Title: Waiting for the Flood
Author: Alexis Hall
Genre/Themes: Contemproary romance, m/m, novella
Release Date: 23 February 2015
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My rating: 5 Stars
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Synopsis
People come as well as go.
Twelve years ago, Edwin Tully came to Oxford and fell in love with a boy named Marius. He was brilliant. An artist. It was going to be forever.
Two years ago, it ended.
Now Edwin lives alone in the house they used to share. He tends to damaged books and faded memories, trying to a build a future from the fragments of the past.
Then the weather turns, and the river spills into Edwin’s quiet world, bringing with it Adam Dacre from the Environment Agency. An unlikely knight, this stranger with roughened hands and worn wellingtons, but he offers Edwin the hope of something he thought he would never have again.
As the two men grow closer in their struggle against the rising waters, Edwin learns he can’t protect himself from everything—and sometimes he doesn't need to try.
Review
This is a sweet, truly romantic love story written in the amazingly intimate, touching style of Mr. Hall. I loved every word of this rather short book and very much felt like highlighting all of it on my Kindle.
It's a quiet, understated attraction (which might grown into love or not) that happens to two ordinary people. The story is told from the POV of Edwin and I liked his journey to finding his voice, accepting it as it was and finally moving on with his life/love.
In short, I loved everything in this book, the story is itself is rather simple and straightforward but the way it was told makes it unforgettable for me. There is so much warmth and sincerity in the writing.
There are not grand gestures or drama in this book, it’s just two people meeting by chance and taking tentative steps toward each other, getting to know each other, sharing their dreams and hopes, their fears and insecurities. It felt so real, often I thought of Edwin’s messy emotions "Oh, I've felt this way. I still feel this way sometimes."
For me, this ordinary contemporary love story carried the same magic and passion in it, as Mr Hall's paranormal stories (Sand and Gold and Ruin, in particular). Perhaps it’s his way of rendering human emotions into words on the page that makes the everyday life magical, turning it into a story of life, love and the human soul.
Edwin is my kind of guy in everything. I loved his personal quirks, weaknesses and strengths and I felt the happy, optimistic ending holding a promise for the future was perfect for him (and Adam, of course).
This is a recommended read for me. If you haven’t read Alexis before, this novella is a great opportunity to get familiar with his style (and to fall in love with his writing).
Pre-order: Riptide
My reviews of other books by Alexis Hall:
Glitterland - 5 Stars
Prosperity - 5 Stars
Liberty and Other Stories - 5 Stars
There will be Phlogiston - 5 Stars
Sand and Ruin and Gold - 5 Stars
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