History of Romance #5 - The Sheik By E.M. Hull

1.5/5 stars - SO you have to take into context the time this book was written (Number 5 in my self-imposed history of romance curriculum, written in 1919) because it was problematic AF.

For starters, they refer to all the Arabs around them as "Orientals". There are a lot of references to pretty ugly stereotypes.

The main character is a feisty and adventurous young woman and of course, her persistence in going out into the desert without a proper male chaperone is the reason she was kidnapped. She was traveling with a full-on caravan of guards, supplies, and a guide, but they were all Arabs and sold her to the Sheik, which of course would never have happened if there had been even one white male chaperone to protect her (eye roll emoji).

There is off-page but heavily implied rape. Which is indicative of the time, when it was believed rape was the only way a woman would accept premarital sex, and of course, she eventually falls in love with her rapist (puke emoji).

I was optimistic that the main characters were of different races. It's rare in 1919 historical romances to see a white woman and a non-white man together. However, it turns out The Sheik is actually a white man who had been adopted by an Arab sheik. So there goes that redeeming quality

If you can ignore or take the problematicness within context, there were some suspenseful and entertaining parts.