Reviews with content warning for Vomit - Contagion

CW: vomit, captivity, violence, implied previous SA, graphic sexual content

⭐️ Monster romance
⭐️ Forced proximity
⭐️ Opposites attract

🌈 Hero coded as having OCD

🌶 Oviposition

Normally I hate expecting one thing and receiving another. In this case, it's quite the opposite.

I was looking for your standard monster romance just as a little bit of escapism, and ended up with something way more wholesome.

Like, imagine if Sheldon Cooper was a monster. Yeah, that.

Our germaphobic hero was an absolute delight, while not explicitly stated, he does appear to have the stereotypical traits of someone who has OCD. I can't describe myself whether the implied representation is accurate or not as I don't have the experience, I'm just observing as an outsider.

Aurora was just this happy go lucky human, who even though it's implied some horrible stuff when down when they were abducted, she still maintains this sunshine vibe.

Together they make up an odd pair, opposites in every way possible, but it just works.

My only gripe with this book, hence why it's a 4 and not a 4.5 is having experience of anxiety associated MH issues and the heroines attempt at "fixing" it by telling him to grow up/get it together/etc. It made me feel quite frustrated at times.

I also felt the ending was quite rushed, but that's just my own personal feelings on how I like an HEA wrapped up. Not a slight against the author or the book.

This would be perfect if you're looking for a short and sweet, fairly fluffy monster romance with a little sprinkling of spice, a cinnamon roll hero, and a grumpy/sunshine vibe.

Content Warnings

katiekeske's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

This was another funny alien romance by Amanda Milo. I loved reading about Simmi and seeing him put it in the wilderness. I found him very amusing when I read Contaminated.

I didn't give this one a full five stars because I couldn't help comparing it to the first book. I was hoping to get some more emotional opening up from Simmi about him being a Carrier and the things he went through in his society. I feel like he and Aurora could have talked about a lot more things while wandering the woods.

I also felt the explanation for how and why he and Aurora were captured didn't explain much at all. I wish there had been more to it than what was given.

Overall, if you like monster or alien romances, this is a good, sweet one with a little bit of spice.

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greystory's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Audiobook review Dec 22nd, 2023:
Still 10/10. Still love Simmi SO MUCH and love Aurora and so happy for both of them. I've recommended these books so many times and I will continue to do so, but now I can recommend the audiobook versions because Nick Cracknell was an excellent audio narrator for Contaminated and Contagion.

I saw that he's narrated Amanda Milo's Stolen by an Alien series as well although I'm not sure I want to dive into a reread or the audiobook versions of those ones. I like his narration well enough that I dug through his other stuff and added a couple other things I haven't read yet though. In 2024, one of my reading goals is going to be diversifying my reading format a bit more by reading more physical books and trying out more audiobooks so doing a re-read of these top favorites was a fantastic way to dive into it.

I also wish I could get a poster of the paperback cover where Aurora is holding Simmi because it's so frickin cute and perfect.

Original Review September 2022:
I would describe this book as kind of fluffy, which might seem a bit odd given the nature of our chitin covered, germophobic alien. :)

This was a light, easy read with a lot of humor and some good vibes. I really loved Simmi's personality and could relate to both Simmi and Aurora's different perspectives on trying their best to survive in an unexpected, uncertain situation. The growth of their relationship felt natural and I really enjoyed the little ways they came to balance each other. It was really cute and I hope to find more stories just like it!

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krysley's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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tostita's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

3.5

This book was genuinely funny, and the narrator’s performance only enhanced the humor. The story is told entirely from from the first-person POV of a germophobic alien who escapes captivity with a human woman with radically different ideas about the acceptability of touching things, with her bare hands no less! Together they make their way through the definitely-not-sterile wilderness, with the smaller, softer but more worldly human leading the way, both emotionally and as navigator. Simmi’s rather nerdy nature makes it all the funnier when they finally reach a human outpost and he is suddenly perceived as a barely constrained killing machine, a perception Aurora encourages as a protective camouflage. Though the banter between the two was amusing, as a romance I found it less compelling. I didn’t feel much in the way of chemistry between them and the story would have worked just as well, if not better, as a buddy comedy without the smooching. Also, there is a weird moment during the first sex scene where things suddenly take a dark turn, with reference to recent sexual assault that never comes up again, that could have easily been cut from the story with no loss. Still, overall this book made for an enjoyable quick listen.

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