A unique take on alcoholism and the strength of a women’s determination to bring her family back together

Bright burning things was a strange book I felt! Detailing Sonyas battle with alcoholism and struggling to parent her son Tommy whilst under the influence.I have read many books about alcohol abuse and child neglect but just didn’t really click with this one and how it was written, I felt that although Sonya was reunited with Tommy ultimately we would never know if she remained dry and managed to parent successfully.
Thank you net galley for this early read.

When love is not enough

Lisa Harding’s harrowing novel about alcoholism, dysfunctional family dynamics, alcoholism , mental health, co-dependency and coercive control (phew!) is almost unremitting in its bleakness

She writes well, inhabiting her first person narrator, single mother Sonya, and the obsessively close relationship between mother and four year old, preternaturally responsive Tommy.

Sonya was/is an Irish actress, on the verge of some kind of stardom, dangerously intense in her work, exposing authentically her considerable psychological wounds and instability. She had a tendency to live too much, too large, too excessively in every way. This included, includes her use of alcohol. Abandoned by her lover when she became pregnant, she now struggles to keep things together, her sanity, her rage and pain, the loss of her career, her finances – and, most importantly, to keep her child with her, and not have him removed for his own safety. Alcohol is both the solution she finds, and the loaded gun of destruction

The big challenge I found with this raw, achingly painful book is the unremitting, almost unending spiral of one note down down darkness. There needed some leaven. Otherwise, there is little journey, the book started in an extremely dark place, getting progressively darker for almost its entire journey. This meant that movements against that journey , when they came, seemed paradoxically incredible, and a little like a ‘wrap’ . Variety coming somewhat late to the table

I would certainly be interested in reading more by this writer, but hope for more colours in her palette, whilst still keeping the strength and courage to explore serious issues at depth

A heartbreaking and difficult read about a young mother struggling with alcoholism. As a daughter of a parent who also battled this addiction and lost I was rooting for Sonya and her lovely little boy Tommy. Its hard to read in some places but the author has written about this subject really well we see why Sonya has mental health issues leading to her alcohol dependency, it's not a pretty read but a must read. I don't want to add any spoilers so won't go into much detail but it is definitely a book worth reading.

This was an insightful and engaging read about alcoholism.
It really captured the pain and chaos it can cause. It was strangely a poetic read and everything flowed with ease, I struggled to put it down.
Written from a one person point of view, a story of mother and son, daughter and father. A story that will sit with me for a while, it just could’ve done with a bit more at the end

Bright, Burning Things is my favourite read this year.

Lisa Harding does a remarkable job of painting the relationship between Sonya and her four year old son, Tommy. Tommy's dialogue reminded me of Room by Emma Donoghue. The story is told from a first person viewpoint, which made it come alive. I really felt invested in Sonya's story.

The key issue is Sonya's addiction to alcohol and we follow her journey through rehab and beyond, exploring her relationships with her father and his partner, her neighbour, Sister Ann at the rehab facility and her love interest, David.

What stood out for me was the unique relationship between mother and son and how it prevails over every hurdle. The author brings the threads to a good conclusion.

This was a thought provoking read, which I will highly recommend.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Bright Burning Things is a unique novel. Told from the perspective of single-parent Sonya - mother to Tommy and her crippling alcohol addiction.
This is a very raw novel and at times I had to take a break, as some of Sonya's actions were very hard to comprehend. There is no doubt the Sonya loves her son when she has had a drink - she loves him too much almost suffocating him whilst hugging him.
It is clear the further you read that Sonya has not come to terms with issues in her past and she drinks to block out her ability to face this head-on.
Harding's characters are believable and her writing very emotive. This was a pleasure to read.

Bright Burning Things is the heartbreaking story of Sonya and her battle with alcoholism. Sonya lives with her four year old son Tommy and their dog Herbie (Tommy’s best friend) in Dublin. As Sonya’s addiction spirals, Sonya’s father (who has been largely absent from her life) stages an intervention and forces her into rehab. The story follows Sonya as she tries to deal with her addiction and get Tommy and her dog back. The story is told from Sonya’s point of view and perfectly depicts how unreliable a narrator Sonya is during her addiction and when she suffers emotionally during her rehabilitation. The relationship between Sonya and Tommy is beautiful and full of love but because Sonya is the narrator you never truly get the full extent of or feel for how terrifying and traumatising the experience is for Tommy. The experience of reading Bright Burning Things is almost like watching a disaster movie through your hands - you know the awful things that might happen, you are willing them not to take certain routes because it will be disastrous but you can’t stop watching either. The subject matter is dark and upsetting but it never truly feels that you are bogged down in that because you are rooting for Sonya and Tommy throughout. Bright Burning Things is a very cleverly written, emotional rollercoaster of a story about addiction, family relationships, trauma and finding your way.

Bright Burning Things is a psychological thriller about a young women and her troubles bringing up her son. It's a powerful story of single motherhood, addiction, and womanhood. I really enjoyed this, and highly recommend it. Thanks to Netgallery for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

A difficult, brilliant, fascinating read. “Enjoy” is the wrong word here, but I certainly devoured this novel. That said, like the metaphor throughout, I felt it fizzled out too quickly at the end leaving too many unanswered questions.

A very strong read.

‘Bright Burning Things’ -Lisa Harding
⭐️⭐️⭐️- 3.5 stars
⚠️ Child neglect, alcohol misuse and addiction ⚠️

In the deepest throes of alcohol addiction, Sonya is scarcely recognisable to her family but most notably, to her 4 year old son, Tommy. As the sole carer for Tommy, she repeatedly fails catastrophically to provide adequate care for her little boy. Racked with guilt and desperate to become a better mother, she must swiftly address her addiction and learn to live without alcohol if she is ever to see her son again.

This story is simply heartbreaking, it deals with the complexity of substance abuse and addiction head on. Despite their unforgivable flaws, these characters are wholly redeemable and worth rooting for. The reader can’t help but to to feel empathy and an aching longing to fix the damage emerging before it causes a chasm and separates mother and child for good.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury books UK/NZ for this ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley, Lisa Harding and Bloomsbury Publishing for this advance review copy of Bright Burning Things.

Bright Burning Things is different to my usual read and more of a psychological read than I am used to, It tells the story of Sonya - a single Mum living in Dublin with her 4 year old son Tommy and their rescue dog Herbie. They have an intense and incredibly close relationship, living in each others pockets and spending all day every day together, Sonya's mother died when she was a young girl and she has little contact with her father and as such, her son and dog have become her little bubble and her entire world. Unfortunately there is another addition to their relationship - alcohol,. Sonya is an addict, and as life goes on she begins to struggle to battle her 'winged demons'; making increasingly poor decisions that raise questions from neighbours and risk her losing Tommy forever. We follow Sonya's experience of being sent to a rehab unit and the steps she takes to try and turn her life around.

This is a heartbreaking and intimate read about the fragile reality of someone experiencing addiction and as such it can be quite a hard read at times. Whilst I don't have a personal experience of addiction, I have previously supported people who have, so reading the stark reality of some of Sonya's thoughts was an emotional read.

The narrative is written in an unfamiliar tone - manic and frantic, with fast paced, short snappy sentences. At first this took me off guard; but upon persistence it became apparent that these were representative of the impulsive and muddled thoughts of a person struggling to contain her emotions,

It's hard to say I 'enjoyed' this book as it doesn't feel like the right phrase, but the characters will stay with me for some time. A hard hitting yet heart warming book to add to your Wishlist.

This review will be shared on realmumreview.com in my What I read in February post at the end of the month.

Sonya is an ex-actress who has returned to Dublin to live with her little boy, Tommy. They have a close, intense relationship and together with rescue dog, Herbie, they make a self contained unit. Narrated by Sonya we immediately know we're only getting one side of the story. It starts on a beach with Sonya tearing off her clothes to go for a swim in her underwear. She leaves Tommy alone with Herbie (he's only 4) and of course someone tells her off for this. Her fury is unappealing and is made worse by her dealing with it by drinking a bottle (or more) of white wine and almost setting the house on fire. She is firmly in the grips of alcohol and before long she is in a rehab unit run by nuns.

I found this to be a gripping, emotional read. It's not easy to like Sonya, she's selfish, impulsive and with a terrible temper to boot. But I couldn't help feeling sorry for her as she battled with her addiction and thereafter with the authorities to get Tommy back at home with her again. The people around her don't help save for one or two whom she meets at the rehab centre. Jimmy in particular is helpful to her and is one of the few likeable characters in the book. Sonya has a terrible relationship with her father who turned away from her immersed in his own grief unable to comfort her when her mother died when she was only 7 or 8. He then gets entangled with another woman, Lara who is simply horrible. Of course we only see them through Sonya's eyes and I doubt that she's a reliable narrator so who knows maybe Lara is much nicer than Sonya says.

It's a powerful read. Some things I couldn't quite accept such as the on-off relationship with David who seemed even needier than Sonya but it's a book that will stay with me. Not one that I'll read again as I did find it depressing. But it's extremely well written and I would recommend it. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC.

A sad and beautiful book all in one. It is the story of how a mother tries to bring up her young son while being an alcoholic and suffering from her own demons. She also has an estranged relationship with her father and step-mother. I found it an intense read but I was always on the side of Sonya and willed her to keep making the right decisions as she clearly loved Tommy.

This is my first Lisa Harding Novel and it definitely won't be my last.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the arc for an honest review.

this is not a book i would usually pick up. this is a psychological book in terms of it deals with mental health issues. i thought it was a challenging, emotional read. i felt so sorry for sonia and tommy - both struggling with all the changes they went through.

** this review will also be posted on my instagram - @librariangeorgia **

What a gripping story.

This was a very disturbing but good read.

Thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish and could not get enough of.
Very sad and real, you feel inside the story
This is a must read for anyone who enjoys a good thriller!!
Absolutely loved the characters, the plot, the tension -  impossible to put it down.
Certainly recommended!
Thank Netgalley

I loved this book, more than an addiction recovery memoir in scope it covers a more blanket exploration of mental health issues.

Most of all I enjoyed the protagonist’s voice.

I would highly recommend it.

This is quite a difficult read, and not exactly an enjoyable one. Somehow I have read at least four books recently featuring women struggling with addiction - perhaps this painful topic is having a moment. It seems timely: I imagine the pandemic is not having a positive effect on anyone with substance use disorders.

All of this is to say: I think I would have enjoyed this more if I'd read it at a different time, because there's no denying that it's a powerful book. The characters are complex and real, even the worst of them inspiring some kind of sympathy, and the beats are affecting even when they're predictable -in fact, especially when they're predictable. Comparisons with Shuggie Bain are apt and deserved.

I feel that the overarching metaphor is slightly overdone in the final moments of the novel, but it does keep the tension up right until the very end.

Maybe save this one until you're feeling resilient - but do read it.

My thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC.

I found this a difficult read, Sonya is in the midst of addiction and mental health issues and struggling to raise her son. It is both infuriating and heartbreaking to navigate through her world. The awfulness of alcoholism and neglect is handled well by the author, and it feels painfully real. As well written as it is I don’t think I could/would read this again as I found it quite distressing.

This was an outstanding novel, filled with suspense, richness and incredible writing. Gripped like a vice and wouldn't let go.