This book was a Did Not Finish. I only mark books as DNF if they, in my opinion, fail to meet basic competitive qualitative standards. In order to be marked DNF I also have to pick up and then put down (with prejudice) the work 3 separate times.

Interesting. Although it was written from the author's personal perspective the novel showed deep academic research, at times it felt like as if I was reading history textbook (in a positive way).

Here, author Alev Lytle Croutier draws upon first hand accounts and her own family history to take us into the closed world of the harem.

It wasn't just Ottoman Sultans who had harems ... many middle class men also had them. This is not a Western European view of the harem, and the author dispels many of the myths built up around the secluded world. It is highly informative and highly recommended reading.

A must read!!! i have read this book twice, because the details are so interesting that is feel like am reading the story for the first time.

This is a lavishly illustrated look at the secret world of the harem, and goes into great detail about how harems were run, with their strict hierarchies of slaves and servants, the day-to-day practicalities of how such institutions were managed, and much more. Complete with plans showing the layout of a harem, descriptions of the different types of women who were sequestered within its walls, and even information about how men were created eunuchs to serve there, this is a fascinating peek into a mysterious past. I found it most interesting, particularly as the author has family connections to the subject, and provides photographs of her own relatives a

An advance copy was provided by the publisher in return for a review.

I was not able to review this book as I could not download to Kindle and didn't have other reading devices at the time.