Visual Novel / Bloodbound

Bloodbound is a Visual Novel that's part of the Choices: Stories You Play collection. You've got a job as an assistant to the CEO of one of the hottest corporations in town, and one night you discover that not only is he a vampire, but that the city has many of them, in their own clans.

It has a werewolf themed spinoff in Nightbound.

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Bloodbound includes examples of:

A-M

• Actually, That's My Assistant: When you meet the psychic vampire Kano in Japan, there’s two people in the room, a little boy and an older man. Guess which one is Kano.
  • The answer: Kano is the little boy. The older man is the assistant.
• Aerith and Bob: Kamilah, a relatively common name, has a brother named Lysimachus.
• All Girls Want Bad Boys: Should the player opt to have Amy romance Jax.
• The Alliance: The clanless form an alliance with Clan Sayeed and Clan Raines.
• Alliterative Title: Bloodbound. Portmantitle, compound version, where each word alliterates.
• Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: Kamilah. To quote Adrian, "warmth is not her forte."
• Ambiguously Gay: Priya's sexuality has never been specified, however her interest in Amy suggests she may be bisexual or lesbian.
• Another Side, Another Story: Bloodbound Origins, released on September 29, 2023 for VIP players, is a prequel to the main trilogy about the love interests' early vampire lives told from their perspectives.
• Arrow Catch: But with a bottle. Griff hurls a bottle at Kamilah which she catches midway and breaks.
• Ash Face: Lily is covered in the ashes of a feral that attacked her before it was decapitated by Kamilah.
• A Threesome Is Hot:
  • Between Jax, Amy and Lily can occur in Chapter 11, the first in all Choices books.
  • A second time in Book 2 with Jax, Amy and Adrian.
• Attack on the Heart: One of only two ways to kill vampires.
• Badass in a Nice Suit: Adrian, Kamilah and Adam, all of whom wear suits and are badass vampires.
• Ballroom Blitz: The Awakening Ball is interrupted by an attack from Ferals.
• Become a Real Boy:
  • Adrian presents being a vampire as much more unfortunate existence than being human. So much so, he reveals to Amy his secret project to become human again.
  • Liv Denara. Her career as a burlesque dancer was ruined when she was Turned into a clanless vampire, relegating her to only be able to perform in the Shadow Den.
  Lily: What does she want?
  Jax: The only thing she can't have. Her life back.
• Been There, Shaped History:
  • Kamilah can mention in Chapter 5 that she is one of Cleopatra’s cousins and served as her advisor.
  • Chapter 6 can have Adrian reveal he was close friends with David Bowie.
  • Adrian also knew Alexander Hamilton and George Washington. He calls Hamilton obnoxious and says he gave Washington tips during the Revolutionary War.
  • Gaius made a deal with the Founding Fathers to allow the vampires to live in New York City in exchange for their help in the Revolutionary War.
• Betty and Veronica: The love interests are divided this way. The Bettys are Adrian (gentle and sweet) and Lily (funny and cheerful). The Veronicas are Jax (cynical and rebellious) and Kamilah (reserved and intimidating).
• Big Applesauce: The setting of the story, where the most powerful clans reside.
• Big Fancy Castle: Marcel Lafayette's castle, which originally stood in France before he brought every single brick over to America. It's complete with its own ballroom, library and nocturnal garden.
• Big Fancy House:
  • Priya's. It comes with a gym, dance floor, home theater and pool.
  • Adam has a mansion in the New York City suburbs.
• Black and Nerdy: Lily is this in spades, usually on the couch playing video games.
• "Blackmail" Is Such an Ugly Word: The economy of the Shadow Den is dependent on stealing from the clans, however Jax says 'stealing' isn't the word he would use.
• Blame Game:
  • Between Banner, Kamilah and Marcel over who's to blame for the angry commoners at their door.
  • Adrian warns Amy and Lily that the clans are on the brink of a civil war once they start pointing figures about who unleashed the Ferals at the Awakening Ball.
• Blood Magic: When a vampire is inducted into a clan, they're given a share of blood from the First Vampire, which keeps them from becoming a Feral.
• Book Ends: The first two chapters of Book 1 were released at the same time. The final two chapters of Book 3 (the last book in the series) were also released at the same time.
• Blunt Metaphors Trauma: Kamilah comically misses the point when it comes to figurative language, including misunderstanding the terms "you're killing me" and "badass," the latter of which she thought was actually referring to a person's buttocks.
• Breaking and Bloodsucking: Lily is attacked and killed by either a vampire or Feral in her apartment later revealed to be Jameson.
• Burlesque: The Shadow Den has a burlesque club in it.
• Captured on Purpose: As part of their plan to break Adrian free, Jax and Amy surrender as prisoners to The Baron.
• Catch and Return:
  • A premium scene in Chapter 5 has Gaius Augustine catch a crossbow bolt shot at him, then throws it into the shooter’s eye.
  • Adrian also saves Amy this way when the Order attacks the nightclub in Book 2.
• Category Traitor: The Council of Vampires, bar Kamilah, consider Adrian to be a traitor to the vampires when they learn he's trying to make a serum to make himself human again.
• Character Customization: In addition to being able to customize Amy, the player also gets to decide Adrian's appearance.
• Chekhov's Gun: Fangbook, the social media platform Lily developed in the beginning of Book 2, gets used by Gaius Augustine to record him killing Lester in order to persuade the clan vampires to join him.
• Clear Their Name: Kamilah enlists Amy and Lily to help clear Adrian's name.
• Cold-Blooded Torture: The Baron tries to take Amy and Lily to extort information from them on Adrian through torture before Kamilah intervenes.
• Coolest Club Ever: Priya’s nightclub, The Crimson Veil.
• Content Warning:
  • A warning is issued at the start of the book, stating that it contains violence and mature situations.
  • The penultimate chapter of Book 3 starts with a warning, stating that the chapter contains violence and death.
• Corrupt Politician: Adam Vega. In life, he was a Spanish tyrant, and as a vampire, he favors those who make generous donations to his PAC.
• Council of Vampires: It is revealed in Chapter 2 that New York is run by a council of vampires, divided into six clans, each specializing in a different business.
• Cross-Referenced Titles: Chapters 3 and 4 of Book 2 are called "The Collector" and "The Collected", respectively.
• Crusading Widow: Kamilah killed the vampire hunter who killed her lover.
• Curbstomp Battle:
  • The premium scene in Chapter 5 shows what happens when a mob of peasants go up against vampires: the peasants lose.
  • Discussed by Amy with Griff. She tells him that the clans would wipe the clanless out in a war, seeing as they have more power, people and resources than the clanless.
• Curse Cut Short: In Book 1, Chapter 4, when Jax shows up and decapitates a guard in front of Amy.
  Amy: What the f—
• Damsel in Distress: Lily, after being killed by a vampire or Feral.
• Darker and Edgier: It’s about vampires, after all. This is the second book in the Choices catalogue to issue a content warning after It Lives In The Woods.
• Daywalking Vampire: Adrian's new experimental drug allows him to walk in the daylight.
  • Rheya the First was said to be able to walk in the daylight.
• Deal with the Devil: Adam agrees to grant Lily the next open spot in Adrian's clan on the condition that Adrian votes to have the clanless killed.
  Adrian: We're now in his debt. Which is a terrible place to be.
• Decade-Themed Party: The Awakening Ball. The theme is French Revolution, as that is the era its host, Marcel Lafayette, is from.
• Designated Girl Fight: Amy and Nicole. Well, designated human fight, since Kamilah is also on the side of the heroes.
• Died in Your Arms Tonight: Subverted at the end of Book 2, when Amy suffers a fatal katana wound. Her love interest holds her in their arms as her consciousness fades. She later wakes up as a vampire.
  • Played straight with Jax or Lily at the end of Book 3, Chapter 15 after s/he had to be staked due to being infected with the blood of the First Feral.
• Don't Make Me Destroy You: Kamilah dishes this to The Baron when he tries to take Amy and Lily to extort information from them.
  Kamilah: Call off your men. Unless you want to see what I'm capable of.
• Don't You Dare Pity Me!:
  • Kamilah's reaction to Amy suggesting that she must be lonely for not having been with someone in over a century.
  • And a second time between Kamilah and Amy when Kamilah tells her that she doesn't think she can feel emotion anymore.
• Dropping the Bombshell: Adam drops the bombshell on the Council that Adrian has been trying to create a serum to make himself human again.
• Dub Name Change:
  • "Passion en Sangre" in Spanish.
  • "Liés par le sang" in French.
  • "Blutsbande" in German.
• The Dulcinea Effect: It’s only been a week since Adrian has met Amy before he agrees to turning Lily into a vampire in order to save her life, at the expense of his standing with the council.
• Dying Declaration of Love: As Amy's love interest holds her in their arms, this is the last thing she hears. She gets better... as a vampire.
• Elaborate Underground Base: The Shadow Den, which also doubles as an Underground City, is home to the clanless military.
• Emergency Transformation: After Amy discovers Lily was attacked, she asks Adrian to turn her into a vampire in order to save her life. This happens to Amy herself at the end of Book 2. Book 3, Chapter 1 reveals that the deed was done by her love interest.
• Enemy Mine: Jax teams up with Kamilah to save Adrian.
• Everybody Knew Already: Kamilah admits to Jax that she and Adrian had known about the Shadow Den all this time and even had spies in it.
• Every Man Has His Price: Adrian convinces Adam to vote to grant Lily the next spot in his clan by donating to his super PAC.
• Exploring the Evil Lair: The Baron's speakeasy.
• Expository Hairstyle Change: Kamilah had black hair and bangs while living in Ancient Egypt.
• Eye Colour Change: Vampires’ eyes change to red when they’re in their primal state.
• Eye Poke: Vladimir, a little vampire boy stuck in The Baron's prison, drives his thumb's into one of The Baron's henchmen's eyes.
• Fake-Out Fade-Out: At the end of Book 2, the screen fades to black as Amy is dying from a katana wound. The flavor text reads "The End." One tap later, it reads "And then..." and depicts Amy being Turned.
• Fantastic Racism:
  • Adam Vega hates clanless vampires to the point of waging a war of extermination against them.
  • The clanless hate the clans back, Griff Sanderson being a notable example. Upon finding out that Lily's a member of Clan Raines and Amy works for Adrian, he immediately acts hostile towards them.
  • The humans have hunted the vampires, resulting in the latter having to go into hiding. However, Gaius planned to change that by reversing the roles: he wanted to turn one portion of the humans into blood bags for the vampires and have the other killed off.
• Fate Worse than Death: Being clanless. In addition to being poor and on the run, without a clan, vampires are at constant risk of becoming Feral and being killed by clan leaders who want to see their kind eradicated.
• First-Episode Twist: Adrian is a vampire!
• Fission Mailed: In Book 2, chapter 16, Amy and Gaius mutually stab each other to death, and Amy the player character gets a moving death scene. The game even gives you a "The End" screen—but keep playing, and Amy wakes up a vampire, having been Turned to save her life.
• Flash Back: Throughout the story, Amy keeps on having flashbacks of various characters whenever she comes into contact with a portrait fragment.
  • Book 1 features flashbacks of Adrian, Kamilah, and Gaius.
    • The first one is of when Adrian was Turned by Gaius during the Revolutionary War. Initially scared, Gaius convinces Adrian to indulge on his Horror Hunger and he ends up draining a British soldier of his blood.
    • The second one is of Kamilah, Marcel, Banner and Gaius. The doors of their palace is barricaded against angry commoners. After a Curbstomp Battle against the peasants encouraged by Gaius, he reveals his plans to take them over to America where they would permanently settle.
    • The third is of the above four + Adrian. Gaius announces to Kamilah, Marcel and Banner that he struck a deal with the Founding Fathers to allow them to settle in New York where he would reign as king. Despite Gaius' warnings, Banner refuses to join them and so Gaius has Adrian kill him.
    • The fourth fragment is of Kamilah and Gaius in ancient Egypt during the war against the Romans. Her soldiers bring "the Undying Centurion," Gaius, to her, chained. Gaius suggests the two come to an agreement, but Kamilah refuses. He then breaks free of his chains, kills her soldiers and Turns her into a vampire so that she can be his queen.
    • The fifth one is of the vampire council members in the 1920s, when Gaius gathered them around to show his plan to enslave humanity as vampires reign supreme. This plan horrifies most of them, especially Adrian, who said that not only will humans hate vampires even more, but also said there are some decent humans in the world.
    • The last one takes place soon after the last; the Council members bar Kamilah stand before Gaius as he announces his plan to take out humanity. All voice objections, but Gaius is undeterred, so they attack Gaius. Despite being outnumbered 5 to 1, Gaius overpowers the members, but Kamilah suddenly appears and bisects Gaius. Adrian announces this as an opportunity to make themselves a Council, and to keep Gaius alive but contained in case he is needed in the future... but as the bonus scene that occurs if you got all 5 flashback scenes shows, keeping Gaius alive was a terrible mistake on Adrian's part.
  • Book 2 features flashbacks of Gaius, Adrian, Jax, and Rheya the first vampire. It also reveals the reason Amy keeps getting them: she’s a Blood Keeper, a female human who when having come into contact with vampires is able to access the memories of all vampires.
    • The first one is of Rheya as the priestess of the goddess Phampira in the city state of Mydiea. She spurned the advances of King Kaelisus and slapped him when he refused to stop because she was already involved with another. He intended to have her killed but his son Prince Xenocrates convinced him to have mercy, so he exiled her to a cave instead. The soldier who escorted her, Gaius, took pity on her and freed her from her shackles.
    • The second one is of Adrian and Gaius during the Civil War. Adrian expresses sympathy for humans and Gaius tells him not to concern himself.
    • The third one is of Rheya having returned to Mydiea transformed. She kills King Kaelisus and then turns to Prince Xenocrates, who pleads for his life as he and Gaius ask for a share of her power. She agrees and turns them.
    • The fourth one is of Jax in The '70s. He meets a beautiful woman who flirts with him. They encounter a homeless man whom the woman expresses disgust at while Jax shows kindness. The woman reveals herself to be a vampire, attacks Jax, and leaves him for dead. The homeless man, revealed to be a vampire himself, saves him by turning him.
    • The fifth one is of Gaius, Kamilah, Vega, Marcel, Banner, and Serafine in the underground city beneath the Paris Catacombs, Gaius introduces Serafine to his newest progeny, Vega. Everyone is having a great time when the Order of the Dawn invades killing nearly all the vampires except the six of them. Gaius tries to hold them off to give everyone the time to escape and his hatred of humans is cemented.
    • The sixth one is of Rheya, Gaius and Xenocrates in the courtroom of the Mydiean palace. After telling Rheya that neighboring countries are surrendering to her, Xenocrates questions her conquests, which Rheya replies with saying how much Humans Are Bastards and claims that there will be no more pain now that she's a goddess. Afterwards, the three vampires feed on a group of humans brought before them.
    • The seventh one is of Gaius and Kamilah lying in bed together. They talk about Gaius's relationship with Rheya, in which Gaius says he loves both Rheya and Kamilah equally. When they walked outside to find chaos ensuing from a fight, they took the opportunity to feed.
    • The eighth one is of Xenocrates kneeling in front of the Tree of Eternal Life as Rheya and Gaius approach and confront him. Believing that Rheya has become no better than King Kaelisus, Xenocrates intends to end Rheya's life and says that he believes the tree to be a test for humanity to show decency. He then pushes Rheya on the tree, impaling her on a branch as it absorbs her body.
    • The last one is of Kamilah and Adrian soon after their first meeting, they had been tasked by Gaius to get plans from the redcoats, Adrian saves Kamilah from being attacked which causes her to slowly warm to him.
• Frameup: Adrian is wrongfully accused of being responsible for unauthorized Turnings and the attack on the Awakening Ball.
• Fugitive Arc: The gang flees New York City to avoid vampires hunting them, specifically Adrian.
• Garden of Love: Kamilah and Amy visit Marcel Lafayette's nocturnal garden, where they talk about love and end up cuddling.
• Gay Option: Kamilah and Lily.
• Genre Mashup: The story is a mixture of romance and horror.
• Getaway Driver:
  • Nicole comes to pick up Adrian when he's rescued from prison in chapter 13.
  • That same chapter, Jax enthusiastically hops into the driver seat to become the driver, excited to drive Adrian's car.
• Girl's Night Out Episode: A premium scene in Chapter 7 has Amy, Lily and Kamilah go to the former's old apartment to pack their stuff to move out in case whoever it was that attacked Lily comes back for her. The two of them take the time to turn it into a bit of a party much to the older vampire's chagrin, but she comes around to it.
• Great Escape: Chapter 13 is centered around breaking Adrian out of prison. Amy has the premium option to free all of the prisoners, who set the prison along with the speakeasy on fire.
• Handshake Refusal: When Amy first meets Kamilah, she reaches out to shake her hand, but Kamilah dismisses it with a nod. Adrian explains that warmth isn't her specialty.
• Head-Turning Beauty: Kamilah is noted multiple times to be incredibly beautiful, gaining the praises of Amy, Lily (who calls her the prettiest woman she has ever seen) and, apparently, everyone in Italy.
• Hellhole Prison: The Bloody Cellars, The Baron's prison beneath his clubs, described as "a disgusting cesspool of torture, murder, and brutality."
• Hello, [Insert Name Here]: The default name for the heroine is Amy.
• Hemo Erotic: Adrian sucks your blood during sex. Amy is also rather turned on when Jax sucks her blood.
• Hotter and Sexier: Word of God describes the book as “sexy urban thriller,” and they stuck to their word. There are many many more innuendos compared to other books, including allusions to masturbation and erotica, as well as the app's first instance of a threesome.
• Human Resources: Per council rules, vampires can only drink blood from humans who consent, however in the past, Gaius wanted to keep the humans strictly as blood bags.
• Humans Are Flawed: Adrian tries to convince Gaius that while humans are challenging to deal with, there are still good ones out there.
• Humans Are the Real Monsters: Gaius is tired of being on the run from the humans and being second to them, despite that they are prey to the vampires.
• The Hunter Becomes the Hunted: Tired of the vampires being hunted by the humans, Gaius discloses to Adrian, Kamilah and the others his plan to make the humans hunted by the vampires to either become livestock to them or killed.
• If I Wanted You Dead...:
  • Right after Kamilah threatens to kill Amy.
    Amy: You just threatened to kill me.
    Kamilah: Not right now, darling.
  • Does it again when she reveals to Jax that she and Adrian knew about the Shadow Den for ages and could have killed the Clanless if they wanted.
• I Kiss Your Hand: Back when he was his servant, Adrian would kneel and kiss Gaius' ring.
• I'll Kill You!: Kamilah threatens to kill Amy if she ever puts Adrian in harm's way.
• Interclass Romance:
  • Adrian and Kamilah are both CEOs to their companies, while Amy is Adrian's assistant and shares an apartment with Lily.
  • Averted with Jax and Lily.
• Interspecies Romance: The main character is a human, while all four of her love interests are vampires.
• I Surrender, Suckers: If Amy chooses to kill Nicole, she will do so when Nicole attacks her after pretending to surrender.
• Jackass Genie: Discussed in the first chapter, during Amy's interview. Adrian tells a story of a man who came across a genie lamp and was granted three wishes. His first two wishes were for great wealth and immortality, which led to the rest of the village population going hungry and the man's family dying, respectively. Adrian asks Amy what the man should wish for as his third and final wish. One of the choices is to "murder the genie", with Amy stating that the genie is evil, tempting good people and using their wishes to do horrible things and that the only way to keep this from happening is to "kill that bastard".
• Join or Die: Gaius warns Banner Westbrook that if he doesn't join him in moving to New York City where Gaius will reign as king, he'll kill him instead. Banner chooses to die.

• Kiss of the Vampire: Though painful, vampire bites are also described as a sensual experience, with Adrian drinking Amy's blood during sex and Jax getting turned on from watching Lily suck her blood.
• Kneel Before Frodo: An evil version. The vampires bow before Gaius, their king.
• La Résistance: The clanless against the clans.
• Laser-Guided Amnesia: After the events of Chapters 2 and 3, Adrian offers to have Amy’s memories of learning about the vampire world erased as more of a mercy. She refuses, though the offer is on the table.
• Lesbian Vampire: While Priya's sexuality hasn't been confirmed, she's taken an extreme liking for Amy, having attempted to seduce and bribe her on at least three occasions to let her suck her blood.
  • Aiko Nakamura is a straighter example admitting to Kamilah while she’s still human that she thinks she has no desire for men.
• Less Embarrassing Term: Jax corrects Kamilah when she calls the Shadow Den a "cozy little clubhouse."
• Let Me Get This Straight...: Used by Jax in Chapter 13.
  Jax: Let me get this straight. You want me to pretend to be your prisoner, so you can hand me over to The Baron?
• Life of the Party: Marcel. He's off dancing on a table while one of his newly-turned vampires stood alone at the ball.
• Like Brother and Sister: Adrian regards Kamilah as his closest friend and Kamilah says he reminds her of her brother.
• Looks Like Orlok: Precisely how the Ferals look.
• Lured into a Trap: Amy, Kamilah and Jax rescue Adrian from The Baron's prison, which ended up being a set-up by Adam so that Adrian could lead him to his serum.
• The Mole: Adrian and Kamilah have spies in the Shadow Den.
• The Muse: Priya asks Amy to be her muse for her next collection, bribing her with shopping and travelling, a speech she's given to dozens of other girls.
• My Master, Right or Wrong: Adrian tries talking Gaius out of turning humans into blood bags, but Gaius reminds him that he is his king and he serves him.
• Mysterious Protector: Jax. The first time Amy met him was when he rescued her when she was almost taken by The Baron.
• Mysterious Watcher: Jax. Since she had become Adrian's assistant, he secretly watched over Amy.

N-Z

• Naïve Newcomer:
  • Amy is shown the ropes of the vampire world by Adrian.
  • Now that she has become a vampire, Lily is being introduced to the vampire world as well.
• Neck Lift: Priya grabs Amy by the throat to take her amid the chaos after the Council votes to have Adrian killed.
• Never Say That Again: Kamilah warns Amy to never try telling her what she should have in her life again.
• Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: Book 3 features a vampire cyborg who goes by "The Evolved".
• Noble Male, Roguish Male: Adrian and Jax, Adrian as the Noble to Jax's Roguish. Adrian is sensitive, whereas Jax is a rebel.
• No Name Given: Amy and Lily meet a newly turned girl from Marcel’s clan during the Awakening Ball. Unfortunately she dies during the attack before telling them her name.
• Nonstandard Game Over:
  • In Book 2, Chapter 5, there is a diamond option to hook up with Priya. The flavor text warns that it won't end well. Buying this scene results in Amy's death and a return to the checkpoint.
  • In Book 3, Chapter 16, after Amy kills Rheya by draining her life force, she starts to become more like Rheya due to the corruptive power she absorbed. Her chosen love interest begs her to stop and listen to them. She can either embrace the Dark Side or snap out of it. If she chooses the former, she drains the life force from everyone, essentially ending the world.
• Not Allowed to Grow Up: In-universe, vampires don't age, so if a person is turned as a child, they'll be a child forever. This is particularly noted with Marcel, who not only has a child's body but still has the mind of a child in many ways as well despite actually being hundreds of years old.
• Off With The Head: The other of only two ways to kill vampires.
• Oh, Crap!: The clan leaders are all horrified by Gaius' plan to turn one half of the human population into blood bags and have the other killed off.
• The Only One: At the climax of Book 2, Gaius uses the power of the First Vampire's blood to incapacitate the other vampires so they can't attack him. Since Amy is the only non-vampire in the group, she's the only one he can't restrain and therefore the only one who can deliver the fatal stake.
• Our Vampires Are Different: Adrian explains a series of rules regarding the vampires in this world.
  • There's a total of 180 vampires divided between 6 clans. Vampires are not allowed to Turn anyone without permission, which is only granted if there's an opening.
  • If a clan member turns a human under other circumstances, a clan leader can petition to give the new vampire their next open spot in advance. If the petition is rejected, however, the new vampire will be killed.
  • Vampires who are turned and left without a clan (which is in violation of the rules, but still happens) are at risk of becoming Feral; there's no guarantee, but the possibility has led to them being hunted to varying degrees by the Clans.
  • Sunlight still hurts vampires and in prolonged exposure of more than thirty minutes, they can get gravely injured and die.
  • Garlic doesn't harm vampires, but they do develop a distaste for it.
  • While they can't fly or turn into bats, vampires do have superior strength compared to the average human.
• Out with a Bang: If Amy hooks up with Priya in Book 2, Chapter 5, Priya tells her not to make a sound or she'll bite. Amy can't stay quiet, so Priya sucks her blood until she dies.
• Parlor Games: If the player takes the premium option to ride to the Awakening Ball in the VIP coach, Adrian, Amy, Lily and Kamilah will play a game of truth or dare during the trip.
• A Party, Also Known as an Orgy: During the Bacchanalia in Book 3, Chapter 7, almost everyone starts getting it on. A premium scene has Amy hook up with all four of her love interests at the same time.
• Pervert Revenge Mode: When Lester touches Amy inappropriately, she can either slap him or have Adrian crack his wrist.
• Play-Along Prisoner: Gaius is captured by Kamilah's forces to be interrogated for his supernatural abilities, however he easily breaks free because they mistakenly think vampires are repulsed to silver chains.
  • The plan to rescue Adrian from the Baron's cellar involves Jax and Amy becoming prisoners while secretly carrying night-vision goggles. Once they're in, Lily remotely disables the lights, allowing Amy and Jax (who can see thanks to their gear) to easily overpower the guards (who are disoriented by the dark).
  • In Book 3, Chapter 15, Amy, Adrian, Kamilah, Jax and Lily pretend to be Gaius' prisoners to be handed over to Rheya so that they can launch a surprise attack and kill her. Rheya sees through the act though.
• Plucky Comic Relief: Lily frequently chimes in with her humorous comments even in dire situations.
• Pop-Cultural Osmosis Failure:
  • Kamilah had never heard of Guitar Rockstar, a parody of Guitar Hero.
  • Adrian fails to catch a Hamilton reference.
    Amy: So... you didn't throw away your shot?
    Adrian: I don't follow.
• Portmantitle: Blood + Bound.
• Post-Kiss Catatonia: Downplayed. Amy is so visibly stunned by Kamilah's kiss given to her during truth or dare that Adrian calls her a show off for it.
• Power Makes Your Voice Deep: When Adrian gets the light power up in Chapter 15, his voice is said to get deeper.
• Psychometry: Amy has flashbacks of chiefly Adrian, Kamilah and Gaius every time she touches a portrait fragment.
• Rich Suitor, Poor Suitor: Adrian and Kamilah are the rich, while Jax and Lily are the poor.
• Roaring Rampage of Rescue: Amy, Lily, Kamilah, Jax and Nicole plan an operation to rescue Adrian from captivity in The Baron's prison.
• Really 700 Years Old: Most of the clan leaders are implied to be older than a century. Adrian mentions that Priya Lacroix is considered a young vampire, particularly for a Clan Leader, being only 150 years as a vampire^note originally, it was stated that she was the youngest Clan Leader, but that created a continuity problem with the Baron's origin story and was subsequently edited out. Kamilah tells Amy that she was Cleopatra's cousin (meaning more than 2,000 years old).
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Lily is the enthusiastic red to Kamilah's no-nonsense blue.
• Reduced to Dust: Vampires turn into ash when they die.
• The Renfield: Nicole is the chief example of this, serving as Adrian's go-to blood supply.

• The Roaring '20s:
  • The Baron runs his lair, the Shrike, like a Prohibition era speakeasy complete with dress code and slang due to having been a powerful mobster in that era made even more powerful as a vampire.
  • The fifth portrait fragment is set in the 20s.
• Romantic Vampire Boy: Adrian and Jax.
• Sadistic Choice: Book 1 Chapter 15 gives you the choice to save either Liv Denara or Griff Sanderson, dooming the other to die at the hands of Ferals. While Liv is far more sympathetic than Griff, letting the latter die means Lula Jacobs will lose her surrogate father.
• Save the Villain:
  • Amy can spare Nicole instead of capturing or killing her.
  • A similar situation occurs in book 2, only this time with Jameson.
• The Scapegoat: The clanless. Some of the members of The Council are holding them responsible for the creation of Feral.
• Schmuck Bait: Book 2 Chapter 5 allows Amy to hook up with Priya in a premium scene. No matter what, you will die and have to restart from the checkpoint.
• Series Continuity Error: Priya is originally said to be the youngest member on the Council at 150 years old, however given that The Baron was in life a gangster from the Prohibition Era, this would mean that he is the youngest member. The line was subsequently rewritten to only state that Priya is young.
• Sharp-Dressed Man:
  • Adrian wears a nice suit as part of being a CEO.
  • Adam Vega wears a gray suit over a white dress shirt, which is actually an odd pick for a senator running for President of the United States, but nonetheless.
  • Lester wears a beige suit.
• Shout-Out:
  • In Amy's interview, Adrian mentions that she spent a year volunteering in San Trobida, the fictional native country of Estela Montoya.
  • Book 1 Chapter 1 has Lily playing Overwatch where she had gotten Play of the Game. She also ships Hanzo and McCree.
  • Chapter 7 has a premium scene where Amy and Lily can see a scene from a movie called “Habeas Corpse-us” which is “Zombie apocalypse meets Air Force One” with Matt Rodriguez as the President spouting cheesy one liners. His manager got the movie pulled and Priya used her money to buy a copy of the movie.
• Shrine to the Fallen: The Wall of the Fallen, a wall at the Shadow Den of deceased vampires who either turned Feral or were killed by the clans.
• Sleek High Rise Apartment: Adrian’s guest suite, located in Raines Corporation.
• Sleeping with the Boss: In Chapter 5’s diamond scene, Amy can sleep with Adrian.
• Spin-Off: The writers have announced that Bloodbound will be getting a spinoff not based on vampires, but characters will make cameos.
• Staking the Loved One: Adrian had to kill his former lover, Celia, because she turned into a Feral.
• Stalker with a Crush: One of the Clan Lacroix members had an obsession with Liv Denara, a human burlesque dancer. One night, he attempted to kidnap her, she fought back, and so he Turned her and left her to become a Feral until Jax found her.
• Stronger with Age: The older the vampire, the stronger they are.
• Super-Senses: Vampires are hyper-aware of their senses and surroundings.
• Super Serum: Inverted. The serum Adrian wants to create would turn him human again.
• Super-Speed: While never explicitly stated to have super speed, Adrian and Kamilah are seen moving at a quicker speed than humans.
• Super-Strength: Vampires have this ability. Adrian says he can lift a car and Lily enthuses about punching a hole in a brick wall.
• Synthetic Plague: Gaius plans on killing off the portion of humans he doesn't plan using as blood bags for the vampires with a modified form of the smallpox he created, to the horror of the other vampires.
• This Means War!: Griff shouts this when the clanless find out Kamilah tried to sneak into their den.
• Throwing Your Sword Always Works: Adrian does this in the fight against the Order at the nightclub.
• Treasure Room: The clanless hold all of their funds in a vault.
• Undead Child:
  • Lula is a little girl that is part of the Clanless.
  • Marcel Lafayette is a much more evil version of this trope in the French Revolution.
  • Vladimir, a little boy imprisoned in the Bloody Cellars.
  • Kano, the strongest psychic vampire. Amy is caught off guard to find he was turned at such a young age.
• Underground City: The Shadow Den, which also doubles as an Elaborate Underground Base, is where the clanless live.
  • Vampires in Paris used to live in an elaborate one under the catacombs until the order found them and raided them resulting in a massacre.
• Vampire Hunter: The Wolf of Venice, a vampire hunter from the Renaissance period. He killed Kamilah's lover after she had turned her.
• Vampire Monarch: The details are still hazy, but it appears that Gaius and Kamilah reigned as king and queen over the New York City vampires until the Council was established.
• Vampires Are Rich:
  • All of the council members. Adrian, Lester and Kamilah are CEOs of companies, Priya is a fashion designer, The Baron is a mob boss and Adam is a senator.
  • Averted by the indigent Clanless.
• Vampires Are Sex Gods: All four of the love interests. Priya and Adam as well. Averted with Lester and The Baron. Dracula is definitely this.
• Vampires Hate Garlic: Downplayed. According to Adrian, it just tastes bad to them.
• Vampires Own Nightclubs: Priya owns a nightclub.
• Vampires Sleep in Coffins: According to Adrian, this is a myth. However, legend has it that putting a newly-turned vampire in a coffin reduces the risk of becoming feral.
• Vampire Vannabe: Chapter 5 reveals that Nicole, Adrian's VP, is hoping to be in the waiting list for the Raines Clan.
• Van Helsing Hate Crimes:
  • Adam Vega hates all clanless vampires regardless of whether or not they're good people because of the risk of turning Feral that they pose.
  • The Order of Dawn is dedicated to exterminating vampires regardless of whether or not they're good people, as they view all vampires as bloodthirsty killers.
• Voluntary Vampire Victim: This is enforced by the Council of Vampires: All victims must be willing. Examples include Nicole for Adrian and the humans in the Red Room.
• Undying Loyalty:
  • Adrian in the past to Gaius, whom he refers to as his king.
  • The Baron used to be Gaius' loyal bodyguard.
• Wainscot Society: The vampires exist in a society of their own with their own set of rules in New York City made up of just 180 vampires to preserve the secrecy of their kind.
• We Help the Helpless: The philosophy of the clanless.
• Weakened by the Light: Vampires can only last at most thirty minutes out in the sun before it kills them.
• Wham Line: When Nicole betrays Adrian.
  Adrian: Nicole! Run! They'll shoot you!
  Nicole, smiling: I don't think they will.
• Wham Shot:
  • The animation of Adrian sucking Nicole’s blood, revealing he’s a vampire.
  • Book 1 Chapter 4 has Amy and Adrian walk in to find her roommate Lily with fresh bite marks on her neck.
  • The Bonus Scene at the end of Book 1 shows that Gaius has survived 80 years, looking very withered and ready to have revenge on the Council.
  • Book 2 Chapter 13 shows Erik Balthazar IV, the Grand Cleric of the Order of the Dawn, with fangs and red eyes, revealing him as a vampire by the name of Xenocrates.
• "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue: Collecting all the portrait fragments in Book 3 reveals the fates of various characters a year after the events of the story.
  • Humans and vampires have learned to coexist peacefully.
  • Lula Jacobs plays with a fellow vampire child in a cabin in upstate New York.
  • If Dracula lives, he tries to make a living in Las Vegas, but nobody is interested in his show.
  • If Priya lives, she moves to the Caribbean, where she expresses disappointment in her new life until the sight of a shirtless muscular cabana boy changes her mind.
  • If Serafine is persuaded to abandon Rheya, she toasts to life in a newly rebuilt nightclub in Paris. Otherwise, she seeks to avenge Rheya by forming a resistance movement called the Daughters of Rheya.
  • The Japanese vampires (except Takeshi and Akeyo) express annoyance at the influx of American vampires while Kano expresses his pride in Amy.
  • If Gaius lives, he becomes a vigilante and saves a woman from a werewolf in Sweden.
  • A youth center is built in Lily or Jax's honor, depending on who died in the penultimate chapter, and the instructor is either Jax or Akeyo Kwangi.
  • If Lily lives, she serves as a script supervisor for a movie based on the events of the story, with Tommy Phelps as its director.
  • Adrian has become the new Senator for New York and the chairman of the Vampire-Human Relations Committee, with Nikhil as his Chief of Staff, if the latter lives.
  • Kamilah takes up a new hobby by tending plants.
  • Amy has either married or officially moved in with her love interest.
• Writers Cannot Do Math: According to Kamilah herself, she is around 2000 years old, and is Cleopatra’s cousin, who was born around the year 69 BC and died around the year 10 or 12 BC (making Cleopatra 39 when she died), making Kamilah a lot younger than Cleopatra could have been. That said, it's possible Kamilah was simply rounding down a bit.
  • Rounding out your age when you're talking millennia makes sense. A better example of this is the continuity error that was later edited out that had Adrian say Priya was the youngest Council member despite being 150 years old, whereas The Baron was Turned in the 1920s.