It was funny and it had nice ideas about anxiety and mental health. The protagonist and his mysterious new friend brought me a story like no other and I was fascinated by what happened.

This book was quite different to my usual reads. Just a quick book, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading it

This novel follows the story of Jed who recently just lost his mother. He leaves his job and decides to go work in India where his anxiety takes form in a little creature that only he can see.

Eli Wilde wrote a unique story while describing anxiety in a distinctive way as well. Absolutely captivating, the interactions between Jed’s invisible friend and his character’s development makes you wonder through his entire journey. Even though Anxiety is hard to live with, it followed him until the realization of what was wrong in his life, the passage he needed to walk through to accept what is, what will be and move on with his life.

This was a really interesting read. I loved the personification of Depression, Anxiety, and intrusive thoughts as a Thing you deal with. As someone who struggles with anxiety, this was both extremely hard to read but also very therapeutic to hear. Because those who suffer with anxiety and depression are not alone.
The MC is not a good person. He’s gone through A LOT, but that doesn’t negate how he treats his family. He at least realizes he isn’t handling things well.
The loss of time was a really cool element as well.
The ending was incredibly sad. A hard twist that cuts deep.
Again, this was hard to read, but all in all not bad.
If you don’t like snakes, or depictions of snakes, I wouldn't read this.
There was a bit of homophobia from the MC though, about his daughter, and how she would never have biology children and her life would mean nothing. Some ableist talk in regards to Autism. Some racist commentary about India. So that needed to be noted.

The ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Two Lumps of Sugar for Mr Anxiety had a lot of potential. Unmet potential. I've struggled with anxiety almost my whole life and was intrigued by Wilde's personification of it. But the book is boring. It moves slowly and without much point. The dialogue is all unnecessary and none of the characters are interesting. He did come through with a plot twist, but it wasn't good enough to make up for the poor writing throughout.

This one is a little…weird. On the one hand, it deals with the issue of mental health in unique and insightful ways. On the other hand, the manifestation of our protagonist’s anxiety taking the form of an adorable little monster is so bizarre that it’s often distracting and difficult to reconcile with the book’s heavier themes. Still, the book is a fascinating psychological portrait of a man struggling with depression, highly effective in its depiction of a precarious psychological state held together by strength of will and denial. It all pays off in an ending that proves genuinely, and surprisingly, tragic.

By the time you finish the book, it feels almost haunting and ethereal. I took some time to ponder and realised this is really a good novel. The mental health condition is the main setting and liked the writing.

From the suburbs of York to the wild streets of India, Two Lumps of Sugar for Mr Anxiety will take you on a journey with Jed as he traverses the landscape of anxiety. Aftab accompanies Jed as he navigates through feelings that we don't understand until the very end of the book. If you are looking for a plot driven novel, this isn't for you. The concentration is very much on characters, and some of them only in two dimensions. We don't even really understand Jed until the last few pages, which come as quite a surprise - in fact, a little rushed. The language used to describe India is sometimes evocative, but ultimately this book would be nothing with Mr Anxiety himself - Aftab - to brighten the otherwise drab landscape.

I’m not sure why this gets such mixed reviews. I enjoyed the writing style and everything flowed naturally. The ending was something I wasn’t expecting at all. A total literary sleight of hand. The mental health topics were interesting and I enjoyed learning about some of the anxiety methods. Do they work? Who knows. They seemed to help Jed a bit. I do hope he gets to go back to India.

I don't know what I read but I liked it. The writing was good and it was odd but in a good way. Thank you for the arc and being able to read awesome book.

3 1/2 Stars
Recommend
Happy publication day! Two Lumps reminds me of some works of Christopher Moore and Terry Pratchett. I would characterize it as (semi-autobiographical?) humorous mental health fiction. Is that even a genre? It is a story about a man struggling to cope with his anxiety. He searches the internet for help and decides to give his anxiety a name and a face and invite it to tea. And so it is that Aftab, ET's cuter cousin, becomes the most loveable character in the book.

An increasingly insightful Jed says (paraphrased): "The worst you can do to me is nothing at all. I wait for you to give it your best shot, but you can never suffocate me when I'm in the shower, under the covers, or when the lights are switched off. You can never make the walls of the elevator move inwards and crush me to death. You can't do anything at all to me other than make me feel afraid." And then there was that ending; I was in the ballpark but somewhere out in left field!

I would like to add that the reviews with low ratings due to references to poop are over-exaggerated and might I suggest that you just turn the page. That's what I did and I missed four or five pages. No big deal. That being said, I would encourage the author to rethink whatever it was that led you in that direction. It didn't add anything to the story and resulted in losing some readers.

I feel that as a clinical psychologist I should finish by saying that if you are experiencing anxiety or depression that interferes with the quality of your life, please seek help. While it may be possible for you to make the journey alone, you will almost certainly get there quicker and more gently with professional guidance.

Thank you to the author and to Netgalley for providing a complimentary copy of Two Lumps of Sugar for Mr. Anxiety for my enjoyment and review. It's available now from your favorite bookstore or public library. I look forward to seeing more from this author.

Thank you to the publisher, Eli Wilde, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

With such an interesting premise and a stellar cover, I was a bit disappointed with how this novel played out.

This book had a very strong start, a mediocre middle, and an exhilarating ending. While I quite enjoyed the first few chapters, I soon realized that the focus on the character of Anxiety itself is taking a sort of "back seat" story-wise. My interest began to wane once it transitioned to the middle portion of the story. While Anxiety (in the form of Aftab) is prevalent throughout the novel, it feels as if there were too many digs at the cleanliness in India and how society functions there. There is so much that you can do with the intriguing concept of anxiety, yet I feel as if the plot lost focus halfway through. Why were there so many discussions of poop?? While India is considered a developing country, the descriptions throughout sounded outright insulting. There could have been so many better ways to have this set in India while keeping it in line with the plot. However, this book failed to do so in a successful way.

As I said earlier, I quite liked the beginning and end of this novel. The first few chapters are written quite well and successfully puts me on edge. It really puts into perspective how anxiety can warp how someone perceives their thoughts and their reality. Had Wilde written the entirety of the book like the first few chapters, I believe that I would have liked it more. The twist at the end was great, and something that I was not expecting. However, beyond this, there is not much else that I liked, as it was hard to hold my interest. Maybe I am just not the intended audience.

This book is a weird trip. I liked the beginning a lot, it was so accurate to how I feel that it was actually making me uncomfortable. After the first few chapters it's pretty much all down hill, the way it talks about India almost seems racist at times. I loved the covered, that's really want draws you in, but the book itself I would pass on.

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a literal fiction book about anxiety. After the death of his mother Jed knows that it is time for a change. He quits his job and takes a temporary job in India There he discovers the Indian culture. He also discovers that his anxiety has followed him. Jed gives anxiety a face and a name, Aftab. By doing this Anxiety is another character in this book. He begins to learn more about anxiety and how anxiety is not always the enemy. It is there to try and help him.

This was an enjoyable book which was outside my comfort zone. I did find it a little repetitive in parts but the ending made the slower parts worth.

I got about halfway through this title, and I just couldn’t get myself to continue reading. I am going to DNF this book; I just can’t get into the storyline. The author’s writing style is overly detailed, which turns me off from reading more. There’s a fine line between enough and too much detail.

Mr Anxiety was an unusual read with vibes of magical realism. In response to his overwhelming anxiety Jed personifies his anxiety in the shape of a strange egg-headed little man he calls Aftab. This helps him face his anxiety and even use it more constructively. But it turns out there are deeper layers that needs to be addressed. Overall an enjoyable read with especially authentic depiction of anxiety.

I was anxious while reading this novel.

I thought it was all about anxiety and psychological maneuvers, but it was certainly more than that. It was overly focused on the way a third-world country works, and it overwhelmed the substance of the novel.

I really enjoyed this story. I have read it twice because I wanted to get a good feel for the characters especially Aftab. I liked the visual representation of anxiety in Aftab. I think this is a good book in representing and raising awareness of mental health and how difficult it can be for people to face their anxiety and know how to get help.

I look forward to reading more from Eli Wilde.

'Two Lumps of Sugar for Mr Anxiety' is a hidden gem, not only of literary fiction, but of mental health representation also. An incredibly affecting first few chapters is only the start of the emotional depths the author goes with this novel - soon sending its lead protagonist to India for work, leading to more exploration of mental illness, relationships, and the culture of India. It's immediately clear how fully Eli Wilde understands everything he is writing about.

By casting anxiety (both the emotion and the mental illness) as a character - Aftab - Eli Wilde does for this abstract ball of terror what Terry Pratchett did previously for Death. Taking a purely conceptual idea that people both hate and fear, and turning it into a lovable character only there to help, in his own way.

This decision makes it easy to empathise with the unrelatable, to understand 'The Thing' and allow anxiety sufferers like me to approach their own struggles with a greater understanding, and perhaps a greater toolset. Simultaneously, I can see this book allowing people who don't suffer from anxiety to gain a greater understanding also.

Not merely a book about anxiety however, this story also provides an equally entertaining and powerful narrative, with excellent characters, a fantastic level of depth, and a touch of powerful, thought provoking worldbuilding through the setting and characters that India provides.

In short, 'Two Lumps of Sugar for Mr Anxiety' is the next must read.

[Advanced Reader Copy provided by the author.]

I enjoyed this book, I think it's strength is in it's strangeness and I almost wish it had leaned into that more. The main character's journey to deal with his anxiety, the repression of memories, and learning to change with the world are well-told and I think would be quite inspirational to a person of around the same age (50s) who is going through something similar. Certain aspects of the plot reminded me of a middle-aged version of the book We Were Liars - the twist, the repressed memory, the exaggerated emotions, though this is more absurdist.