Cover

Praise for
Daughter of the Blood

“Anne Bishop has scored a hit with Daughter of the Blood. Her poignant storytelling skills are surpassed only by her flair for the dramatic and her deft characterization…a talented author.”

—Affaire de Coeur

“Darkly mesmerizing.”

—Locus

“She has a unique voice—the writing is so rich and lush…characters that are dark and compelling.”

—American Bookseller

“A fabulous new talent…a uniquely realized fantasy filled with vibrant colors and rich textures. A wonderful new voice.”

—Romantic Times

“Lavishly sensual…a richly detailed world based on a reversal of standard genre cliché.”

—Library Journal

“A terrific writer…. I loved this book.”

—Charles de Lint, author of Yarrow

“Dramatic, erotic, sadistic, hope-filled…a promising debut.”

—Lynn Flewelling, author of Stalking Darkness

“Among the most intense novels I have ever read. Erotic, violent, and imaginative…this one is white-hot.”

—Nancy Kress, author of Beggars in Spain

“A unique vision of hell and darkness, love and hope…transcends the intricacies of Anne Rice’s vampire series.”

—Lois H. Gresh, coauthor of The Termination Node

Praise for
Heir to the Shadows

“…compelling and beautifully-realized…it’s a terrific read.”

—Victoria Strauss, SF Site

“A rich and fascinatingly different dark fantasy, a series definitely worth checking out…”

—Locus

“…a fascinating world…peopled with
interesting and nearly always dangerous
characters. Events are set in motion which will be
resolved in one of the most eagerly awaited
conclusions to a trilogy: Queen of Darkness.”

—The Romance Reader

QUEEN OF THE DARKNESS

The Black Jewels Trilogy Book III

ANNE BISHOP

Copyright

ROC
Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Putnam Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.
Penguin Books Ltd, 27 Wrights Lane, London W8 5TZ, England
Penguin Books Australia Ltd, Ringwood, Victoria, Australia
Penguin Books Canada Ltd, 10 Alcorn Avenue,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4V 3B2
Penguin Books (N.Z.) Ltd, 182–190 Wairau Road,
Auckland 10, New Zealand

Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices:
Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England

First published by Roc, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin Putnam Inc.

Cover art by Matthew Innis

REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA

ISBN: 9781101418352

Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

PUBLISHER’S NOTE
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

for
Pat and Bill Feidner
and
Grace Tongue

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS