This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life in Books.

This was good. I decided to read this book largely because I have been enjoying Chloe Neill's Devil's Isle series and I noticed that this book was the start of a new series. I didn't initially realize that this series is a spin off of the Chicagoland Vampires series so I was a little nervous after I made that discovery since I have only read the first book from that series. I am happy to report that this book works perfectly fine as a starting point and there is no need to have read the Chicagoland Vampires series to enjoy this novel.

This book starts out very strong. Elisa is in Paris with a friend when the area is attacked and she springs into action. Tensions are high among the European vampires so representatives from the areas go to Chicago to discuss peace. Elisa hasn't been home to Chicago in years but she is determined to help make these peace talks successful.

I really enjoyed the characters in this book. Elisa was very smart and resourceful. She knew how to handle herself and was willing to take necessary risks. She did have fears and worked hard to hide certain things from others. Connor was absolutely wonderful. He is the son of the local werewolf pack and has known Elisa since they were kids. He was smart, tough, protective, and incredibly sexy. Lulu, Elisa's best friend, added some laughs to the story. She was very competent and seemed to be exactly what Elisa needed at times. Theo worked very well with Elisa and proved that even humans could hold their own with all of the supernaturals in the area.

There was a really well done mystery at the core of this story. There is a murder that needs to be solved but nobody in charge seems to want to look beyond the surface. Elisa knows that there is more to the story so she works to figure out what is really going on. There is plenty of excitement and a few twists and turns that kept me guessing. I thought that there was a really nice balance of creativity, action, character development, humor, and a touch of romance.

I would recommend this series to others. Elisa and her friends were all really strong characters trying to solve a rather complex mystery. I do look forward to future installments in this series.

I received a digital review copy of this book from Berkley Publishing Group via NetGalley.

Initial Thoughts
This is probably more like 3.5 stars but I am rounding up for now. This book was exciting and some of the dialogue made me laugh but I never found the book hard to set aside for some reason. I liked the characters well enough and thought that all of the key players were rather unique. There were a couple of mysteries going on and I liked how they were tied together in the end. There was even a bit of romance that kept things interesting.

As a matter of personal taste, this title offends my sensibilities; it sounds like it should be on a bodice ripper (this is not a judgement of bodice rippers, merely a comment on the title's conflict with my personal tastes).  

Moving on to more pertinent thoughts, this is a spin-off of the now-completed Chicagoland series, a series I loved dearly.  I don't normally like spin-offs, because there just always seems to be that certain something missing.  This wasn't an exception, although it is better than most.  The original series had a spark of humor; a perfect narrative timing to the dialog, that Wild Hunger (Ugh) lacks.  It's early days yet though.

The setting of this new series is approximately 25 years in the future, or, 25 years after the last book of the Chicagoland series.  There are heavy references to the events in that last book, though I think everything is sufficiently explained that new readers won't be lost.  A lot of the original characters are here too - Merit, Ethan and Gabriel are consistently present and cameos are made by several other characters, but the main focus is on Elisa, the first vampire child ever born, and Connor, the heir apparent of the local shifter pack.  

It was a good story, consistently paced, fast moving and with just a touch of romantic tension.  There are shades of the old witty banter that will hopefully blossom in future books as the author gets to know her new characters.  I generally have a hard time reading when I'm on vacation, but this book kept me reading whenever I wasn't off doing something else.  I'm not a morning reader at all, yet I found myself picking this up when I first woke up, to enjoy for an hour or so before starting my day.

I'll definitely be looking forward to the second book.

This was my pre-Halloween Bingo read, and I'm marking it for the Shifters square.

As the only vampire child ever born, some believed Elisa Sullivan had all the luck. But the magic that helped bring her into the world left her with a dark secret. Shifter Connor Keene, the only son of North American Central Pack Apex Gabriel Keene, is the only one she trusts with it. But she's a vampire and the daughter of a Master and a Sentinel, and he's prince of the Pack and its future king.

I LOVED this book!! I absolutely loved all the Chicagoland Vampire books (which is rare for me to like so many books about the same characters) and was sad when their story was over. So when I saw this, the first in Chloe Neil’s spin-off series, I was really excited. The author does a great job of introducing some new characters while still allowing us to see the characters we’ve always loved. Right from the beginning of this book, the introduction of Elisa gives you a good idea at her personality. As you follow her more through the story, you really feel bad for everything she is holding in. I can’t wait to read the next book! I highly recommend.

**I voluntarily read and reviewed this book

Chloe Neill’s WILD HUNGER (Heirs of Chicagoland #1) is an amazing spin-off of the Chicagoland Vampires series. I love that this series is about the kids from the Chicagoland Vampire series. I also love that the parents are still included in the new series. Elisa Sullivan is the only vampire to be born. Wolf shifter, Connor Keene, is the son of the North American Central Pack Apex. The two team up to try to stop a supernatural dispute after a vampire diplomate is murdered.

Chloe Neill did a commendable job with this first book to the series. The plot is perfect and skillfully executed. The characters are unique and well developed. They have personal and professional issues to deal with. The chemistry between Elisa and Connor was entertaining. Their parents are good friends, so they hung out as children, frequently getting into fights. They hadn’t seen each other in four years. It was amusing watching their relationship progress. I love that Lulu Bell is Elisa’s best friend, just like Mallory was Merit’s

WILD HUNGER was exciting from start to finish. I’m really looking forward to following this series. While you do not have to read the Chicagoland Vampire series to follow this story, I do recommend the series. Having read the series, I already felt invested in the characters. I also, appreciate what Elisa was going through because of how her birth occurred. I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book.

As the only vampire child ever born, some believed Elisa Sullivan had all the luck. But the magic that helped bring her into the world left her with a dark secret. Shifter Connor Keene, the only son of North American Central Pack Apex Gabriel Keene, is the only one she trusts with it. But she’s a vampire and the daughter of a Master and a Sentinel, and he’s prince of the Pack and its future king.

When the assassination of an ambassador brings old feuds to the fore again, Elisa and Connor must choose between love and family, between honor and obligation, before Chicago disappears forever.

*I received a free copy from the publisher and chose to leave a voluntary review. Thank you!*

4 ½ ★

I have read and loved The Chicagoland Vampires Series, (mostly) so when I saw this will be released I was really psyched to get my hands on it. I should say that it also can be easily read if you have not read the first series, everything that is important will be mentioned and explained. So if you have not read it and don’t plan on it you still can read this book and not be lost. After reading it I can say that I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. It was a perfect mix of old and new , the old Chicagoland we know and love and the new with fresh new people to love just as much if not a bit more . Familiar faces and storyline being brought over to the new faces and new problems with Chicago. We still get to see Merit and Ethan but out if the eyes of their Daughter Elisa which I not only liked but it was different. But obviously this being Elisa’s story they stay pretty much in the background but still poke their head in sometimes. Which was nicely done. I really enjoyed Elisa, she was strong, unique funny and really working on distancing herself from her parent’s legacy and wants to stay on her own two feet. But what nobody knows is that she fights an internal battle with a monster inside her since she was pretty much born. A possible side effect if the way she was made and or born?! Only one person knows a little about it and that is Connor Keene. Speaking of Connor I really enjoyed him, sexy strong alpha male with a sense of humor. I really loved them together and their banter, it had many laugh out loud moments. But there was also a tender and really honest site to them that I loved. Overall I just really liked them. The few awkward moments between them made it just so much more realistic and fun read. I also enjoyed Theo, thought his role in the Ombidubus office was great, I just hope we will not see a love triangle here. I also enjoyed Lulu, the daughter of Malory and Catcher who decided to ban Magic in her life, but I think that will change and we will see some kind of conflict with herself. Of course we also see the faeries again and of course they up to no good. We learn more about their magic and history but also more about Magic in general that also involves the vampires and wolves. The seen prophecy we heard about before is hinted at but we still don’t know what it is or what was seen……but I think it will be a major part of the series. Overall, I really enjoyed it was fresh and funny, the writing was smooth and it was easy to fall in love with the characters. The final battle I thought was a bit anti climatic but overall it was great first book and I ‘m looking forward to reading the next one already.

I rate it 4 ½ ★

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