This book is perfect for fall & Halloween!! I absolutely loved My Roommate Is A Vampire.
The Crash Landing on You references is so cute. I loved the pacing of this novel and how everything unraveled.

This book was an easy and sweet read! I loved the concept and I thought Fredrick was very charming, even though Reginald was my favorite. Overall, I thought this was cute, but I didn’t fall in love with it or the characters. I didn’t feel like Cassie and Frederick had chemistry and I think because of that, the romance was lackluster- A part of me wishes this was like a friendship of convenience and this whole plot existed in a platonic realm. However if you are looking for a fun easy read to pass the time, this one is perfect!

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review!

4.5 Stars

(Important note: Frederick is canonically bisexual, maybe pansexual. He mentions having had relationships with people of all genders and species. So technically, this is a queer romance!)

Reading this book was so much fun, I can’t even tell you. This is the kind of paranormal romance where there's really nothing scary about it. It’s a rom-com that’s heavy on the rom and heavy on the com, and I wouldn't have it any other way!

I actually had the pleasure of sitting in on this Fall author presentation that Berkley Romance hosted, and when Jenna was talking about her book, she said that her vampiric inspirations for Frederick were The Count from Sesame Street and, I believe, Nandor from “What We Do in the Shadows.” Those were two massive green flags for me as soon as I heard them, and I immediately decided that I would get on famously with this story—and I was absolutely correct.

This book is so freaking hilarious. I found myself laughing out loud and smiling so hard through pretty much the entire thing. I love that it’s so over-the-top in the sense that you, the reader, absolutely know what’s going on, but Cassie is just so painfully oblivious. There’s so much that she’s just willing to take on faith, and whenever someone asks what's up with her new roommate, she’s just like, “I don’t know. He’s just a weird dude, man. I don’t know what to tell you.” And it's hilarious every single time.

I do have to commend this story for the way it takes this classic dynamic we see time and time again in paranormal romance—which is to say a human falling in love with a vampire—and making it feel charming, endearing, and fresh. So often in these types of stories, the vampires in question are already acclimated to modern human society. They blend in for the most part, but there’s something "different" and "dangerous" about them that makes them incredibly attractive to the main character. Well throw out that blueprint, because Frederick is an absolute anachronistic mess.

This man is hopeless. He barely knows how to use technology. He knows nothing of modern currency or modern events. Everything he owns is straight out of the 18th century. He doesn’t know that the internet exists. He knows nothing but he’s trying *so hard* to pretend he does. And thus ensues this very, like, slice-of-life comedy of errors where Frederick is continuously making a complete fool out of himself and Cassie is just trying to minimize the damage.

It’s just fun to follow these two in their everyday shenangins. And I think that’s part of what makes it feel so refreshing, because usually in vampire romances, the vampire is sleek, and dangerous, and sexy, and all-knowing and that’s part of what lures in their romantic interest. But that dynamic is flipped in this story, because the human character holds all the power in this case. The intimacy developing in this relationship comes from Frederick going out on a limb, being very vulnerable about the fact that he knows nothing, being open to learning and correction—which is like the opposite of toxic masculinity. And even though there’s a lot he has to unlearn, the connection and the bonding comes from both of them learning from each other.

Speaking of how this story takes a lot of vampire romance conventions and flips them on their heads, I really appreciate how even though this is a vampire-human romance, it’s not about romanticizing Cassie as a willing victim for Frederick. The story isn’t leading up Frederick hoping Cassie will become his personal blood bag. It’s not about them having conversations about if he’ll turn her into a vampire so that they can be together for eternity. It’s very much about a human and vampire just co-habitating and exploring what they have together without either one of them being expected to sacrifice something to be in this relationship—which is really nice.

So again, this is just a fun, light-hearted, heart-warming story that’s equal parts hilarious and romantic. My one little hang-up is that while there’s not a third-act break-up—yay!— there *is* a third-act conflict that doesn’t come out of left field, but also doesn’t feel as seamlessly integrated into the story as I would like. But honestly, this was still one of the most delightful romances I've read all year and I absolutely recommend it.

I was looking forward to this book so much because I have been really wanting to find more fall romances! Unfortunately, I had to DNF this book. I usually read romances within a week but have been trying to get through this book for over 2 weeks now. The beginning started fast but the book quickly lost it's speed and began to fall into a repetitive storyline. I wish there was more autumnal/Halloween atmospheric writing to the story. I also found it hard for me to get attached to the characters and care for them. I didn't understand their "why" and found her attraction to her creepy roommate odd and unexplained. I understand with a concept like this the author is allowed more "asks" from the reader to believe than usual but they were just too many so early on for me personally. I do believe there are people and readers who will love this book. It just wasn't for me!

3/5 stars

This was a fun lighthearted modern-day vampire romance. Frederick and Cassie are very cute, and I really enjoyed the letters they wrote back and forth to each other as they went from strangers to roommates to lovers.

Read this if:
- you are looking for a light and fluffy romance with an age gap
- you like vampires
- you are looking for a ML who looks like they are in their 30s
- you are looking for romances with spice (this story has one explicit sex scene)
- roommates to lovers/from roommates to romance trope

Don't read this if:
- you don't like age gap romances
- vampires and light blood drinking during intimate moments isn't your thing
- you like your romances to have more plot (the plot in this one is fine, but there isn't much in terms of plot)
- you are looking for detailed world building

*Huge thank you to Netgalley and Berkeley Romance for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review*

So, here's the deal. This is VERY light on the vampire-ness. It's basically a romance and then someone went "paranormal stuff is in right now, let's make him a vampire" and they did.

To be fair, Frederick is A+ of a character. He's hilarious, he does not get our world/society at all and he makes me giggle whenever we get to see his POV from letters and internet searches. But I wish he'd had an entire POV. I wanted to know more about him and his inner thoughts/feelings about Cassie.

But Cassie? That girl is an absolute hot mess express. I didn't like her at all. She was a like a manic pixie dream girl with a self-esteem issue, with a penchant for falling in love with a guy just because he's hot. Because that's another part of this. Within a few days they're both pining after each other so hard that it's like... how? This may just be the demi in me, but HOW?!?! You've seen him three times and you're already imagining things about him that are so inappropriate. Girl. Get it together.

The romance from these two was so hard to buy. I didn't feel it at all. Which, if this book had been more about the vampire aspect and less about the romance, that'd be acceptable. But this is clearly a romance first. And a romance without a believable romance, is just.... not it.

And can we talk about Cassie's art? It's a choice. I'm not saying it's dumb because I'm not a modern art girlie and I know that about me. She constantly talks about how no one understands her art and no one gets it. And it's like, girl, you were making fun of hipsters a few chapters ago but I hate to tell you, you are one. Again, not a modern art person but I get the concept of the art. It's not that unfathomable to me. So how is her art so <b>special</b> that no one but her gets it? IDK I'm just very peeved about it, obviously.

*sigh* Again, I'm glad this book is working for some people. I'm happy people are enjoying it, but she is not the book for me.

In the spirit of holiday season, let’s read some Halloween smut and who’s smuttier than a vampire? They fly around sucking blood from virgins, they are tall, dark, and handsome, they all seem to be very rich despite not having not having jobs, they have accents, and if Twilight taught me anything…they will probably break your pelvis with their amazing lovemaking skills. So a big YES to vampire smut…except for this particular vampire smut, which was a miss- this plot had as many holes as a virgin’s neck after a vampire gang bang. #fangbang

Cassie needs a place to live in Chicago so rents out a room from hottie Frederick, who has so many red flags…like he was legit waving his red vampire cape as a flag. Freddie speaks like a Victorian Duke. He wears three piece suits. He “works nights”. He has no pots or pans or food. When she eventually finds out he’s a vampire he’s all “it’s cool girl, I won’t bloodlet you”-bc he gets his blood from blood banks and she’s totes ok with him robbing the MF’ing Red Cross despite the fact there’s a national blood shortage. She asks ZERO questions about anything and brings him shopping at Nordstrom to help this 300yo vampire blend in. Despite having no chemistry, Freddie and Cassie eventually take the batmobile to bonetown. She again asks Count Fuckula zero questions like: do vampires ejaculate? How do vampires get erections when they don’t have a circulatory system? Why are you biting my finger? How can you afford an apartment in Lincoln Park with lake views despite having no job and being 300 years old?

This book was disappointing- it could have been so cute and fun and sexy but it wasn’t any of those things. I know more about the art curriculum at the private school where Cassie interviewed than I do about any detail about Freddie’s life as a vampire, or how his penis works, or what’s gonna happen Cassie gets old and Count Fuckula stays young (ie- he will leave her ass for a virgin). Don’t read this…unless you like literary boo balls. Get it BOO?!

Smut- 1.8 stars
Romance- 3.1 stars
Story- 2.9 stars
A vampire smut book called Fang Bang- 17.4 stars

I rarely pick up books labeled as romance these days, but after sitting in on a spooky season panel where Jenna Levine talked about her book, MY ROOMMATE IS A VAMPIRE, I knew it was a must read for me! She sold me with saying that Nador from What We Do In The Shadows was part of her inspiration…I didn’t need to hear anything further!

MY ROOMMATE IS A VAMPIRE is laugh-out-loud funny from the moment Cassie and Frederick meet each other. I adored how quirky this book was and both main characters completely stole my heart from our first meeting. Each of their personalities shine through and I loved being there from their first meeting through the end of the book. There aren’t a ton of secondary characters, but those we get to know, especially Reginald, were a delight.

Levine’s writing is easy to fall into and the plot moves along rather quickly, which kept my attention throughout. I loved the addition of notes and text exchanges between our characters, which really solidified for me their growing relationship.

If you’re looking for a charming romcom to add to your spooky season TBR, this is the perfect pick! Such a fun debut!

🎧: I was looking for something fun for my commute and was thrilled to see my library had the audio available for this one. The narration is chef’s kiss and I loved being able to follow along with Cassie and Frederick’s story while fighting to escape traffic!

An entertaining read that kept the light hearted interactions between these two characters in the.....you will never believe it.....category as the story starts. When she adds all the clues up and comes to the inevitable conclusion, the room mates will come to some very interesting compromises. This would definitely make an interesting series. Jenna Levine's debut is a winner in my library!

“Darling Cassie—I never doubted that you would charm them utterly. The way you charm everyone.” He paused. “The way you’ve charmed me.”

Cassie and Frederick. She’s human and he’s a vampire. He’s looking for a roommate to teach him how to fit in the modern world after being in a century-long coma.

🦇READ IF YOU LIKE🦇:
- roommates to lovers
- she’s human, he’s a vampire
- age gap
- communicating via letters
- opposites attract
- diary entries & text messages
- slow burn
- forced proximity
- one personal question per day
- “who did this to you?”
- modern world + victorian era
- chicago setting
- buffy the vampire slayer
- art work
- regency romance novels

Thank you to @berkleyromance for the copy! My Roommate is a Vampire is now available!

I really wanted to like this book. Like really wanted to. It has a cute premise that could've been fantastic. However, I just couldn't finish the book. Maybe it was my mood at the time, however, I just couldn't get into it. I'll try it again in audiobook at a later date and see if that helps!

My Roommate Is a Vampire has the feel of stepping into a drafty haunted house in October. This story was fun and charming and a great way to get into the fall mood. I found Cassie's character to lack development and depth, which took away some of the oomph of the story. However, Frederick's sweet naivete about modern life and the originality of the story saved it for me.

In Jenna Levine’s debut, My Roommate is a Vampire, struggling artist Cassie Greenberg moves into an unbelievably cheap apartment in Chicago, only to discover her new roommate Frederick J. Fitzwilliam is a vampire who's hiding more than just his nocturnal lifestyle. Their unconventional relationship takes an intriguing turn as secrets come to light.

I went into this book without any expectations, but I pretty much finished it within a day. It’s a nice lighthearted debut with an engaging writing style. Cassie’s simplicity contrasts nicely with Frederick’s oddness. The budding chemistry between Cassie and Frederick was sweetly portrayed through handwritten notes and amusing awkward situations. While some of the scenes and dialogue were a bit cheesy, I still found it to be an entertaining read. The open-ended ending seemed to hint at the possibility of a series. If this does become a series, I would be interested in learning more about Reginald. Overall, this was 3.5 stars for me, but I rounded up to 4 stars on GoodReads.

An adorable paranormal romance that never quite reaches the depths of feeling it could. But very sweet!

Thank you very much for the opportunity to read this book early! I really enjoyed it. I thought the writing was very well done, and the story kept me interested. I believe my students/patrons would also love this book and will be acquiring it for the library!

A fun, easy to read over the weekend. About a girl, Cassie, who finds herself room-mating with a vampire from the regency era. This is a romantic fantasy comedy that others will find themselves enjoy reading.

A fun addition to the paranormal romcom genre and a strong debut from Jenna Levine. Eager for more from her!

My Roommate is a Vampire is a rom-com about a down on her luck artist who comes across a Craigslist ad for a too-good-to-be-true apartment in Chicago. She almost doesn’t answer it because $200 a month for rent sounds unheard of, but she’s in dire enough straights that she’ll risk potentially meeting a murderer to help make ends meet. When Cassie gets to the apartment, she meets Victor, who she deems one of the weirdest people she’s ever met. She’s honest about how he could be charging so much more for rent, and he tells her that since he appreciates her honesty and it was his mistake, he’ll allow her to take the apartment for the listed price. As Cassie moves in, she starts noticing some very odd behavior from Victor, and while it’s clear to the reader that he’s a vampire, it takes Cassie a bit longer to put the pieces together. Victor has been asleep for the past century and he’s in desperate need of help to fit into modern society. Cassie lends a helping hand and the pair begin to fall in lust and eventually love. There were so many funny scenes in this book that made me laugh out loud. The situation with Victor’s pots (trust me, you have to read it firsthand), is so funny and I loved that the pair watched Buffy together. I also liked Victor’s contentious relationship with his frenemy Reginald. The pair have clearly known each other for a long time and they’re always bickering. While there were a lot of things I enjoyed about this book, it wasn’t a standout for me. Part of my issue is that I never bought the chemistry between Victor and Cassie. It seemed like it happened so fast and there was more inner monologue about Cassie finding Victor attractive than there were scenes depicting their relationship forming. It’s you’re looking for something light and fun, I would recommend borrowing this book from the library.

I requested this on Netgalley because the cover and premise sounded fun. And that’s exactly what it delivered for me. The plot IS unbelievable but that’s a given. I mean the title and cover are silly and fun. I love a vampire/human pairing but I’m glad this wasn’t the typical angst ridden “we want to but shouldn’t” tension that’s so common in this type of pairing. I felt a genuine companionship between the two.

The book also features the characters leaving notes to each other to communicate due to having opposite schedules. I love when there is a letter or texting element, and this did it very well. Enough letters exchanged to see their personalities but it’s not the central way they communicate.

The last third of the book gets a bit wild but it added to the fun for me. I especially loved Cassie’s character growth. She struggles with self-confidence but she’s also tenacious about living the way she wants and trying to make her way in the world. The ending was wrapped up nicely without being overly cheesy. I actually feel like the way the relationship stands at the end stays true to Cassie’s character.

If you’re in the mood for a lighthearted, playful romance that’s a quick read, then I recommend it. Just know that you will have to throw logic out the door. Lol. The ending hints at a possible future book focusing on Reginald’s romance. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for this annoyingly endearing character.

My Roommate is a Vampire was a quirky, cute, paranormal-lite romance. A fast, low-stakes-but-high-sexual-tension perfect fall read, it's roommates-to-lovers with humor, heart, and all the hijinks one could hope to find in a romance between a modern human and a woefully old-fashioned vampire.

The plot is very lighthearted and the third act conflict almost laughably so, but the characters are vibrant and Jenna Levine's author voice is always engaging. I also like the mixed media approach with the letters and journal entries. I look forward to the next novel (which I hope features a hilarious second character as the romantic lead).