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At an exclusive society soiree attended by the upper echelons of the human and supernatural worlds, Merit and Ethan barely stop the assassination of a guest. When the target turns out to be a shady businessman with a criminal edge, Merit suspects a human vendetta. But the assassins have fangs . . .
The connections to Chicago’s Houses go deeper than Merit knows, and even one wrong move could be her last . . .
Chicagoland Vampires Series:
Some Girls Bite
Friday Night Bites
Twice Bitten
Hard Bitten
Drink Deep
Biting Cold
House Rules
Biting Bad
High Stakes (Novella in the Kicking It anthology)
Howling for You (Novella)
Wild Things
Blood Games
Lucky Break (Novella)
Dark Debt
Midnight Marked
Phantom Kiss (Novella)
Blade Bound
Slaying It (Novella)
Heirs of Chicagoland Series:
(Spin off set approximately 20 years on from the end of the Chicagoland Vampires series)
Wild Hunger
Wicked Hour
Visit Chloe Neill's website for more information
Review:
**Please be aware that although this review will be spoiler free for Dark Debt it will include spoilers for previous books so if you haven't read Blood Games yet I would suggest that you don't continue reading**
I'm a huge fan of the Chicagoland Vampires series and after the game changing events at the end of Blood Games I couldn't wait to get my hands on a copy of Dark Debt to find out what happens next! I was expecting the plot of this story to revolve around the dissolution of the GP and the newly established Assembly of American Masters but although that does play a role the main part of the story is something that has a much bigger impact on the three Chicago houses. It's difficult because there are so many things that I want to talk about but at the same time I would hate to give spoilers so I'm going to keep this review deliberately vague in regards to the plot. What I will say is that there is plenty of mystery and we are introduced to a surprising new enemy who I think will be keeping the team on their toes for quite a while to come.
Merit and Ethan's relationship has been through the wringer but just when they get to a fairly good place an old face from Ethan's past shows up and threatens to ruin everything. This vampire is old and extremely powerful, likely stronger and faster than Ethan even, so for once he finds it it impossible to keep Merit safe. She is in the firing line and more vulnerable than we have ever seen her and it leaves her shaken and unsure of herself. As much as I love Merit because she's usually so kick ass it was interesting to see her in such a difficult situation, she suddenly finds herself no longer immune to vampire glamour and unsafe even when she's inside Cadogan house which is utterly terrifying for her. You should already know that Merit doesn't let anything hold her back for long though and as scared as she is her love for Ethan and her determination not to be his weakness soon have her fighting back harder than ever.
It isn't only vampires who are causing them trouble though and they are actually at greater risk from a human mafia like group who have managed to get their claws into Navarre House. I think anyone who reads the series will probably agree with me that Morgan has been a bit of an idiot since the beginning. His attitude has annoyed me on more than one occasion and I haven't been a fan of his for a long time now so I was surprised to find myself feeling more than a little sorry for him here. His house is in a mess and although he didn't create the situation he certainly hasn't helped it but now he finally has the opportunity to turn things around and it looks like we might be about to see him man up for a change. I'll be really interested to see if this continues over the next few books and if it does Cadogan might just find they have a new ally in Navarre. I expect Morgan has a fight on his hands though so it might not be as smooth has he hopes.
There is a lot going on in Dark Debt, there are plenty of plot twists and the amount of action is just right - enough to keep you gripped to the pages and not wanting to put the book down but still leaving room for the series trademark humour and for the brilliant characters to shine. Mallory and Catcher get a lot of page time and they were adorable, they actually made my heart melt a little! We even get to see a very surprising side to Merit's father, we all know what a terrible father he has been so far but perhaps this might go a little way towards making up for it. Of course Merit and Ethan are always my favourites, I just love seeing them together and their banter never fails to make me smile. As usual they have difficult battles to face here but this time they don't let it pull them apart and it just makes them a stronger couple than ever. I love this whole series but I think Dark Debt is probably one my favourite books so far and I just can't wait to see what happens next, we have definitely been given a hint of things to come too and, trust me, it's going to be a wild ride. I just wish I didn't have to wait for the next book to be published!
Source: Received from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
Other Reviews:
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