Merry Gentry
Encyclopedia
Merry Gentry is the title character of fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...

 series by US writer Laurell K. Hamilton
Laurell K. Hamilton
Laurell Kaye Hamilton is an American fantasy and romance writer. She is the author of two series of stories. Hamilton is known for her New York Times-bestselling Anita Blake series, featuring a professional zombie raiser/supernatural consultant for the police as the protagonist in a world where...

, best-known for her previous series Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter. Since 2000, she has been alternating between the two series, publishing eight Merry Gentry novels as of 2009.

Character profile

Meredith NicEssus is a faerie
Fairy
A fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...

 princess
Princess
Princess is the feminine form of prince . Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or his daughters....

 turned private investigator
Private investigator
A private investigator , private detective or inquiry agent, is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private detectives/investigators often work for attorneys in civil cases. Many work for insurance companies to investigate suspicious claims...

 in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable. She takes on the pseudonym "Merry Gentry" to hide from her family and her past while hiding out in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

 as a private investigator at Grey's Detective Agency. Merry, the only Sidhe
Sídhe
The aos sí are a supernatural race in Irish mythology and Scottish mythology are comparable to the fairies or elves. They are said to live underground in the fairy mounds, across the western sea, or in an invisible world that coexists with the world of humans...

 royal to be born on American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 soil, fearing the continuous assassination attempts on her life thinly disguised as duels, flees the Unseelie Court in a final act of self-preservation. Her glamour (the art of magical disguise through illusion) is nearly unrivaled at court, and she is able to pass herself off as a human with fey blood.

The general tone of the writing is less of an outright fantasy and more of an alternate history. The point of divergence from normal history is not provided, although hints are given about how the faerie history intersects with human history (Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...

, the Irish Potato Famine, and Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...

 are examples). In the books, Jefferson gave the Unseelie and Seelie
Seelie
In mythology and folklore, fairies are classified in a variety of ways.Two of the most prominent categories, derived from Scottish folklore, are the division into the Seely Court and the Unseely Court...

 courts asylum after the European courts exiled them—however with the caveat that they could not set themselves up as gods or make war on one another, by doing so they would risk being evicted from US soil.

Flash forward to present times. The fey are quite fashionable in the modern United States, and there are many faeriephiles. "Sightings" of the Elven American Princess have covered the tabloids for years now, and Queen Andais' magic is constantly following these false leads—which are becoming more popular than Elvis sightings.

At the beginning of the first book in the series, Merry's name full name and title is Princess Meredith NicEssus, Child of Peace, Besaba's Bane. "NicEssus" means, literally, "daughter of Essus"; it is the sort of name given to a child and laid aside once the child has come into his or her powers. That Merry used the name into her thirties is a sign that she is a late bloomer at best, a lesser sidhe at worst. After a child comes into their power, the last name is dropped. Later in the series it is revealed that Meredith is a fertility deity whose powers are of both courts.

As of the end of the second book in the series, Merry's titles are Princess of Flesh and Blood; at the end of the 4th book, The Red And White Goddess is added to her title by demi-fey who gave her the title when her magic gave wings to wingless demi-fey.

The series chronicles the return of Meredith to the Unseelie Court by way of an invitation sent by her Aunt Andais, the Queen of Air and Darkness in the form of her right hand, Doyle, also known as Darkness. She is given men from the queen's own guard, her Ravens, to guard her body and fill her bed as heir to the throne, provided she can conceive a child before her cousin. Later Merry adds to her collection of men first by taking the men offered to her by Queen Andais, as well as forming alliances with the Demi-fey and goblins.

Alliances Formed by Meredith

Meredith formed her first alliance with Sholto King of the Sluagh when he is sent to Los Angelas by an unknown man (Later theorized to be Cel, her cousin). Once there Sholto uses his guards to track her down, however the hags (Sholto's guards and lovers) attempt to kill Merry. Once Sholto convinces Merry to accompany her to his hotel room they form an alliance which was to be consecrated by Merry having sex with Sholto. They are interrupted by Nerys The Gray who attempts to kill Merry. However, Merry comes into her first hand of power (the Hand of Flesh) due to her "shinning" moment with Sholto and uses her newly found hand of power on Nerys. She is eventually convinced to kill Nerys with Doyle's killing blade by Doyle and Sholto, because Nerys is immortal and cannot die even if she is turned into an inside-out ball of flesh.

The second alliance is formed between Merry and Kurag, King of the Goblins. This occurs when Merry is bled by the roses that line the entrance to the throne room of the Unseelie Court. She nearly passes out from blood loss and opens her eyes to see one of the goblins drinking from her open wound, (to goblins bodily fluids are sacred). She has the goblin detained and bargains with Kruag for a 6 month alliance in return for Merry taking a goblin (Kitto)into her bed. She deems this acceptable payment for the theft of her blood. Later Merry bargains for an extended alliance of 1 month for each sidhe-sided goblin that she brings into power. Also, Merry brings the Red Caps back to their full original power because she is the only Sidhe who possesses the full Hand of Blood. By doing so, the Red Caps owe here their own alliance outside of the one formed between Merry and Kurag.

The final alliance is struck between Merry and Queen Niceven (of the Demi-Fey). This is struck when Merry bargains for the cure to a curse that the Demi-Fey placed on Galen, under the direction of Cel. She bargains with Niceven for a year alliance during which the demi-fey will spy for Merry in exchange for weekly blood donations by Merry. This alliance is brought into question later on when Queen Niceven's surrogate, who can become nearly human sized, has sex with Meredith and becomes stuck in his form (at the same time, Meredith brings Nicca, one of her lovers, the wings that he should have been born with but instead had become a supernatural tattoo on his back) because of this, Queen Niceven sends to Meredith the Demi-Fey that were born without wings in hopes that she will also give them their wings.

Meredith's Men

To name the most prominent of her lovers (with titles in parentheses):
  • Doyle (the Queen's Darkness, Nodons)
  • Frost (the Killing Frost, once was Jackie Frost
    Jack Frost
    Jack Frost is a sprite-like character with roots in Viking lore. There, he is known as Jokul Frosti . In Britain and United States, Jack is a variant of Old Man Winter and is held responsible for frosty weather, for nipping the nose and toes in such weather, coloring the foliage in autumn, and...

    )
  • Sholto (King of the Sluagh
    Sluagh
    In Irish and Scottish folklore, the Sluagh were the spirits of the restless dead. Sometimes they were seen as sinners, or generally evil people who were welcome in neither heaven nor hell, nor in the Otherworld, who had also been rejected by the Celtic deities and by the earth itself. Whichever...

    , the Queen's Perverse Creature)
  • Galen (the Green Knight)
  • Mistral (the Storm Lord)
  • Rhys (Cromm Cruach)
  • Kitto
  • Nicca
    • Nicca left Merry's harem, with her blessings, after a magical artifact pointed him to his soulmate Biddy.


In A Lick of Frost
A Lick of Frost
A Lick of Frost is the sixth book in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith NicEssus,...

, it was revealed that Merry was pregnant with twins, each with three fathers; the six fathers were Doyle, Frost, Sholto, Galen, Mistral and Rhys. These six, therefore, will become her kings if and when she ever takes the throne. She has (as of Swallowing Darkness
Swallowing Darkness
Swallowing Darkness is the seventh novel in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith...

) been specifically crowned by Faerie as Sholto's queen as well as Doyle's queen; however, she has made it quite clear that this does not mean she is bound to have either of them as her only king.

In addition, she has also bedded the Sidhe Adair, Amatheon, Ivi, and Brii, the half-goblin twins Ash and Holly, and the demi-fey named Sage. She has also had metaphysical sex with Barinthus (formerly Manannan Mac Lir
Manannán mac Lir
Manannán mac Lir is a sea deity in Irish mythology. He is the son of the obscure Lir . He is often seen as a psychopomp, and has strong affiliations with the Otherworld, the weather and the mists between the worlds...

).

Thrones Held by Merry

In Swallowing Darkness
Swallowing Darkness
Swallowing Darkness is the seventh novel in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith...

, Merry was crowned Queen of the Sluagh by Faerie, and soon was formally recognized by the Sluagh as Sholto's queen. Near the end of the same book, Merry was crowned Queen of the Unseelie Court (the Crown of Moonlight and Shadows) and Doyle was crowned her king (with the Crown of Thorn and Silver); however, when offered a chance by the Goddess, they gave up the Unseelie throne in exchange for Frost's life.

She has also been offered the Seelie throne by certain members of the Seelie court, as their infertile king has gone mad and is no longer fit to rule, but has refused. Merry repeatedly states, both in her own thoughts and to her guards, that she does not believe she would be accepted on either the Seelie or Unseelie thrones because of her mortality and mixed (human, brownie, and Sidhe) blood, and that she would invite certain death for either herself or some of her men by attempting to rule either court.

Merry's Development of Powers

Early in A Kiss of Shadows, Merry is assaulted by a human using Branwyn's Tears, a magical aphrodisiac/date-rape drug; this apparently unlocked her powers, as when she later had intercourse with her boyfriend, who was a roane, she returned his ability to change shapes (which he had lost after a fisherman burned his seal-skin) back to him. Later, she is attacked by Nerys the Grey, a night hag, and in the process of defending herself, accidentally turns Nerys into a screaming, agonized ball of inside-out flesh. (As Nerys was a creature of Faerie, she was able to survive the process, much to Merry's horror and revulsion.) This power is known as the Hand of Flesh, which Merry's father, Essus, also possessed. After this, Doyle gives her Queen Andais's sword, Mortal Dread, which she uses to put the inside-out night hag out of her misery. In the process, she becomes covered with blood, and Doyle tells her that in order to cement her powers, she had to cover herself in the blood of an enemy (which was his purpose in giving her the blade).

In A Caress of Twilight
A Caress of Twilight
A Caress of Twilight is the second novel in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith NicEssus,...

, Merry must protect Maeve Reed, an exile from the Seelie court, from the Nameless. During the battle, she charges the mass of energy and puts her left hand out; she feels her blood begin to boil, and large gashes appear on the enormous mass of magic. All Merry has to do is think "Bleed" (occasionally "Bleed for me!"), and the person (or things) bleeds. This is the development of the Hand of Blood.

Near the end of Seduced by Moonlight
Seduced by Moonlight
Seduced by Moonlight is the third novel in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith NicEssus,...

, after Merry duels with a Sidhe, her opponent does not die, though she is mortally wounded and has (as part of the pre-battle ritual) shared blood with Merry. As sharing Merry's mortal blood has previously caused other opponents to become mortal in battle, this may indicate that Merry is no longer a mortal. However, later books have not yet followed up on this development, and Merry herself still believes she is mortal.

In Swallowing Darkness
Swallowing Darkness
Swallowing Darkness is the seventh novel in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith...

, we see a darker side to Merry and her magic. For the second time she uses her magic as a tool for death. When facing Onilwyn she puts her left hand out and thinks "die' not "bleed". It is also detailed that during her fight with her cousin Cel she visualizes a fist inside him and when she opens that fist he exploded.

However for all the dark deeds done with her magic there is a lighter side. It seems that many times when she has sex with another person of power, something natural and beautiful grows. This is witnessed frequently throughout the books. The most amazing example of the lighter side to her magic is during one of the battle scenes in Swallowing Darkness
Swallowing Darkness
Swallowing Darkness is the seventh novel in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith...

  Merry uses the hands of Flesh and Blood to heal wounded and dying soldiers who have fallen protecting her, showing that for every dark power there is a light use for it.

Means of Communication Used by Characters

  • By Mirror: The first type of magical communication shown (with possible exception of mention of Queen Andais's ability to hear anything said in the dark). Method is achieved by coating a mirror with your own personal power or magic and willing the communication via a spell (spell not specified in book). In-text, it would seem communication is achieved by speaking the other person's name, and willing communication. Text shows that there are variations on theme, such as using a smooth, still pool, shiny blade, or pool of blood. Also, Doyle places a spell so that they can choose when communication commences, instead of instantaneous connection. See scrying, specifically hydromancy
    Hydromancy
    Hydromancy is a method of divination by means of water, including the color, ebb and flow, or ripples produced by pebbles dropped in a pool....

    .
  • By Blade: Using essentially the same principle as communication by mirror, by applying blood and breath, communication between two people can be established by calling them by name. Communication by this method was used between Merry and Kurag in A Caress of Twilight
    A Caress of Twilight
    A Caress of Twilight is the second novel in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith NicEssus,...

    (Merry Gentry #2) and Merry and Rhys in A Stroke of Midnight
    A Stroke of Midnight
    A Stroke of Midnight is the fourth novel in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith NicEssus,...

    (Merry Gentry #4). See scrying
    Scrying
    Scrying is a magic practice that involves seeing things psychically in a medium, usually for purposes of obtaining spiritual visions and less often for purposes of divination or fortune-telling. The most common media used are reflective, translucent, or luminescent substances such as crystals,...

    .
  • By Dream (or Vision): Generally accomplished through connection with God or Goddess, always magic or mystic communication type. In fact, the God and Goddess are the only people or beings that use this method due to their immense magical ability and influence. Usual methods of induction are either the Ring or Chalice. Examples of this type of communication are the Goddess's repeated messages to Sidhe men and Merry that they need to have sex in order to regain old powers, and Merry's vision of soldiers in Iraq in Divine Misdemeanors
    Divine Misdemeanors
    Divine Misdemeanors is the eighth novel in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot Introduction:...

     (Merry Gentry #8). See Oneiromancy
    Oneiromancy
    Oneiromancy is a form of divination based upon dreams; it is a system of dream interpretation that uses dreams to predict the future.-Ancient Egyptian:...

     and Visions
    Vision (religion)
    In spirituality, a vision is something seen in a dream, trance, or ecstasy, especially a supernatural appearance that conveys a revelation.Visions generally have more clarity than dreams, but traditionally fewer psychological connotations...

    .

Books

  1. A Kiss of Shadows (2000)
  2. A Caress of Twilight
    A Caress of Twilight
    A Caress of Twilight is the second novel in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith NicEssus,...

    (2002)
  3. Seduced by Moonlight
    Seduced by Moonlight
    Seduced by Moonlight is the third novel in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith NicEssus,...

    (2004)
  4. A Stroke of Midnight
    A Stroke of Midnight
    A Stroke of Midnight is the fourth novel in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith NicEssus,...

    (2005)
  5. Mistral's Kiss
    Mistral's Kiss
    Mistral's Kiss is the fifth novel in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton, and was released December 12, 2006.-Plot introduction:...

    (2006)
  6. A Lick of Frost
    A Lick of Frost
    A Lick of Frost is the sixth book in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith NicEssus,...

    (2007)
  7. Swallowing Darkness
    Swallowing Darkness
    Swallowing Darkness is the seventh novel in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot introduction:A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fashionable, the title heroine is Princess Meredith...

    (2008)
  8. Divine Misdemeanors
    Divine Misdemeanors
    Divine Misdemeanors is the eighth novel in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton.-Plot Introduction:...

    (Dec 2009)

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK