A Shiver of Light

Merry Gentry, Book 9

By: Laurell K. Hamilton

Narrated by: Charlotte Hill

Length: 12 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

Merry Gentry, ex-private detective and full-time princess, is now the mother of triplets, a rarity in the high ranks of faerie. And not everyone is happy about it, including Taranis, King of Light and Illusion. He’s using the human courts to sue for visitation rights, claiming that one of the babies is his. To save herself and her children, Merry will use the most dangerous powers in all of faerie: A god of death, a warrior known as the Darkness, the Killing Frost, and a king of nightmares. They are her lovers, and her dearest loves, and they will face down the might of the high courts of faerie - while trying to keep the war from spreading to innocent humans in Los Angeles, who are in danger of becoming collateral damage.

©2014 Laurell K. Hamilton (P)2014 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Lots of action, royal faerie court intrigue, love, and loss.” (Fresh Fiction)

“Worth waiting for.” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

“The world-building remains spectacular.” (Kirkus Reviews)    

Narration not for me

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Someone who had not listened to the other books

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Shiver of Light?

The babies!

How could the performance have been better?

Quit changing narrators. If you have to make changes, PLEASE find someone who can do multiple voices and not just try to change accents. It seemed she even forgot which voice/accent belonged to which character.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

I got a printed book and loved it. I enjoyed revisiting the characters and story. I hope there are more books in this series.

Any additional comments?

Don't let the narration put you off the book or the series. If you can't get into the narration, read it. It will not disappoint.

don't waste your credit

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

No one it was that bad.

What was most disappointing about Laurell K. Hamilton’s story?

She has lost her ability to write an interesting story, its just disappointing after waiting so long to find out what happens to Merry and her men. The death of one of the best of her baby daddies (and my personal favorite) was just pointless, not to mention defying already established rules about how difficult the Sidhe are to kill. There were so many interesting tidbits that could have been explored, that would have made the book so much better, but alas LKH has so lost her touch, I doubt she could write a decent grocery list these days.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

She was terrible. Her english accent invaded every character to the point where the LA cops sounded like London Bobbies.

What character would you cut from A Shiver of Light?

Taranus, he's an imbecile, how he managed to indirectly cause the death of one of the main characters is beyond me. A stupider bogey man has never been written.

Any additional comments?

Nope, it pretty much sucked.

Disappointing after waiting so long!!

What disappointed you about A Shiver of Light?

Seem like it was 35 chapters of blah blah blah and 8 or so chapters of the Merry we all missed so much. The new narrator made everyone (including Merry) sound Irish which was pretty distracting. Too bad we waited so long just to be disappointed.

THE SAME MERRY BUT NOT THE SAME!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

If you just start the series from this book absolutley get the series. Just do not go back and start from the beginning. If you already listened to the series READ the book if you loved the narrator and the characters.

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Shiver of Light?

The babbies!

Any additional comments?

I love that Merry is back!!! The narrator is not a bad narrator, but not for this series. Our beloved characters we have fallen in love with in the past 8 books are not the same. This is one series I enjoyed listening to because of the charecters and how the narrator portrayed them. We could listen and know who was speaking at any time throughout the 8 books. This book however I felt confussed most of the time. I had a tough time following who was talking and when. The accents on certain characters just felt wrong.

Story is ok, narration is bad

Would you try another book from Laurell K. Hamilton and/or Charlotte Hill?

I would avoid any books narrated by Charlotte Hill. She does not have the ability to change her voice for different characters like any good narrator can. Her English accent pervades all - even the LA based characters!

If you’ve listened to books by Laurell K. Hamilton before, how does this one compare?

Not as good as previous Gentry books.

How could the performance have been better?

Bring back Laurel Merlington! She was a great narrator for the other books. Unless she died, or was otherwise not available, please use her for future books!
If not Merlington, pick someone who can do multiple voices well.

Was A Shiver of Light worth the listening time?

Barely.

NO NO NO!

Any additional comments?

The author killed off one of the best characters in the series! I don't like how this story has gone nor where it's going! looks like I won't be buying any more books by this author!

Not the narrator for this book

Too many European accents for American characters. I found it irritating when "Ivy" was pronounced "Evie" yet when the narrator described the character she pronounced the name "Ivy". Not an unpleasant voice, just not a fit for this book, in my opinion.

Bad narration......

Why Oh Why do these book clubs never listen to their reader/listeners?cWhy Do You Change Narrators in a series long running, it just doesn't make good senes..... That be said, I'm sure Ms Hill would be good in other books but in this she took the story ratings down for me, her voice was so bad I couldn't tell who was who, she switched from an Scottish Highland accent to an English accent back to a semi American accent WTH!

I could barely get through the first chapter and quit by chapter 7 and went and bought the book instead, she muddled through out the book and it was a train wreck.

My feed back...... Buy LKH book instead do not buy this audio book it ruin book 9.

Good for Merry Gentry fans, otherwise just okay

First of all, the narrator was a terrible choice for this series. Merry is supposed to be from the US, not Britain, so it was hard for her to be believable. Also, all the male characters gained accents that they had not had in any of the previous books. I think she'd be a great narrator for another book, just not this one.

The storyline was weak and didn't draw me in like others in the series, but it was nice to mostly have things wrapped up. She did leave it open for a new series involving the children, which is nice.

If you're a fan of Merry Gentry it's a must read, otherwise I wouldn't bother.

Too short.......

This long awaited book was as captivating as all the others in the Merry Gentry series. They draw me in until I lose all awareness of my surroundings. No matter how long the book is in this series it leaves me wishing it were longer and the next one would be ready tomorrow because I finished the whole thing in one day. I know there is a lot of sex in these books, but there is always a great story and a lot of insight into human behavior and ways in which society could be better. Thank you Laurell K Hamilton for all your great series. The narration was fabulous.