Review: The Scent of Crazy

The Scent of Crazy is a debut novel by D.A. Valerian and it is part of the Red Flags series. This book is considered a dark romantic comedy - which works great for me because I do have a bit of a morbid sense of humor. There is a great blend of romance, suspense, revenge, and my favorite - that funny banter.

Summer has been “studying” Atlas Holt. Summer is a manipulative character on the mission for revenge. Atlas, however, doesn’t react the way she expects him to. I mean, who likes to be basically stalked and be a witness to such bizarre behavior? Uh yeah, Atlas actually finds it intriguing. Plot. Twist.

I found The Scent of Crazy to be funny and just honestly psychotic because neither of these characters are what we would consider “normal”. This story is full of manipulation, way way way in the gray area, and full of secrets. Honestly? A grand old time. Both characters are morally gray, but they work well together in this story. There is a dual POV which makes being in their thoughts SO FUN. It is a bit of a slow burn, but when you get there - yeah, it’s worth it.

This is the first time I’ve read a story like this, and I thought it was great. I can’t wait to see what else I can look for from Valerian.

If you do not like dark & morbid humor - THIS BOOK IS NOT FOR YOU. It is very much a cat-and-mouse tale and both characters are mutually obsessed (I mean, I called the characters psychotic…). Proceed with caution.