Things to do
Ellos is packed with exclusive bars, restaurants and spas and is famous for its glittering nightlife. The Grand Hotel is the centre of Ellos’s nightlife – don’t miss your chance to spot celebrities in its fabulous restaurant!
The island of calista
Calista (meaning: beautiful one) is the destination of choice for more laid-back tourism. The sleepy island is an unspoiled paradise with an understated tourism industry. In contrast to neighbouring island Aristo, Calista has a hot, dry climate and arid terrain. The central portion of the island is entirely desert and inhabitants reside on the more hospitable north-facing coast. As its agricultural prospects have never been great, the island has retained its stunning natural beauty. Famous for the wealth of diamonds below the surface of the rock, the main river Kordela is also source of glittering diamond deposits.
Things to see
Modern Calista has an intact historical centre called Serapolis which is still the beating heart of the city. It retains a strong middle-eastern influence both culturally and architecturally and noisy, colourful markets fill the labyrinth of winding streets. Don’t miss the beautiful Royal Palace.
Things to do
You’ll pick up bargains and enjoy some delicious street food in the marketplace of Serapolis. Explore the Azahar desert – on the back of a camel for the intrepid – and spend a night in an oasis. Walk the diamond fields and try to find your own glittering stone as a souvenir of your stay in this peaceful place. For an injection of glamour and luxury, visit the new town and resort of Jaladhar.
LETTERS FROM
THE HOUSE OF KAREDES
A hastily scribbled note to Andonis, grounds keeper at the Royal Palace, from Princess Anya:
Andonis,
It would be better if you were to go to Calista for now. I don’t trust myself to remain near you and remember my duty. We must part. But come to me in Aristo every year on the anniversary of our wedding. It is not enough. It will never be enough. Wear the diamond for me.
Aegeus
Aegeus to Lydia, his maid, in 1974 on the death of his father:
Dearest Lydia,
Love, you must put me from your mind. Forced by duty and by circumstance, I must go through with my betrothal. Tia deserves better than this, but my family and my loyalty demand this farce of a wedding.
It would be better if you were to go to Calista for now. I don’t trust myself to remain near you and remember my duty. We must part. But come to me in Aristo every year on the anniversary of our wedding. It is not enough. It will never be enough. Wear the diamond for me.
I know you will understand, my beautiful Lydia. It is a son’s duty and the king’s command.
Yours eternally,
Aegeus
NATALIE ANDERSON
Possibly the only librarian who got told off herself for talking too much, Natalie decided writing books might be more fun than shelving them – and boy, is it what! Especially writing romance – it’s the realisation of a lifetime dream, kick-started by many an afternoon spent devouring Grandma’s Mills & Boon® romances…
She lives in New Zealand with her husband and four gorgeous-but-exhausting children. Swing by her website anytime – she’d love to hear from you! www.natalie-anderson.com
Read on for our exclusive interview with
Natalie Anderson!
We chatted to Natalie Anderson about the world of THE ROYAL HOUSE OF KAREDES. Here are her insights!
Would you prefer to live on aristo or Calista? What appeals to you most about either island?
I think I’m an Aristan at heart. I’d love the fast life with the glamour and the culture (although please let me have the funds to enjoy it!). I’d love to go cruising in the harbour, and dine at the fine restaurants… However, I think I’d have to have a “retreat” on Calista for when I get a touch jaded… I’ve always been fascinated by the desert, with the sand dunes stretching as far as the eye can see under the widest of skies… There’s something almost magical about it – and humbling.
So, a luxury apartment on Aristo and an oasis in the Calistan desert, please – that way I can have the best of both worlds!
What did you enjoy about writing about the royal House of Karedes?
Liss was my first princess and that was a big leap for my imagination but one I found intriguing and a lot of fun. She whetted my appetite for more royalty actually! I’d love to do another princess sometime soon. And I adore a sexy “boss” story – the way they have to spend all this time together being “businesslike” and it’s very difficult for them because there’s this white-hot attraction… I love every minute of that struggle!
How did you find writing as part of a continuity?
Very exciting – but very daunting as well. When I saw the schedule and the names of the other authors in the series I nearly died – it was such an honour to be part of a series with such wonderful writers and as a result I had awful nerves. But I loved getting the “bible” which had the outlines of the other stories – they’re so diverse and interesting and yet linked – I can’t wait to have the whole set on my bookshelf!!!
When you are writing, what is your typical day?
I’m an at-home mum with four kids so I’m a “mum” all day (read: SLAVE). When the kids’ lights go out, “Natalie Anderson” is switched on and I sit and write for a few hours. I write a lot in the weekends too – especially when nearing the end of a first draft and when revising. I need long stretches of time then and can really only get them in the weekend. And yes, I have a wonderfully supportive husband.
Where do you get your inspiration for the characters that you write?
I honestly don’t know. They just appear, usually when I’ve just woken up. They’re fully formed – but it can take a while for me to figure them out (like several drafts of their stories!). I don’t tend to use pictures or magazine clippings or movie stars as inspiration, they just seem to arrive. I can usually hear them before I see them. Often they’re having a full-on, not-quite-peaceful, conversation… am I sounding crazy here???
What did you like most about your hero and heroine in this continuity?
I really liked Liss’s fun, sunny nature. I think she’d make a good friend because underneath that social exterior is a rock-solid sense of loyalty. As for James, he’s very saucy and I do quite like that. Of course, that sexy humour is his armour and getting through the chink to the heart underneath is even more attractive…
What would be the best – and worst – things about being part of a royal dynasty?
I imagine there would be a lot of pressure – it would be like living in a fly-on-the-wall reality TV show all the time, I guess. But on the flip side wouldn’t it be fun to be spoilt for a few days? To go to salons and have my nails and hair done any time I fancied? And I’m thinking the money would be nice. But I’d need to find a way to spend my time – some kind of work to give me a sense of purpose. I couldn’t just sit around doing nothing and being “royal” – well, not full time anyway;).
Are diamonds really a girl’s best friend?
Ummmm, no!!! I need a best friend who’ll talk back to me and who I can trade confidences and have a good giggle with…although it would be great to be dripping in diamonds when we’re out on the town!!!
Who will reunite the Stefani Diamond and rule Adamas?
Don’t miss the next book in the fabulous
ROYAL HOUSE OF KAREDES:
THE DESERT KING’S
HOUSEKEEPER BRIDE
BY CAROL MARINELLI
Claimed by the sheikh – for her innocence!
Housekeeper Effie, a practical, slightly dumpy virgin, has been summoned to the desert to serve the sheikh!
Ruthless sheikh King Zakari had gone to seek solitude in the sands, but nights alone are not something this ruthless ruler is used to. However, with his housekeeper at his service, there’s no need to allow his bed to grow cold.
After hot, amazing hours of passion, Effie
’s heart is near to bursting. But what she doesn’t realise is that something will compel Zakari to take her, a lowly servant, as his royal bride!
Turn the page for
an exclusive extract!
Only here could he find himself.
Staring out at the vast, shimmering emptiness, sheikh King Zakari Al’Farisi of Calista welcomed the solitude of the Azahar desert. He ruled Calista and its people, but it was the desert that taught him how.
He was a good king – a strong ruler. Powerful, even ruthless at times – he did what had to be done. The easy path was never the option for Zakari and his people knew that and loved him for it. Standing six foot three and of solid build, his shoulders were wide enough to carry the hopes and fears of his land and his arms strong enough to hold any woman. He was considered a playboy at times, yet his people understood and forgave his one weakness, for no woman distracted his mind for long – they were a mere temporary distraction that was necessary at times.
There was nothing temporary about the desert.
Zakari’s eyes scanned the endless golden sea of sand, the landscape that shifted with the winds – while the rocks and canyons remained the solid markers.
It was the land that was the true master here 268– fierce, inhospitable, yet beautiful, always it humbled him; would drain and exhaust him and then replenish him. It was the test of the desert he needed now to remind him of his innate strength. For many, times had changed their ways – four-wheel drives had replaced camels, shotguns were often used for prey instead of falconry, yet the desert and its vital principles were still ingrained and followed by some, and just as he watched out for them, fought to protect their simple existence, so too, while he was here, they would watch out for him. Sometimes in the distance, he would make out in the shimmer a small shadow, knew it was the nomadic tribesmen, keeping their caravan of camels far out of his sight as they travelled. Zakari knew they wouldn’t invade his privacy, but was safe in the knowledge they were watching from a distance, making sure their king was safe and well when he returned to the land he loved.
He had asked, to his aides’ horror, for solitude during the first part of his retreat here – no staff waiting on his every whim, nothing to distract him as he centred himself, as he focussed on finding the missing half of the Stefani Jewel. And if he found it, when he found it, he would rule not just Calista, but Aristo too.
The legacy would be fulfilled.
King Christos Karedes had ruled both islands more than thirty years ago – yet the grumbles from his people had concerned him – the Aristan people, worried they were not profiting enough from the diamond mines, the Calistan people, eager to preserve their land and its gentle ways.
A wise king, Christos had known that the Aristans had to stop looking to Calista to support them. That they needed to build their own economy rather than rely on the Calistan diamonds. It was for that reason he decided to leave an island to each of his children and made the painful decision to split the precious Stefani Jewel. His son and daughter would both become crowned rulers, with half the Stefani Jewel in their new crowns.
Calista would be ruled by his daughter Anya.
Aristo would be ruled by his son Aegeus.
But time had moved on, shifting things like the sand in the desert. Zakari’s mother, Anya, had died seven years ago along with his father – and now, with King Aegeus’s sudden death, the islands were ripe for change.
Without the stone, the coronation of Aegeus’s son Prince Alex could not go ahead, and though the Aristan royals had tried to hide the fact the stone was missing, Zakari had, as he always did, found out.
Zakari sat, willing himself to concentrate, yet his mind, as it had these past couple of days, wandered. He was now quietly pleased at Hassan’s suggestion that his housekeeper join him in his second week in the desert. When he returned to his tent at sunset, Christobel would be there. Would take care of him at night so that he could focus deeper by day as to how best to take care of the future of his people.
Zakari closed his eyes.
The people that he must protect from the lavish, insatiable ways of the neighbouring island could in turn protect the diamond mines that the Aristans would love to get their greedy hands on.
And Zakari could get his revenge.
All the characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author, and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all the incidents are pure invention.
All Rights Reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Enterprises II B.V./S.à.r.l. The text of this publication or any part thereof may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, storage in an information retrieval system, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.
This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the prior consent of the publisher in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
® and TM are trademarks owned and used by the trademark owner and/or its licensee. Trademarks marked with ® are registered with the United Kingdom Patent Office and/or the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market and in other countries.
First published in Great Britain 2009
by Harlequin Mills & Boon Limited,
Eton House, 18-24 Paradise Road, Richmond, Surrey TW9 1SR
Ruthless Boss, Royal Mistress © Harlequin Books S.A. 2009
Special thanks and acknowledgement are given to Natalie Anderson for her contribution to The Royal House of Karedes series
ISBN: 978-1-408-91323-9
Ruthless Boss, Royal Mistress Page 17