Saturday, July 16, 2016

Review: Dark Debt and Midnight Marked (Chicagoland Vampires #11-12)

A vampire never gets old. But neither do his enemies.

Dark Debt, by Chloe Neill, is the eleventh novel in the Chicagoland Vampires series. Cadogan House has officially become independent of the Greenwich Council and established a new vampire organization in North America--the American Association of Vampires. Merit, Sentinel of Cadogan House, has her hands full making society appearances and protecting the House Master and lover, Ethan Sullivan. However, when an old friend from Ethan's dark past reappears in a provocative debut in Chicago, she does not know whether to treat this mysterious vampire, Balthasar--Ethan's Maker, as a friend or foe.

But the trouble doesn't end there. Morgan Greer, House Master of Navarre House, needs help with paying a serious debt. Worse, this debt is tied to The Triad, a Chicago crime syndicate with grand ambitions for power and control--both human and supernatural. The Triad's connections run deeper than anything Merit experienced. Both Merit and Ethan must race against the clock to figure out what Balthasar is plotting before they lose each other forever.

A vampire's grudges don't stay dead long...

Midnight Marked, by Chloe Neill, is the twelfth novel in the Chicagoland Vampires series. The Triad has grown restless and more powerful. Merit made an enemy with the Chicago crime syndicate who will stop at nothing to defeat her. When their last plan is thwarted, the Triad has declared war on Cadogan House. Ethan has alerted the other Houses to stay on high alert, but their enemy won't stop at nothing until it gets what it wants.

In this deadly game of cat and mouse, the stakes are life or death. Even family are not safe in this war. Merit and Ethan must determine who is the mastermind behind the Triad before the Windy City goes under its evil supernatural influence.

Chloe Neill scores with these back-to-back, action-packed novels. Merit and Ethan face powerful enemies from the past and present to protect Cadogan and Chicago from the brink of destruction. Merit has grown extremely well into her role as Sentinel of Cadogan House. Readers would forget that just a year ago she was a 28-year-old doctoral student in English Literature at the University of Chicago. Her transformation into a fiery, sword-wielding guardian is amazing in its own way. I continue to love this series even when I no longer live in Chicago (the Northeast is currently my residence). It is enjoyable to relive the Chicago references in my imagination. Merit is a character that has grown on me--even given me determination and confidence. I have become a warrior fighting injustice in my own way. For that reason, I cannot wait to read the next Chicagoland Vampire novel.

Stay tuned for the next novel in the Chicagoland Vampires series, Blade Bound.

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