Some Girls: My Life in a Harem
The book (published in 2010) is Jillian Lauren's autobiographical account of her experiences as one of short-term or long-term paid young female guests of the brother of the Sultan of Brunei between 1992 and 1995.
The book focuses on Lauren's personal experiences, but at the same time provides ample information about how the young female guest scheme was run during part of the 1990s.
- Young attractive women were hired for a short-term contract, typically for 3 weeks.
- Contracts in some cases got extended, in sometimes up to a year or two or more.
- The female guests were accommodated in luxury houses on the grounds of the royal estate, and had only limited access to outside of the property.
- The female guests were paid relatively well, in the order of two thousand dollars per week, and were additionally given valuable gifts such as jewellery.
- The female guests were expected to participate a party every evening whenever prince Jefri was expected to be present. The guests of the party were a couple of dozen paid women, prince Jefri, and a number of prince Jefri's friends and male guests. The parties involved singing, dancing, drinks, and light entertainment. One girl would typically leave the party with prince Jefri for some time.
- The female guests would sometimes, although rarely, be escorted to meet with prince Jefri during daytime in his office.
According to the book, Lauren became the number two girlfriend of prince Jefri, leading her to meet the sultan of Brunei in person, as well as joining trips abroad with prince Jefri's entourage. Her total income between 1992 and 1995, from about two years presence in Brunei, was about $300,000.
People other than the royalty of Brunei are primarily mentioned by first name only. One of the guests, Sheila, was a former Penthouse Pet of the Year who had lived with the family of Bob Guccione before joining the harem. One of the long-term guests, Fiona, was a former TV-actress from Philippines, whom prince Jefri had first seen on television. After a long presence as the number one girlfriend, Fiona was awarded one million dollars and an engagement ring, as a part of an offer for her to join the ranks of Jefri's multiple wives, but Fiona rejected the offer and left Brunei.