Drink Deep

by Chloe Neill

Published by: Penguin Group

Clouds are brewing over Cadogan House, and recently turned vampire Merit can’t tell if this is the darkness before the dawn or the calm before the storm. With the city itself in turmoil over paranormals and the state threatening to pass a paranormal registration act, times haven’t been this precarious for vampires since they came out of the closet. If only they could lay low for a bit, and let the mortals calm down.

That’s when the waters of Lake Michigan suddenly turn pitch black-and things really start getting ugly.

Chicago’s mayor insists it’s nothing to worry about, but Merit knows only the darkest magic could have woven a spell powerful enough to change the very fabric of nature. She’ll have to turn to friends old and new to find out who’s behind this, and stop them before it’s too late for vampires and humans alike.

My Review:  

Drink Deep is book 5 in Chloe Neill’s Chicagoland Vampires series.  Now, book 4, Hard Bitten ended with a MAJOR cliff-hanger, and if you have not read the series, there will most likely be some spoilers in this review.  I always do my best to keep spoilers out of reviews, but it’s not always easy.  With that said, here are my thoughts.

So, trouble is brewing in Chicago.  There is a new mayor who is anti-vampire, the human population of Chicago blames Cadogen House and all vampires for all of the cities problems, and Cadogen House itself is in upheaval from grief and a GP minion lording over them.  When unknown elemental magic drastically affects the city, Merit has to step out of her grief-induced comfort zone and act as sentinel to investigate and solve the problem before the city is ruined.

I found Drink Deep to be a bit slower paced than previous books.  It seemed to me that Drink Deep lacked a certain spark, Merit was not exactly herself, she was still very grief stricken, and her relationship with Jonah, while nice, just doesn’t hold the chemistry that Merit and Ethan’s can have.  I think that part of this lack of spark is simply because Hard Bitten was so full and dramatic and shocking.  After such a dramatic book, anything less than spectacular would seem slow.  Merit does a commendable job of moving forward and she continues to show strength and growth in her abilities as Sentinel.

Part of my problem with Drink Deep was that quite a bit of this book was predictable.  The direction the GP is going, with ignoring issues and blaming Cadogen, the events that transpired (as pertaining to GP politics) were not very surprising.  As to the elemental magical issues that threatened the city, I had that pretty much figured out very early on.  There was a lot going on, but it was not altogether super exciting.  At least, not until the later part of the book, the climax and the ending.  Finally, as Merit and the other vampires work out the problem, here’s where some surprises hit.  I will say this for Chloe Neill, she never does anything in a manner in which I ever would have guessed.  Drink Deep ends drastically different from Hard Bitten, there is promise and hope, and the book is very much redeemed.  Once again, I am eagerly awaiting the next release.

Chicagoland fans, don’t be discouraged with this series, pick up Drink Deep and continue with the series.  While there are a lot of hits and hard times in this series, Chloe Neill has proved that she can pull off shocking events and plot twists.  The Chicagoland Vampires series may be an emotional roller coaster ride, but Merit is one of the best urban fantasy heroines around.

You can find Drink Deep at: Barnes and Noble | Amazon | The Book Depository