Dark Debt

February 2, 2015
Neill demonstrates an able hand with pacing, emotional development, and entertaining doses of snark in the 11th Chicagoland Vampires urban fantasy (after Blood Games). Springtime brings new challenges to Chicago’s vampires, as Merit, the Cadogan House Sentinel, and her Master and paramour, Ethan Sullivan, face personal threats from Balthasar, Ethan’s presumed-dead creator, and a shadow organization headed by Merit’s ex, Morgan Greer. The cooperative skills of the newly minted Assembly of American Masters are tested, and Merit’s previous immunity to vampire glamour can’t withstand assault by Balthasar, creating intimacy issues for her and Ethan. Merit and Ethan are aided (and occasionally hindered) by magical allies, the Cadogan House staff, and Merit’s father and grandfather, as they engage in overt and covert battles for control over the powerful vampire houses. Little characterization details like Merit’s enthusiasm for refreshments, destructive tendencies toward formal wear, and complicated family emotions enhance this brisk adventure. Agent: Lucienne Diver, Knight Agency.

March 15, 2015

Just when sentinel Merit has found happiness with Ethan, master vampire and ruler of Cadogan House, a threat from Ethan's past arrives in Chicago. Balthazar, Ethan's maker, was long thought dead, but he shows up, determined to make trouble for the house and for Ethan in particular. Meanwhile, local businessman Adrian Reed enjoys pulling the strings of the powerful, including those of Merit's estranged father, and asks Joshua Merit to arrange a meeting with Ethan. Too bad the meeting is interrupted by a vampire attack from a rival house. VERDICT This consistently enjoyable series finds ways to keep a romantic relationship intriguing even after the will-they-won't-they phase is over, and Merit's female friendships continue to be an important part of the books. The political maneuvering among the various vampire houses is another aspect that Neill has kept percolating, even 11 books in (after 2014's Blood Games).

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.