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Thin Air
Back in the mid-90s the UK music scene was rocked by the mysterious disappearance of Richie Edwards from the Manic Street Preachers. Author Storm Constantine was intrigued by this story and found herself thinking ‘What if...?’ Thin Air is the novel that sprang from her ideas. While the characters in this book are not based upon any existing people, alive, dead or missing, the mystery was enough to inspire a story.
Dex is the front man of a successful band, and appears to have the perfect rock star life with his journalist partner, Jay. But Jay’s existence is shattered by Dex’s sudden disappearance. The mystery is never solved, and Dex is never found: alive or dead. Some years later, after Jay has got her life back together, strange events begin to unfold that suggest that Dex is still around. While it gradually becomes clear to Jay that there is more to the mystery than even she thought possible, malign forces begin to close in on her with the apparent intent of keeping the truth behind Dex’s disappearance forever hidden.
Jay can only follow the clues where they lead her, and that is into territory beyond normal human perception. In the bizarre town of Lestholme, she comes upon a community of the lost, people whose lives have been ruined by media attention, and it is in this surreal place that Jay must penetrate to the heart of the mystery, and discover what really happened to the man she loves, who vanished into thin air.
Capturing the ambience of the music scene of the 90s, Thin Air is one of Storm’s best-loved novels.
Dex is the front man of a successful band, and appears to have the perfect rock star life with his journalist partner, Jay. But Jay’s existence is shattered by Dex’s sudden disappearance. The mystery is never solved, and Dex is never found: alive or dead. Some years later, after Jay has got her life back together, strange events begin to unfold that suggest that Dex is still around. While it gradually becomes clear to Jay that there is more to the mystery than even she thought possible, malign forces begin to close in on her with the apparent intent of keeping the truth behind Dex’s disappearance forever hidden.
Jay can only follow the clues where they lead her, and that is into territory beyond normal human perception. In the bizarre town of Lestholme, she comes upon a community of the lost, people whose lives have been ruined by media attention, and it is in this surreal place that Jay must penetrate to the heart of the mystery, and discover what really happened to the man she loves, who vanished into thin air.
Capturing the ambience of the music scene of the 90s, Thin Air is one of Storm’s best-loved novels.
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First published January 1, 1999
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86 people want to read
About the author
Storm Constantine
144 books503 followersStorm Constantine was a British science fiction and fantasy author, primarily known for her Wraeththu series.
Since the late 1980s she wrote more than 20 novels, plus several non-fiction books. She is featured in the Goth Bible and is often included in discussions of alternative sexuality and gender in science fiction and fantasy; many of her novels include same-sex relationships or hermaphrodites or other twists of gender. Magic, mysticism and ancient legends (like the Grigori) also figure strongly in her works.
In 2003 she launched Immanion Press, based out of Stafford, England. The publishing company publishes not only her own works but those of new writers, as well as well-known genre writers, mainly from the UK.
Since the late 1980s she wrote more than 20 novels, plus several non-fiction books. She is featured in the Goth Bible and is often included in discussions of alternative sexuality and gender in science fiction and fantasy; many of her novels include same-sex relationships or hermaphrodites or other twists of gender. Magic, mysticism and ancient legends (like the Grigori) also figure strongly in her works.
In 2003 she launched Immanion Press, based out of Stafford, England. The publishing company publishes not only her own works but those of new writers, as well as well-known genre writers, mainly from the UK.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 25, 2012
I have again dipped into my old favourites file on kindle... This is a stunningly written book, which is both emotional and haunting... The mix of despair and hope at a sudden disappearance of a rock star told from his girlfriends point of view is made more poignant by the fact that at the time this was written the lead singer of The Manic Street Preachers had gone missing, never to be found... Storm takes the story of this imaginary stars girlfriend Jay's quest to find him to almost a supernatural conclusion... Her obsessive idea that he is still alive, just on a different plane of existance is a tempting theory... Imagine how tempting if you have a loved one who had disappeared into the ether... Suzy Lamplugh, Maddy McCann, Ben Needham to name the famous few... People disappear more than you realise, it would be nice to think that they are still alive somewhere in another level beyond our knowledge... A must read for Storm fans like myself, and first time readers of her work alike...
August 9, 2007
It's a long time since I re-read Thin Air. I always forget how good it is, because the subject matter - goth musician vanishes, girlfriend left behind thinks there's something fishy going on - is so not my thing. But that summary, accurate as it is, doesn't do the novel justice.
It's a realistic rather than glamorous look at the music industry. It's a romance and a mystery with a truly spooky conclusion. It's a faery tale in the original folk sense. Love it.
It's a realistic rather than glamorous look at the music industry. It's a romance and a mystery with a truly spooky conclusion. It's a faery tale in the original folk sense. Love it.
November 23, 2021
What the heck?
Richey Edwards took me here, and about halfway through, I wished he'd led me away too.
It started reasonably well and then turned into something else completely. The author seems to have a dislike of both definite and indefinite articles, and the book is not particularly well written.
2.5 stars, mostly for the setting and original idea.
Richey Edwards took me here, and about halfway through, I wished he'd led me away too.
It started reasonably well and then turned into something else completely. The author seems to have a dislike of both definite and indefinite articles, and the book is not particularly well written.
2.5 stars, mostly for the setting and original idea.
January 12, 2020
A mystery laced with the otherworldy surrounds the disappearance of a rising musician. Jay, a journalist once very close to the musician, finds herself drawn into the mystery when the highly placed in the music industry come knocking on her door, suspecting she’s the keeper of secrets they don’t want released. The mystery turns into a quest when Jay finds herself on a journey which takes her to other realms where lost souls ripped apart by a career in entertainment gather, seeking sanctuary while the forces seeking to oppose the industry try using those caught in the middle as pawns. Jay peels away layer by layer of what’s happening, facing a number of allies and enemies, even as everything she sees as real comes into question.
This was a story where a dark supernatural cabal and a haven created by human dreams take on a life of their own in reaction to the ruthless, restrictive clique-ish atmosphere depicted in a slice of reality, embodied by Jay and the various characters she meets on her quest. Jay, her missing lover, her friends, enemies, and the lost souls she meets are fleshed out, yet feel somehow hollow, reflecting the world they’re all caught in. Taking on the feel of a modern fairytale along with a modern fantasy story, a slice of life, and a mystery, this is a heady genre cocktail which draw attention to a fast-moving, harsh reality which casts reflections of sunlight, shadow, lurking terrors and hopes on the other worlds which touch upon it.
This was a story where a dark supernatural cabal and a haven created by human dreams take on a life of their own in reaction to the ruthless, restrictive clique-ish atmosphere depicted in a slice of reality, embodied by Jay and the various characters she meets on her quest. Jay, her missing lover, her friends, enemies, and the lost souls she meets are fleshed out, yet feel somehow hollow, reflecting the world they’re all caught in. Taking on the feel of a modern fairytale along with a modern fantasy story, a slice of life, and a mystery, this is a heady genre cocktail which draw attention to a fast-moving, harsh reality which casts reflections of sunlight, shadow, lurking terrors and hopes on the other worlds which touch upon it.
June 1, 2021
I was expecting good things from this book, and I wasn't disappointed. The wonderful Storm Consantine (RIP) wrote "Hermetech", one of my favourite novels of all time. "Thin Air" is completely different, but it is beautifully written and a clever mix of crime thriller and magic.
The protagonist is a music journalist who investigates the disappearance of the love of her life who also happens to be a famous rock musician. What she discovers pushes her out of her comfort zone and threatens her sanity.
The protagonist is a music journalist who investigates the disappearance of the love of her life who also happens to be a famous rock musician. What she discovers pushes her out of her comfort zone and threatens her sanity.
June 17, 2020
Thin Gruel could be the title--modern plus magic-sort-of, in an uncomfortable mishmash of people whom I would not have liked even if some of them were not closet EEEVIL The attractive-enough guy on the cover suckered me in (plus the fact that it was free in the local little free library), and it didn't live up to what I thought it might be. She seems better at Wraethu stuff, more complete fantasy worlds--
December 27, 2018
I finished only to finish!
May 7, 2013
As with all Storm Constantine’s tales, the book you start reading is not quite the one that finishes. If you expect Thin Air to remain a mystery rooted in the material world, then you’re going to have your hopes dashed. Myth, magic and other realms are never far away in Constantine’s writing.
Jay is a somewhat jaded music journalist who finds love in the most unlikeliest places – with her famous rockstar partner, Dex. And for many years she thinks she has the perfect life – him with his touring and recording of successful albums, and she with her career writing editorial for magazines.
As it turns out, this is all a sham. Dex has secrets, and when he vanishes one day without a trace, she begins to realise that he’s been holding out on her all these years. You can only imagine the sense of betrayal that must be. Yet though she is damaged, Jay is resilient, and she picks herself up, dusts herself off and moves on.
But as it turns out, there are powerful people who believe that Jay is still in contact with Dex, who has run out supposedly with his last recordings that his fabulously powerful and wealthy masters want. There is more to Dex and his music that meet the eye, and Jay finds herself inexorably drawn into a world where reality is a pliant, somewhat fickle thing.
In a way Thin Air is a fairy tale, but mostly it’s a kind of urban myth that gradually unfolds and envelops readers in otherness. Jay and Dex are but two players who, though not wholly in control of their destinies, are still important lynchpins in a power struggle between opposing forces. It’s difficult for me to find fault with Constantine’s writing, but if anything, I did feel as if Jay and Dex were almost too passive in how they attained their goals. But that really didn’t bother me because, hell, Constantine is a magician.
Her writing is dreamy and fluid, and she masterfully weaves her artistry to create a milieu laced with archetypes that is tangible – that one could easily imagine exists on the other side of a hedgerow or just beyond a copse of poplars.
Jay is a somewhat jaded music journalist who finds love in the most unlikeliest places – with her famous rockstar partner, Dex. And for many years she thinks she has the perfect life – him with his touring and recording of successful albums, and she with her career writing editorial for magazines.
As it turns out, this is all a sham. Dex has secrets, and when he vanishes one day without a trace, she begins to realise that he’s been holding out on her all these years. You can only imagine the sense of betrayal that must be. Yet though she is damaged, Jay is resilient, and she picks herself up, dusts herself off and moves on.
But as it turns out, there are powerful people who believe that Jay is still in contact with Dex, who has run out supposedly with his last recordings that his fabulously powerful and wealthy masters want. There is more to Dex and his music that meet the eye, and Jay finds herself inexorably drawn into a world where reality is a pliant, somewhat fickle thing.
In a way Thin Air is a fairy tale, but mostly it’s a kind of urban myth that gradually unfolds and envelops readers in otherness. Jay and Dex are but two players who, though not wholly in control of their destinies, are still important lynchpins in a power struggle between opposing forces. It’s difficult for me to find fault with Constantine’s writing, but if anything, I did feel as if Jay and Dex were almost too passive in how they attained their goals. But that really didn’t bother me because, hell, Constantine is a magician.
Her writing is dreamy and fluid, and she masterfully weaves her artistry to create a milieu laced with archetypes that is tangible – that one could easily imagine exists on the other side of a hedgerow or just beyond a copse of poplars.
Want to read
September 9, 2010*note to self. (copy from Al).
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews