Glitterland (Spires) Paperback – August 26, 2013

Right. I'm going to come right and say this and everyone be damned. I am an Essex girl. Well, an Essex woman actually. So put down the pitchforks, and the flaming torches and stop chasing the monster back into the spray tan booth :)I do not own a pair of white stilettos, I am pale skinned, am not promiscuous (except in my books with my characters) and I don't believe I'm vulgar (except again in my books. I've never used the F word so much as when my guys are talking or in bed)So when the chance arose to read this book which is about a young, Essex boy Glitterati model called Darian and a rather needy, clinically depressed yet endearingly sexy and clever Ash, I jumped at it. And disappointed I was not. This is one amazing story. Combining the seriousness of depression and bi polar disorder with the banter and complete over the top fantabulousness (I'm a writer, I can make words up) of the superb character of Darian, I couldn't put this book down. I fell in love with them both. Yes, it took me a while to decipher what Darian was talking about but once I was in, I could almost hear my daughter's young gay friend James speaking the words. He's a bit Darian like himself.The romance between these two completely mismatched man in everything but the fact that both have a penis, is a joy to watch as it unfolds and the preconceptions you have about the characters fly in the face of what you expect and go off at a tangent to prove people are indeed deeper that skin allows. Darian is an incredibly rich character and surprising in many ways. Ash is tougher than he looks, with a wit that had me sniggering and the two of them together are just incendiary.The wonderful humour in this book had me in stitches and one of my fave parts was when they were talking about Ash's book 'Through a Glass Darkly'. Ash quotes from the book (something from the Bible) and this is what happens next.."That's well nice," he (Darian) said, seeming pleased. "I dunno what it means. Cos you can't see frew a glass if it's dark, can you?'"You're quite right, Essex. I shall complain to the editor." (Ash)"Isn't that like...God?""I suppose it must be.""Don't fink e's in."It really tickled my funny bone. I snorted my way past and was soon engrossed in more clever words and writing until the time I finished the book. In one sitting.So if you want entertaining, well written fiction, with bits that will make you snort your coffee through your nose, make your heart wrench with hurt for Darian when Ash rejects him (OMG,Poor Darian was incredibly noble, I would have smacked Ash silly) and cry with both laughter and joy when things are going well, then look no further. This one will do it all for you. I loved the ending, loved them both. Read this book or your life will be much less the richer for it.If you don't - that'd be bang out of order...Ahwight?

Glitterland is my first m/m romance and while I’ve read m/m romance with supporting characters, I’ve never experienced an entire novel about it.And let me just say, it’s absolutely FANTASTIC!!!“I was playing games with myself, putting up a show of resistance, as if I could take it or leave it. But the truth was, whatever the price, I would gladly pay it just to feel…better. Connected. Human. Alive. Anything at all.”I was definitely hooked from the start but I had a hard time connecting with Ash and I can’t specifically tell you why. As the story progressed I came to understand him and his struggles a bit better but there were plenty of times that I wanted to slap him repeatedly. He definitely had a douchey quality but Darian made up for that. “My world was one of only broken images, like I was standing always on the threshold of a mirror, unable to tell the reflection from the real. The shining city and the blasted heath-the truth lay somewhere between, a thin grey line, slender as the edge of knife.”Darian is someone I was able to connect with immediately. Oh my goodness, I thought he was perfect!!! He’s not refined like Ash but his character, his heart and the truth he spoke made him incredibly compelling which made him completely endearing in my eyes. I fell for Darian as quickly as Ash did and don’t worry, there was no insta-love but perhaps, insta-lust and I was totally okay with that.“The sight of him stirred a wanting that was starting to feel familiar, though it was less frantic tonight. It was a warm, steady thing, like a heartbeat.”The dialogue in this story is priceless because it felt genuine, nothing was forced. Alexis Hall really took his time in developing the characters and the overall story seemed quite clever, not to mention everything wrapped up rather nicely.“So what else you into, then? I mean except reading and writing, talking like the Queen, and dressing like my granddad?”As always I will leave you to ponder my vague thoughts on this book but know it’s written incredibly well and highly enjoyable.

First of all, I Loved Glitterland.I loved it because I was highly emotionally involved with both characters. They were real people living in my heart as I read the book. I wanted to meet them, befriend them, and take them home with me.Alexis Hall is unafraid to delve into the dark territories of the disturbed psyche, and he did so with prose and nuance. This is not another canned romance with fantastic characters and ridiculous plots. It instead focuses on what's real in the imperfection of the human condition.Hall is Incredible at writing dialogue. Just stunning. I'm picky and this is one of the only romances I've read in which the side characters weren't just an annoyance thrown in for lighthearted filler. Hall's side characters are so believable, snarky, hilarious, and absolutely British, that I laughed out loud...another thing I almost never do. I rarely find a romcom funny, and this is not a romcom, but it managed to put me in hysterics at numerous points...because it reflects the way people Actually communicate, which is much funnier than the mountain of pseudo-clever, unbelievable dialogue in your average romcom.As a huge fan of gay-male romance, this was also an extremely hot book for me. I would warn that intimate scenes are quite graphic for those who wish to avoid that. It certainly satisfies in the romance department.Some complain about Hall writing out the character's voices in accent-dialect. For me that was a tremendous enhancement to the book. If you find it difficult or confusing, I'd recommend watching a couple quick videos of people from those various regions of England, so you can understand the way they're supposed to sound in your head. I personally loved both their accents, so that added to the constant delight of the book.Bravo! Glitterland delivers!

Is it possible to trust what you think and feel, when you’re a manic depressive, with bipolar and crippling anxiety? Ash, who’s been to the very-edge of insanity and somehow survived, sees his world in tones of grey, swallowed by the weight of depression and self-deprecation, until he meets his #glitterpirate, Essex (Darian). Who shows him the world how it’s meant to be seen - in Technicolor.“He … he … he’s a kind, ridiculous, beautiful glitter pirate. I don’t know what else I can tell you. He makes me laugh. He makes me hopeful.”Darian and Ash are the epitome of chalk-and-cheese: Ash is an accomplished author, and an Oxbridge graduate, whilst Darian is an aspiring model, with a perma fake-tan, a thick Essex accent and an innocent simplicity, Ash occasionally finds truly breathtaking, and occasionally incredibly infuriating. They come together in a glittering, albeit fleeting wave of true emotion, but soon they drown in the crescendo of their lust - all because Ash believes he’s broken, beyond repair, and thus undeserving of the kind of pure love Darian only can give him.“Darian had slipped past me somehow, like a light through fractured glass. For some bright, fleeting moments, he had made me happy, and all I had done was hurt him.”Ash’s character speaks to me in ways that are all too familiar. I’ve been there and felt so much of what he’s felt. It’s one of the most impactful representations of manic depression you could find in modern literature. However, I love that Darian constantly pulls Ash in an opposing direction. One where he’s not manic nor damaged. Ash almost doesn’t have to think to be with Darian, he can just be - so long as he remembers to cast off the shackles of his deeply ingrained self-loathing.“I was so very afraid of Darian - the unsought miracle - and almost relieved to have driven him away. Yet the wanting remained, like the memory of his hands on my skin.”There’s an intelligence and profound realism to Alexis Hall’s work that draws you in. I’ve no idea whether elements of this story come from his own experiences or not, either way, his perspective makes for a incredibly empathetic and poignant read. (I promise you, one minute you’ll be laughing, the next crying).Glitterland, regardless of how many times I revisit this book, it will always move me in indescribable ways. Evoking utter despair and resounding joy, in equal measure.“He catches my face between his hands, his painted fingernails twinkling like stars, and when he kisses me it feels a bit like fear and tastes a bit like tears, but it’s bright and sweet as sherbet, and I decide to call it joy.”Not read any of Alexis’s work yet? You really should. I promise you they’ll stay with you long after you’ve finished the last page.“All my smiles, you can have all my smiles, whenever I can find them.”

I strongly recommend this book. It is always a breath of fresh air to meet imperfect characters, and to dive into accurate representations of mental disorders. It's a book that raises the question that most people who suffer from a debilitating mental health issue ask themselves: Am I worth loving? Who could possibly choose this if I don't even choose it myself? It's funny, it's romantic, it's devastating. I adore Alexis's writing.

I loved so for you so I came back for more and I was not disappointed!!Such a funny, cute, sad good book!

This book follows our main character Ash, who is a writer dealing with constant cycles of mental illness day to day. He is dejected, having given up on ever becoming happy or finding love, until a chance encounter at a night club changes everything.Ash finds himself in the arms of Essex boy, Darien, a fledgling model who is totally care-free with his fake tan, hair gel and constant optimism.When a one night stand starts to morph into more, Ash finds himself stepping out of his self imposed boundaries and into a life with a possibility of happiness if only he can get out of his own way and allow Darien completely in.This is one of my all time favourite novels, it walks a fine line between complete angst and just being the most charming and funny book I have ever read. Alexis Hall is an incredible author whose works are some of my most beloved reads and this is on top of that list.If you have not picked up this book yet please, please do so. You won’t regret it.

Once you start reading M/M romance, Alexis Hall is a name that you find coming up a lot when it comes to recommendations. Ironically, it was what made me hesitate so long before reading any of his books - but now that I've started, I am overwhelmed and overjoyed.In my opinion, he is one of the best writers of this genre, simply by mere quality of writing alone. Most of the time, even with other good M/M, the writing is at best solid. Here, it's genuinely beautiful and just fun to read for the way he puts words together. The fact that he also creates amazing characters and tells involving love stories that feel real almost feels like an afterthought. To me, if M/M romance is mostly like eating chocolate, Alexis Hall's books are more like a complex, well-rounded meal. (You can tell that I am not good at writing or coming up with characters.)That also means that his books may not be for everyone. I feel they make you work a little bit more to understand the characters than other romance tends to do, and sometimes that's not something you want from a book. Especially this one demands a bit more from the reader, because Ash, the main character from whose perspective the book is told, isn't that easy to like, or to get. But I feel that this captures his illness so much better than other books I've read dealing with depression have.If you're in the mood for complex romance I highly recommend this. It gave me everything I want from a good romance *and* from a great book, and reading it was sheer pleasure, even when it made my heart hurt.