Adjusting to her role as a Sentinel in Cadogan House and trying to ignore her attraction to the Master, Ethan Sullivan, Merit has to learn the value of "plausible deniability" in regard to hunting down the perpetrators of vampire raves: someone is using Cadogan House's bar to solicit humans to come to vampire raves, raves where magic and aggression are high, an unknown drug is circulating, and humans are dying. Meanwhile, humans are picketing the Chicago Cadogan House, and the leader of multiple Houses is thinking of taking control from Ethan. Is an old rival setting them up, or is the damage coming from closer than they think? In addition, Merit learns something new about the night she was attacked by a vampire and saved by Ethan, who illegally turned her into a vampire without her consent.

The most recent installment of the Chicagoland Vampire novels, HARD BITTEN is a fast and exciting read.