A review by clarelisabeth
Alone With You in the Ether by Olivie Blake

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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