I thought the author’s writing style and love for music really shone in this book, but everything else was a huge miss for me.

I had great difficulty spending that much time in Micah’s head as he mourned his friend and went through the motions (not to mention the monotony) of being on tour. Micah’s obsession with Bellamy as a rock star felt really creepy to me and not particularly conducive to a healthy relationship (or even friendship). I cringed at how painfully awkward their conversations were throughout the entire book and I had a hard time imagining any spark between them. The demands Micah made on Bellamy in regards to his anxiety and depression were seriously off-putting, especially when he admitted he didn’t know the first thing about treatment or care, just that it made him very uncomfortable. To top it all off, I was a bit horrified at the way the two of them came together in the end. At 85% Bellamy literally said, “I like you, Micah. But we don’t actually know each other that well.” Their conversations and ensuing promises were very heavy for two young men who barely knew each other, who still walked on eggshells around each other all the way to the very last page, and the ending felt less “Let’s get to know each other” and more “Can't live without you” which seemed like a bad idea for for two young men already coping with some heavy stuff.

DNF @ 56%, so I won't be rating this one.

I loved the blurb for this one and really wanted to like the book. I felt like it was trying really hard to be something it wasn't, and it fell flat for me. If we had gotten Bellamy's point of view and been able to see that introspection instead of simply being told he was introspective, this book could have been much better. As it was, it just didn't hold my attention.

I absolutely LOVED this book. From page one, I fell in love with the characters and rooted for Micah and Bellamy. This is a quintessential love story with all the baggage that comes with complex characters that have a backstory, much like real-life people. The writing was clear, easy to read, and well put together. The plot moved at an even pace that kept me wanting to turn the page instead of go to sleep. This book made my most favorite reads of 2017 list, and I strongly recommend it to anyone that loves a great love story full of bumps, bruises, and genuine passion.

*Review will be posted to Amazon on release day.*

This is my first time reading Eli Lang, and I was blown away by the beautifully evocative writing.

Told entirely from Micah's POV, we get to witness two love stories. One between Micah and Bellamy...and one between Micah and music. Though the book has a, not so much heavy as melancholy, feel to it...there's also this undercurrent of hope that's woven into the story.

Micah is dealing with the grief of suddenly losing his best friend and band mate. As a roadie for one of his favorite bands, he's trying to move past the pain and absorb everything around him. The daily tour life, the elation of watching your favorite musicians perform, being lost in the sound and feel of the music, the buzz of being around so much creativity.

He's also dazzled by Bellamy. The lead singer of Escaping Indigo is breathtaking to watch on stage, but it's the quieter, introspective side of Bellamy that draws Micah in even more. The man that was a live wire on stage had so much he was hiding behind the curtain.

"I wondered if he was performing for me too, or if he was always performing a bit, no matter where he as, or who he was with."

With tentative touches and quiet conversations, the two form a connection. They begin to open up to each other, and Micah begins to notice that there's more to Bellamy's anxiety than the stresses of tour life.

"I saw his shadows, the things that lurked behind his eyes. I didn't know what they were, and he didn't seem to want to tell me. But they were there."

Micah is also trying to find his footing. Trying to figure out what's next in his life. Micah and his best friend had a vision....had a hope of one day being part of a band and having their own successes...and Micah doesn't know how to move on from that...how to grieve the death of his friend, move past the pain, and figure out what HIS dreams are now.

"Now he's gone, and I'm stuck with just half of everything, half of all the things we hoped for..."

I really loved the tentative sweetness of the progression of Bellamy and Micah's relationship. A brush of a shoulder, a touch of a hand, a kiss on the forehead...all of it slowly building a quiet bond. The intimacy of their relationship was about so much more than physical attraction.

Unfortunately, as much as I love the writing here...it also got in the way. Too much time was spent in Micah's head. He'd be having a conversation with someone and then pages would go on about what he was thinking before he'd answer. Sometimes I'd have to go back to see what the question was because I'd forget. Lots and lots and lots of internal thoughts in this book....much more than actual dialogue so be aware of that going in.

But, my biggest issue with this book is that Bellamy's mental health issues feel like a dirty secret. Even by the end, the word "anxiety" is almost whispered in conversation. HE MAY HAVE ANXIETY! HE MAY BE DEPRESSED! IT MAY BE SOMETHING ELSE!! Say it! Address it! It's 2017....mental health shouldn't be a discussion happening behind closed doors and in hushed corners.

Also, I'd call this more of a HFN than HEA. Micah and Bellamy are committed, but I don't feel like they're quite on solid ground yet. I'm hoping we'll get more of their HEA as the series goes on....which I'm looking forward to.

"When he leaned on me, he made me feel like I was steady and strong enough to take his weight and his worries, and the idea that he thought the same thing lit me up, made me believe it might possibly be true."

Reviews are here - http://ontopdownunderbookreviews.com/escaping-indigo-by-eli-lang/

And here - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2005148785?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

DNF so will not be rating or reviewing. Thank you for the opportunity to read this title.

I found this novel very pretentious and dull.I read all of it carefully, thinking I must be missing something, but ended up bored.Long stretches of the book contain passages of prose more purple than the title. There is no escaping indigo!

It tells the story of Micah, drummer and roadie, recovering from the loss of best friend, Eric, and of Bellamy, singer/songwriter/guitarist , assailed by anxiety and deserted by his boyfriend. They meet while on tour with the band, Escaping Indigo.

As usual, this books deals with men being unable to communicate. Here, there is too much talking and thinking and too little thought. At the end Bellamy and Micah seem to be no closer to understanding each other than when they met.

They do manage to have sex, but it is as unconvincing to me as the rest of their “relationship”. As main characters, they are no more substantial than cardboard cut-outs, albeit drenched in angst.

The only glimmer of real feelings which touched me came in a conversation between Quinn, Eric’s brother, and Micah, which serves as a device to get Bellamy and Micah back together. Here there seemed to be a small spark of a relationship more worthy of development than Micah’s star-struck reverence of Bellamy and Bellamy’s somewhat pathetic dependence on Micah’s bolstering of his oh-so-fragile ego.

The most intriguing part of the book is the title. Is it a reference to the jazz classic “Mood Indigo”? Or to New Age philosophy where indigo represents the 6th chakra (intuition and knowledge)? Or Alice A. Bailey’s Seventh Ray? i would be interested to find out.

Probably 2.5 stars and those mainly for the depiction of how anxiety disorder can affect one’s everyday functioning.

Thank you to NetGalley and Riptide Publishing for the ARC

Escaping Indigo, Eli Lang

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre:  Romance, LGBTQIA

There's bits I love about this story, the band and music parts, really made me feel I was on tour with the band but...the romance. It was subtle, so subtle it almost disappeared, and for me it didn't really work. 

I liked the guys, but poor Micah, he's had such a sad past, lost his best friend and still feels as if perhaps he could have done more, seen something, made Eric get help. I think we're all like that, feel a kind of survivors guilt sometimes and its played on Micah to the point he was really depressed.
Then Eric's brother gets him the job as a roadie for Escaping Indigo, a band Micah has always admired.

Its a kind of dream world, interacting daily with the band he's so long admired, looked up to, aspired to be like. Bellamy though is very quiet, and you can feel Micah always worrying he's in the way, going to cause offence, be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Poor guy doesn't know what he should do, and then Bellamy starts talking. It's a dream come true for Micah, and as they chat he begins to know Bellamy the man, not just Bellamy lead singer of the band. 
Its odd though, Bellamy himslef and others kind of warn him off, tell him to be carefully, with Bellamy saying he's no good for him, could hurt him etc one moment, and then worrying Micah is going to be like his ex, the last roadie and leave him.
He's pushing away at the same time as he's pulling Micah in and the poor boy is confused.
I so felt for him, he just wants to help, to be a friend and more, part of a couple and its what they do, help each other. Bellamy gets all hurt and offended though at Micah's suggestions and he's back to treading on eggshells trying to keep their relationship going without tipping Bellamy over. 

At times I wanted to smack Bellamy. Yes he's got issues, but he needs to decide what he wants to do, not blame everyone for wanting to help. It seems in the past everyone had just accepted he had moments, periods when he was...quiet, different, struggling and they all just worked round it. 

Its a sweet romance, and I really wanted things to work out but by the end I still wasn't sure whether what they were doing would be enough.
Its a very gentle romance, not a torrid sex-every-other-page read and that's fine by me, I want tenderness, sensuality not just sex and more sex.
Somehow though this book, while being a good read, made me feel part of the scene, didn't quite cut it for a romance read. 

Stars: Three, a gentle read, great band side but for me a slightly unsatisfying ending.

ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers