Divine Misdemeanors

Title: Divine Misdemeanors by Laurell K. Hamilton
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Gothic, Romance
Rating: 2/5

Merry and her men have left the faerie courts and returned to the safety of Los Angeles. But someone is killing the fey in LA and Merry has been called in to help find the killer. And if that wasn't enough, mortals that Merry once healed are going around and performing miracles.

I had high hopes for Divine Misdemeanors after reading Swallowing Darkness last summer. Unfortunately I was disappointed as once again the interesting plotline, the investigation of the fey murders, seemed to be overshadowed by the rather explicit sex scenes. It's a good thing that Merry's essentially a fertility deity otherwise I'd be worried about those babies she's carrying. As for the murder investigation, I found the revelation of fey porn interesting and a great way to emphasize the human obsession with the fey. And I loved the introduction of the Fairy Godmother of LA, who I hope we see more of in the future, and the introduction of more fantastical species. I've found that every other book in the series seems to be sex-driven rather than plot-driven, so hopefully the next book will be reminiscent of the earlier books. Perhaps if Hamilton stopped trying to publish a book a year in each of her series, and instead spent a little more time developing plot and editing, her writing quality would improve again. Overall, I'd say give it a read for the investigation and the plot, but wait for the paperback before buying for your collection.

Swallowing Darkness

Title: Swallowing Darkness by Laurell K. Hamilton
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Gothic, Romance
Rating: 4/5

Swallowing Darkness, the seventh book in Laurell K. Hamilton's Merry Gentry series, picks up just after A Lick of Frost left off. Merry, now pregnant with twins, has been raped by her uncle, who claims that her bodyguards are a threat to her and her children, which he claims as his own. On top of that, there are those that will go to great lengths to keep her off the throne of the Unseelie Court. However, Merry is willing to do whatever it takes to protect her children and her lovers.

I really enjoyed Swallowing Darkness. It seems like the series may be returning to its roots and giving more attention to the plot rather than to the many and various ways in which Merry can couple with her guards, as in some of the more recent books in the series. Although I still think Hamilton took the easy way out in deciding the parentage of Merry's children, I do find that it emphasizes the fantastical elements of the series. More importantly I was caught up in the intrigue and found myself waiting for each new twist. The book rounded up several of the storylines and with its beautiful ending, would have been a good place to finish the series. However, there are a few things that have yet to be dealt with and I hope that Hamilton deals with them as nicely in Divine Misdemeanors, which will be released in December 2009. There's a good chance I might reread Swallowing Darkness at some point in the future and I think this might be the book to bring back some of the readers who gave up the series when it became too graphic.