished obscurity The heroine was seven years old when her mother s former mentor Lady Lianthe had located the mother and daughter duo and brought them back to live with the other members of the Order of The KiteThe sexual chemistry between these MC s simmers from the time they meet and the H is the one who has to fight his desires because our sensual heroine is very willing to see to his needs And he really tries so hard at first to fight his unwanted feelings for her That s what makes this novel so different because it s usually the heroine who has to fight the needs of her treacherous weak body Augustus is taken to a new world that simultaneously confuses him and fills him with rampant lust Early in the novel there s a very sexy scene where the MC s engage in witty banter about a priceless floor tapestry covered with semi pornographic drawings The H is stunned when Sera calmly informs him of the purpose of the tapestry It s a communication device Each scene depicts an action a need or desire if you will In older times a visitor to this place or even another courtesan would approach this area and in choosing where to sit would telegraph their needs Those needs would be seen to Just like that So they say And is that the way it s going to work for me Why don t you sit somewhere and see Maybe I will Maybe he wouldn t Better all round if he didn t engage no matter how fascinating the history she brought with her I ve been trying to get rid of you I know that Your Majesty What s a noble non manwhoring king to do when he cannot circumvent the archaic law and send the sexy courtesan on her way Should he be a gentleman send her away with her virginity intact Or should he give in to his lustful need a need that s stronger than any physical desire he s ever felt for a woman in his life He took the tea and let his fingers brush hers She stilled and so did he He didn t believe in instant attraction He d never been a slave to his body s baser demands But if one tiny touch could send this much heat and awareness coursing through him imagine what she could do with full body contact Augustus tried hard to stifle his desires for the heroine because he knows it s his kingly duty to find himself a proper wife rather than to engage in lustful gambolling with a sensuous courtesan He s also wary of the power that she can come to wield over him What wife could ever compete if I had this at my disposalWhere else would I go but here where every whim would be served up to me on a gilded plate By the time I d satisfied every corrupt thought lying dormant in my soul it would be too late for either of us to escape I d own you in ways you ve never dreamed of And you d own me And it s not just sexual power he s talking about it s the power wielded by a confident sensuous woman who knows full well that she s got the potential to bring a strong man to his knees if she handles him just right That s another thing I enjoyed about his novel There s an inherent paradox in here somewhere about a courtesan being the one who has the potential to be a power broker in the relationship But that s nothing new after all because the corridors of history are littered with numerous infamous courtesans who ve been powerful women women who were ladies of pleasure but who also used their social and political skills to conuer the men who were in the nominal sense their protectors I m not a fan of courtesans but this book intrigued me because this courtesan doesn t share her body with any other man except the H Augustus started out by using Sera for her diplomatic training intellectual accomplishments social and organizational skills He d needed a social secretary who wouldn t sell palace secrets to the press and she was over ualified for the job Eventually though his rational aims are overcome by his basic masculine urges But this doesn t happen immediately Theirs is a slow burn romance that simmers heatedly before erupting into hot scorching passion And Sera is determined not to be a courtesan for any other man after she s paid her late mother s debt to The Order of The Kite I only need to do this once she replied uietly I serve you until you release me at which point my debt will have been repaid Then I m free to choose my own way There is so much latent sexiness and romantic angst in this book especially as the storyline progresses and Augustus torments himself with the fact that he will have to give her up when he chooses a bride Augustus prides himself on being a cerebral man but he soon turns into a Mine Mine Mine possessive alpha caveman after the heroine reveals that she s a virgin courtesan Get up He didn t want this He didn t dare take it Come here He waited until she stood before him her eyes betraying uncertainty as he leaned down until their lips almost touched Lord knows I didn t ask for you but you ve come here labelled as my courtesan and I will cut the hand off anyone who touches you No kissing No sex No flirting with any of my employees Are we clear Clear Very clear she whispered with a tell tale tremor in her voice He tells her to find him a bride so he can set her free her debt fulfilled so that she can move on with her life But love makes it impossible for them to keep to the rules of their agreement Sera did try to do what he had asked to find candidates for the post of his ueen consort But things became a muddled mess when the H was not interested in any of those candidates He wanted only the heroine but she who had never been free wished for a life of her own after her mother s debt had been paid Augustus made a selfless decision to set her free by making a formal proposal of marriage to one of the candidates Katerina DeWitt Our lovers are heartbroken during their time apart because they re filled with longing for each other but are each is afraid that their love is not meant to be I won t provide any spoiler details except to add that they re finally reconciled after a near tragedy leads the heroine to rush to the H s bedside She realizes finally that the freedom she s been longing for all her life will in fact be an unhappy prison filled with self denial and torment if she cannot live her life with the man she loves That s when she finally gives in and accepts his proposal of marriage This was an amazing romantic tale of a man brought to his knees figuratively by the power of his love for a woman a woman who is his other half his perfect partner and his one true love The prose is beautiful well written and I enjoyed the romantic escapist and other worldly elements that were such a vital part of this tale In the epilogue the MC s participate in a beautiful wedding ritual where they share vows that are so profound and dreamy Four witnesses a sacred mountain a cup full of water and a vivid blue sky And then Sera spoke My heart is pure and true and yours she told him I offer it from a position of knowledge power and freedom It was all he d ever hoped for I accept this priceless gift and I will never let you down he promised and drank from the goblet And then it was his turn to say the words My heart is steadfast and often guarded because it carries with it the weight of a nation but to you I offer it freely and without reservation It s yours I accept this priceless gift she said and drained her goblet And let all here bear witness I will never let you down Safety No cheating no OW no OM and both MC s are celibate during their short separation

Summary ã eBook, ePUB or Kindle PDF ´ Kelly Hunter

Kelly Hunter ´ 8 Free read Untouched ueen by Royal Command Free read ò 108 Its Because Augustus knows that if he dares give in to his attraction he won't rest until Sera becomes his ueenFeel the heat in this tale of innocence and desi Didn t like it don t know why

Kelly Hunter ´ 8 Free read Untouched ueen by Royal Command Free read ò 108 O marry someone else But Sera's surprising innocence and undisguised yearning for him is temptation itself pushing Augustus's legendary self control to the lim As we all probably know by now sex sells Particularly exotic sex set in a mystical semi surreal setting that completely invokes the sense of an odalisue in a magic harem mystiue Lots and lots of erotica has been done with exactly that theme For the most part KH has managed to push classic tropes of HPlandia to the extremes here I do think book is extremely well written I found myself laughing at various parts of the character s banter I also found the world building overall setting and the sense of mystiue was done very convincingly In Old Skool Vintage HPlandia the h is almost always compared to the Evil OW and one of the defining traits of the h is that the H will definitely call her a Tart and spend a lot of page count berating her for it Usually because the h is forced to bargain giving the H the rights to use her body to save her fatherfamily businesssome random person her sister knows but in reality the h is really sacrificing herself in a good cause to save something so it isn t really trafficking or prostitution the h is showing her pure virtue by becoming a martyr The Evil OW is only in for money so she gets banished to the mists of HPlandia and an elderly pet food billionaire never to know the glorious rewards of Forever True Love Besides in the Old Skool style such rights to possession usually come with a wedding license and as we know from our HP history a wedding license makes everything okayKH manages to get around the massive amounts of Tart Shaming that have to be used in the set up of this trope which is basically coercive rape in real world terms by having the h just flat out BE a Tart Which turns the tart shaming the h trope into an unusual type of office romance because the h is basically working for the H the job just involves dealing with bodily fluidsAnd to be honest if KH had left it at that I would have been okay with this book I have no problem advocating for sex workers and HPlandia has done that by now too as have several other books in the HN lines some of them even back in my HN heyday of thirty years ago If you are an adult and want to get your groove on with some specialized training and a contract I say I hope you have a lot of fun with that and I am not being snarky about it you do you and find your grooveBut where this goes rapidly down hill for me is that this h was pressured into the Tart role as a child To me no matter if you tell the girl that she will get years of education and training in all manner of various skills to go out and make a successful living in the world when you put that choice to A CHILD and make the alternatives undesirable or play on her sense of emotional guilt you are promoting child trafficking and that is not something I want to read in a romance Particularly not in a mainstream category romance To be clear the h never has sex with another person as a child or anyone but the H but there is the training and there is the standard HP trope of pimping out the h by the secondary characters which is LITERAL in this case the h s rescuermentorprocuress expects a very high price to release the h from service The h s rescuer is the one who emotionally coerces and blackmails the h from the time she was seven years old to sell her body and her skillz in a pricey form of prostitution so that the h can repay the debt that her dying mother supposedly owedThat is just disgusting in my world view and I don t want to read it I know that this happens in real life but I don t want to make a romance out it and the power imbalance that this produces in the H and h s relationship is NEVER eualized the H winds up sending the h s procuress her body weight in gold to buy her freedom so she can choose her own path in life So let s say the h weighs 110 lbs roughly 50 kgs given the market value of gold right now this H spent 209326300 US dollars to emancipate the h But is the h really emancipated Because as we have already seen she can be coerced by guilt and the notion of the h owing another person for an intangible debt that needs to be repaid by her affection and her body is ingrained into her from a very young ageThe h finds her sexual and mental slavery acceptable because she was literally raised that way That isn t nurturing a young child to take their place in modern society that is abuse And it is abuse in the most insidious and horrifying way make the abused think that they want this treatment and that it is okay That is way too much disgusting tragic reality in what is supposed to be a fun and fluffy romance with an HEA I am also rather disgusted that KH doesn t resolve this by having the rulers of these various kingdoms who allegedly have Absolute Power over their people make any kind of trafficking or slavery contracts illegal You might be able to argue history but the world moves on these people need to move on with it It is very much one thing if a grown adult chooses to take up a profession that involves the buying and selling of sex that is the adult s business and I make no judgement on that It is uite another when a child is coerced into the sex trade via emotional manipulation and it is even worse when the only means of escaping that life is based on engendering yet another debt that the victim will then feel obligated to repay KH doesn t think through the implications of what she wrote here really but as a long time HP reader I do and I wasn t impressed by it So while I did find the h and H s declaration of love mostly believable I wasn t buying the happy resolution to this romance The H had to pay for her to have the freedom to choose and the h was uite clear she did not really like the royal lifestyle and lack of freedom for the long term But in the end she does go back to the H and agrees to marry him So I can t help but wonder how much of that willingness to live a lifestyle she absolutely did not like was based on the inner guilt that the H had to actually buy her freedom and spent a very significant amount of money relative to what she could probably earn to do it This kind of trope perversion while done well and interesting to read does not really hit my HPlandia True Romance happy place I don t want to think about a trafficked child voluntarily choosing an eually restrictive lifestyle as an adult basically because she has been conditioned to do so Therefore I can t totally buy the Love or the HEA in this situation so for me this was not a successful HP outing and it wasn t worth the time I spent reading it

• Paperback
• 224
• Untouched ueen by Royal Command
• Kelly Hunter
• en
• 10 August 2018
• 9781335478078