Murder by Death

For pure entertainment value I just can't go wrong with the Chicagoland Vampire series.  It's perfect for my tastes: it's not fluffy, but it's not gritty either.  Don't get me wrong, I love Mercy Thompson (for example), but I have to be honest and say I struggle with some of the more violent aspects of her stories and the psychological themes Ms. Briggs sometimes introduces.  Chloe Neill, on the other hand, always gives me stories with wit, intelligence and snark (oh, the snark!), with none of the dark oily aftertaste.  

Blood Games also had some murder mystery going on and well, that's right in my wheelhouse.  It's not a badly plotted mystery, either.  Better than average slight-of-hand with suspects and an interesting, not completely un-suspenseful denouement.  I really liked the mystery setup too: a string of murders, each one pointing to a different supernatural segment of society.

As in all her books though, there is more than one storyline and the focal point this time around is Ethan's bid to take over the GP; to be master of Europe and America's vampires.  I had wondered how Ms. Neill would make this work when it was introduced at the end of the last book; it sort of felt like she'd written herself into a corner unless she was going to make drastic changes to the setting or cast.  She pulled it out though; I won't gush over its brilliance or anything like that, but I was happy enough with the way things worked out.

The only letdown of the book for me was Ethan's Big Angst.  He's keeping secrets from Merit - because I suppose people think a lack of conflict is boring - and he refuses to share.  Until he does and his Big Reveal was massive.  Massively anti-climatic.  I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, and it never did.  His confession was NOT worth the angst.  It wasn't even a surprise.

Oh well.  I'm an unrepentant fan of the series and I can't wait for the next book.