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agirlnamedellie's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
First book I have read by Olivie Blake. Enjoyed but wasn't enthralled; I found in places it was slightly slow making it a bit difficult to get through. However, I do think it was a great depiction on mental health and the characters felt like they were real. I really liked reading about the supportive and loving relationship between the male MC and his father.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Mental illness, and Sexual content
Moderate: Addiction
writingcaia's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book hooked me from the start with the amazingly beautiful writing and narrative, that so mirrored each character in each of their POVs, and thus I fell into the hole that was the psychological conundrums, obsessiveness and traumas of the two main characters Aldo Damiani and Charlotte Regan since their meeting at the Art Museum where Regan volunteers and where Aldo goes to enjoy the white noise of people while he obsesses with his studies of time travelling.
I felt like I was being held by the hand through the maze that was their meetings, their lives with their mental issues and prior problems, and the love that bloomed and burned.
It made me cry, laugh, and hurt for them.
Regan bipolar in a loop of unhealthy love relationships and familial trauma, living in avoidance of a true life and true dream, always in spite of all, and Aldo anti-social and depressive, living a disconnected life with only his father as an anchor to it.
How can love survive the mental problems of these two, the prior relationships and abandonments? My heart ached for them throughout and I truly could not see a happy ending, although I wanted it so much for them, Aldo wanted it, but did Regan, or was Aldo just another escape from her issues, another spoke on the wheel of her avoidance like the boyfriend she had when she met him?
Loved it so much I read it all in one day unable to stop until it finished at 5am.
After this one I’m craving to read all of Olivie Blake’s books, especially the standalone ones.
A truly candid love story that I wished had not ended.
I felt like I was being held by the hand through the maze that was their meetings, their lives with their mental issues and prior problems, and the love that bloomed and burned.
It made me cry, laugh, and hurt for them.
Regan bipolar in a loop of unhealthy love relationships and familial trauma, living in avoidance of a true life and true dream, always in spite of all, and Aldo anti-social and depressive, living a disconnected life with only his father as an anchor to it.
How can love survive the mental problems of these two, the prior relationships and abandonments? My heart ached for them throughout and I truly could not see a happy ending, although I wanted it so much for them, Aldo wanted it, but did Regan, or was Aldo just another escape from her issues, another spoke on the wheel of her avoidance like the boyfriend she had when she met him?
Loved it so much I read it all in one day unable to stop until it finished at 5am.
After this one I’m craving to read all of Olivie Blake’s books, especially the standalone ones.
A truly candid love story that I wished had not ended.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual content, and Drug use
Moderate: Addiction
Minor: Death of parent and Suicidal thoughts
arturo_luzen's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Addiction, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Drug use, Eating disorder, Body shaming, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Addiction, Toxic relationship, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Cursing, and Classism
katiesbeengone's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Drug use, Addiction, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, and Domestic abuse
embelle's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I don’t even know what to write for this review, as I still haven’t fully processed this book. I feel like I could read this book 5 times and still not be able to process it. I’m convinced that this book is unlike anything I’ve ever read before or anything that I’ll ever read in the future. Just wow wow wow. The Acknowledgements from Olivie Blake also totally had me in my feelings too
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide, Toxic relationship, Chronic illness, Cursing, Self harm, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Abandonment, Suicide attempt, Drug use, and Infidelity
airr's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Drug use
kendal_reads's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Mental illness, and Sexual content
Moderate: Addiction
teslis's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I had heard so much good about this book and sadly it didn't live up to the hype. It's (sorry) quite a boring book. The two main characters both deals with some mental problems and after meeting they decides to hangout and thats the book.
While reading this book did I get a thought. I believe you will like this book if you like "Normal Peopel" by Sally Rooney then you will probably like this one. Those two books are both similar but also not. It's hard to explain, but I didn't like either so (?).
Don't remember much of the book when I write this :(
Took me 8 hours and 26 minuts.
While reading this book did I get a thought. I believe you will like this book if you like "Normal Peopel" by Sally Rooney then you will probably like this one. Those two books are both similar but also not. It's hard to explain, but I didn't like either so (?).
Don't remember much of the book when I write this :(
Took me 8 hours and 26 minuts.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Drug use, and Mental illness
Moderate: Addiction and Toxic relationship
jiangslore's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
[4,5/5]
Geralmente, eu não me interessaria em ler um livro cujo subtítulo é “a love story”, mas, depois de escutar várias coisas boas sobre “Alone With You in the Ether”, fiquei curiosa e resolvi ler. Com certeza não esperava gostar tanto assim do livro. Via de regra, há uma questão muito pessoal que influencia um leitor a dizer que gostou ou não de um livro, mas acredito que “Alone With You in the Ether” é um dos casos em que percepções subjetivas são ainda mais importantes para determinar uma opinião.
Isso porque, já que a narrativa é extremamente focada nos personagens principais, acredito que é quase impossível gostar da obra sem gostar deles (ou, pelo menos, sem entendê-los). Em termos objetivos — ou tão objetivos quanto consigo ser com relação a esse livro —, o que realmente importa para uma narrativa centrada em personagens é se seu desenvolvimento é feito de forma adequada e se é possível, mesmo diante da impossibilidade de focar em outros personagens, entender bem a forma que os protagonistas se encaixam no contexto em que estão e com as pessoas com quem convivem.
Isso porque, já que a narrativa é extremamente focada nos personagens principais, acredito que é quase impossível gostar da obra sem gostar deles (ou, pelo menos, sem entendê-los). Em termos objetivos — ou tão objetivos quanto consigo ser com relação a esse livro —, o que realmente importa para uma narrativa centrada em personagens é se seu desenvolvimento é feito de forma adequada e se é possível, mesmo diante da impossibilidade de focar em outros personagens, entender bem a forma que os protagonistas se encaixam no contexto em que estão e com as pessoas com quem convivem.
Acredito que Olivie Blake realizou essa tarefa com sucesso, o que já me impediria de considerar o livro “ruim”. Além disso, gostei bastante da escrita e do modo que o estilo variava para acompanhar a velocidade dos pensamentos dos personagens ou dos acontecimentos.
Por outro lado, do ponto de vista subjetivo, devo dizer que os dois protagonistas me impactaram consideravelmente. Fazia muito tempo que eu não me identificava com um personagem da forma que me identifiquei com Aldo e, embora o mesmo não tenha ocorrido com relação a Regan (diria que gosto muito menos da ideia da personagem do que da personagem em si), posso dizer que consegui entendê-la e desenvolver empatia por ela.
A “história de amor” retratada no livro não é exatamente… boa. Não é um romance ideal, e, sob muitos pontos de vista, não é um romance saudável. E, apesar de ter ocorrido uma ou outra melhora na vida de ambos os personagens após o início do relacionamento deles, não é possível dizer que o romance foi algo “avassalador” no sentido de mudar terrivelmente o mundo inteiro deles ou elevar sua qualidade de vida. Em outras palavras, mesmo ao final do livro não há mudanças absurdas: a saúde dos protagonistas e a relação deles continuou não sendo ideal. Mesmo assim, acredito que é uma boa história, porque seu objetivo não é ser algo aspiracional, mas, sim, um relato sobre duas pessoas reais que acabaram entrando na vida uma da outra.
Em vários momentos da leitura (especialmente nos narrados pela Regan), pensei na ideia de que uma pessoa não pode amar outras antes de se amar. Isso não significa que os sentimentos de uma pessoa que não se ama não são reais ou válidos, mas, sim, que há um grande risco desses sentimentos se tornarem autodestrutivos e perigosos. Apesar de “Alone With You in the Ether” não oferecer as respostas para essa questão (ou melhor, não oferecer as repostas ideais ou saudáveis para essa questão), o livro foi uma lembrança do que se passa na cabeça dessas “pessoas que não se amam” e do fato de que é bom ter um pouco de empatia por elas, mas, principalmente, é importante respeitar suas escolhas. Pessoas que não se consideram capazes de se amar vão continuar existindo independentemente do que qualquer um diga, e ninguém merece viver em um ostracismo completo por ser assim.
Verifiquei que o livro é indicado para maiores de 18 anos, e, ao recomendá-lo, acredito que é importante mencionar que considero essa classificação acertada. Claro, há as cenas de sexo; mas o mais importante é o fato de que, como mencionei anteriormente, não há nada de aspiracional no romance retratado — eu diria que ele é, na verdade, circunstancial — ou no que os personagens enfrentam. Mas pessoas que ainda estão em desenvolvimento podem não entender a diferença e pensarem que o livro retrata fielmente o que é o amor em qualquer circunstância, e isso não é verdade.
Acredito que a única coisa que não gostei foi o início do livro. Confesso que não entendi a escolha pelo estilo de narração usado inicialmente, e fiquei grata ao perceber que ele não seria utilizado no livro inteiro.
“Alone With You in the Ether” não é um livro perfeito ou imune a críticas, assim como os personagens não o são. Mas o livro é permeado por uma ideia fundamental de que muito mais importantes do que as mudanças no mundo são as mudanças em nós mesmos; e mais importantes do que as mudanças em nós mesmos que parecem revolucionárias são as que permeiam a nossa vida com uma influência que aparentemente é muito menor, mas que altera nossa perspectiva em diversas coisas. E essa ideia, na minha opinião, é extremamente importante para tentar aprender a ter uma vida saudável, mesmo que ela não seja ideal.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Drug use
bookishmillennial's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
disclaimer if you’ve read other reviews by me and are noticing a pattern: You’re correct that I don’t really give starred reviews, I feel like a peasant and don’t like leaving them and most often, I will only leave them if I vehemently despised a book. I enjoy most books for what they are, & I extract lessons from them all. Everyone’s reading experiences are subjective, so I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not, regardless if I add stars or not. Find me on Instagram: @bookish.millennial or tiktok: @bookishmillennial
This was beautifully and vulnerably written and I admire the author for sharing so graciously with us. Some parts of the book did drag on for me, and felt a bit underwhelming, but overall, I appreciate a deeply explorative character study of two complex humans, which is what Olivie gave us! Not my favorite of her work, but it had some great quotations! (see below lol)
Quotations that stood out to me:
This was beautifully and vulnerably written and I admire the author for sharing so graciously with us. Some parts of the book did drag on for me, and felt a bit underwhelming, but overall, I appreciate a deeply explorative character study of two complex humans, which is what Olivie gave us! Not my favorite of her work, but it had some great quotations! (see below lol)
Quotations that stood out to me:
“Can you love my brain even when it is small? When it is malevolent? When it is violent? Can you love it even when it does not love me?”
“She is in all of his spaces and all of his thoughts. He contemplates formulas and degrees of rationality and they all turn into her. He thinks about time, which has only recently begun, or at least now feels different. He thinks: the Babylonians were wrong; time is made of her.”
“If this is what it is to burn, he thought, then I will be worth more as scattered ash than any of my unscathed pieces.”
“You are brilliant. Tell your mind to be kind to you today.”
“Whatever you are made of, Charlotte Regan, I am made of it, too.”
“When you learn a new word, you suddenly see it everywhere. The mind comforts itself by believing this to be coincidence but isn’t—it’s ignorance falling away. Your future self will always see what your present self is blind to. This is the problem with mortality, which is in fact a problem of time.”
“So when people say we¡re alone in the ether?" "Alone in everything. In time and space, in existence, in religion.”
“For every sensation Regan could conjure, there was an artist who had beautifully suffered the same.”
“....it is perilously wonderful to suffer so sweetly with you.”
“I am more addicted to the thought of your name on my tongue than I am to any other form of vice.”
“The world loved to take a beautiful woman and exclaim at the charm of her single imperfection”
I love him, and for a moment it doesn't matter whether he loves her back. It is enough to have known that the inside of her chest is more than a place for storage.
“She couldn't prevent the urge to know his thoughts, She wanted to lace them between her fingers, to root them in her hands, to twine them around her limbs until he'd secured her within the invisible web of his carefully ordered madness.”
“The thought of having you is more dangerous than any cocktail of drugs, the idea of belonging to you endlessly destructive.”
“For Aldo, to love something was to study it; to devote every spare thought to understanding it.”
“The truth is that I have no choice but to accept that what's in my head is what's real.”
“She is my hope and for that she is dangerous, unequivocally, but she is also alive, unreservedly.”
“That to love a person was to forfeit the need to place limits on them, and therefore to love was to exist in a constant, paralyzing threat.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Mental illness, and Drug use
Moderate: Addiction