Reviews
Oh this is good. Oh this is SO good ! I. Just. Love. This. Series. It’s more or less turning me into a nervous wreck but I love it all the same. I think what I love more about Chicagoland Vampires is that the series keeps surprising me. You never know what Chloe Neill will put her poor characters through (she really has no mercy on them!). Merit’s world is ever-expanding, with new sups making an entrance, some characters becoming more important and new characters being thrown into the story. Magic and paranormal are even more intertwined than before, they crash and blend as the story progresses. Bigger, bolder, brighter. That’s what this instalment is like. The book is much faster-paced than Drink Deep (which was definitely on the slow side, no matter how much I enjoyed reading it). Biting Cold is action-packed from the very first pages, with Merit & Ethan going on a road trip through the Midwest to get to the Maleficium before Mallory. The plot here is fantastic, much more complex and better structured than all previous storylines for this series. I just loved everything about it and I love the way Neill maneuvers both her characters and readers to get them exactly where she wants them to be. So the plot is nothing short of fantastic but there are so many other brilliant things about Biting Cold, I think a random list of awesomeness is due: Merit (‘nuff said). His Deliciousness being back in the picture (when he started being his old annoying, exasperating, infuriating self again I thought to myself ‘please no, let’s not go down this road again’ but he finally managed to give in! He did NOT screw up! After 400 years he actually learned something!). Garden gnomes to the rescue! Paige, I love Paige (and her instant crush with the Cadogan librarian). The scene in the silo. Seth + Dominic. Sodom and Gomorrah. (view spoiler)[Merit being help captive by Dominic (I love this scene!) and Morgan kind of redeeming himself (I still think he’s an asshole at the moment but we’ll see how that might evolve in future instalments). (hide spoiler)] Lindsey and Luc, my favourite characters after Merit & Ethan (they’re loyal, supportive friends and I just love their dialogues together). I love Margot. I love the “prerelationship” pep talk Lindsey gives Merit. I love the scene where Merit goes to the training room in her “Catcher training outfit” (you wicked woman!) to try and get some sense into His Deliciousness. (view spoiler)[(And we have a winner! YES! FINALLY! Fantastic scene and pretty fantastic blood-sucking reunion sex after that, ha!) Angels + demons. Tate becoming only half an asshole after splitting in two. (hide spoiler)] Cops invading Cadogan House! Claudia. Darius being an asshole (as usual). (view spoiler)[Excommunication! (hide spoiler)]. Ethan’s speech when he sits down on the floor with all the house vampires (God I love that scene!). A ballot box! I just LOVE the final plan and its execution, with all the sups coming together to fight His Evilness (vampires, weres, sorcerers… even the fairies help out!). The key in the box. And last but certainly not least… (view spoiler)[DEFECTION!!! (hide spoiler)] I rest my case. God I love this series, you never know what to expect! Getting my hands on House Rules NOW!
This was a fantastic installment in the Chicagoland Vampire series by Chloe Neill. From beginning to end, I didn't want to put it down for a second. From action and adventure to revenge and retribution to love and trust, this book had everything in it. Merit: Everytime you think her life couldn't possibly get stranger, it does. She is a strong, resilient woman...well, vampire woman. She defends those she loves with everything she has. She will put herself in danger to protect others and does it willingly. She has been betrayed but will give chances for those who have hurt her to prove themselves. She gives chances but she is not naive, she is prepared for the worst case scenarios. Ethan: This is a guy who you want to smack for being so indecisive and going back and forth with Merit, but in the end, he knows they belong together. And even when he says they can't be together, he is only doing it to try to protect her. He has to get points for that. He protects her and cares about her and has now finally accepted just how much she means to him. He is willing to sacrifice anything for her and trusts her completely. Even enough to allow someone else to control him. Mallory: This girl. As Merit's best friend, she does care about her and wants her to be happy. But she cannot stop her own pain and that takes over her life. At least she is truly apologetic for what she has done and is trying to make amends. But it will take alot to fix what she has done. Seth/Dominic: Well this was definitely a plot twist to the story, but a great one. You have to give Seth a lot of credit for helping Merit and Ethan against Dominic. That was understandably not easy for him considering the situation. This book was engaging and riveting. Absolute 5/5 stars for me. My favorite in he series so far!
