Cute, hopeful and uplifting story about second chances. One of the most beautifully written books I've read. I adored the dreamlike prose and in my opinion the flowery style added so much to the storyand its angst.
Overall a wonderful read.

I liked the first half of this, but the switching to the other ex in the second half left both stories feeling underdeveloped. Also, can we please get CWs for sudden eating disorder plots in the year of our lord 2023???

Thank you book gods and Sourcebook CASABLANCA for giving us Alexis Hall's genius work.
Waiting for the Flood is a short story set in a rainy Oxford about to get flooded. Edwin lives alone in his dream house he bought with his ex, the one he thought was the love of his life.
Adam is an engineer working the prevent the flood, he is also a redhead and that was such a nice bonus for me!
The premises are really peculiar and just for that I applause the author.
Like always Alexix's writing doesn´t disappoint. In all his books, and in this one too, I found myself laughing so much it hurts. The love stories are always super sweet and never boring. His sense of humor helps to convey everyday life struggles and I want to live in his world. His characters are everyday people, not too polished and not too perfect and that it´s the real gem of this book. I loved it!

I really enjoyed this. It was a good story and the romance was cute and steamy. Love Alexis Hall books!

AJH is at it again! I first found his books a few years with Boyfriend Material, and I've been slowly making my way through his back catalog. I read this one early on, and I'm thrilled that the Spires series is getting this beautiful re-release! While this one is not my favorite of the series (my favorite has to be For Real -- VERY excited for that rerelease), Hall's signature style is present and accounted for, and this story is still beautiful and emotional, filled with small moments that mean a lot.

This book wasn’t written for me. I didn’t resonate with any of the characters but that doesn’t mean this is a “bad” book by any means. It flowed well, the dialogue was great between characters.

This is a two-part review since this book has 2 books in one.

Waiting for the Flood:

This is read #3 for this book.

I requested the ARC for this because I wanted to get my hands on Chasing the Light (which I'll review separately on its GR page). Of course I re-read Waiting for the Flood because it's such a comfort read. My first time through this, I was impressed with the intellectual bits (the language, the game theory). On my second read, I fell more in love with the characters (their humor, their gentle nice-ness, the sweet romance). This time I was struck by the sheer ambiance of the setting. This book feels like slipping into a warm, cozy sweater. I can hear the rain and the machinery of trucks and sploshing of puddles. The house creaks and smells of attic space. The writing breathes with beautiful description as metaphor for themes like transition and letting go, moving forward, accepting change. The rain interrupts ordinary life, shakes things up, and forces Edwin to plunge into new depths. It's just such a soft toasted marshmallow of a read that is so lovely to sink into. And yeah, the words are just gorgeous.

Also, shout out to Mrs. P who I've failed to laud in prior reviews.

On a personal note - I've been trying to learn Greek for a couple of years now, and one of the first bits of vocab was for newspaper (εφημερίδα pronounced like efemeritha). In my quest to make my brain pick up words faster, I'm constantly searching for cognates, and I expected this would be common in Greek since we derive so many words from them. Usually though, I'm left scratching my head. Then comes Alexis Hall with this right in chapter one:

Ephemera, it's called. From the Greek.

Thanks for helping me make that connection, AJH!

I can't wait to add the physical book to my shelf because the covers on these re-releases are incredible.


Chasing the Light:

Chasing the Light is such a wonderful addition to the Spires universe. It fits in so seamlessly, it makes me curious to know whether it was written contemporaneously with the other books or if AJH can easily slip back into that world to produce new stories for these characters.

This is a novella, but it packs in a complete romance arc, starting with one of my favorite setups: a one-night stand to HFN. Marius, cantankerous, self-loathing, unlovable brat, sprains his ankle, gets rescued by a gentle boat owner, propositions him, and then proceeds to try to be as awful as possible. He didn't count on Leo's unseen depths, his patience, and his own dark backstory. The attraction is instant, but the romance has to take a bit of a journey. By boat as it turns out.

Premise sorted - these are some of the things I loved:

Mr. F. Just gonna get that one out of the way because it's frivolous and such a small detail, but everyone should have a Mr. F to speak the scary, awkward words we don't want to voice ourselves. And it's just adorable to see such a spikey shell like Marius cling onto this softy. Really top-notch character-building.

Leo Dance. What a guy. While Leo has complications, he isn't complicated. He's hot, sweet, funny, and thoughtful. Plus he reads. He's pitch perfect through the entire story, and I would like to mail-order one for me, please and thanks.

The *fans self* glorious pages of hookup. Spires has some of the best sex scenes, and this book does not fall short.

Marius's mother. The cringe is hilarious and so relatable. I love how her presence pushes the romance forward by giving Leo a glimpse of this other side of Marius, and vice versa.

Overlap with WftF - which I won't elaborate on to avoid spoilers, but the Balzacian "Comédie humaine" aspect of the Spires series is very satisfying. While I think CtL could easily be published as a standalone (esp with that gorgeous cover) and hope one day it might, it fits so perfectly as a companion piece to WftF and gives us a really nice full circle.

The luscious writing. The writing in all of Spires is lush and unapologetically poetic. This is part of what brings me back again and again to these books. The humor is still there because there isn't a universe in which AJH isn't hilarious, but it's always side by side with melancholy and navel-gazing and profound (or often mundane) questions about life, art, family, self. Like: What does it mean to be an artist who isn't arting?

What did I leave out? The ambiance, the banter, the bad-assery of Adam, the parallels of their own former prisons, the gorgeous redemption...

I just really loved this and am excited to have this on my shelf in a couple of months. Also, I cannot wait to see what additions to this universe we'll see in the upcoming re-releases.

Waiting for the Flood and Chasing the Light are part of the Spires series but one doesn't have to have read any of the others to appreciate these two novellas. Alexis Hall creates realistic, flawed characters that are searching for meaningful lives and find the possibility of loving relationships along the way. I thought the description of Edwin's stammering was very sensitively drawn in Waiting for the Flood, which I wish were a full length novel because I really liked the two main characters.
Chasing the Light compliments Waiting for the Flood as it takes the story of Edwin's ex, Marius, who is prickly and difficult to love. Marius and Leo were also deftly drawn characters brought together by accident, but each finding something in the other that makes both of theirs lives more hopeful and light. It is a Christmas story in both the actual timing but also in the theme of darkness to light which was quite moving.

I highly recommend these and all of Alexis Hall's work to readers of LGBTQIA+ romance.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book!

This book is an absolutely delight and I didn’t know there was also a novella included. What a pleasant surprise!
Alexis Hall know how to write. His character are so vivid, so real that I want to rip them of the pages to hug them. I love them so much, I’m really can’t wait to read the next book of this wonderful series.
I also appreciate the theme of the book. The topic are so important, thank you for bringing them in this book.

Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks for the arc!

Alexis Hall brings his signature style, and fans will be pleased. I stopped after chapter 1 (4%), but I imagine it’s an easy three stars, four to five for the right readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the ARC.

I read this in a quick one day sitting and it was magical. The rain was falling down around me and I was sitting in the window seat of a house with a garden. There was a distant rolling of thunder in the background which really helped me get into this book.

A great short story about a man who has been holding on to the ghosts of his past, learning to let go and let new love into his life. The characters were cute and endearing and had real life experiences. I really enjoyed this one

Both of these novellas were so different but still so beautifully written I'm almost beyond words. I read Waiting for the Flood in a single sitting because I just could not put it down. Edwin's mind was a treasure to be in and I wish we had an entire novel with him and Adam, not just a novella, because I love them that much.

Marius was a very different character and I didn't like him as much to start but the more I read, the more I understood and liked him. Leo is a complete cinnamon roll who I will protect with my life. I cried more than once in Marius and Leo's story and loved the closure it brought to both Edwin and Marius.

I received an ARC from Netgallery and because I'm super tired and recovering from a music festival yesterday, I have left an honest review.

Review of the re-release of Waiting for the Flood - a very moving romance by Alexis Hall that I have loved for a very long time - with a new novella Chasing the Light.

I love how beautifully the story is made up of small moments against the backdrop of a major event, a flood in Oxford. Tender, awkward moments of connection and care between Edwin Tully and Adam Dacre sharing cups of tea, homemade bread, revelations of pain and heartbreak. The ephemeral ordinariness that document the way you begin to know and love someone. I adore this quiet romance about living with the memories and pain of a love that is gone and choosing to risk your heart again.

Chasing the Light is Marius’s story. Marius Chankseliani is Edwin’s ex-partner and prior to this new novella he has existed mostly off page except for a brief cameo in For Real. Marius is extremely prickly, often mean, messy, vulnerable, and afraid. And in his story, Marius finds himself relying on the kindness of a stranger, Leo Dance and his narrowboat. This story is the perfect bookend to Flood about forgiveness, vulnerability, hope, and love - and how absolutely terrifying the journey can be.

"Love has nothing to do with worth"

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for an arc of this book which I voluntarily read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I’ll split this review into two sections. One for Waiting for the Flood and one for the new novella, Chasing the Light.

First, I have to be honest — I love stories when the MC thinks they are unloveable. Whether the MC knows/believes no one has ever loved them or because they think someone has only to realized they didn’t, not truly. When the MC feels broken and battered by the world, only for their person to come barreling into their life. I just can’t say how much I love those stories. These novellas… these novellas are quite special.

Waiting for the Flood

I read this novella a few years back, and quite enjoyed coming back to Edwin and Adam’s world.

Edwin, our first main character, lives in an area that is about to be flooded by a vicious rain storm. His ex of 10 of years, Marius, left him. Now, Edwin is alone, lonely, and spends most of his time working on restoring books, as restoration is both a hobby and his job. (I learned a lot of fun trivia from Edwin and it was glorious.) He also enjoys hanging with his elderly neighbor, Mrs. P. Just to note, Mrs. P. is amazing and I want her as my neighbor!

Adam, our other main character, comes to meet Edwin through his work dealing with floods for his job. Adam is a civil engineer so knows all the math trivia. Cough, game theory, cough. My math nerd self was in heaven for that scene!

This is a story about getting through the flood, both literal and metaphorical, learning how to move on after hard times, and discovering you are worthy of love just as you are. If you love character driven stories, please pick this one up, it is an exceptional novella that will warm your heart.

Chasing the Light

This novella is Marius’s story and takes place later. I always love a good redemption arc, so I had quite high hopes for this one. I wasn’t disappointed. Not only with Marius, but our other main character, Leo, who has a redemption arc of his own — although it mostly occurred before Marius met him.

This novella was tender, heartwarming, gut wrenching, funny, and more. I adored references to movies and pop culture. They were quite clever and two in particular were so fun.

I want to note the appreciation I have of the authors ability to write complex characters that are each struggling in their own unique ways. These characters, throughout their growth and love stories, help teach readers empathy and show others they are not only not alone, but are lovable. Representation matters.

I very much enjoyed this book. I hope others do, too.






TW: anxiety, speech disorder, eating disorder, prison (in past and off page), bad family dynamics, vision/retina diagnosis (off page, discussed on page).

I’ve read Waiting For the Flood numerous times and I was so excited to learn that it was being rereleased, along with a bonus Marius story. And, wow. Just wow. I’m so happy to be reading a new Spires story and Marius’ story is perfect. It’s beautiful and sad and made me cry. I love that there are cameos from other Spires books. Leo and his narrowboat is romantic, yet realistic, and having seen these narrowboats along the Themes in Oxford really helped bring this to life for me.
I am continually blown away by how Alexis Hall is able to write these incredibly emotional stories and how he’s able to make me care about characters I had thought terrible and irredeemable. Chasing the Light was the perfect companion to Waiting For the Flood and I am so thankful that we finally get this story.

Thank you Sourcebooks Casablanca for this aARC. This book was so different from any romance I’ve read before. Switching perspectives halfway through threw me off at first and it was truly very hard to care about the main characters Ex after I had come to love him so much but wow by the end I wanted to wrap him in a warm blanket and never let him go. Alexis Hall will never be nailed down and I am kind of in love with that.

Sometimes all it takes is a flood, a civil engineer, a sprained ankle and a stranger on a boat to make you see how people in your life view you.
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This is my third Alexis Hall book, and I seem to be in a pattern of liking one, not really liking the second, and then really enjoying the third.
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There’s a flood coming, and the only person who has checked in on Edwin is his ex-boyfriend’s mum. While considering how to protect his home, Edwin encounters Adam, the burly, ginger civil engineer who may be the one to cure Edwin’s low self-worth.
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Their initial interactions are cute, Edwin fumbling over his feelings for Adam and his fear of being hurt again. Adam trying to get through Edwin’s walls and show him how he sees Edwin.
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Then there’s Marius, the ex, who storms out of his parents house upon seeing Edwin and Adam sitting there and winds up spraining his ankle, only to be rescued by a mysterious man with a man-bun who lives on a boat.
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I’ll spare the rest of the story and encourage you to pick this up when it is released on Feb 20, 2024. What I will say though is that this felt to me like two stories that were very separated at first. Part one focused on Edwin and part 2 on Marius before they join together at the end. It felt a bit disjointed.
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Both parts had a different kind of vibe, Edwin was sweet and homey, whereas Marius’ part was more emotional and spicy. And part of this is down to their personality, but it didn’t help much with the flow.
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Aside from this, I really thought that the story had a really great arc, it didn’t blather on, or sound super predictable. The spice was the perfect temperature and I am totally in love with Marius’ mum 😂

(Re)read December 2023: ARC of the new 2024 edition with a second novella Chasing the Light

I reread Waiting for the Flood regularly because I love to see how, as the water levels rise, Edwin finally moves on after his relationship fell apart. It’s a lovely, sweet novella with a strong sense of place. In this case place isn’t just Oxford but also Edwin’s home; it’s almost as if the house is a character.

And now, Alexis Hall has written a new novel to go with Waiting for the Flood. In Chasing the Light we finally meet Edwin’s ex Marius properly. We also saw a glimpse of him in For Real (Spires Universe #3), but now he finally becomes a fully formed character. It’s once more set in Oxford, but this time during Christmas. The river is very present again, as is a home. This time it’s not a regular house but a narrow boat, and living on one is just as demanding as protecting a home against a flood. And for me this is the strength of Chasing the Light. It isn’t just a story that happens to feature Edwin’s ex, but it truly complements Waiting for the Flood. It is angstier than a lot of Alexis Hall’s more recent work, which makes it fit in perfectly with the other books in the Spires series. The prose is exquisite, with luscious descriptions of life on the river.

Marius is a difficult man to like and I’m not sure he ever becomes likeable. Leo seems easy-going but is recovering from a life-changing experience. I found the romance believable but it is very much an HFN rather than an HEA. In Waiting for the Flood Marius’s mother is already introduced but only in text messages and on the phone. I always loved those little scenes. She now plays a bigger part and she’s even more amazing. There’s also a scene between Edwin and Marius where they finally speak very frankly about their relationship and its ending. It’s beautiful.

(Re)read December 2023: ARC of the new 2024 edition with a second novella Chasing the Light

I reread Waiting for the Flood regularly because I love to see how, as the water levels rise, Edwin finally moves on after his relationship fell apart. It’s a lovely, sweet novella with a strong sense of place. In this case place isn’t just Oxford but also Edwin’s home; it’s almost as if the house is a character.

And now, Alexis Hall has written a new novel to go with Waiting for the Flood. In Chasing the Light we finally meet Edwin’s ex Marius properly. We also saw a glimpse of him in For Real (Spires Universe #3), but now he finally becomes a fully formed character. It’s once more set in Oxford, but this time during Christmas. The river is very present again, as is a home. This time it’s not a regular house but a narrow boat, and living on one is just as demanding as protecting a home against a flood. And for me this is the strength of Chasing the Light. It isn’t just a story that happens to feature Edwin’s ex, but it truly complements Waiting for the Flood. It is angstier than a lot of Alexis Hall’s more recent work, which makes it fit in perfectly with the other books in the Spires series. The prose is exquisite, with luscious descriptions of life on the river.

Marius is a difficult man to like and I’m not sure he ever becomes likeable. Leo seems easy-going but is recovering from a life-changing experience. I found the romance believable but it is very much an HFN rather than an HEA. In Waiting for the Flood Marius’s mother is already introduced but only in text messages and on the phone. I always loved those little scenes. She now plays a bigger part and she’s even more amazing. There’s also a scene between Edwin and Marius where they finally speak very frankly about their relationship and its ending. It’s beautiful.

I finished the book yesterday and I’m already considering rereading it. I loved it that much. Waiting for the Flood has always been a 5-star read for me, but I think I love Chasing the Light even more. So can I give this 6 stars?

Such a sweet, emotional, and ultimately uplifting book. I love this story and these characters. I was so glad to revisit them with this re-release, and I'm looking forward to the other books in this series.

I adored this book. It definitely reads more like romantic literary fiction than some of Alexis Hall's other books - so don't expect a Boyfriend Material - like experience per se. While it has Hall's snarky humor and sense of romance - it is a very different experience. Waiting for the flood tracks the road back from a break up of a long term relationship for both Edwin and Marius. Edwin and Marius were together for ten years and have been broken up for four. Since that time neither has really moved on. Marius instigated the breakup and it totally blindsided Edwin. Both characters are imperfect in every sense of the word and have a lot of baggage.

Edwin is a sweet, introverted book conservator at Oxford. He has a speech disorder that has left him quiet when he really is anything but. When a flood threatens his house - he encounters Adam. Adam is an engineer who is quite perfect for Edwin and totally gone for him very quickly. Alexis Hall's writing of Edwin's character is so perfect and spot on for his personality. I adored the way Edwin loved words and it showed so clearly in the way his character was written.

Based on the the description provided by the publisher, you might think that the story focuses only on Edwin - and while his story with Adam is delightful - it was really the part of the book that focused on Marius and Leo that I couldn't stop reading. The second half of the books moves from Edwin connecting with Adam on to Marius. Marius is a very damaged person. He feels very unlovable - and you can feel how at risk he really is, even though it is never directly addressed. He is also somewhat of an unreliable narrator - which I kind of love. We learn a lot about him - but not everything is 100% clear about his story or where he stands. Leo is also a work in progress (aren't we all) - but he spent time in prison and is working hard on himself in a way that Marius really needs. Marius has also been in a prison of a different kind - and he needs Leo to show him how to move forward and find acceptance of himself and his new reality.

Overall, I can't recommend this book more! If nothing else read it for the final 1/4 of the book. The final scenes of this book - between Marius and Edwin are just so perfect. I know - vague recommendation - but honestly - you need to read this book if nothing else so you can get to those scenes.

I received this book via NetGalley as an ARC, but these opinions are all my own.