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A review by lesliekate
Alone With You in the Ether by Olivie Blake
dark
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
It's simply the best book I've ever read. I can't even express the emotion I went through while reading this book.
Truly a masterpiece.
The appeal of this book is basically: Regan and Aldo are fucked up in their on way but they pay attention to each other so much. They figure stuff out, they have conversations and then they learn something about the other person. You would think it's completely unrelated but it's only though paying attention they are getting to know each other SO well. The desire to have something like that, to have a person who is willing to pay so much attention to you and trying to figure you out while you also do the same and both parties being to interested in each others intricate minds and ways of thinking and way of living. That's just so stimulating and intimate.
In the same breath that you could call this beautiful, you can also call it tragic and realistic as well. They tried to fix eachother, they tried to fix themselves with eachother, they tried to be something they weren't but in the end they realised that everyone has their baggage to carry on their own. Mental illness isn't somthing that just goes away. Especially not after years of added trauma. They don't need to share all of their pain. As long as they can find solace in the fact that no matter what, they will always find eachother. Space is important.
A little personal thought. Alone with you in the Ether scares me because I am a Charlotte Regan. I can relate to her a little too much. The hyperfixiation on hands, getting themselves a claddath ring and wearing it always, never taking it off, studying art, wanting to be an artist but never being able to, then starting to actually do art as a form of feeling productive and only after coming to terms with yourself as a form of expression, picking up an old hobby and not being able to stop because it brings you so much comfort and making you "good", bright and blinding, not wanting to be tied down and having major attachment issues, generally hating children and giving off very non-motherly vibes, being attracted to intelligence and loving being interlectually stimmulated, never judging anyone on their weird takes and theories, loving listening to people being passionate about something, hating when people think they know you or wanting to predict ones taste or thoughts, looking for meaning in life but until then just existing, coming from a well off family, being intrigued by weird people, attracting mentally ill people, liking it when perfect people mess up because it makes them feel human and not juging oneself too hard anymore, constantly bein asked "What's next?", being viewd slightly or more than slightly egotistical because you put your own mental health an joy first after being used and manipulated a lot, hating doing stuff you don't see value in, not liking wasting time, going over conversations in the middle of the night and then contacting that person because you still have something to add to that topic, valuing beautiful things and seeing the world as art, craving for people to get what one is saying and meaning, wanting to be desired and payed attention to, being analysed and then understood, need the feeling of being wanted because you always feel like you need to be sorry for simply existing and feeling like people get sick of you.
This book really found me at the right time.
Truly a masterpiece.
The appeal of this book is basically: Regan and Aldo are fucked up in their on way but they pay attention to each other so much. They figure stuff out, they have conversations and then they learn something about the other person. You would think it's completely unrelated but it's only though paying attention they are getting to know each other SO well. The desire to have something like that, to have a person who is willing to pay so much attention to you and trying to figure you out while you also do the same and both parties being to interested in each others intricate minds and ways of thinking and way of living. That's just so stimulating and intimate.
In the same breath that you could call this beautiful, you can also call it tragic and realistic as well. They tried to fix eachother, they tried to fix themselves with eachother, they tried to be something they weren't but in the end they realised that everyone has their baggage to carry on their own. Mental illness isn't somthing that just goes away. Especially not after years of added trauma. They don't need to share all of their pain. As long as they can find solace in the fact that no matter what, they will always find eachother. Space is important.
A little personal thought. Alone with you in the Ether scares me because I am a Charlotte Regan. I can relate to her a little too much. The hyperfixiation on hands, getting themselves a claddath ring and wearing it always, never taking it off, studying art, wanting to be an artist but never being able to, then starting to actually do art as a form of feeling productive and only after coming to terms with yourself as a form of expression, picking up an old hobby and not being able to stop because it brings you so much comfort and making you "good", bright and blinding, not wanting to be tied down and having major attachment issues, generally hating children and giving off very non-motherly vibes, being attracted to intelligence and loving being interlectually stimmulated, never judging anyone on their weird takes and theories, loving listening to people being passionate about something, hating when people think they know you or wanting to predict ones taste or thoughts, looking for meaning in life but until then just existing, coming from a well off family, being intrigued by weird people, attracting mentally ill people, liking it when perfect people mess up because it makes them feel human and not juging oneself too hard anymore, constantly bein asked "What's next?", being viewd slightly or more than slightly egotistical because you put your own mental health an joy first after being used and manipulated a lot, hating doing stuff you don't see value in, not liking wasting time, going over conversations in the middle of the night and then contacting that person because you still have something to add to that topic, valuing beautiful things and seeing the world as art, craving for people to get what one is saying and meaning, wanting to be desired and payed attention to, being analysed and then understood, need the feeling of being wanted because you always feel like you need to be sorry for simply existing and feeling like people get sick of you.
This book really found me at the right time.