When Vi finds a blob outside a bar and takes him home as a pet, she finds she can mold him into her ideal boyfriend. At first, this seems like a balm to her current circumstances, including a recent breakup, dropping out of college, a job she hates, and loneliness in her drab basement apartment; but managing his new humanness is a huge undertaking. It is genuinely sweet and surprising, and I will recommend to readers who liked The Guest by Emma Cline and Thank you NetGalley and My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Otessaa Moshfegh. Harper Audio for a digital review copy.

My favorite genre is contemporary fiction where there's just one element that's a little f*cked up, and BLOB was a masterclass in this. What a delightfully weird little novel. I look forward to see what Maggie Su writes next.

I would give a 4.5 if I could. I loved this. The voice was so unique and nothing panned out the way I thought it would, but in the best and most surprising ways. I loved the surrealism and forgot I was reading science fiction.

I absolutely ripped through this book. Su's writing is concise and relatable; Vi is a character that many readers will see themselves (or perhaps their past selves) in, and in spite of the outlandish plot, Blob is thoroughly grounded in a very solid reality. This will be an excellent recommendation for new adult readers, and I could see this as a fresh bookclub option.

4.5/5

When I told my coworkers about this book, they said, "How do you always find the perfectly weird books?" And that was exactly what this was: perfectly weird! The premise was wacky and wild, but overwhelmingly enjoyable. Vi is a narrator who is dealing with the struggles of heartbreak, identity, and fulfillment. Comical, absurd and relatable.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Audio for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own

The blob-like creature that is found outside of a club one night gives Vi more than she expected. Weird, funny and full of surprises, this audio book rose above my expectations with the humor. The narrator was absolutely fantastic and delivered the story perfectly. I. Loved. This. Book!

The book I didn't know I needed. I loved that I didn't know where we were going with the Blob...it could have turned in any direction, but I loved that it came down to being human and that none of us really know how to do that perfectly. We are all at times awkward, incomplete, and trying to fit in.

While I loved the characterization and voice of our main character Vi, the rest of this book fell flat for me.

This was a delightful little off-kilter story about a young woman named Vi who's a mess and the impressionable trash blob she finds and names Bob. I picked up the audiobook, just to see what that was like. I wish I'd read the book instead of the audiobook, only because the NetGalley eAudiobook interface doesn't allow for notes, just bookmarks. I made a lot of bookmarks and will probably go back and buy the ebook when it's available so I can mark up my notes again. Much of the book really resonated with me. Though I'm older than Vi, I also had a difficult early 20s, in which I had lots of trouble figuring out what I wanted and how to move forward. Like Vi, I was also dealing with a lot of shame (though for different reasons). <spoiler>I also have a complex relationship with the idea of motherhood; in my twenties, I had a lot of plans and ideals that didn't work when they came up against the real world.</spoiler>

Vi initially thinks she can mold the blob into the perfect guy for her, but things quickly get out of hand. Turns out, Bob is more than the traits Vi imposes on him, he has a mind of its own. <spoiler> Turns out, the relationship between Vi and Bob is more reminiscent of an overbearing mother and her son than a romantic one. Refreshingly, Vi isn't reenacting the relationship she has with her parents. She is deperately clinging to something to control because her life (unlike her parents' lives) is such a mess.</spoiler>

I'd hoped this one was going to be a five star read -- it was close, but I felt it pulled its punches. <spoiler>Vi deserved worse for treating Bob so terribly -- her paranoia about his (in)ability to survive in the world almost killed him. Yes, she did what she did because she cared, but we don't all forgive our parents in the end.</spoiler>

Thanks Netgalley, Harper.

Offbeat, entertaining, and well-narrated. A recommended purchase in all formats for collections where quirky fiction is popular.

The daughter of a Taiwanese father and white mother, Vi Liu has always felt like an outsider in her hometown. After dropping out of college and being dumped by her long term boyfriend, Vi is struggling through a pretty bleak season of life. One night she drunkenly stumbles across a small living blob with beady black eyes in an alley behind a drag club. She takes it home and our journey kicks off from there as the blob slowly grows in form and sentience towards towards becoming a human man.

This story was laugh out loud funny and managed to pull off a nuanced exploration of biracial identity. Really enjoyed the character arcs of both Vi and Bob. Touching examination of what it means to be human. The audio narrator was excellent. On the downside I personally dislike when authors use "performing well at college" as a primary marker for a thriving and productive life and the ending was a bit abrupt for me. Overall I enjoyed this story and If you're a fan of the weird books for weird girls micro-genre this is definitely for you as well.

{Thank you to Harper AUDIO for the ARC!}

So delightfully weird! I'm not sure if this book is a fit for many of our book club ladies, but I hope some others will give this a try!

OMG I LOVED THIS SO MUCH!!

I never wanted to finish (but also covet??) a book so fast!!!

The story, which follows Vi, a young woman who dropped out of college, is going through a breakup, and is overall feeling a little lost. But then she discovers a blob. A literal shapeless, lifeless (maybe??) blob.

and that blob becomes… Bob. and that’s all I will say because the book is so good, and everyone should going in without much context or background—it makes it so much more fun!

I laughed, I cringed, I kicked my feet, and maybe teared up a bit. I truly loved this book so much and it’s definitely going to be big in 2025. Hands down, one of my favorite books… maybe ever??

(Thank you, HarperCollins, HarperAudio Adult, and NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.)