Midnight Marked by Chloe Neill
Series: Chicagoland Vampires #12
Published by NAL
Published on: March 1, 2016
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Pages: 384
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
As the Chicagoland Vampires series continues, Merit and Ethan find themselves in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse, where winning may require the ultimate sacrifice...
A vampire’s grudges don’t stay dead long...
Merit is one of Chicago's most skilled vampire warriors; these days, she doesn't scare easily. But she and Master vampire Ethan have made a new and powerful enemy, and he won't give up until he owns the Windy City.
With his last plan thwarted, he's more determined than ever to watch Cadogan burn. Ethan has put the House's vampires on high alert, but their enemy will stop at nothing, including pitting vampire against vampire...
In this deadly game of cat-and-mouse, the stakes are life or death—and winning might mean sacrificing everything...
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The CHICAGOLAND VAMPIRES series is twelve installments deep, so it’s kinda crazy that Merit is only now celebrating her one-year vampire anniversary, but there you have it! It’s been a heck of a journey thus far, and Chloe Neill wrote the ideal story to honour such a momentous occasion. The latest antagonist is at it again, all of the beloved characters get their due, and I just loved the ending. The action and romance were in perfect harmony, and there were so many little things that made me smile that reading over my notes in preparation of drafting my review made me doubly appreciative.
I liked how the author brought a thread that I hadn’t even really thought about since book 1 to the fore; it was such a fitting choice given where we’re at in this universe’s timeline, and answered a whole whack of questions that I’d figured would remain mysteries. The House called in Paige’s help for this particular riddle which made me happy, and just when I thought that Neill had covered the spectrum of supernaturals she brings in a necromancer! I’m unsure if Annabelle will be added to the list of rotating secondaries, but I hope so because she was quite interesting (and useful).
The Chicago flavour that’s injected into every novel is something that I always look forward to, and in this addition instead of familiarizing fans with another hole-in-the-wall food joint, we got a little history lesson on Belle River. I’m not sure how much of it was fact/fiction, and my internet research didn’t pan out, nevertheless it was thought-provoking. The humour was as good as ever with Merit-isms like “alphapology” and despite the absence of a local dish to add to my wishlist, the heroine made sure to bring a battle snack. Merit & Ethan fulfilled a fantasy of mine too—they did it in the Cadogan library!
[SPOILER ALERT]
There was one important slip that spoiled the anonymity of the big bad way earlier I would have preferred, and that was his/her name. The villain basically had a flashing sign over their head with an arrow pointing to them that said “I did it”. It’s like naming a character Luna, and not expecting readers to guess that that character is a werewolf. So, that took some of the thrill out of it for me because half the fun is trying to guess who the wrongdoer is. And, of course this person somehow managed to thwart the legal system, and fly the coop which means we’ll definitely be seeing them again.
The training wheels came off in MIDNIGHT MARKED. Happy one-year vamp birthday, Merit!
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[author] [author_image timthumb=’off’]http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Njql7JILhbs/Ue_ub1sJ3VI/AAAAAAAAIqo/jdcvI9Wiaqk/s1600/Chloe-Neill.jpg[/author_image] [author_info]
Chloe Neill is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Devil’s Isle, Chicagoland Vampires, and Dark Elite series. She was born and raised in the South, but now makes her home in the Midwest. When not writing, she bakes, works, and scours the Internet for good recipes and great graphic design. Chloe also maintains her sanity by spending time with her boys–her favorite landscape photographer/husband and their dogs, Baxter and Scout. (Both she and the photographer understand the dogs are in charge.) Photo © Dana Damewood.
GoodReads | Amazon
[/author_info] [/author]
The fun doesn’t stop here. Want more chances to win? You can also enter the Midnight Marked Grand Prize Giveaway, which runs February 11 through March 4 on Chloe’s web site.
What is the Grand Prize Giveaway prize?
- Engraved Cadogan House medal pendant.
- Lou Malnati’s Tastes of Chicago package, featuring hot dogs, pizza, and cheesecake
- $25 Amazon gift card
- Tote bag containing Chicagoland Vampires and Devil’s Isle Swag
- Cadogan House mini-pennant
- Cadogan House tote bag
- Swag, including bookmarks, a pen, and a Cadogan House keychain
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Owner, designer and main blogger behind Rabid Reads. Avid book reader, snowboard bunny, video gamer and Supernatural fan. I love all things paranormal, werewolves especially. Oh, and I’m Canadian, eh!
It’s hard to believe that with everything that has happened, only a year has passed for the characters!
Alphapology has to be one of my fave Merit & Mallory words, along with calling a certain Master vampire Darth Sullivan!!
Pili recently posted…Mark This Book Monday: The Power by Jennifer L Armentrout!!
Well, I will have to go with the first one as it’s the only book I have read so far…lol. I am so behind. I think I have book two in my audibles library. 🙂
Stormi recently posted…Audiobook review of Wicked Dangerous
Only one more day! Can’t wait for this book, even if I can’t read it on release day (in middle of re-read still *sigh*).
I love them all but I guess Wild Things
I LOVE this series and cannot wait! My favorite would have to be Some Girls Bite because it was the first:)
I actually have not read any of this series before. I have heard about it but have never had the chance. I would love to check this out. will have to check out the first book and see how good it is. thanks for the chance to win.
Some Girls Bite
Some Girls Bite!!!
I love all of the Chicagoland Vampires books but my favorite is probably Wild Things!!
Every book is my favorite book, starting with Bad Bites. If I have to pick though, House Rules. Anne
Gah, that was Some Girls Bite. Where was my head at there? Anne
I am impatiently waiting for Midnight Marked, which will become my new favorite. Because they are ALL my favorites, as I am reading them!
Haven’t read this series yet, but I’m interested in doing so.
I’ve loved every book I’ve read so far. I suppose I’ll choose Twice Bitten, if I must choose a favorite.
12, whaaaaat
I’ve only “read” (audiobook) the first two and need to start catching up more. I’m still a bit more curious about the secondary characters at this point so I can say that is my fave at the moment. I cannot wait to catch up to #12!
Melissa (Books and Things) recently posted…Rare Disease Day 2016
OOoh that’s a toughie! I know the one that killed me the most was Hard Bitten! LOL! Drink Deep was good because, yeah! I guess though I still have a fondness for Some Girls Bite! The first book makes or breaks a series for me and that one definitely made it for me! 🙂
My favorite book in the series is Some Girls Bite because it’s what started off this adventure! Thanks for the awesome giveaway! 🙂
I’m a newbie have not read just found the series and look forward to reading it in its entirety.
Oh, man… I think my favorite book is Twice Bitten because that’s when the Pack shows up and it’s really the start of METHAN! I love rereading it, it never gets old.
never read it, so no fav
Thanks for the fun peek.
I can’t believe so much has happened in such a short time for Merit! I can’t wait for the next one. The ending brought tears to my eyes!
Biting Bad I enjoyed immensely. So I’d have to go with that for my favorite!
I cannot choose a favorite; I love them all!!!
Twice Bitten and Hard Bitten are my favorites.