Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    Swallowing Darkness: A Novel
    Unavailable
    Swallowing Darkness: A Novel
    Unavailable
    Swallowing Darkness: A Novel
    Audiobook11 hours

    Swallowing Darkness: A Novel

    Written by Laurell K. Hamilton

    Narrated by Claudia Black

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    I am Meredith, princess of faerie, wielder of the hands of Flesh and Blood, and at long last, I am with child-twins, fathered by my royal guard. Though my uncle, Taranis, King of Light and Illusion, claims that he is the true father since he abducted me from my home, betrayed, and defiled me. And now he has branded my guards as a threat to my unborn children.

    Bearing an heir has placed me halfway to my aunt's throne, that much closer to my reign over the Unseelie Court-and well ahead of her son, my cousin Cel, in this race. Now I must stay alive to see my children born and claim my place as queen.

    But not all in faerie are pleased with the news, and conspirators from every court in the realm plot against me and mine. They seek to strip my guards, my lovers, from me by poisoned word or cold steel. But I still have supporters, and even friends, among the goblins and the sluagh, who will stand by me.

    I am Meredith Nic Essus, and those who would defy and destroy me are destined to pay a terrible price-for I am truly my father's daughter. To protect what is mine, I will sacrifice anything-even if it means waging a great battle against my darkest enemies and making the most momentous decision ever made as princess of faerie.





    From the Hardcover edition.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateNov 4, 2008
    ISBN9780739370452
    Unavailable
    Swallowing Darkness: A Novel
    Author

    Laurell K. Hamilton

    Laurell K. Hamilton is the author of the New York Times bestselling Anita Blake series and Merry Gentry series. She lives with her family in St. Louis, Missouri.

    Related to Swallowing Darkness

    Related audiobooks

    Paranormal Romance For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Competition

      Dec 15, 2021

      IN COMPETITION No 274, you were invited to write a poem called The Phone. Your entries were all the better for the unease, at the least, you felt for the machine. ‘Man home to wife, he barely greets her/ But dials the shop to order pizza,’ observed D

      2 min read

    • Article

      If I Am Killed …

      Jul 1, 2018

      My Dear Wife: I expect that the time has nearly arrived when we shall have a bloody battle, as I understand tonight that the enemy are crossing the Rapidan River, with 25 or 30 thousand men, and advancing towards us. If so, probably before you receiv

      2 min read

    • Article

      Jeremias Gotthelf

      Feb 28, 2020

      Jeremias Gotthelf
      27 min read

    • Article

      Marks & Spencer – the OAP cult

      Aug 25, 2021

      The horror engulfing the southern United States focuses the remnants of my mind on the intriguing matter of misdirected loyalties. In Florida, Louisiana and elsewhere, legions of the wilfully unvaccinated are vacating the planet, out of fealty to Don

      3 min read

    • Article

      His Majesty’s Words In Full

      Sep 19, 2022

      I speak to you today with feelings of profound sorrow. Throughout her life, Her Majesty the Queen – my beloved mother – was an inspiration and example to me and to all my family, and we owe her the most heartfelt debt any family can owe to their moth

      3 min read

    • Article

      A Letter To The Allies

      Aug 12, 2020

      A Letter To The Allies
      4 min read

    • Article

      The King’s Christmas Broadcast 2022

      Jan 3, 2023

      I am standing here in this exquisite Chapel of St George at Windsor Castle, so close to where my beloved mother, the late Queen, is laid to rest with my dear father. I am reminded of the deeply touching letters, cards and messages which so many of yo

      2 min read

    • Article

      Write Us!

      Feb 14, 2023

      Write Us!
      3 min read

    • Article

      As She Welcomes Kate To Her Grand Copenhagen Palace crown Princess Mary Of Denmark Talks Meeting Her Prince, Their Happy Marriage And Feeling ‘In A Really Good Place’ At 50

      Feb 28, 2022

      As She Welcomes Kate To Her Grand Copenhagen Palace crown Princess Mary Of Denmark Talks Meeting Her Prince, Their Happy Marriage And Feeling ‘In A Really Good Place’ At 50
      6 min read

    • Article

      Trying To Be Just And Pious In Crusader Kings III Part II

      Dec 29, 2020

      Quick recap: I’m trying to ignore the urges this game inspires in me and everybody else, and be lovely, kind, and noble at every possible opportunity; unless I catch anybody being in any way immoral, then they shall feel my pious wrath. After losing

      7 min read

    • Article

      The Black Spider

      Dec 30, 2019

      The Black Spider
      25 min read

    • Article

      Come To The Party

      Nov 18, 2019

      King Xerxes, a wealthy and prominent king who ruled over 127 provinces, decided to give a banquet for all his nobles and officials. For a full 180 days, he displayed the vast wealth of his kingdom and the glory of his majesty. Then for seven days, he

      3 min read

    • Article

      Parent-child Fencing Class

      Jan 1, 2020

      Because I was too mean to make him a brother,my son has had to learn of hate alone.I told my friend I’d only ever wantedone child for reasons to do with the shapeof an arrow. But in truth I’m so disgustedby what I know of brothers, having given birth

      4 min read

    • Article

      I Am Proudly Coloured

      Sep 27, 2023

      You cannot define us by our melanin or hair strands. We come with different porosities and every colour on the spectrum; Alabaster, Sandstone, Olive and Obsidian, Jainism, Judaism/Jewish and Davidian. Polos and Pit Bulls, Dickies and BVDs. Jump at ev

      1 min read

    • Article

      50 Years Of Hardepad!

      Oct 25, 2021

      The medal I carry around my neck is a Yin and Yang symbol composed of an outer circle enclosing two teardrop-shaped halves wrapped around each other. When I was trying to find out more about the symbol, Wikipedia told me that, “In Ancient Chinese phi

      4 min read

    • Article

      Editor

      May 11, 2022

      In a broadcast to the nation on the evening after her coronation, Her Majesty the Queen made a pledge: ‘Throughout all my life, and with all my heart, I shall strive to be worthy of your trust.’ After an extraordinary life of public service, I think

      1 min read

    • Article

      Dark Pattern

      Dec 5, 2023

      I accept the terms and conditions of our relationship as indicated by my continued use of this interface, designed with the indulgent architecture of a desert casino no one ever wants to leave, least of all the luckless gambler digging deeper to find

      1 min read

    Reviews for Swallowing Darkness

    4/5

    552 ratings28 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      I'm not even sure I can say why, but this installment in the Meredith Gentry series didn't live up to the earlier books for me. For the second half of the book, I was just as wrapped up in the book as I usually am when it comes to Hamilton's writing, but the first half felt... I'm not sure. Somewhat rushed and scattered, as if chapters were being written to get characters from one moment to the next, but without the same depth as I'd expect from this author and series. There was just less weight to everything, and I had a hard time re-engaging with the series. Towards the middle, things picked up and I didn't want to put the book down--it felt like what I'd expected all along--but then the ending went back to feeling rather rushed, and didn't have the emotion I might have expected.So, I don't know... readers couldn't start with this book in the series regardless, as this really is a series you need to read from beginning to end and not jump into. Perhaps it was just me, and the span of time between reading books 6 and 7. This also might just have been a lull in the series. I'd still recommend the series to readers of urban fantasy and readers who love Hamilton's Anita Blake series, and I'll be curious to see whether book 8 is more in line with what I've come to expect from the Meredith Gentry books.
    • 2/5
      unsubtle title. amazing what can happen in 12 hours in these stories... makes me sore.
    • 4/5
      I love Merry :) Great book and continuation of this awesome series:)
    • 3/5
      Merry keeps finding new connections to the men in her life and expanding her powers at the same time. Laurell Hamilton now shows what can happen when you push someone up to a wall and try to hold them there. Merry thought she would get a break from all the killing with her pregnancy but now she finds out what it really means to be responsible for someone else's life....in this case, the lives of her children, her men, and her people. I'm disappointed that the author continues to move away from the plot to focus on more sexual escapades. Fun and steamy sex are great but those scenes should not take over the entire novel.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      If I could I'd give this book six out of five stars. It was that amazing! All my favorite characters, many amazingly delicious good endings, fast-paced and nonstop action. So good I have finished and now ride a sea of euphoria. There were dark scenes in this novel, don't think it was all joy and light. Don't think that. The backbone of this book is power, pain, and love. Merry, she may have found her happiness but she and her friends nearly die to find it. Oh, you could not read any more Meredith Gentry books and naively call this story closed. Yet the goddess chose Merry and her band of friends, lovers, allies for a reason and I highly doubt she would give up. Not this easy. But I have to admit that all that happens in this book is vividly real, painful and joyful in all it's book glory, that I hope that the next book is like this- a bit of ambrosia. A gift of the gods.
    • 4/5
      While this has been sitting on my book shelf for years it wasn't until I started reading it that I realized I had never read it before. Like many of the readers I find the descriptions get a bit redundant, particularly since I've been rereading the series and have read all the books fairly close together. It was good to see the plot move forward in this volume and several things finally get resolved that I was not expecting to see resolved.
    • 2/5
      Lots of "schooling" from Merry, but just as much action and fantastic magic.
    • 4/5
      This is the seventh book in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell Hamilton. It is the only Laurell Hamilton book for a long time that I really actually liked. This book was on par with some of the earlier novels in the series. The plot really progressed and the book overall could have wrapped up the series for good. Although I know "Divine Misdemeanors" is out later this year; I am not sure what to expect from that book since this book wraps up most of the big issues remaining in the series.This book starts right where "A Lick of Frost" left off. Merry is in the hospital recovering from being raped by her uncle. Gran comes to visit her but something is wrong with Gran and Gran tries to take out Merry's men. All of this leads to Merry and Sholto summoning the Wild Hunt and going off on the ride of their lives. Miracles abound and great battles are fought; Merry shows her tough side even as she tries to protect the twin babies she carries.This book spends a lot of time with Sholto and the slaugh; which I loved because the slaugh are probably the most interesting group in faerie. This book covered a lot of ground. Lots of really neat fairy magic happens and great relics of fairy are returned to Merry and her guards. There was a lot more action and fighting in this book than in any of the previous books and a lot less sex. I personally thought it made for a wonderful book.Merry really toughens up and you start to see her strength. She starts to really exercise her special abilities and use her hands of power. The book proceeds at breakneck speed and you are thrown from battle to battle and from miracle to miracle as the Goddess makes her presence strongly known.My biggest complaints about the book would be that Merry calls on the Goddess a lot; it almost seems like Merry can't solve anything without the Goddess's help. Also at multiple points in the book, despite her new-found toughness, Merry spends the majority of a fight laying underneath a guard while the guard takes the majority of the physcial battle damage and Merry can't see what is going on. Other than that this book was way better than any of the recent ones.I also mentioned that this book basically ties up all the loose ends of the series. It would be a great place to end the series. Now that I know another book is coming out I am really confused about what more is going to happen, and a little worried that the series will, yet again, take a turn for the worse.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      I'm reading this book right now, and I am loving it as much as the last book. I can't put it down, yet I don't really want it to end. More real plot, more real action, less sex... more Sholto!
    • 4/5
      Love this series, I like this almost as much as anita, different, but good.
    • 4/5
      Another book in the Meredith Gentry stable - possibly the last one in the series given there is a happy ending - but this might just be a hiatus too.They're picking up the pieces after the previous books. If you've not read them you can probably pick up most of the details easily enough but you probably don't want to start in book 7 of a series!THe plot gets moved along really quite quickly, and there's a massive confrontation at the end where the various truths of the situation come out.And there is a pretty happy ending too. If this is the last of these series then I won't complain because it's got rather OTT recently, but it's also a good back.
    • 3/5
      The tags Sex, Faerie and Politics almost say it all. Merry has escaped her uncle, who now claims fatherhood of her twins (even though Merry KNOWS who is the father). Merry now has to try to stay alive in a complicated game of politics and magic. This time thought the politics get her grandmother involved so the family that dislikes each other start to wage war.With some literal Deus ex Machina moments (I felt like asking her if she really wanted that much attention from the gods?) this is a little overpowered and the character may have been in peril but it never really felt all the perilous.This series has drawn me in, almost unwillingly, I do want to know what's going to happen but I do wonder that the author hasn't written herself into a bit of a bind. This series is trying very hard to be both a magic returning series and a murderous political thriller while not quite hitting the mark with either.
    • 3/5
      Book 7 in the series of Meredith Gentry, a Princess of the Unseelie Court in faerie, who works as a private detective in LA ...when she's not fighting off attempts on her life by her evil and mad cousin, Cel, staying out of range of her uncle Taranis, King of the Seelie Court, or not doing anything to anger her vindictive aunt Andais, Queen of the Unseelie Court. Meredith is pregnant with twins, and the fathers of those twins will be her Kings if she ascends the throne that the Queen will vacate once she has her children. However, it is because she's with child that the attempts on her life from those loyal to Cel, increase, to ensure she does not take the throne from him.Perhaps it is because she is a half-breed, part human, part faerie, that she manages to call the old power, communicates with the Goddess, and appears to be the instrument by which faerie starts to return to its previous glories. Protected and surrounded by her bodyguards, all of whom are male, some having left the painful services of the Queen, some goblins, the King of the underworld and an old friend, she finds her strength tested as she tries to race against time and magic to vindicate the death of her brownie grandmother, and save her loved ones from death. You do need to have read the other 6 in the series in order to understand the continuing saga in this one.
    • 3/5
      For once a Merry Gentry book with very little sex, although I am not sure the gratuitous - and boring - violence that has replaced it is an improvement.The amount of exposition required to bring new readers up to speed in this universe grows with each new book in the series. Fortunately it seems as if critical mass was reached in book 3, making this particular annoyance less outstanding. The overblown prose, however, takes up as much space as ever, and is as repetitive and inconsistent as in all the Merry Gentry stories.The 7'th Merry Gentry book is high om plot by their own standard, although the actual action takes up a great deal less space than Merrys subsequent editorializing about them. Her portentous declarations throughout the book are excessive and overwrought.
    • 5/5
       the Meredith Gentry series is wonderful. Hamilton has a fertile imagination. every book of hers is a sensual adventure that keeps you waiting with bated breath til the next book! This Gentry novel also happens to be based on Doyle, who is 1 of my faves!
    • 4/5
      The writing has gotten much better as the series has gone on, with this installment being the best in my opinion. She wrapped up many lose ends, and left me feeling happy and satisfied. I believe that the series could easily be ended here, but I would keep reading if Hamilton gives us another installment.
    • 3/5
      In the last book, Merry was kidnapped and raped by her uncle Taranis. She's already pregnant with twins, but he hopes to claim they are his heirs. And one of Merry's body-guard-harem, Killer Frost, had chosen to sacrifice himself (being turned into a stag) in order to save her. Now she has been saved from Taranis and is back in human hands, in the hospital where the doctors and police are super-protective of her. That doesn't keep enemies from continuing their attacks upon her and her men, however. Much of the book is concerned with saving people--her men and others--from death and destruction, bouncing from the Seelie Court to the dwelling of the Slough and back to the US.Lots of breathless action with odd breaks for dialogue and exposition... and sex, of course, which is as usual. The story arc was more complete than in the last book. This could almost have been the end of the series, only there are certainly more to come in this series. I'm not a huge fan of LKH's books, but occasionally I'll pick one up from the library just to see what all the fuss is about. This one was readable, and the characters weren't unsympathetic (although I'm not a fan of blatant Mary Sues), but that's about all that can be said about it. If you're a hard-core fan, it's worth picking up, of course. Not so much if you're not.
    • 4/5
      The most recent installment of Laurel K. Hamilton’s Merry Gentry series, “Swallowing Darkness,” answered some lingering questions…and then asked a whole bunch more…When we meet up with our heroine in this installment, she is newly pregnant with twins. (Fathered by not one but FIVE of her royal guards. Oh, and Sholto the King of the Slaugh. Lucky girl.) Her pregnancy is both a blessing and a curse as it secures her position as heir to the Unseelie throne but also increases the pressure on her enemies to end her life before she can become queen. After her beloved grandmother dies in her arms, she makes the decision to return to self-imposed exile in California to protect her life and the lives of her babies.But nothing in Faery is that easy, and Merry’s treacherous cousin (and rival for the throne) Cel has a final trick up his sleeve. He refuses to be graceful in his defeat. And despite his cruelty, many among the Unseelie Sidhe would prefer his leadership to that of a mixed-blood mortal.So the insanity ensues. There is a singularly bloody battle that reminds all of us of Laurel K. Hamilton’s vampire executioner roots. Magic and mind-bending glamour abound. Traitors are exposed, and familiar faces return. I can’t say much more about the climax because I don’t want to spoil the carefully woven surprises that make this book so satisfying. Needless to say, it is a close victory for Merry and crew (come on, there’s another book coming out in October. You already knew her team won.)I have to say, this ended up being one of my favorite books in this series. It really did tie up some big loose ends that have been hanging around since the beginning. Most importantly, it kept her from having to choose a single member of her royal guard as her King. She is clearly in love with several, and in serious like with a couple more. The development of her twins having multiple fathers (three each) really saved her ass. Here’s to hoping the next book in the series, “Divine Misdemeanors” allows some of her good fortune to continue.On my scientifically proven rating scale, I give “Swallowing Darkness” a very respectable 4 ½ stars.
    • 3/5
      After the ridiculousness of Blood Noir, the latest Anita story, I was pleasantly surprised by Swallowing Darkness, at least it had a plot! Things are moving along magically, the Goddess is ever more present and Merry's band of loyal men keeps expanding. It's still all about the magic of sex, and how fair Meredith is and how she shares nicely but also loves Doyle and Killing Frost best. Because I really can't tell the men apart, I don't love Killing Frost at all and kind of like Doyle, but not more than anyone else, so the love story part is actually the weakest for me. Certain plot lines come to an end with an engaging battle at the end. I'm curious to see what happens with the babies. One of the things I liked best about the book was how becoming pregnant did not make Merry all weak and maternal, it made her understand that her enemies see kindness as weak and she became a lioness, and actually killed people and ordered their death, using her fearsome hand of power (not quite sure how you could really turn someone 'inside out' and still alive, but she can) to protect her unborn children. Glad to see her get some backbone! Will keep reading this series...
    • 5/5
      Laurell K. Hamilton slips in again with another great and enchanting novel. The magic of faerie proves itself to be both wild and exotic as well as deadly and fascinating. From start to end Hamilton has you transfixed; causing you to need to continue to read just to find out if Princess Meredeth wielder of the Hands of Blood and Flesh will survive the loss of her Killing Frost, and the plots against her and those that she cares for. Will she succeed? Will she loose another? What does the Goddess have in store for her? So many questions yet you have to read on to find out. I look forward to the next tantalizing book in the series; I eagerly await to see what happens next.
    • 5/5
      This is not the last Merry book! I have read every book in this series at least once and this one is my favorite. This book is fast paced, full of action and is beautifully written. Swallowing Darkness ties up a lot of the plot strings that have been ongoing throughout the first 6 books. Someone close to Merry dies, someone Merry loves returns, and the faerie ruler of the Unseelie Court is decided. I recommend at least reading A Lick of Frost first, but even as a stand alone this book is amazing!
    • 4/5
      It seems that th is is the last Maredith Gentry novel. It ended perfectly with a lot of bloodshed and faerie quarrels in the middle. Merry finally is pregnant (with twins!). Most of her protectors are the fathers - which won't make a hoot of sense unless you read volumes 1-6 - and all seems well. Until.....
    • 1/5
      A sadly tedious book. LKH writes as if she assumes the reader hasn't looked at any other book in the series, and is now only skim-reading on a plane - the narrator thinks about something, then within a page one of the characters asks another about that very thing and has it explained in more detail. Aaaaaah! On the plus side, it has more plot than sex, and the basic writing style let me skim read the more tedious bits. On the negative, there's no resolution in sight, only endlessly more powerups for the characters.
    • 3/5
      FINALLY, some resolution! This entry in the Merry Gentry series plods along a bit at first, as the characters in this series tend to overanalyze and thoroughly discuss everything, but the major battle between Meredith and her enemies is Laurell Hamilton at her finest. If you read these for the sex, you'll be a bit disappointed with this one. But, if you're reading for the story, you'll be happy to see some conclusions here. This series is far from her best and I think that with some serious editing it would have made a much better trilogy than a seven-book series, but if you are as hooked on Hamilton as I am you will read it regardless of quality.
    • 5/5
      Great read. Loved the battle and furthering of the emergence of faerie.
    • 4/5
      Wow, actual plot, TWICE in a row. How awesome is that? I've missed LKH. I hope she's back. Now let's see how Anita fares...(not as well, I fear)
    • 3/5
      As previously contracted, this would've been the last book in the Meredith Gentry series but LKH has stated on her blog that there will be more. This latest effort was better than the middle books because with only two short sex scenes, she devotes more to the plot. The world and the characters are more engaging and I am glad to see that she is moving beyond the sexual mire of the previous books. It's obvious from the way this one ended that she had to change or rather delay the direction the plot was headed. Not necessarily a bad thing, as I think that will allow some of the interesting secondary characters to assume more prominent roles.I should confess that I have a sort of love-hate relationship with LKH. I loved the first book in this series, as well as several of the early Anita Blake novels. [I am one of the many that felt she lost her way (whether due to a fixation or pure stubbornness, I don't know) by putting so much sex (which hit a plateau very early on then was just annoyingly bad thereafter) and completely disregarding the plot. I also should point out that while she has a wonderful imagination and good character development, her writing has never been particularly good. She talks about the never ending quest to find the right words but ends up using the same ones over and over again.] Nonetheless, I plan to read the next book to see where she takes the world of the Sidhe, but I can't promise beyond that.
    • 5/5
      Looking for a kickass heroine? "Swallowing Darkness" by Laurell K. Hamilton gives us a pregnant heroine with awesome powers and raging hormones! How can I not love it?Seriously, in this 7th book of the 'Meredith Gentry' series Meredith is finally pregnant...with twins no less. But instead of becoming softer Merry has had it with her enemies. No more bargaining or backing down. She will do whatever she needs to protect her mates and her unborn children. All I can say is...about time. In previous books in this series Merry has been reactive, now she's going proactive and I loved the whole book. If you haven't read any of this series, don't start with this book as you'll just end up confused. Merry is half fae and if she can survive to give birth, she's the new ruler of the seelie court. Her aunt, the current insane ruler, set a challenge between her own son and Merry. The first to get pregnant and begat an heir will win the crown. Of course, her aunt is a totally insane, bloodthirsty, sexually sadistic monarch whose whim is law. And her son is an apple who didn't fall far from the tree. So Merry is caught between these two with pretty much no choice but win or die.That's the basic premise of these books, but there is so much more. I should certainly warn you that I consider these books erotica as there's a LOT of sex and most of it isn't exactly tame or vanilla! But this series is also a really engrossing fantasy tale...for adults. My only gripe is now I have to wait another year for the next chapter in Merry's life.