Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Swallow
SERIES: Forbidden Desires
AUTHORS: Piper Scott & Virginia Kelly
NARRATOR: Michael Ferraiuolo
LENGTH: 3 hours and 43 minutes
RELEASE DATE: January 2, 2020
BLURB:
Grimbold Drake, influential patriarch of the Drake family, revels in his solitary life of order – a life which is thrown into chaos when his son pays him an unexpected visit, bringing with him a broken but gorgeous young man more than a millennium Grimbold’s junior. A man Grimbold instantly finds himself yearning to fix, protect, and claim.
Meek, subservient, and eager to please, Wally Brand doesn’t doubt the tales he’s been told of the cruel and deceitful Amethyst clan. So, when he’s forcibly taken from his home and entrusted to Grimbold Drake – the most powerful Amethyst dragon of all – he knows he won’t be long for this world.
Only, there’s a gleam in Grimbold’s eyes when he looks Wally’s way and a tenderness to his touch that Wally can’t understand. All he knows is one thing: Whether Grimbold means him harm or not, if he can be good to his dragon captor, maybe…just maybe, he’ll get out of this mess alive.
Swallow is a steamy omegaverse mpreg-ish romance set following the events of the Forbidden Desires series. It contains a broken young man who badly needs love, a curmudgeonly dragon with a heart of gold, new nicknames, familiar faces, and the sweetest dog known to dragonkind.
For maximum enjoyment, Swallow is best listened to as a companion piece to the Forbidden Desires series.
REVIEW:
Note: This book is a spin-off from the Forbidden Desires series and as such contains some spoilers for the main series books. Recommended to complete the main series prior to enjoying this story 🙂
Swallow, or Wally as he’s sometimes known, is an omega disgrace who has been terribly abused – of course by the Topaz clan. When the pedigree cloisters were closed, somehow Wally was able to hide. When he’s discovered, he’s a total mess. He needs a safe place to recover, and what better place than with Grimbold Drake, leader of the Amethyst clan. When Grimbold’s son Geoffrey brings Wally to him for advice on what to do, he immediately feels that he needs to fix this situation.
Wally has never really known any sort of care or affection, let alone love. He’s terrified that he’s being set up to be punished. When Grimbold attempts to connect with him, he’s suspicious. He’s been told the Amethyst Clan is cruel and conniving, so he is just sure that Grimbold will hurt him in the worst possible way. His every step is made with a prayer he’s not unknowingly breaking some rule for which he will suffer the consequences. Grimbold does his best to try to ease the boy into trusting that he isn’t going to be punished and that he is safe. He even goes as far as to watch television with him. (This is adorable and will be a lot of fun for fans of a certain vampire slayer 😉 )
The more time the newly christened Walter (Grimbold cannot abide Wally or Swallow) spends with Grimbold, the more progress they begin to make on the trust issue. Walter is also smitten with Grimbold’s dog Beatrice 😀 Grimbold, meanwhile, is conflicted about his feelings for Walter. He’s not taken this kind of interest in anyone in centuries. But his dragon recognizes his desire to make things right for Walter – but also for himself 😛 And he’s willing to do what it takes to keep Wally safe and make him his.
This is a shorter story in this universe, but still very good! I felt so bad for Wally. He certainly had more than his share of bad luck and pain. Grimbold, who appears to be pretty rigid in the rest of the series books, softens considerably in this story. He’s got some guilt over what has happened to Wally while he served as head of the council, but he’s determined to set things to rights. Wally has some of his own tricks up his sleeve as we learn during this story and when he finally shares this with Grimbold, it’s pretty obvious that Wally has gotten things right ang Grimbold will eventually give in to his feeings 🙂 There are lots of visits from characters of the main series which are a lot of fun. And when Grimbold accepts that he can move on with his life, Wally finally gets his wish and is happy and safe. As usual, Michael Ferraiuolo’s narration is perfect. The gruff Grimbold and the innocent and abused Wally are perfect. The rest of the characters who appear are like visiting old friends and their voices spot on. For lovers of this series, this is a beautifully told addition to these wonderful characters and universe. Recommended.
RATING: 
BUY LINKS:
Audible