Deborah Levy's writing is always going to be a little beguiling and very compelling, but the actual story in this one felt a little too slight and flimsy for me. I would've liked a little bit more plot, some more character development, something to make the book feel like more than a collection of vague feelings and impressions.

Love Deborah Levy’s writing and this is no exception. Rich and complex, her characters are as engaging as ever. Great work.

there was something about the cover and the idea of doubles that brought to mind 'persona' and i do find levy to be a confident writer.

holiday to Greece to recover. She becomes obsessed with a woman she sees as her doppelganger and stalks her. But is the woman real or a symptom of her breakdown?

'She frightened me. She was more knowing than I was. She made me feel less alone.'

The novel is far from a comfortable read but, as with all Levy's work, I found it intriguing. At the end, the reader is left with questions about how we bring up children, about our relationships with biological or surrogate parents and about the inevitability of loss, but potential recovery through creativity.

‘August Blue’ by Deborah Levy is a beautifully contracted pandemic-set novel, about a 30 something former child prodigy pianist who a few years prior, walked off stage at a concert and left the music world behind. She now travels through Europe, teaching children to play piano, having experiences with locals and seeing a mysterious woman, her “psychic double” everywhere she goes. All of this plays out as her adoptive father and teacher is becoming increasingly ill.

The novel, as all of Deborah Levy’s work, invites you to bring your own experiences and meaning to the narrative, making it universal and personal simultaneously. There are themes of loneliness, identity, processing great global change, understanding where we come from, and the importance of living in our own reality, suffering and joy as opposed to escaping into the experiences of others. There is a coming of age tone to it, that I appreciate in novels that center 30-40 year old women. Growing up, evolving is an ever present journey and Deborah Levy does a beautiful job with this type of storytelling.

I loved the tactile descriptions of the weather, the city and sea, food and even the undeniable discomfort of masking, hand sanitizer and the constant cleaning we were doing. It feels quite tender and quiet and I found myself tearing up a couple of times.

Wonderful read. Deborah Levy does it again by creating a succinct yet deeply introspective novel. A perfect time capsule of the pandemic and how it affected artists of all varieties.

August Blue offers a snapshot of the life of child prodigy Elsa as she comes to terms with professional disappointment and personal grief as her mentor's health begins to decline.

The book in many ways is a sad portrayal of a lost soul, devoid of links to a 'normal life' and the world around her. The mysterious doppelganger that eludes Elsa provides an enticing version of what she might have become given a different turn at life.

Levy is a consummate writer who has perfected the shorter novel. August Blue is captivating and recognisable as an exploration of reawakening.

I struggled with this book I think alot of it went over my head. I had to push through to finish it, I found It didn't flow very well and appeared disjointed.

This was a highly anticipated read for me for 2023 and when I was granted the arc to say I screamed! Deborah Levy has such a was with writing that it just captivates you this is a beautiful story about loss and identity and finding ourselves through others I highly recommend for all Levy fans it’s a top favourite of mine this year!

I like Deborah Levy's writing because although she's wordy and pretentious (meant in a loving way), she's not overly-obtuse. I still know what's going on, even if I'm missing some deeper meaning due to a lack of degree-level analysis/passion. This was short but sweet, with plenty to get me thinking, and sprinkled with pandemic PTSD that I found more interesting than depressing (as I normally do).

Elsa Anderson is a celebrated concert pianist whi in the middle of the Pandemic plays a concert where she is unable to play the Rachmaninoff on the programme.

This really is the sum total of my understanding about this book - the rest is a series of almost unconnected sentences gathered into disconnected chapters and published (i presume) because the author is herself noted. It seems to me that Deborah Levy has met her "elsa" moment in this book. Less "vivid portrait and more muddy waters to my thinking.

What it does have going for it is it 's merciful shortness

Like many readers of Deborah Levy, I like reading her books even if I don't understand a lot of what's going on. I really liked this one in the beginning – she's great on atmosphere and detail and hot European places and prose that feels both crisp and vague. To me, most of the book seemed redolent of the way we all questioned life in the aftermath of the worst part of the pandemic, and made sense especially in the context of the protagonist, famous pianist Elsa and semi-adopted daughter of an internationally renowned piano teacher. But it did get a little bit too abstract for me in the end, which I didn't particularly appreciate or enjoy. Not my favourite Deborah Levy but I still liked it overall

As much as I usually enjoy Levy’s work, I struggled to finish this one. The experimental writing shows her talent for writing but I found it an obstacle to and left a bit confused

This book feels like an odd fever dream in the heat of a summer, as our protagonist attempts to piece together her own personal story of who she is, and what that means for her future.

The whole book feels like a series of apparitions, the main character thinking she sees things, being convinced that they were what she thought she saw, and then drifting into another thought.

All of this individually could easily fall apart, and I think there is something about the skill of a writer like Levy in holding these fragments together so beautifully. Her observations and details are incredibly lucid, either capturing whole characters in a few words or the slightest movement, or focusing on the most minute details perfectly (her description of our main character getting off a train at Kings Cross Station in London, and moving to a piano was eerie for its specificity- I could trace every single step the character took and knew exactly where in the station she was at any given moment).

This is a book that I can imagine would hold up incredibly well on multiple readings- there are so many details and treasures hidden at just the right distance, and there is real mastery in eschewing easy answers and twists, in favour of a more complicated and satisfying ending.

I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I had never read any Deborah Levy before and didn't know what to expect, but had heard rave reviews about her from some bloggers whom I tend to share tastes with, and so jumped at the opportunity to read this.

The writing is beautiful, almost poetic throughout. The descriptions are vivid and I could almost see / feel / smell / hear the surroundings she was describing. I can absolutely see why people adore her as a writer.

However, the book itself didn't really capture my attention. I usually enjoy character driven rather than plot driven novels, but I couldn't get onside with the FMC enough to really care what happened with her. I understood that the trauma in her background was causing her to behave as she did, but her drifting frustrated me and left me waiting for her to make a decision or take some action.

A strange novel. It is set during the pandemic and a very simple story but I feel I wanted to learn more about Elsa. I enjoyed reading the book but the other woman, does she really exist, is it her mum, another version of herself?. It reminded me of the movie Tár at points. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy.

Reading Levy’s fiction always leaves me with a sense of just missing something, of almost touching on some deep meaning but not quite getting there. The central character of August Blue is a thirty-something piano virtuoso who has just messed up a big performance and feels herself to be disgraced. We meet her in Athens as she meets a women - are we to think her double? _ with an older man, who may or may not be her own piano mentor, an eighty-something who is now dying somewhere in the European countryside with a younger man who is probably is lover. Elsa, the disgraced pianist, then keeps meeting the mysterious woman, as she bumbles about teaching a variety of spoilt kids before rushing to her dying mentor. The writing is beautiful as always and Levy is a master at creating tension by forcing the reader to try to understand. This was not my favourite novels of hers but still exceptional fiction. Had I not read The Man who Saw Everything and Hot Milk, it might have been a five stars.

I struggled with this book. I found the writing style off-putting and the characters unappealing. It never really went anywhere, so I found it rather easier to put down than pick up. Not a book for me I'm afraid.

I am a sucker for anything Levy writes, and this was no exception. A stark look at belonging, at talent and, above all, at love. Levy writes the inner monologue of the woman better than any writer I know. Stunning.

A highly anticipated release for me that I’m so glad to say did not disappoint .
It’s written in Levy’s unique lyrical style prose , in some ways it reads a bit like a dream and the reader is inside our protagonists confused mind . Did I understand what was happening ?? No , not really , but at the same time you’re absorbed in the writing and atmosphere .
I loved the Europe setting , Levy captures the surroundings so well , Athens , Paris, London … it was like being on a surreal sort of road trip . I had no idea that the pandemic would play a part in the story and for me this made the book all the more real , the mask wearing , antigen tests etc, we’ve all been there .

Hot Milk still remains my favourite Levy but for avid fans this will not disappoint . It’s one I already feel I need to re read in order to unpick more of the story . Who is the doppelgänger , is she real ???