Reviews

Odd Blood by Azalea Crowley

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tmdreads's review

4.5

A slow, slow burn of a monster romance that will leave you wanting more. Josephine is losing her apartment and roommate. When a chance encounter with a slightly strange guy at a party who she helps get home leads to an offer of a new place to live a job she can’t pass it up. Even if her new roommates are Vampires. Despite him being her boss and a vampire she starts to think that he is pretty endearing but she’s not getting feelings for him, is she?

salema's review

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2.75

Mild spoilers-The book was amusing because of the MMC, the MFC was a lot more bland even though it was single POV he just came across as a more interesting character. The concept of a demented vampire was different for me and I enjoyed the interactions with Norma as well. I didn’t like the use of the miscommunication trope to break up the best friends. It felt like it was done to get them out of the author’s way so she can focus on the new found family but it never feels right especially when the characters are in their thirties and can just answer the phone. I found it incredibly annoying that every other page was “as an Asian woman” or “as a mixed person”. I get it. The MFC being a POC was one of the reasons I read the book, her identity could be worked into the story in other ways than just announcing it constantly. I was going to give it 3 stars but at the end of the book she voluntarily spent all day soaked in “dirt,sweat,snot,blood, and tears” while laying around at home scrolling on her phone and I just got disgusted. Please take a bath!

gloommistress's review

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adventurous dark funny fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Honestly, this book enthralled me. While I was originally unsure of the writing style, once I got invested in the story and these characters, I couldn’t stop reading.

Josephine and Eadwulf are such a delightful pair, but I think the real unsung star of this novel was Norma.

The author does an exceptional job of blending humor with horror and I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

moonshoespotter's review

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adventurous dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Hilarious book I was laughing out loud!!! Also such a mean ending I loved it so much even if it ended the way it did lol looking forward to the next one!!!

msdanielle's review

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funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

ivygirl1937's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

kevinscorner's review

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4.0

Odd Blood is the first installment in an oddball vampire romantic comedy series. Josephine is stuck in a deadend job and about to lose her housing because her roommate and best friend is getting married when she meets Eadwulf at a Halloween party. Eadwulf is a silly but charming man who isn’t just dressed up as a vampire, he actually is one. But when he offers her a stay-in position as caretaker to his grandmotherly vampire ward, it’s an offer she cannot refuse.

This was just a very cute and charming read. It’s very quirky and odd and a bit tonally confusing. It’s kinda gory but we just sort of accept to ignore all the blood and the murders because of how lighthearted it otherwise is. I loved Eadwulf who is a silly himbo of a vampire, recently woken up from years of slumber so he is late to pop culture and technologically ignorant. I loved all his strangeness and character traits and he has genuine laugh out loud moments like that “Parkour!” reference. Josephine has a demisexual awakening so she starts out very oblivious and unaware of Eadwulf’s advancements and her own budding attraction. And of course, that makes excellent fodder for this romantic comedy.

A note on the Asian rep of this book: Josephine is part Asian, Filipino more specifically, but it just is never that apparent. The “Asianness” felt very generic like removing shoes when indoors (not at all practical in the context of living in an old castle IMO) and her liking K-dramas. If the book hadn’t mentioned she was part Filipino, I never would have guessed (and I am Filipino myself). I wouldn’t say it was tokenness because her being racially ambiguous played a role in her character, but it brushed along those lines in terms of specificity.

Odd Blood is a cute campy romantic comedy.