Odd & True

by Cat Winters

Trudchen grew up hearing Odette’s stories of their monster-slaying mother and a magician’s curse. But now that Tru’s older, she’s starting to wonder if her older sister’s tales were just comforting lies, especially because there’s nothing fantastic about her own life—permanently disabled and in constant pain from childhood polio.

In 1909, after a two-year absence, Od reappears with a suitcase supposedly full of weapons and a promise to rescue Tru from the monsters on their way to attack her. But it’s Od who seems haunted by something. And when the sisters’ search for their mother leads them to a face-off with the Leeds Devil, a nightmarish beast that’s wreaking havoc in the Mid-Atlantic states, Tru discovers the peculiar possibility that she and her sister—despite their dark pasts and ordinary appearances—might, indeed, have magic after all.
 

• ISBN13: 9781419723100
• Publish Date: 12 September 2017
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 8 February 2024
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Abrams
• Imprint: Amulet Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 368
• Language: English
• URL: https://abramsandchronicle.co.uk/book/9781419723100-odd-true/

Reviews

[Eve1972]

I ADORE the cover on this one. Fabulous representation of the story. Great use of graphics. Great composition and title work.

What a delightful little book this turned out to be. I thought going into this one that I was going to get something along the lines of the TV show Supernatural just with two sisters that chase monsters. What I ended up getting was very different than that and in my opinion so much better.



This was a book about sisters who would do anything for each other. About the twists and turns their lives took. About one sister who spun these fantastical tales and about another sister who despite being disabled isn't afraid to forge her own path forward. The sister bond in this book was one of the best I have read to date. Told in dual POVs that jumps back and forth in time (usually, something that I find off-putting but worked incredibly well in this book) this story kept me captivated from page one. It was fantastically well written and paced. It was magical and heartbreaking. The characters were engaging and well developed. I love the folklore the authors weave into the plot as well.

Not much more to say about this one. I loved it, and if you are looking for a beautiful, unique, and magical book with strong females characters, then this one should be added to your list ASAP. Two HUGE thumbs up from yours truly.

[shannonmiz]

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
The beginning started a wee bit slow for my taste, but after that it picks right up and gets so, so good! I actually didn't quite expect it to go in the direction it did, which for me was a huge plus! Let's talk about more positives, shall we?

• Family was basically the whole plot. Sure, other people are involved obviously, but this is first and foremost a story about Odette and Trudchen, two sisters with a family history of magical intervention. Monster slaying, to be more specific. The rest of the family is also a really big part of the story, which I loved.


• Not just one history, but two were shown! The story is told in two timelines- Odette's chapters in the past (from when she's a young girl, to before she meets back up with Tru), and Tru's in 1909, which is when the events take place.


• Each sister was really well fleshed out.  I loved that they each had very discernible personalities, and stories of their own. But at the end of the day, they were absolutely there for each other and their relationship was a thing of beauty. It wasn't always perfect; far from it. But their love for each other was never in doubt.


• This book had one of the best endings I have read in a long time. I'll say no more, of course, but it only feels right to talk about an epic ending when there's one to be had.

Bottom Line: If you're a fan of historical fiction, this is a must-read. And if you just flat out like reading about sisterly bonds, this is also the book for you! I'll just be over here impatiently waiting for Cat Winters's next release if you need me.

[Briana @ Pages Unbound]

Odd and True is the electrifying yet heartwarming story of two sisters who team together to hunt monsters in early twentieth century America.  I’m always in favor of a good story about sisters, and Odd and True puts that relationship in the forefront, as the protagonists—Odette (Od) and Trudchen (Tru)—support each other even as they work through different opinions and try to come to terms with the fact that both of them have secrets.

Family in general is at the forefront of the story, as Od and Tru deal with their troubled past in different ways—partially because, as the older sibling, Od has totally different memories of their early childhood than Tru does.  The book switches between their points of view, with Tru narrating the present day action of their new quest to hunt down a devil they believe to be terrorizing the area around Philadelphia, while Od’s chapters focus on the past—her childhood and then a few teen years she spent away from true.  The result is a richly textured story that addresses love, loss, identity, and the definition of family itself.

The monster hunting aspect of the story is deliciously creepy yet not always the most compelling part of the story.  Winters plays coy, making readers wonder what exactly about monsters is real and how the story as a whole is going to play out.  It’s also worth noting that she keeps the story tight by featuring one primary monster the sisters go after.  This may be disappointed to readers who expected a little more gallivanting and epic showdowns, but I really liked it.  Some books in a similar vein cram in so many monsters that the fights seem episodic or even repetitive; Winters builds the excitement up around one main moment that’s really worth it.

I had never read a book by Cat Winters before Odd and True, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.  If you read my reviews regularly, you probably know I have a tendency towards disgruntled mutterings about the sad state of prose in contemporary, particularly YA fiction (as much as I love YA).  Well, Winters’s prose is beautiful.  She drew me into the story with it from the opening pages, and the beauty never flagged. The chapters from Odette’s point of view have a particular tendency towards the magical and whimsical which really worked with Winters’s style.

I would be willing to read another novel by Winters just because of the writing in this one, but the story and character development are also remarkably well done.  It’s a great blend of magic, historical fiction, and real world issues.  Highly recommended.