Chicagoland Vampires Books in Order
How to Read the Chicagoland Vampires series
Standalone stories, but characters and relationships develop across the series.
Publication order gives the best experience for the Chicagoland Vampires series. Each book has a complete central plot with its own mystery and resolution, but character relationships, personal growth, and ongoing vampire politics carry across the volumes. Readers who begin later in the series will understand the main events yet miss the deepening central romance, team dynamics, and context for accumulated conflicts and backstories.
About the Chicagoland Vampires series
Series Premise
The Chicagoland Vampires series follows Merit as she adjusts to life as a vampire in a world where several vampire houses coexist with humans, shifters, and sorcerers. Each book centers on a new threat—such as rogue vampires, political conspiracies, or magical attacks—while advancing the dynamics within Cadogan House and the larger Chicago supernatural community.
Main Characters
Caroline Merit (Merit) is the central protagonist, a former graduate student who becomes the powerful Sentinel of Cadogan House. Ethan Sullivan, the Master of Cadogan House, serves as her leader and eventual romantic partner, supported by recurring House members including Luc, Lindsey, and Malik.
Setting
The series is set in modern Chicago and its suburbs, focusing on the vampire Houses (particularly Cadogan House), Hyde Park, and other supernatural territories. The city serves as a vibrant backdrop where vampire politics, human relations, and hidden magical threats constantly intersect.
Tone & Themes
The tone mixes urban fantasy action, witty dialogue, and romantic tension with political intrigue. Central themes include loyalty and leadership, identity and transformation, power and responsibility, and the challenges of balancing personal desires with duty to a larger community.
Is This Series Worth Reading?
This series appeals to readers who enjoy urban fantasy with strong heroines, complex vampire politics, and slow-burn romance. It suits fans of detailed world-building and character-driven stories that blend mystery, action, and interpersonal drama.
Content Warnings and Heat Level
Moderate violence including fights and supernatural battles; romantic content that becomes explicit in later books; occasional strong language; suitable for adult readers.
The Chicagoland Vampires series builds a rich supernatural Chicago through its continuing cast and evolving conflicts. Its structure rewards sequential reading while delivering satisfying individual mysteries in each volume. The combination of action, romance, and vampire politics creates an engaging long-running urban fantasy series.
FAQ
21 books total: 16 main + 5 extra stories
No new book is currently scheduled. The latest book, Shadowed Steel, was published in May 2021.
Shadowed Steel was published in May 2021.
The first book in the series is Some Girls Bite, published in April 2009.
The series primarily falls into the Urban Fantasy genre.
It’s best to read the series in order. Each book has its own story, but ongoing character arcs and relationships develop across the series.
The Chicagoland Vampires series follows Merit as she adjusts to life as a vampire in a world where several vampire houses coexist with humans, shifters, and sorcerers. Each book centers on a new threat—such as rogue vampires, political conspiracies, or magical attacks—while advancing the dynamics within Cadogan House and the larger Chicago supernatural community.
The series does not currently have a new book scheduled.