The Fourth Queen: A Novel

by Debbie Taylor

A lush historical epic, The Fourth Queen is the story of one woman’s struggle for power and love in the court of the eighteenth-century Emperor of Morocco. Poetically intense and sensual, it marks the debut of a gifted new author.

Beautiful Helen Gloag is determined to escape the cycle of poverty and early death that has destroyed so many women in her native Scotland. Barely out of her teens, she flees her hometown and sets sail for the Colonies on a ship bound for Boston. But the ship falls prey to a band of corsairs—pirates from the Barbary coast of Africa. Helen is taken captive and sent to a procuress in Morocco, where women are sold into the slave markets of the nobility. In the procuress’s house, she is discovered by the witty, soft-hearted dwarf Microphilus, who oversees the Harem of the Emperor himself. Knowing her red hair and milky skin will enthrall his master, he takes her to Marrakech, and the imperial palace.

The Harem of the Emperor is a mysterious, voluptuous, and forbidding place, a hive of dangerous political tensions and unlikely friendships. Microphilus, himself a Scot captured by pirates as a young man, has found his fortune in the Emperor’s Harem, where he serves the Queens, including the charismatic, amazonian African empress Batoom, who is his lover. With Microphilus’s help, Helen learns to negotiate the politics of the Harem and compete for the Emperor’s favor.

Cast into the luxurious but sinister world of the Harem, Helen is at first terrified of the godlike and often cruel Emperor, but she soon becomes his favorite. Eventually, out of all the Harem women, she is chosen to become his fourth wife—the greatest of honors, since the Emperor may have hundreds of concubines but only four official wives. With her marriage, however, comes the greatest danger. Helen’s predecessor, the other “White Queen,” has succumbed to a mysterious, disfiguring illness and is slowly wasting away. Poison is the most likely cause, and Microphilus knows that Helen is destined to be the next victim.

In the Harem, hundreds of women are vying to be one of the four queens, thus setting the scene for the tragic power struggle and love story that ensue.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Romance, Middle East, 18th Century, Morocco

345 pages, Hardcover

First published April 29, 2003

Reviews

[Sarah Shaw · Rating 1 out of 5]

Despite the fascinating subject matter this is a remarkably unappetizing story. Having done some research on Morocco at this period myself I know it's not easy to come by material that would make it possible to build a realistic picture of life at the time, but the author's solution- throwing together a mish mash of characters and practices from across a period of several hundred years- is highly unsatisfactory. Despite the fact that this was a remarkable time and this particular Emperor an especially shrewd and foresighted one, the focus is relentlessly on sex, sadism and intrigue. In the end I was just bored and impatient of it all. It reminds me of the time I met an American woman who was born and raised in pre-Communist Shanghai. Asking her about some of the amazing events she must have lived through I discovered that she was almost entirely ignorant of them: she spoke nothing but English, had virtually no contact with the 'natives' except as servants and all she could talk about was what wonderful parties the Anglo community used to have there. I felt the same way as with this book: what a terrible waste of potential.

[Sarah Mac · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF @ 53%. I can’t stand it any longer.

I’m not sure which was worse: the poor writing and/or repeated words (if I ever read wee, wean, lassie, totie, bonny, or blether again…😑 I counted wee five times in one chapter alone, & there are 60+ chapters total), the descriptions of fat women in literally every scene (not gently self-deprecating, or even appealing in a different way than the Western norm, but as rolls of jelly & waddling & sweaty & jiggling & melting & grotesque & panting if they so much as cross the courtyard, let alone being constantly compared to bovine animals), or the insertion of bodily fluids throughout, ranging from (benign) sweat to (nasty) sex-juices. Also, as I said in my updates, the sex itself isn’t sexy in the least—not that every book needs to equate sexual content with romance, but can’t we have some respite from the nastiness? 🙄 As a final nail in the coffin, there was Helen. She’s a self-centered idiot, yet somehow everyone loves her anyway…? Whatever. *shrug*

2 stars, just barely. Not because I liked it, or was even interested in what happened, but because of Queen Batoom. She was great & deserved so much better than the story she was placed in.

[Tara Chevrestt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I almost set this aside. I enjoyed reading about Helen, a Scottish girl abducted by pirates and sold to the Moroccan emperor and her parts of the story were interesting, but I did not enjoy the parts that were told by the midget "eunuch". His sexual thoughts, fantasies, and his dalliances with the harem "hippo" was all quite repulsive to me. I was grossed out a few times and had to scan over alot of his narratives. Had the story simply been told about Helen and in the third person, with no narratives by the "eunuch" I would have really enjoyed it. I felt sorry for Helen who was living the life of a prisoner with a few jewels and baubles to show for it in the privacy of her room. Truly an interesting look at harem life in the 1700s, but the midget and "hippo" sex was too much.

[Bookish Dervish · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wish Goodreads enables nought as a rating to books. This novel is a good example of what I am talking about.
The book is a waste of time and money. I bought it in a second-hand store in Morocco. To my astonishment; the discriptions in it are far from being accurate. And being Moroccan I feel frustrated that novels like these, are written just for the pure enjoyment of readers in U. K or in USA.
I am aware that such novels are not to be taken as a source for historical facts but Let's take a look at the «could have been avoided» mistakes.

Some scattered quotes I liked:
1- “For what is envy but the fantasy of possessing what one envies?!”
2- “wealth is the failure to spend what one has"
3-“ once a thing has been purchased, it loses much of its value”

[Ana Mardoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Fourth Queen / 1-4000-4925-3

Each chapter in "The Fourth Queen" alternates between the two main characters - Helen, who is shown to us in the third person, and Microphilus, who is given to us in the form of a first person diary narrative. Microphilus is the chief 'eunuch' in the harem of the Emperor, and a dwarf. Dangerously, he is secretly "intact", and not a eunuch at all. Helen, the most recently acquired harem girl, is a self-centered red-haired girl from Microphilus' beloved homeland. When Microphilus falls in love with Helen, he struggles to court her away from her infatuation with the Emperor.

This love triangle, between the sympathetic Microphilus, the self-centered Helen, and the charming yet psychopathic Emperor, is set against the further intrigue that the Emperor's wives (of whom he is allowed four) are slowly being cursed, or sickened, with a mysterious ailment that disfigures and maims the women, yet does not kill them. Of course, when Helen is installed as the newest queen and immediately sickens, Microphilus is doubly motivated to solve the mystery and restore his loved one to good health.

"The Fourth Queen" is a surprisingly compelling read. Microphilus is one of the most sympathetic literary characters I've encountered recently - loving and desiring Helen from afar, desperate to please her, saddened that his physical body repels her while the Emperor's cruel personality does not. Helen, though she is eminently shallow and self-centered, nevertheless has valid reasons for being so - trapped as she is in a world where her very life depends on pleasing the men who hold power over her. If she selfishly desires jewels and riches, it is because she craves some semblance of security in her chaotic world. And the Emperor is realistically two-faced - cruel by turns, but with a charming facade for his favorite women. The backdrop of the mysterious illness is compellingly written, with multiple reasonable causes and suspects. Certainly, the resolution of the mystery, and of the love triangle, will keep the reader's interest sustained until the finish. All in all, a very enjoyable read.

As far as potentially objectionable content, like most harem novels, this isn't something you want to leave lying around for the children to stumble on. However, the scenes in "The Fourth Queen" are comparatively tame, involving mostly erotic dance to please the Emperor, and some straightforward homosexuality between the love-starved girls in the harem. There is also a description of a rather medieval abortion in this book.

~ Ana Mardoll

[Laura · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is based on a fascinating true story about a young Scottish woman who, whilst travelling to the Americas, is captured by pirates and sold into the harem of the Emperor in Marrakech in the 1700s. That short blurb that I wrote is better than what I struggled to read.
The story is told in sections, dividing time between Helen (our heroine) and an advisor to the Emperor who is also a dwarf. This makes the book crawl onwards.
This is supposed to be a sexy historical romp but was the absolute opposite of sexy. The fat shaming of the other women in the harem was gross as was the fetishisation of the Emperor and his dark skin and hairiness. I hated reading about women waddling around the courtyard, unable to catch their breath because they were SOOOOOO FAT!!!
I stopped reading halfway through because life is short. And also the dwarf falls in love with Helen- EVEN THOUGH HE ALREADY HAS THE UTTER LOVE & DEVOTION OF THE CHILLEST, SEXIEST LADY IN THE LAND- QUEEN BATOOM- WHO IS TOTES FINE WITH HIM CRUSHING ON SOME OTHER CHICK. AND HE DESCRIBES HER AS A HIPPO AND CANT BELIEVE THAT HE IS IN LOVE WITH HER AND ALL HER FLESHY ROLLS, AS IF HE IS SOME PRINCE CHARMING. BATOOM DESERVED BETTER.

[Natasa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing story about pirates, a harem, a dwarf, an emperor, lots of eunuchs, jewels, gardens, religion, beauty, ambition, and poison. The language is beautiful. The story is sad but captivating. There were plenty of plot twists, unexpected alliances, and betrayal. I couldn’t put this book down.

[Monica. A · Rating 3 out of 5]

Da leggere per scoprire le bassezze a cui sono disposte le donne quando, rinchiuse in una gabbia dorata, sono costrette a lottare con tutte le armi a loro disposizione per garantirsi le attenzioni di un solo uomo.

[Niki · Rating 1 out of 5]

horrible

[Sara · Rating 1 out of 5]

First time I've actively hated a book in a while. I was so close to not even finishing it but I wanted to know who was poisoning the queens so I binge read the rest of it in one night. And I am now SO glad it is over and I can warn off others not to read it. The writing was nauseating. All the talk of fat and rolls and dimples and it is making a fetish out of weight and degrading anyone who reads it whether they're skinny or not. The line about "this is what a real woman looks like" made me so angry but not as angry as how they felt the need to point out how the women were all like hippos every second line. And the different words for genitals and "slime" and "wetness" like I felt sick reading it because who talks like this and thinks it is in the least bit sexy?

The characters. Didn't care for any of them. Helen was a piece of work. How vain she was only caring about jewels and wealth even just after her best friend had her eyes plucked out and after the other queen died. All she cared about and how it would be convenient if Zara died too. There was no growth from her character and I had no sympathy for her whatsoever. The only character I remotely liked was Zouria (sp?) because she was at the least interesting. And of course she had to die. The King was lazy, violent, a rapist and disturbing on about twelve other levels. Fillia (sp?) was no better. Going on about how much he hated this women's world but gushing when Helen wanted jewels. Because this love blinds all faults especially if you dissuade one activity and then encourage it with another.

The plot. I've learned more about Helen from her Wikipedia page then from this book. The poison takes up too much of the story and then finishes with thirty pages left which makes the story drag when it was probably invented. We have no idea what choices the characters make at the end which makes me feel there should have been focus on that instead of the eighteen disgusting sex scenes. And then she finally remembers her friend. It's been 300 pages, write that shit down so you won't forget!

If you're interested in a book about Harem (though it's the Ottoman Empire and not Morocco) I suggest The Sultan's Harem by Colin Falconer. It's not the best in terms of characters but at least it doesn't insult the culture while describing it.

[gia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall I enjoyed reading this book-- I charged through it in just a couple of days. However I had to overlook a few significant plot holes, and one particular theme throughout the book that bothered me slightly.

In the novel, Helen, from Scotland, is taken to the Moroccan emperor's harem. The emperor is something of a chubby chaser, so Helen-- and even our other narrator Fijil, a dwarf --talk constantly about how fat the girls are, rolling around, in a rather negative way.

By the time Helen inevitably falls into the emperor's bed himself, she's learned that "this is how women are supposed to be," which is a bit more positive although Helen's always been kind of dim and easily bossed-around.

But then towards the end of the book (I shan't give details), she's become slender again, and happy. It's not that I feel that the author is particularly meaning to give some kind of message about how fat women are indolent lazy idiots (which Helen became) and slender ones more intelligent-- the most virtuous and intelligent character of the book is also a large woman --but the constant talk of fatness and skinniness in the terms that they're presented was irksome enough that I was still thinking about it after finishing.

All in all a solid, but not particularly spectacular read, especially if you're looking for the relatively small realm of books about harems that aren't bodice-ripper romance novels, smut, or mediocre manga.

[Jean St.Amand · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was going to give this book a higher rating until the way it ended. What kind of a stupid ending was that? Seriously? That wasn't an ending; that was a book that lost the last several chapters and nobody noticed until after it was published and then it was too late, so everyone just decided to pretend that the last published page was the actual ending of the story. So annoying. I ended up skimming through the Fijil chapters in the last half of the book because they were pointless to the story. In the beginning the way he ''spoke'' was hard to follow; I realize the author was trying to make him sound intelligent but it was just too much blather. As the book went on Helen sounded shallower and shallower and became harder and harder to like. As for the Emperor, he was a total creep. Ugh, I'm beginning to wonder why I read this book.

[Karyl · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not quite halfway through this book and I had to put it down. I am tired of reading about how fat the Emperor's concubines are, with their ripplings of fat and the way they waddle as they walk. I understand this book takes place in a harem, which, by definition, is a place full of sex, but I am just tired of reading about it all. It would be better if I actually cared about the main character, Helen, but she's so quiet and passive, it's hard to understand why the author put such emphasis on her. The chapters written by the dwarf tended to disgust me as well. I'm no prude, but it's just all a little much.

I'm so glad I didn't pay much for this book.

[ErinAlise · Rating 3 out of 5]

A ship bound for the Colonies is suddenly taken over by pirates and the course is rerouted to Morocco.
On board the ill fated ship, Helen is unaware of her future but knows she has at least escaped from her past. Born into poverty and hardship her homeland of Scotland offered no possibilities and although she is fearful, she is also curious of this new land. Each day as the other passengers are sold up for slavery she stays behind till a small man appears to purchase her. At first she believes he is the new master but once arrived at the palace she finds out that the harem is to be her new home. The Emperor of Morocco is known for his fierce governance but Helen soon sees a different side. At first love blinds her to his cruelty and she believes that happiness can be achieved but love can be deceiving in a world where you’re always a possession and never free.
Based on a true story of a green eyed beauty from Scotland who was captured by pirates and eventually ended up as the wife of the Emperor of Morocco. Helen is young and naive, at first she is impressed by all the glamour that harem life has to offer, a full stomach and new clothes. However even when she is chosen as the new Queen, she is not without her wits and soon finds that true love was never far away. Certainly an interesting read, well written and very captivating, though some parts of the story are rather obscene and potential readers should be prepared.

[Rena Massey · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the 17th century, a young teenage girl runs away from home--and gets kidnapped. She ends up on the harem of the Emperor of Morocco, an enigmatic man who is both a tyrant and a gentleman. She becomes his favorite, and he eventually makes her one of his four queens. However, another man is also in love with Helen--and a jealous woman, unknown to her, is trying to kill her. This novel has plenty of intrigue, sex, violence, and even humor. It also does a good job of portraying life in a large harem full of women who are often bored, jealous, or sexually frustrated. I consider it a very well-written novel, but not a historically accurate one. Read it for a good escape.

[lena · Rating 1 out of 5]

We could have had something good but we didn't.

What ruined it? Perhaps it was the unnecessary descriptions of how fat the concubines were (nearly every page), or the unsympathetic and entitled Microphilus. Perhaps it was how the book dragged on and how shallow the book ultimately was.

I think I barfed when I read the afterword where Debbie Taylor cited Microphilus as her favorite character, saying that she hopes we love him just as much as she does. Sorry, Debbie, you missed the mark by a few miles with that one.

I had high hopes going in but I just wasted my time and my nerves.

[Jerusha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to give this a 2.5 but I am forever thwarted by Goodreads’ rating system. Highly mediocre, but also exactly the kind of entertainment I was looking for. The writing style got pretty annoying by the end.

[Martina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un romanzo storico intrigante, con una sfumatura di thriller dosata a pennello. Non metto 4 stelle però perchè non sono proprio riuscita a entrare in empatia con Helen, mi è sembrata troppo volubile.

[Renee Wiedmeyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting that it was based on a real Scottish woman and dwarf-man. Pretty fluffy but good beach read.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This could have been much better than it was. Still, it wasn't awful, and I think this is the first time I read a book solely because it popped up in my Goodreads recommendations, so...success?

[Lizzy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A somewhat unbelievable and optimistic ending

[AndrewKnoke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed the book, although it left off as if there was a sequel but could not find one.

[Michelle Soto · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bastante fastidioso de leer y hasta un poco repulsivo para mí gusto, confieso que cada vez que se relataba desde la perspectiva de Figil me lo saltaba

[Bracha Simcha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book, after all its historical setting is fascinating. But I just couldn't enjoy it. It rambles a bit. Had a slow plot, and was just missing some key element that I can't put my finger on.

[Apple Austria · Rating 3 out of 5]

I usually gobble up a book this thick in a day or two but it was dragging. It mostly focused on vanity and sex as if the emperor's sole role was to produce male heirs. Somewhat reminded me of In the Company of the Courtesan which I liked better.

[Vicki Trask · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The plot was engaging, it was well researched and there was not a single dull character I could find. I do admit that the ending was very disappointing - as though there was at least a chapter missing. I disliked the amount of questions I was left asking as I closed the book and I was almost left waiting for there to be a sequel of sorts.

From the very beginning you see just how naïve - and beautiful - Helen is, running away from home to avoid humiliation only to find herself whoring herself out for food on a ship to the colonies. Taylor's ability to create vivid imagery in just the first chapter was enough to make me gag...from the imagery. She manages to create a world full of life and pulls the reader in violently with sharp images and period lingo, simultaneously telling a tale of horror, of love and betrayal and of survival.

Coming from Scotland, Helen is suddenly thrust into a world where everything she knew of beauty was considered ugly. No more skinny curves and innocent virginity, she must be full-figured - fat - and know how to please a man if she ever hopes to catch the eye of the emperor and escape the vicious world of the harem.

Much of life in the harem is consumed by this plump, hairy, dark definition of beauty, none more consumed than the ugliest character of Microphilus, a deformed midget and the keeper of the beauties of Morocco. Taylor introduces this character in the first person form giving the reader an inside view of this new world - and more importantly - the brilliant mind and great love of a man that it seems no one can love (but the queens) for the sheer disgusting body the man possesses.

This world of beauty and sex is set in such a desolate, crude world that it is often too much to swallow but Debbie Taylor has managed to tell an engaging story filled with great imagery and heart pounding drama from beginning to end and I recommend this book to anyone looking for a great historical read.

[Shelley Schanfield]

This historical novel promised to be right up my alley, but while it is an interesting book, it wasn't a page turner. It certainly succeeds in vividly describing suffocating harem life, though the portrayal is so relentlessly negative I found myself questioning it . The sources consulted by the author are all by Westerners. While women of that time and place were confined and oppressed, I found myself wondering whether their situation was uniformly so bad, or if it was the view of the few Westerners who observed it.

The plot revolves around treacherous harem politics, certainly full of tension but the tension sometimes fades in pages of dialog. There are two points of view: the kidnapped Helen's and that of the dwarf Microphilus. I'm at a loss as to why Helen's point of view is rendered in the third person, while Microphilus speaks to us in first person. He becomes the more interesting character by far, reminiscent of Tyrion Lannister from Game of Thrones with his world-weariness and his impossible love for Helen.

It would have been interesting to know if there are any Moroccan sources in translation that discuss Helen Gloag's story, and if so, how they saw her.

For comparison, I recommend Sofia by Ann Chamberlin, about an Italian woman, roughly contemporary with Helen Goag, who was kidnapped and rose to power in the Ottoman Sultan's harem.

[Wellington · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Fourth Queen traces the story of an Irish girl, Helen Gloag, who rose to become the Queen of Morocco. The story oscillates between a third person account from Helen and the first person account from bedeviling fictitious dwarf Micophilus.

In Morocco, the Emperor followed the Islamic law of having four wives (thus the name of the book).

The book is roughly broken out in three parts. The first third of the book we followed Helen's abduction and her meeting Microphilus. We are introduce to Microphilus and life in the harem. Microphilus is obtuse and blunt and I can see why people do not like him. A lot of times I found his thought process fascinating until he gets hit by Cupid's Arrow and start behaving like a love sick puppy dog.

The second part follows Helen's rise to the fourth wife / queen ... and finally a mystery as someone is trying to kill Helen. The characters just did not interest me as much especially as they moved to their respective coordinates of their love triangle. Maybe more like a love tangle because I got frustratingly tangled wonderings of "Does he/she love me...love me not?"

There's enough to like the book that I don't regret reading it. But enough to dislike to be happy to be done reading it.

[Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Novel about a Scottish peasant girl sold into slavery in Morocco after her ship is attacked by Barbary pirates. She ends up in the Emperor's Harem, ensnared in the political and personal struggles particular to those who pique the Emperor's interest. I enjoyed the historical detail... exotic place, interesting time (the late 18th century), a fish out of water main character...it was entertaining enough to allow me to finish the book, and I loved the unexpected mystery in it (the mystery illness that plagued some of the main characters)...

However, the ending wasn't as satisfying as I had hoped. The author leaves you with an idea of what would happen next, but doesn't actually follow through with the resolution, so you're just left wondering if indeed the romance will come through or not, or if Helen will try to escape the Harem. The ending didn't finish the story. so poo.

[Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Novel about a Scottish peasant girl sold into slavery in Morocco after her ship is attacked by Barbary pirates. She ends up in the Emperor's Harem, ensnared in the political and personal struggles particular to those who pique the Emperor's interest. I enjoyed the historical detail... exotic place, interesting time (the late 18th century), a fish out of water main character...it was entertaining enough to allow me to finish the book, and I loved the unexpected mystery in it (the mystery illness that plagued some of the main characters)...

However, the ending wasn't as satisfying as I had hoped. The author leaves you with an idea of what would happen next, but doesn't actually follow through with the resolution, so you're just left wondering if indeed the romance will come through or not, or if Helen will try to escape the Harem. The ending didn't finish the story. so poo.