In The Darkness, That's Where I'll Know You: The Complete Black Room Story

By: Luke Smitherd

Narrated by: Luke Smitherd

Length: 12 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

The #1 Audible bestseller from the author of The Stone Man (shortlisted for the Audible Audiobook of the Year Award 2015)

There are hangovers, there are bad hangovers, and then there's waking up inside someone else's head. Thirty-something bartender Charlie Wilkes is faced with this dilemma when he wakes up to find himself trapped inside The Black Room - a space consisting of impenetrable darkness and a huge, ethereal screen floating in its center. It is through this screen that he sees the world of his female host, Minnie.

How did he get there? What has happened to his life? And how can he exist inside the mind of a troubled, fragile, but beautiful woman with secrets of her own? Uncertain whether he's even real or if he's just a figment of his host's imagination, Charlie must enlist Minnie's help if he is to find a way out of The Black Room, where the light of the screen goes out every time Minnie closes her eyes….

In The Darkness, That's Where I'll Know You tells the complete story of The Black Room, parts one to four. It contains all of the adventures of Charlie and Minnie, guaranteed to keep the listener on the edge of his or her seat.

©2013 Luke Smitherd (P)2015 Luke Smitherd

Critic reviews

"Science fiction, drama, humor, horror, and yes - even romance - are expertly blended ... In The Darkness, That's Where I'll Know You is shaped with an exquisite precision that culminates in a climax that leaves the listener exhausted from the dizzying thrill of emotions..." ( Ain't It Cool News)

In the darkness

In the darkness was very imagginitive story reminiscent of the greats of fiction and horror. Having Luke Smitherd himself to narrate gives it a very personal view that I loved. Read this one in tandem with my husband and it has made for much discussion and many questions, drawing us personally closer in the process. Thank You. Will recommend to everyone.

Kept me Guessing

This was a pleasure to listen to and I really, truly enjoyed it. It'll be good to see his next work.

Good Story

This was a good and interesting story. At times it was a little bit dry especially about three quarters of the way through. However, it kept me entertained throughout the story. I do like the author, his afterward was quite amusing. He sounds like a fun guy to be around.

Exceptional!

I absolutely loved this book (collection). I've already listened to The Stone Man and figured if that was good this one should be too. I was never happier to be proven right. Add in the fact that the author himself narrated...phenomenal. The emotion he was able to convey rivals some other narrators who can't possibly know every nuance the author was going for. I highly recommend this book and now I'm off to look for more Luke Smitherd goodness.

A dark beauty

This book was recommended to me by a friend. I had never heard of the author, but wanted to give this intriguing genre, and the author, a try. I was genuinely moved by the unusual romantic angle and fascinated by the story. I have a feeling it will haunt my thoughts for a while - in a good way. I also appreciated the author’s comments in the “Authors Notes” at the end of the book. It’s always fun to get to know more about an author and his or her ideas behind the stories. I look forward listening to more of Luke Smitherd’s books.

Novel concept

Innovative story and author/narrator Luke Smitherd is a joy to listen to. Highly recommend

Intriguing

Great storytelling, every twist is earned. Drags a bit toward the end but otherwise perfection. Can't say much without giving too much away.

The author knows his characters

To begin:

I purchased this audiobook after listening to both "The Stone Man" and "Kill Someone," so I guess you could say I'm late to the Smitherd party. The other reason I point this out is because those books were read by a different narrator, and not the author.

Having listened to both, I can't really say if I prefer one or the other. But I did have my doubts about Smitherd as a narrator in the beginning.

The meat:

So, you might wonder why I had an issue with Smitherd as a narrator, well let me tell you what turned me off to him at first and what kept me listening later.

Smitherd was probably a novice to narrating prior to reading this book, so at the beginning he emphasizes weird words and reads a bit too fast. His voices were pretty alright, though.

Later on, as the chapters progressed, he got a whole lot better. His inflections were spot on, and his knowledge of the story lent more believability to the book, as a whole.

The story, itself is thrilling, magical, beautiful, dark, mysterious, and down-right good.

It's best not to go into any more detail than that, because I'm a firm believer in "the less you know about a story going in, the more you'll like it."

If the summary tickles your fancy and this review makes you think you'll love Smitherd as a narrator, I recommend you buy it and have a listen. You won't be disappointed.

LOVED

Would you consider the audio edition of In The Darkness, That's Where I'll Know You: The Complete Black Room Story to be better than the print version?

I haven't read the print version; but I LOVED the audio version.

Have you listened to any of Luke Smitherd’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No I haven't but I certainly will after this. For me this book was very different from other books I've read, refreshing and different. Out there.... but felt believable and was unpredictable. I loved the performance, had a few spots where lines were repeated but that didn't detract from the listen. It is a great book and a great, heartfelt narration.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Hard to pick a particular moment....I enjoyed the entire book.

Any additional comments?

I don't write reviews as a rule. I may rate a book here and there but never a review. I felt compelled to write one after this listen because the book is really good, main characters very endearing, and overall just a really good story line. Loved it.

Fantastic, Original and engaging!

This is one of the most original and engaging concepts and stories I have heard in a long time. It took me 2 days to get through the full read through and that was only because real life stopped me from finishing in a day! The performance falters a bit in the second chapter as it feels like the recording equipment changed, but the story is so enrapturing, it is easy to overlook! Looking forward to more! And I’ll be sharing the story with whoever I can!
Only negative I can give is that it was too intense for my wife to listen to, so I couldn’t convince her to hear the whole thing.