The Sheik: A Novel

by E. M. (Edith Maude) Hull

"The Sheik: A Novel" by E. M. Hull is a novel published in 1919. When independent Englishwoman Diana Mayo ventures alone into the Algerian desert, she is kidnapped by the mysterious Sheik Ahmed Ben Hassan. Held captive in his desert camp, Diana struggles between hatred and unexpected feelings for her captor. This controversial bestseller sparked a major revival of desert romance fiction and became the basis for the famous Rudolph Valentino film. The novel explores themes of captivity, passion, and transformation against an Orientalist backdrop.