Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Alone With You in the Ether: Waterstones Exclusive Edition by Olivie Blake

49 reviews

cnannery19's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Addiction, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Gaslighting

elderwoodreads's review against another edition

emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Went into this on the recommendation of a friend with not a lot of info and I loved it! The end really sold it for me and I loved how Blake played with different writing styles throughout. I really felt like I was in it with the characters. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Cursing, Drug use, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content

Minor: Drug use, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

soyabeanos's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I LOVE THIS BOOK. I'm still trying to process this book but everything about it was A++ I ADORE THIS BOOK.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship

sappix's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Emotional abuse, and Alcohol

Minor: Gaslighting

Do not romanticize this relationship!

anapsc's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

Even though this is a love story, I don’t think it’s a romance (in the traditional sense). 
And if you are a romance reader, I recommend reading the acknowledgements before starting the book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Sexual content

_charliesbooks_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

writerres27's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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? Yes

4.25

4.25 stars for Alone with You in the Ether by Olivie Blake. I found the story very satisfying, real, and raw. I enjoyed the vulnerability of the story, the ability to see yourself within the characters (especially in their flaws), and the honesty of the plot progression. Love as a compulsion is a hard thing to capture without seeming flamboyant, but this book certainly does it. It hit me where it hurts in all the right ways, and I have highlights all over my copy.

Because the story is heavily character-driven, I will not be writing separate review sections for the plot and the characters, but instead will write one comprehensive entry.

This story explores the journey of two individuals, floating through life in their own troubled and often conflicting ways. Yet, when their paths cross, everything suddenly seems to make sense, and the things that don't make sense are now something to admire rather than something to...fix. Or avoid. Or destroy. No, these two unlock hidden portions of each other, Aldo finding an element of humanity he otherwise programmed out of himself and Regan discovering the safety necessary to be herself without pretense. Both find something to live for, to die for, something they did not previously realize was possible for themselves. They need it, and yet they are afraid of it. They want it, and yet neither truly has faith in it. Their journey takes twists and turns (pun intended), ultimately circling one central truth: through prosperity or destruction, they will always return Here. It may look different, the route may change, but Here, alone together in the Ether, they will always gravitate back.

Love can be ugly. It can be terrifying. It can be obsessive, compulsive, hyperfixating, addicting, earth-shattering, uplifting, revealing. Blake conveys all of this in its purest form, no sugarcoating or romanticizing (well...maybe a little. it is a romance, after all), just demonstrating. Feeling and understanding and allowing you to feel and understand it, too. This book shows the good, the bad, the ups, the downs, the challenges and rewards of seeking out a companion in the tumultuous, turbulent course of life, especially for those of us who are mentally ill. But in the end, regardless of what it took to get there, the characters are still better for it, and you close the book with a soft smile.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction and Mental illness

Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Cursing, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, and Abandonment

cooloquirk's review against another edition

challenging reflective tense medium-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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Blood

Minor: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Drug use

_jmstone_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional funny reflective tense fast-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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Chronic illness, Drug use, Emotional abuse, and Mental illness

clarelisabeth's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

This book really fell flat for me. I was trying to get out of a reading slump and thought this would be quick and thought-provoking, and I was utterly disappointed. The middle third of the book, the conversations between Aldo and Regan, was the best part for me and I was totally on board. The last couple parts were confusing, frustrating, and completely backtracked on the character development we read up to that point. The way this book markets itself as a “love story” and “utterly romantic” is mildly disturbing to me since both characters (and the relationship in general) are deeply flawed and toxic. The writing style tries so hard to be deep and philosophical that I feel like any potency it had is lost in the complicated sentences, constant switches in structure, and overuse of academic jibber jabber. I see why this book was so enchanting to some but it was a huge miss for me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse and Toxic relationship