Nagarjuna Akula Akula itibaren Saint-Jean-de-Blaignac, France
This book just made me pull my first all-nighter since college. Cracked it open at bedtime and finished it as the sun rose. I may be that crazy. Or the book is just that good. It's a (seemingly) effortlessly crafted modern love story that makes the potential of our (seemingly) mundane lives nothing short of magical. And sexy as hell.
Love & Sleep was a lot slower going than The Solitudes, and more a 3 1/2 than a solid 4 for that. Still, it works well within the context of the series. As with The Solitudes, it helps to have read a bit about the Western Mystery Tradition (Hermeticism, Alchemy, Renaissance occultism, Rosicrucianism, etc.), Classical Mythology, Ars Memorativa, and Gnosticism, but it's by no means necessary. Readers with some knowledge of these subjects will catch all kinds of sly, veiled references and apparent references to little-discussed or marginal aspects of these topics. As always, Crowley's writing is superb, both beautifully composed and adeptly supportive of the ingenious parallels between the various strands of the story.
I love the way she changes perspectives each chapter, and the beautiful way she examines well-intentioned disrespect between cultures.