The unprecedented political power of the Ottoman imperial harem in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries is widely viewed as illegitimate and corrupting. This book examines the sources of royal women's power and assesses the reactions of contemporaries, which ranged from loyal devotion to armed opposition. By examining political action in the context of household networks, Leslie Peirce demonstrates that female power was a logical, indeed an intended, consequence of political structures. Royal women were custodians of sovereign power, training their sons in its use and exercising it directly as regents when necessary. Furthermore, they played central roles in the public culture of sovereignty--royal ceremonial, monumental building, and patronage of artistic production. The Imperial Harem argues that the exercise of political power was tied to definitions of sexuality. Within the dynasty, the hierarchy of female power, like the hierarchy of male power, reflected the broader society's control for social control of the sexually active.

This is a critical study of French and British art and written texts (poetry, literature, travel accounts, art criticism) -- orientalist works about the harem produced in the period from 1800-1875. Original readings are provided for over 150 harem pictures, from well-known salon paintings to rarely published erotic popular prints and book illustrations. Multiple Wives, Multiple Pleasures examines these works closely, often establishing fresh contexts for many of the more well-known nineteenth-century harem pictures, and often providing a consideration of lesser-known harem pictures that have been rarely published until now.

In a nuanced reading of Ingres's Bain turc and other works, Yeazell concludes that for some the appeal of the harem lay in the fantasy of eluding time and death."--BOOK JACKET.

Cyra, a rare Omega phoenix shifter, has been hiding from the shifter world for years, but she’s about to be dragged back into it in a big way. Cyra feels that she’s pretty good at pretending that she’s human, she’s got a job at a cafe and is a princess for hire for birthday parties for kids. Money is always tight, but she likes her freedom and that’s worth a lot to her. Rare Omegas like her are never truly safe. Either because her parents keep trying to marry her off to some rich Alpha for the money and status it would bring them, or the constant danger of being found out, kidnapped and bred by some random shifter family hoping to gain status from that. Once she’s claimed by an Alpha, she’ll become the Alpha’s property, and she refuses to live like that. But those situations become real possibilities when Cyra finds herself at the start of the shifter mating season with an old car that constantly breaks down and her stash of medication that she uses to hide her Omega status running dangerously low, and no money to afford to do something about either problem. Her problems get even worse when two playboy Alphas, a hydra and a griffin, start showing up at the cafe. Their teasing and interest making her feel things and want things she’s sworn to never do with another shifter, for the risk of what could happen is too great for the short enjoyment it would bring. But the final straw is when she accidentally accepts to play a princess at a shifter kid’s birthday party and her car breaks down right as she’s about to leave. Luckily, or maybe she’s just that unlucky, two kind Alphas, a cerberus and a centaur, are able to give her a ride back home. Their kindness making her feel safe and comforted, even when it’s not safe for her at all. In a bout of recklessness and a desperate need for the money, she accepts the offer of the cerberus and centaur to be their date to the yearly Night Gala. An exclusive event at the start of the mating season where Alphas, Betas and Omegas can meet, but it’s not uncommon for humans to attend too, as ‘dates’ or staff. One night of looking pretty and eating fancy food and she’d be able to not only fix her car but afford the medication she needs, the offer is too tempting. What she hadn’t expected was for the hydra and the griffin to show up too. Or how all four Alphas would react to her Omega scent. Or how the media would hound them through the city as the five are trying to figure out what’s going on. Or, worst of all, how her parents would use this opportunity to get the fame they’ve always wanted by claiming that the four Alphas have kidnapped Cyra and that she’s already promised to another Alpha. Now the five not only have to figure out their feelings, but are also on the run from the media, the police and anyone interested in getting their hands on a rare Omega, no matter the cost… This collection contains all four books in the Her Shifter Harem’s Babies series, Omega Phoenix: Claimed, Omega Phoenix: Hunted, Omega Phoenix: Pursued and Omega Phoenix: Provoked. This is a paranormal Omegaverse reverse harem #WhyChoose romance. These books may include any of these elements: steamy scenes, ‘I need tissues NOW’ moments, cries of ‘why, oh, why’ and cliffhangers that make you bite your nails (and curse the author). This series contains MF, MM and group scenes.

Red Deer: Behavior and Ecology of Two Sexes is the most extensive study yet available of reproduction in wild vertebrate. The authors synthesize data collected over ten years on a population of individually recognizable red deer, usually regarded as conspecific with the American elk. Their results reveal the extent of sex differences in behavior, reproduction, and ecology and make a substantial contribution to our understanding of sexual selection.

The present study deals with the royal Mughal ladies in details and is concerned with their achievements and contributions which till today form a part of rich cultural heritage. It provides a detailed account of the life and contributions of the royal Mughal ladies from the times of Babar to Aurangzeb's, with special emphasis on the most prominent among them.