As Swallows Fly cover art

As Swallows Fly

Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

As Swallows Fly

By: Laurence P. McMahon
Narrated by: Zenia Starr
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

When Malika, a young orphan in rural Pakistan, is savagely attacked, her face is left disfigured and her self-esteem destroyed. Haunted by the assault, she hides from the world, finding solace in her mathematical theories. A few years later, her intellectual brilliance is discovered and she leaves conflict-stricken Pakistan for a better education in Melbourne, where she finds herself placed with Kate - a successful plastic surgeon facing emotional insecurities of her own.

Malika and Kate’s lives slowly intertwine as they find within each other what each has lacked alone. At first, Kate’s skills appear to offer a simple solution to Malika’s anguish, but when tragedy strikes, the price of beauty is found to be much higher than either of them could have known.

As Swallows Fly is a poignant portrayal of survival, identity and empowerment in a culture dominated by the pursuit of perfection. In a captivating and unforgettable debut, McMahon asks what might be possible if we have the courage to be flawed.

©2020 LP McMahon (P)2020 W F Howes
Coming of Age Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Medical Women's Fiction

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Moonlight Gardening Club cover art
Her Last Words cover art
Leave Well Alone cover art
The Girls from Alexandria cover art
The Child in My House cover art
Loop Tracks cover art
Homesick cover art
Darling Girl cover art
The Extraordinary Hope of Dawn Brightside cover art
Her Last Chance cover art
This Is Us cover art
The Sapphire Cove cover art
The Night Out cover art
The Bedroom Window cover art
Good Girls cover art
Platform Seven cover art

Critic reviews

"Intuitive and visceral and sharp as a scalpel. Malika will claim a chunk of your heart." (Kristina Olsson)

"McMahon’s rare insight and empathy make As Swallows Fly an unforgettable, compelling story of hope." (Toni Jordan)

"A powerful, poignant and thought-provoking novel featuring an unforgettable main character in Kate. As Swallows Fly is a remarkable achievement by a debut author!" (Antoni Jach)

No reviews yet