The Darkest Whisper [Mass Market Paperback]

As Lords of the Underworld race their enemies, the Hunters, to uncover the one artifact which can destroy our demon possessed immortal warriors, the warriors discover not another clue to the location of Pandora's box but their enemies' breeding program. In the midst of the rescue, Sabin (possessed by the demon of Doubt) is drawn to the most dangerous of the captives. Gwen's beauty belies the lethality of her immortal harpy heritage, and though she has suffered by witnessing her fellow captives' abuse, no Hunter has been able to approach Gwen to 'bring her into the program'.

Even though Gwen's inner harpy is deadly, `Gwendolyn the timid' is the queen of self-doubt and not your typical bold, brash and `fowl' immortal. Sabin is sure that he can turn Gwen's harpy into a weapon to aid the Lords in their fight against the Hunters, but knowing the deadly effect of his demon's ability to plant self-doubt in the minds of women he has allowed in his bed in the past, Sabin is determined keep the luscious Gwen safely at arm's length. So despite Sabin's growing need to claim Gwen, he must keep their relationship strictly about the war with the Hunters. But... Gwen's harpy has other ideas and Sabin's demon had better watch out.

I loved Darkest Whisper, for me it was the best of the dark Lords of the Underworld series so far. At first I couldn't imagine how Gwen who seems so riddled with self-doubt could possibly stand up to the assault of Sabin's demon, but it is the very fact that Gwen is so familiar with her own inner voice of doubt which allows her to ward off the insidious demon's attacks. And part of what makes the story so wonderful is that Gwen, as she finally comes to terms with her inner harpy, ends up being more than a match for Sabin and manages to fully cow his demon. It was fun to watch.

Though the romance between Gwen and Sabin is a major part of the story, as in past books Darkest Whisper continues to be an ensemble piece. Adding to the fun is the always irreverent Anya, the goddess of Chaos, and Gwen's harpy sisters who very much have the feel of the Valkyries from Kresley Cole's (an author buddy of Showalter) Immortals After Dark series - speaking of which, IAD character Nix puts in a brief appearance. The large number of 'Lords', mates and supporting characters will seem daunting to readers new to the series - actually it won't only seem daunting, if you are new to the Lords of the Underworld don't start here on book four. But for those of us who been following the series from the start, it really isn't a problem to keep track of the large cast. And more and more we are getting a feel for all of the warriors who haven't yet had their turn in the spotlight - with intros to Gideon(Lies) and Amun(Secrets), more of Paris'(Lust's) decline, and a peek at Torin(Disease) and Cameo (Misery) - and we are starting to see the threads for future stories come into play.

Next up: is Aeron's story with his mysterious watcher and his soothing pet demon Legion, I can hardly wait.

The Lords of the Underworld series is a fun, very sexy romp with lots of action. The first book (Darkest Kiss) was good, but seemed overly wordy. Darkest Pleasure and Darkest night were very good in my opinion, I loved the leads, these are my two favorite books. This book, Darkest whisper, was pretty good, 3.5/5. Although each book centers around one couple, you actually get a decent amount of intro to other characters upcoming stories (like Paris and Aeron). There's also several plot lines going on at the same time, which adds a touch of complexity.

Darkest Whisper didn't get 5/5 stars for me mainly because there is a huge buildup of plot that just fizzles into a WTF moment around page 400 (out of 406). I won't give away spoilers but there's no way anyone in the story at that point would have let what happened happen. The last 7 pages of dialogue degenerated into something agonizing (and completely unbelievable) to read and I felt pretty let down with the outcome. There were other ways the author could have had the needed character interactions and events without it becoming so awkward and unbelievable.

A couple other things that really bother me about this series (and I do read for fun, not because I'm looking for a "perfect literary masterpiece") is that there's a lot of over-explaining of what people are feeling (it's not that complex) and repitition of certain points. For instance, while I appreciate knowing what a character is thinking at a certain point, it's annoying when the dialogue is broken up with PAGES of rambling "thought". I don't even remember what they were talking about without going back and looking. Also, the whole "opening of Pandora's box" and "Baden's death" scenes do not need to be referenced three times in every book. We get it.

Despite my issues with the series (and this book in particular), LotU is a sexy, entertaining series. I love the characters and look forward to reading the upcoming books (and I hope Paris gets his turn!).

I have to hand it to Gena Showalter, I've always been happy with her romance and paranormal romance books and she keeps getting better with each publishing. The Darkest Whisper is no exception. I've been a fan of the Lords of the Underworld series from the beginning, though I've heard some readers be critical that the premise is very reminiscent of J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood series and Lara Adrian's Midnight Breed series (and others). Honestly, that's true in that there are a group of mega alpha males working together (and have been for centuries) to fight against an almost unbeatable foe. That war spans the arc of the series with each book highlighting a battle or skirmish or development in the war and goes hand in hand with at least one main romantic pairing. It's not an original premise, but so what? I totally dig that type of paranormal romance series - which is why I read so many of them. And the series is not defined by its premise, by any means.

Showalter sets Lords of the Underworld apart in a couple of different ways that really work for me. I love the backstory on the Lords and think it's unique and imaginative. Showalter does really well whenever anything revolves around ancient Greek mythology - her knowledge and ability to modernize ancient history is superb. She also has an absolute smashing gift of making really good choices in her romantic pairings. I can't say that about all my favorite authors in the genre. In THAT regard, she's tops in the field.

Sabin (Doubt) and Gwendolyn the Timid are a perfect example of that. I just loved them together. I've always been fascinated by the idea of Doubt as a demon and was really looking forward to reading Sabin's story. I found it totally satisfying! Gwen is a half-harpy who starts out as a walking contradiction - timid, yet ferociously deadly - and really grows into her wings and claws. Sabin (Doubt) is a Lord whose entire life is destroying the enemy and now finding Pandora's box and he struggles with regret and...well...self-doubt...as he fights an attraction to a woman he respects and admires...while every other woman he's cared about has ended up dead or destroyed courtesy of his demon. I can't say too much without spoiling the story, but I found their romantic resolution to be particularly satisfying as it relied in parts on the very nature of them both, instead of being a more external force.

On a personal note, I wasn't totally thrilled with one scene in particular at the end of the book and wish it had taken a different turn. It was a choice I wouldn't have supported had I been housing a demon at the time, that's for sure. I thought it made the non-romance plot aspects end on a weak note. It was the only weak note for me though. Otherwise, the threads that Showalter are starting to weave into her books with growing complexity - Paris' continuing downward spiral; Aeron's feelings of being watched and struggling not to slip back into psychosis (I love Legion, and the idea of her waltzing around in a tiara is priceless), and anything to do with Torin (who I have the most sympathy for - but I ADORED the beginning of the crossover with Kresley Cole's character Nuckin' Futs Nix!!) - have added a rich and luscious depth and intricacy to the books that were missing in the first couple. Those threads are really elevating the quality of the books overall and adding what was once a needed dimension.

Overall, this is in my "must read" column, but you'd miss a lot if you don't start at the beginning of the series - I suppose you COULD read The Darkest Whisper as a standalone, there's enough explanation to give you a rudimentary understanding of what's going on, but you'd lose a LOT of the atmosphere and feeling of the growing familiarity with these characters.

One caution to those who don't like a lot of darkness in their heros - the Lords of the Underworld are demons with histories that are lengthy and brutal, and The Darkest Whisper in particular had some scenes of brutality and torture that were written out and some just alluded to. Sabin can be a ruthless killer - they all can, but it's his book. I personally felt that this book was the darkest and most intently violent of the series. Not horribly graphic in description, really, but in tone. I don't have a problem with darkness and violence, but I know that some do.

Overall, I'd give The Darkest Whisper a 4.5 stars(I really didn't like that scene at the end, but the rest was so good it just detracted a little) if I could, but as we're limited to full stars it definitely gets rounded up. A must read for all paranormal romance fans!

Oh, and just one more thing...I can't help myself - I have to say I LOVE the title of this book. It just could NOT be any more perfect.

Doubt is, after all, the darkest whisper.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 137 reviews  3.9 out of 5 stars