Hard Bitten
(Chicagoland Vampires, #4)
By: Chloe Neill
Publisher: NAL Trade
Published: May 3, 2011
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating:
Times are hard for newly minted vampire Merit. Ever since shapeshifters announced their presence to the world, humans have been rallying against supernaturals—and they’re camping outside of Cadogan House with protest signs that could turn to pitchforks at any moment. Inside its doors, things between Merit and her Master, green-eyed heartbreaker Ethan Sullivan, are tense. But then the mayor of Chicago calls Merit and Ethan to a clandestine meeting and tells them about a violent vamp attack that has left three women missing. His message is simple: get your House in order. Or else.
Merit needs to get to the bottom of this crime, but it doesn’t help that she can’t tell who’s on her side. So she secretly calls in a favor from someone who’s tall, dark, and part of an underground vamp group that may have some deep intel on the attack. Merit soon finds herself in the heady, dark heart of Chicago’s supernatural society—a world full of vampires who seem to be ready to fulfill the protesting human’s worst fears, and a place where she’ll learn that you can’t be a vampire without getting a little blood on your hands.
There is a lot of investigating and political plays taking place in this book. There is a drug called V out that is making vampires go crazy. Which pulls the attention of the GP. So with the head honcho, Darius sticking his nose into the Cardogan House, Ethan is on a very short leash. Not to mention that Mayor Tate threatened to incarcerate Ethan if he can’t get the crazed vampires under control and bring him the person responsible. So of course, in true Chicagoland Vampires fashion… everything boils down to Merit saving the day. Only in this case, I don’t think she does.
I will admit that I got a little bored at parts but I still loved the story. I still have issues with the new covers since the cover model is not Merit. Yeah, I know that shouldn’t be a big deal but it still bothers me.
I, personally, love the change in Ethan’s character. He is really stepping it up and trying to show how much he trusts Merit. He even throws himself under the bus a couple of times in this novel just to save her butt. I’ve always liked the cockiness of Ethan and he still has that now but he knows that he abused her trust and is doing everything he can think of to regain it.
I also liked that Jonah seems to be developing more in the story. I like when an author adds new characters to the pot. It helps mix things up and makes the story interesting. He clearly has an interest in Merit but whether as a potential relationship or as a best friend remains to be unseen for me.
With the crazy ending, I am itching to read the next book to see what happens next.
“You taught me that you will always be concerned with the next steps and appearances, with strategy and alliances. You’ve taught me that I could never be sure you really wanted me for me- and not just because I helped you meet some end, or because it was convenient. You’ve taught me that I could never be sure you wouldn’t change your mind if breaking things off gave you a strategic advantage.”
Previous reviews from Chicagoland Vampires
Some Girls Bite
Friday Night Bites
Twice Bitten
And fortunately, it’s already released, so no waiting 🙂 I agree with you on the cover, they’re not great at all… I recently read Dark debt, so now I’ll have to wait until next year to read more about Merit & friends, enjoy 😉
Eesh. Yeah, that’s the good thing about playing cat-up with a series, there’s no waiting. 🙂
One day I’ll get back to these. Huh. I love the covers on these. Ethan really is a good one.
Ethan is a great character. I can’t wait to get more of him in the next book. It will be interesting to see how his and Merit’s relationship changes/blossoms.
I’ve been wondering about this series for awhile, need to pick up book one!!
So far it’s an enjoyable series. There’s always something going on.
It seems like this was one you enjoyed quite a lot which is always a good thing! I might read this one because I am always on the look out for good vampire books. And I need some recovery after watching a bad vampire movie!
Check out my most recent post: http://olivia-savannah.blogspot.nl/2015/04/olivias-catastrophe-breaking-into_25.html
Eesh. It’s always hard bouncing back to a genre after a bad one. This is an enjoyable series so far. They are popular enough books that your library may have copies.
I don’t read a lot of UF, but I’ve heard great things about this author!
Thanks so much for stopping by! Jen at YA Romantics
This is the only thing I’ve read from her so I can’t speak about her other books but I’m enjoying this series so far.
i wish BDB remained this strong. I should try this someday, I haven’t read a solid vampire series in a long time
Phew. I am glad to know that I’m not the only one on BDB. I want to love them all like everyone else does but I just don’t get into them for some reason. :\
Not sure if the political involvement would work for me but I do like the sound of the development of Jonah.
I felt like the political aspect of the book brought something new to the table. It wasn’t just about the bad vampires going out and feeding on humans while the good vampires try to save the world. 🙂
I feel the same way, a little boring in parts but still good.