Thank you to Pan MacMillan for the copy of this book!!

It’s a beautiful story which is as stunning as it is heart wrenching (in a good way). Olivie’s prose is once again incomparable and this book is so unique and beautiful that I want to scream at everyone I know that they should read it.

Regan and Aldo are complex, they’re inexplicably changed by the end of the book but yet are still the same characters you fall in love with. I feel that it isn’t often authors can delve into the depths of how relationships can change people without it being too blunt to a point where at the end of the book you feel like you have two completely different characters. (I feel like the last point made by the narrator is incredibly important and I just follow each sentence of it in my head with so many exclamation marks!!!)

If Aldo figures out how to go back in time I think I’d like him to erase my memories of this book so I can read it again and again relishing in things being slightly different.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for giving me the opportunity to read and review this one via a free eARC!

I went into this not really knowing what to expect, and finished it feeling an abundance of emotions. To say this was a surprising read for 2022 would be an understatement. As someone whose reading focuses mostly on young adult and fantasy, with very little of that interest being taken by the 'romance' genre. Though, arguably, this isn't a romance at all - sure, it focuses on a love story between two complex and different individuals, but this isn't a story about romance. It's far more of a character study than anything else; investigating the intricacies of human nature, where those humans involved might be considered broken by society's standards.

The literary devices used by Blake in this book are honestly genius, and add such an extra element to the story telling. By no means is this an easy read, and by no means is it the most accessible. But it is brilliant. The reams of conscious thought spilled across pages, the sometimes endless dialogue, the use of the narrator and the different perspectives; it feels incredibly real. I think that everyone reading this would be able to relate to Regan and/or Aldo in some way, shape or form, even if not entirely.

With themes of mental health, toxic behaviours and relationships, difficult families, and extreme codependency, this tackles the anatomy of the romance head on and tears it apart. We see the characters at their best and at their worst - together and apart; see the ways they are good for one another and the ways that they are terrible for one another. This isn't a healthy relationship (though really, so few of us have those these days), and it shouldn't be romanticised, but it feels very realistic to me. The desire to want to fix people but also let them be themselves, the juxtaposition between wanting to help and wanting to show that you aren't like the others in their life pressuring them to do this and do that. The characters see their flaws, and also see the flaws in their relationship; but they also put effort into it.

It's a rollercoaster, this one. It will have you feeling a constant and changing river of emotions, from happiness to sadness to utter madness. It feels very real.

I didn't think I was going to enjoy this when I first started it, but I soon acclimatised to the somewhat experimental style and was hooked within the first 10% of the book. Then the stage directions fizzled out, for which I was glad.

'Alone With You In The Ether' is something of an acquired taste and a book you have to be in the mood for, I think. Having said that, there are some beautiful observations about life, love and humanity throughout the book so take your time with it and soak up the wisdom.

Please also read the author's Acknowledgements at the end and don't be tempted to come off prescription drugs without proper medical supervision.

Olivie Blake has absolutely done it again - ‘Alone with you in the Ether’ broadens the horizons of an entire genre, creating the imperfectly perfect romance combined with gorgeous prose and much needed mental health representation and discussion.

The romance genre is one I don’t frequent - but when you get an email with early access to one of your favourite authors new releases you jump on it. It was a phenomenal book - a romance that oozes chemistry and passion, but also one that was so grounded in the real world.

The books main character suffers with a mood disorder and this is a theme Olivie is not shy of delving into and exploring. There are also themes of addiction that I wish we learned more about, and a very clearly neurodivergent coded love interest.

It was romance but it was authentic and not the wishy-washy bs. I loved the read, thank you to Macmillan for the ARC.

Oh wow.

At first I was mighty confused but then....oh then I realised how beautiful this was, my heart actually ached!

You need this book in your life. I actually can't stop thinking about it now even though I finished reading it yesterday.

I did not read the self published version, before this, but everyone was raving about this book. So once I heard that it was going to be traditionally published I needed it in my hands immediately. I have previously read the atlas six and the atlas paradox and absolutely love Olivie’s writing style, so it was a no brainier that I would love this aswell. Words really cannot describe how well this book was written. It is a modern day complex love story set in Chicago. The two MCs are so unique and they connection they both build urghh *chef kisses*

Sorry, but I just didn’t enjoy this book- I found it hard to follow and appreciate. . Although I am aware others will disagree with me. It’s a romance between two people each with their own mental health needs.

Alone With You in the Ether
by Olivie Blake
Earc: NetGalley
Publisher:
Pan Macmillan, Tor
Publication Date: 29th November 2022
Genre:Romance, General Fiction

This. The book can be because the characters both suffer from mental health.
Aldo and Charlotte Regan are both unquiet In their ways. The two meet by chance at the art institute. Before their encounter, he was a graduate student, coping with his destructive thoughts with obsessive calculations about time travel. She is a bipolar counterfeit artist undergoing court-ordered psychotherapy. At the end of the story, these things are still valid. But this is not the story of the ending.

For Regan, people are predictable and boring. Perhaps so is she. She deals with the darkness of existence by living impulsively, imagining that each hasty decision creates a new and alternate timeline.

For Aldo, the world feels disturbingly chaotic. He spends his days building a wall of daily routines.
Rules and official backbeats to keep it. Without her, the entire framework of his existence would collapse.

For Regan and Aldo, life was a matter of giving up with a blueprint of inevitability - until they met. Could six conversations with a stranger be the variable that ruins the whole simulation?

This was a quick, short read that was a rollercoaster of emotions. There is a connection between the characters that appeal to readers, and it is compelling and haunting. The feelings are very complicated. This wasn't perfect love, it was heartbreakingly obvious, but it's the same as a book. It's not an ideal book.

I'm so glad I wrote it here. Not overly descriptive or poetic, but the monologue and characters speak for themselves. This is a character-driven story that requires some thought. I enjoyed this book, even though the ending was remarkably abrupt.

#NetGalley #bookstagram #bookreview #goodreads #romance #Alone With You in the Ether
@Olivie Blake @Pan Macmillan, Tor

Alas, this is simply not for me. However, it may be just the thing for the right sort of person - so don't hesitate to take a peek and see if the prose and characters speak to you.

Alone With You in the Ether is the second book I read from Olivie Blake, and I can say I enjoyed this a whole lot more than the other.

CHICAGO, SOMETIME—
Two people meet in the Art Institute by chance. Prior to their encounter, he is a doctoral student who manages his destructive thoughts with compulsive calculations about time travel; she is a bipolar counterfeit artist, undergoing court-ordered psychotherapy. By the end of the story, these things will still be true. But this is not a story about endings.
For Regan, people are predictable and tedious, including and perhaps especially herself. She copes with the dreariness of existence by living impulsively, imagining a new, alternate timeline being created in the wake of every rash decision.
To Aldo, the world feels disturbingly chaotic. He gets through his days by erecting a wall of routine: a backbeat of rules and formulas that keep him going. Without them, the entire framework of his existence would collapse.
For Regan and Aldo, life has been a matter of resigning themselves to the blueprints of inevitability—until the two meets. Could six conversations with a stranger be the variable that shakes up the entire simulation?

This was a quick, short read that was a rollercoaster of emotions. There's a connection between the characters that resonates with the reader, but it felt captivating and immersive. This is a love story but it's heavily complex with thoughts and feelings about how deep love can feel in any shape or form. This wasn't a perfect love as it was heart-breakingly tangible but that is the same as the book. It's not a perfect book, it may have been more robust, but it consumed me as I consumed its contents.

I really enjoyed the writing here. It's not overly descriptive or poetic but the monologues and characters speak for themselves, and I always connect more to characters when they speak from the heart. It's a character driven story that required some thought. I enjoyed the book, albeit the ending was particularly abrupt.

What a interesting and fascinating read. The writing is beautiful, I don't think I've read anything like this. I truly enjoyed this read and I can't wait to read more of Olivie's work!

It's so different from anything I have ever read, and I honestly was captured straight away, and I couldn't stop!

This is only going to be a short review as I have dnfed this book. So I dont want to go into much detail. But I will give my reasons for the DNF.

For me, it felt pretentious from the start, the writing style just didn’t fit with what I was reading. It was very character driven which while I love sometimes, I just felt like nothing at all was happening.

The main thing that bothered me however was time skips. Like it skipped from one point where the main characters were together immediately into another instance of them meeting up again days if not weeks later. With no explanation as to what occurred in the elapsed time.

I truly don’t think i have ever read a book like this in my entire life? I’m still not quite sure what I read but it’s left me feeling so... inspired? Curious? Uncertain? In crisis and questioning everything? It was nothing like I expected — and I mean this in a sincere, complimentary way.

Going in blind is the best course of action, in my opinion. I had always heard whispers about this book. People tearing their hair out over it, wanting it imbedded in their soul and engraved on their tombstone (real quotes from reviews I have read and comments from friends) so very ringing endorsements. But I didn’t know a thing about this book other than it being utterly transcendent and beautiful. And I agree, it really was.

Now, the writing style is definitely an acquired taste. It was what immediately caught my attention— it was incredibly unique and philosophical, it almost had the feel of a classics novel. I liked it but did find it to be a little bit too pretentious, kinda saying a lot while saying precisely nothing.

The overly superfluous language was its own worst enemy here. sometimes it was beautiful— it could be an incredibly intelligent and metaphorical type of storytelling one minute, that left you feeling breathless or like you were losing your mind (in the best way possible). then the next it completely saturated the pages, trying too hard to be clever and it resulted in me skimming so I could get back to the action of the story.

In small doses, this style of writing excelled and achieved its aims. But when it went on for pages and pages and pages, where nothing of value was really being said... it lost all its poignancy and beauty. It honestly felt like, at times, Olivie Blake was just showing off, to be honest, without actually saying anything meaningful. Thr storytelling lost its sharpness and its vibrancy— she didn’t seem to know when to pull back and when to push the boundaries.

By constantly pushing the boundaries with her writing style, it meant it lost its impact for me because it ended being all of the same thing, if that makes sense? What was originally unique ended up being a haze of allegories and metaphors, deeply philosophical ramblings interjected with streams of consciousness. Doing too much of a good thing resulted in the story losing its shape at times— I won’t say losing its coherence (which was what i was originally going to say) because i suppose that was something Blake was aiming for. incoherency that is. Well it felt like it to me, anyway.

And it resulted in a lot of telling (which sometimes worked, I will fully admit) rather than showing. so I suppose the bogged-down nature of the story at times was due to this.

This is where the story loses a star. I initially wanted to give this five stars, especially from about 30% to 70%. This period was where the book soared for me. I was entranced, completely fixated on the tumultuous dynamic of our two main characters, Regan and Aldo. But the last 25% roughly was where I found myself thinking “can we just wrap this up now?” I just felt like nothing profound was being added to what already had been said.

I previously mentioned the first 30% didn’t really interest me— *until the scene.*

Regan cutting Aldo’s hair will forever be imprinted on my soul. The intimacy. The tenderness. The tentativeness. The mutual silence between two lonely, lost people who have found completely solace within one another for just a moment. and sometimes that moment is just enough. The way they moved around one from then on had me on the edge of my seat. They were complex and broken and intelligent. Their conversations and the ways they viewed one another made me extremely emotional.

And I know I’ve spent more than half of this review talking about what didn’t work for me and that’s because I know how to put that into words. The rest? The sheer vastness of this book? The broken beauty and the gut-wrenching loneliness of it? I don’t have any language in my arsenal to express the sheer impact it had on me.

Read this book when you’re in the mood to change your entire world view. When you have time to question everything about your life and your existence and your purpose... you know, the fun stuff.

Wow, I mean, I don't even know how to review or rate this book. It was intense to read - it felt like literally shifting through someone's brain and thoughts and memories, written in this absolutely beautiful prose that really makes you take a step back and consider life as a whole. This is without a doubt a character-driven story - almost the definition of no plot just vibes. It was beautiful and tragic and honestly I really don't know how I feel about it. I wouldn't say it's one of my favourite books I've ever read, I found it to be kind of pretentious, but I also keep thinking about these characters and their story and their love. Two broken people falling in love, hoping that love will fix them, realising that that isn't how life works and they have to learn how to balance being individuals with being together, it was just gorgeous.

I haven't stopped thinking about this book since I put it down. Stunning. The prose is devastatingly lyrical and the disjointed narrative perfectly reflects the inner turmoil of our protagonists. I think this is a book that will be enjoyed by many but only truly appreciated in all its beauty by those who can understand Regan and Aldo.

Heaven and Hell all put into one book. Olivie put my mind down on paper, the words and feelings, I have never been able to voice out loud jumped out at me and bought me to a heaped up pile of tears and guttural sobs. I feel like I've had a therapy session and someone has understood my brain for what it is.

This book is completely character driven, its not flowery and overly romantic in the sense of love and roses and date nights. It's two people's lives torn apart and broken down into tiny pieces and laid bare for every reader to experience. I felt every single emotion from beginning to end. Every moment between them felt so intimate. They were destined to be soulmates.

I honestly want to rave about this book from the rooftops but the other half if me wants to be selfish and keep it purely for myself and treasure it like a sacred possession. This is the book you will be able to read over and over and it will feel like you are reading it for the first time all over again.

A true masterpiece that I will forever be thankful to have read. A story that shows how broken you can be but beautiful at the same time. Thank you Olivie Blake for understanding me in a way no one else ever has.

Thank you Netgalley and the Publishers for allowing me to read this.

The mix between these eccentric, over-the-top characters and the brutally honest, raw nature of what they go through is what makes Alone With You in The Ether so special. Reagan and Aldo’s relationship is messy, imperfect, and at times unhealthy, and it makes you fall in love with their love all the more.

The writing is spectacular - multiple times I found myself awed to find a feeling I’ve always struggled to put into words written so accurately and eloquently. This book solidifies what a talent Blake has, and how lucky we are to read her work.

Whilst it was slightly confusing at first, I really enjoyed the varying structures that feature in this novel - the random narrators, the stage directions, the no-dialogue ‘thought’ conversations. It allowed for some deeper exploration into the character’s psyche which was needed in a story like this.

This book is confusing, raw, beautiful, romantic, sad, hopeless, hopeful, and above all else, human. I will be thinking about it for a long time.

Alone With You in the Ether is an incredibly clever, brutally honest love story between two, slightly eccentric, incredibly intelligent individuals with diagnosed mood disorders.

"Chicago, sometime. Two people meet in the armory of the Art Institute by chance. Prior to their encounter, he is a doctoral student who manages his destructive thoughts with compulsive calculations about time travel; she is a bipolar counterfeit artist undergoing court-ordered psychotherapy. After their meeting, those things do not change.

Everything else, however, is slightly different."

Aldo and Regan become unexpectedly entangled in each other's lives and it's beautiful, sensual and messy. I adored how raw and vulnerable both characters were and how they contradicted each other whilst also fitting together perfectly like missing pieces of a puzzle. They were very dislikeable in some way and ultimately endearing in others. I adored them both in very different ways.

I have to admit, I wasn't a fan of the structure of this book. The stage directions, the odd mixture of narrators, the sudden lack of dialogue and the random thought tangents made the book feel disjointed. It was a clever way to depict each character's inner turmoil and intrusive thoughts, however, I felt like it ruined the flow of the story.

Nevertheless, I found this book breathtakingly romantic and confusingly beautiful. It's a challenging and thought-provoking read that will stay with me for a very long time.

This book had me totally gripped. A beautifully written depiction of messy love- I believe this book will divide options and people wont like the rawness of the issues explored or the chaotic structure, but I found this a powerful love story which highlights the challenges of mental health issues in relationships. I received an advanced copy of this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

This started off interesting. But sadly by halfway things started to change for me. I became less and less interested.
The tension building was great. It was obvious something was going to happen, that it would hurt. But then it felt underwhelming and left me unsatisfied. The ending was vague and too open ended for my liking.
The writing was great but then became a little self indulgent.
Its a shame because the story started off so well.