Cold Hunger is a thriller centered around Daniel Kramer, a millennial-aged man recovering from a tragic loss. A chance encounter with a beautiful woman leads him into the dark depths of New York City, where a deadly sickness is taking hold, a sickness that may soon have an impact on him and those he loves.

At the start of the book, Daniel displays some questionable behavior in order to keep the story moving - he practically stalked a woman that showed little interest in him. This makes it difficult to like him at first, but the author soon cuts off the jagged edges and leaves Daniel as a sympathetic, if not a little clueless, character. The author also makes it a point to include characters of different races, although the continuous use of descriptors felt a bit excessive - his best friend’s dark complexion and his love interest’s “Asian eyes” were mentioned at least three or four times throughout the book. While some subtlety may have been warranted, it was nice to read a story that gave a more accurate depiction of the many kinds of people that live in New York City.

Daniel’s discovery of the disease made for a frenzied read, as though the author couldn’t quite pick the path he wanted to take. His best friend, Angela, told him the story of a girl (Elle) whose missing brother may have been taken deep into the old subway tunnels which were inhabited by ghoulish people. Daniel then embarks on a quest to learn about the people and the disease, although it seemingly has little to do with him. He also meets Kim, who tells him about a strange disease that causes humans to develop a blood lust and prey on those living above ground. We are then introduced to Rick, a friend of Kim’s who happens to know everything about the disease and who may hold the key to stopping it. As Daniel’s journey continues, the forced connections are somewhat smoothed, and his desire to save the day makes sense. Daniel finds out about the leader of the underground, Bryce, whose taste for chaos will prove deadly if he isn’t stopped.

While the story starts off a little choppy and stilted, the author soon finds his voice and begins to weave a mysterious and horrific tale of love, loss, and humanity. 3/5. ( )