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booksthatburn's review
emotional
reflective
slow-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
5.0
While WAITING FOR THE FLOOD is technically a sequel to GLITTERLAND in the Spires Universe, if there were any overlapping characters I didn't notice them, and the stories are so far unconnected as far as I can tell. I loved the first third of WAITING FOR THE FLOOD and was a bit nervous for the remainder of the book when Edwin and Adam seemed to have reached a very happy place and a good equilibrium so early on. It turns out that the rest of the edition I read is filled with another novella, "Chasing the Light", which is a sequel to "Waiting for the Flood".
"Waiting for the Flood" follows Edwin, who is living in the house he'd shared with the partner of ten years who suddenly left him. Edwin hadn't seen it coming and thought they were happy, until, apparently, it turned out Marius hadn't been. Now, a flood is anticipated (the rain is already here), and a flood engineer named Adam is directing the emergency infrastructure efforts (sandbags, organizing people, telling everyone not to go through standing water, etc.). The story is themed around various rooms in Edwin's house, as conveyed through the chapter titles. Adam is steady and kind, patient with Edwin in the ways he needs it most (and several he hadn't realized were possible). Edwin has a stutter, and it frustrates his words (especially when he's stressed). He appreciates the way Adam (unlike his previous partner) gives him the space to talk, not rushing to fill the space with guesses at his words or cutting off his speech. I love their dynamic, and was frequently touched by the story.
"Chasing the Light" is a sequel novella from the perspective of Marius, the man who suddenly left Edwin after ten years together. It opens with Marius upset to see that his mother invited his ex and the ex's new boyfriend to Christmas. Frustrated and not able to express his feelings calmly, Marius takes a walk in the snow and slips next to the river, injuring himself. Leo finds him and lets him stay in his boat until he's ready to return to land, tending his injured ankle in the meantime. Their attraction is immediate, and they become intimate without waiting for Marius's ankle to heal. Marius has been the bad guy, the abrasive one, the one who can't just be happy for so long that the idea someone could like him as he is without trying to soften him is a strange one. Ultimately, he has to decide whether his time with Leo is just temporary, or if it could be the beginning of something new.
I love the way that "Chasing the Light" complements "Waiting for the Flood". In Flood, Marius is pretty unambiguously the bad guy, for all that Edwin has had trouble moving on from what they had. Edwin needs to heal and figure out how to be himself and not just someone that Marius left behind. By giving Marius's perspective in Light, it complicates the picture in a way that makes both stories better, creating a more detailed image of what happened, why, and what it means for both of them moving forward. It acknowledges that once you've been with someone for a decade, moving on isn't simple, and it doesn't require pretending that those years never happened.
The stories are wonderful and moving, and I'm so glad I got to read them together. I'm very much enjoying the Spires Universe, and I'll definitely read more as I can find them.
"Waiting for the Flood" follows Edwin, who is living in the house he'd shared with the partner of ten years who suddenly left him. Edwin hadn't seen it coming and thought they were happy, until, apparently, it turned out Marius hadn't been. Now, a flood is anticipated (the rain is already here), and a flood engineer named Adam is directing the emergency infrastructure efforts (sandbags, organizing people, telling everyone not to go through standing water, etc.). The story is themed around various rooms in Edwin's house, as conveyed through the chapter titles. Adam is steady and kind, patient with Edwin in the ways he needs it most (and several he hadn't realized were possible). Edwin has a stutter, and it frustrates his words (especially when he's stressed). He appreciates the way Adam (unlike his previous partner) gives him the space to talk, not rushing to fill the space with guesses at his words or cutting off his speech. I love their dynamic, and was frequently touched by the story.
"Chasing the Light" is a sequel novella from the perspective of Marius, the man who suddenly left Edwin after ten years together. It opens with Marius upset to see that his mother invited his ex and the ex's new boyfriend to Christmas. Frustrated and not able to express his feelings calmly, Marius takes a walk in the snow and slips next to the river, injuring himself. Leo finds him and lets him stay in his boat until he's ready to return to land, tending his injured ankle in the meantime. Their attraction is immediate, and they become intimate without waiting for Marius's ankle to heal. Marius has been the bad guy, the abrasive one, the one who can't just be happy for so long that the idea someone could like him as he is without trying to soften him is a strange one. Ultimately, he has to decide whether his time with Leo is just temporary, or if it could be the beginning of something new.
I love the way that "Chasing the Light" complements "Waiting for the Flood". In Flood, Marius is pretty unambiguously the bad guy, for all that Edwin has had trouble moving on from what they had. Edwin needs to heal and figure out how to be himself and not just someone that Marius left behind. By giving Marius's perspective in Light, it complicates the picture in a way that makes both stories better, creating a more detailed image of what happened, why, and what it means for both of them moving forward. It acknowledges that once you've been with someone for a decade, moving on isn't simple, and it doesn't require pretending that those years never happened.
The stories are wonderful and moving, and I'm so glad I got to read them together. I'm very much enjoying the Spires Universe, and I'll definitely read more as I can find them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Medical trauma, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Ableism, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Medical content
Minor: Confinement, Death of parent, and Drug abuse
galleytrot's review
- 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
4.25
READ: Mar 2024
FORMAT: Audio
ENTERTAINMENT VALUE: 4 / 5⭐
TECHNICAL / PRODUCTION: 4.5 / 5⭐
FINAL – OVERALL: 4.25 / 5⭐
In this book, Edwin's home and neighbourhood are threatened by a high flood risk for the first time since moving in, and it's up to him to prepare for the inevitable as best he can. One of the engineers assisting with flood prevention and management takes a shine to the lonely and quiet homeowner, gifting him with special attention and pulling him out of his shell, but the memory of his ex's abandonment weighs heavy on Edwin inside of his house of dreams and expectations. Said ex also gets his own story now, in the second half of this book.
It's been a hot minute since my first time reading this book, and I'd hoped with the re-release that a heavily increased page count meant more might’ve been added to this rather short (but extremely sweet) story. Alas, it's been left the same as before, and the majority of the new content is about Marius with a couple peeks back over at what Edwin and Adam have been up to afterwards. I never exactly wanted Marius' story, nor did I think I would like it very much based off what little we were fed about him through the Spires series. Chasing the Light ultimately never softened me to him, but I'm glad to have read it, all the same.
Waiting for the Flood is like poetry, the way all of the Spires books come across. They're all so beautifully written in this ethereal way that makes them so easy to just soak in and feel, with characters given extensive personalities and histories and quirks of character and interests not commonly found in your other average romance characters. It always shocks me when I am reminded that these are some of Hall's earliest works, because they're all on a level I could never hope to aspire to on my own. The tone of Chasing the Light, on the other hand, takes a hard turn away from that artistic beauty in a way that hits very close to home, having once been a productive artist who has since hit a wall and hasn't created a thing in far too many years. I'm irritated by how effective that tonal shift is, and it’s extremely effective for demonstrating Marius’ fall away from creation.
This book has representation for gays and bisexuals. There is otherwise little else in the way of diversity.
The following elaborates on my content warnings. These may be interpreted as spoilers, but I do not go into deep detail.
This book contains: past parent death (heart attack); past addiction (unspecified); injury (severe sprain); blood; and, heavily implied eating disorder.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Eating disorder, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction and Death of parent
jencolumb0's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-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
5.0
A brief but lovely, honest experimentation in letting go and trusting oneself in the process. Hall, again, strikes a perfect balance between levity and gravity, the superficial and the deep. This novella does not drift to darker challenges as Glitterland can but is very much of that world (the character connections become clear, for those who did not just finish Glitterland or who do not have an encyclopedic memory, about 70 pages in). A beautiful read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment and Grief
Minor: Death of parent
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