Bright Burning Things audiobook

3.5 stars: “Bright Burning Things” is a story that makes you hold your breath…in worry. It’s a story of an alcoholic woman who has a four-year-old son. You will NOT stop worrying about her or her son as you read this.The story begins with that “stream-of-thought” writing, which can be off-putting (at least to me). It took me a bit to get into that rhythm. It’s not all stream-of-thought, but when the protagonist, Sonya, has an episode which occurs while drinking, after drinking, and sometimes before drinking. Author Lisa Harding uses the device to let the reader know that Sonya is out of control. If at first you’re put off, give it a go. It’s worth the time invested.Sonya’s son, Tommy, is a starving for attention and food. Sonya got Tommy a dog, Herbie who is large enough for Tommy to ride. Herbie often growls at Sonya, especially when she’s been drinking. They live in squalor, although Sonya was an actress before she had Tommy. Since having Tommy, she’s been unable to work or function.This is an honest, often brutal look at alcoholism and its effects on children of alcoholics. Although Sonya loves Tommy without question, her reckless behavior when she drinks leaves her blacked out. We don’t know what she’s done to Tommy, but it’s implied, and Harding writes that beautifully. Harding is herself a former actress and has a close family member who struggles with drinking. Harding shows her understanding of the illness through Sonya’s chaotic and tumult inner narrations.Sonya’s father intervenes and gets her to a public rehab. Harding shows the flaws of such help. Her son, Tommy, becomes part of the system. And of course, the system itself is over worked and understaffed. We get a glimpse into the AA approach to sobriety.What makes this a special read is the reader’s view into the mind of a person struggling with an addiction. What I didn’t like about the novel is the abrupt ending. I’m OK with a story not being wrapped up in a pretty bow. For me, the story didn’t end at a place that left me feeling as though the story was over. Is this going to be a series? Seems highly doubtful. It was a strange way to end a story, in my opinion.

Sonya Moriarty was once a successful actress but her life is now spiralling out of control into alcoholism. Her very absent father finally steps in to intervene to protect Sonya’s four year old son Tommy from some of her worst behaviour. She is to have a three month detox in a convent. This is a powerful, raw and emotional story as you are pulled in all directions for Sonya and Tommy. Sonya is so damaged you want to help her but also to shake her to be more responsible in caring for Tommy. She has been let down so badly by people in the past that your heart aches for her especially as her love for Tommy and Herbie the dog is never in any doubt. However, her mind loops and the appearance of the ‘bad fairy’ when she’s drinking means the intervention is overdue and Tommy’s life is certainly topsy-turvy. Tommy is an adorable child and whilst Sonya is an unconventional mother you know that if she can ditch the booze she will be a magical one. This is well written story which is very well told with real impact and some beautiful descriptions, especially vivid ones of the effects of her drinking. This is heart breaking at times particularly the separation of mother and child and the anxiety they both feel for this three months makes for compelling reading. Overall, an emotional rollercoaster of a novel which is extremely thought provoking. With thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing PLC (UK and NZ) for the arc for an honest review.

This was a pretty sad story. 😢 A single mother struggles with her addiction and mental health. Definitely a train wreck. 😬 But one of strength too. 😉

We connect, and the Catherine wheel is set alight, blazing. The two of us run to the farthest edge of the yard, cheeks pulsing with heat and excitement. The wheel turns, a whirling dervish cast ing its hypnotic spell, and I’m there, in the happy scene I’ve been chasing. I am eight, held high on my father’s shoulders. The fireworks display burned so brightly and boomed so loudly, the sound momentarily drowning out my internal hissing and cackling, which I hadn’t known had been a constant until that moment. This is the author (who is also an actress and playwright)’s second novel. Her first (which I have not read) was about sex-trafficking and she has made an equally difficult and brave choice of subject here – alcoholism. As an aside I believe that one of the two girl victims in her first book is the traumatised daughter of an alcoholic mother. The book is narrated by Sonya – the back story of who we piece together as the book progresses – although some of it remains opaque even to her. Her mother died when she was 7-8, and, her relationship with her crushed father never really properly developed, something which, at least as she sees it, was not aided by her stepmother who also cut them off from her mother’s family. For a time she was a successful actress, but after a couple of failed and difficult relationships, quit the stage and at the book’s start is a single mum, living on benefits in an almost claustrophobically close relationship with two others: her 4-year old son Tommy and her rescue dog Herbie. The three make a mutually dependent tight knit group, and Sonya’s wary (almost misanthropic) distrust of others (she has for example banished her father from all contact with his grandchild) – which she largely transmits to Tommy and Herbie - makes it an exclusive one.But there is a fourth person in the relationship – alcohol – and Sonya’s relationship with that first threatens that with Tommy and Herbie and then causes – from her father, a concerned neighbour – a forceful intervention and a non-negotiated 12-week spell in a Catholic drying-out sanctuary. We follow Sonya before, during and after her spell there – as she sees her relationship with Tommy and Herbie disintegrate, alter and then tries to reassemble it in a more sustainable fashion – with a counsellor she first encounters in the before stage, and then officially in the during phase, both easing and complicating the after stage as his own dependencies and issues emerge.The writing is both intimate and intense – capturing both a mother/young child relationship (with shared phrases, rituals and jokes – albeit a dysfunctional and increasingly neglectful one) and Sonya struggling with her inner demons (with alcohol a cause of many of her issues but also a symptom of deeper issues going back to her mother’s unexplained death). Over time, her lifelong fascination with lights and fire (which gives the book its title and features in my opening quote) transmits itself dangerously to Tommy.As an aside the book was I believe originally titled “Overspill” - capturing I think the generational impact of alcoholism (which is deeper in this book than just the Tanya Tommy relationship). Sonya’s actress past both inspires quotes and scenes from the stage to play out in her head as she contemplates her life, but also allows her to examine both the way she behaves under the influence, and the roles she needs to play to both make it through her course and convince others to return Tommy to her. I squeeze my eyes shut. Behind my lids a kaleidoscope of various shades and patterns of darkness play out. The creatures stir and rouse themselves, a kinetic force of nature, a flock programmed to fly thousands of miles, even in inclement weather, even if they might be flying to their death. My eyes open just as my mouth does. This shouldn’t happen, not while I’m sober, and not in front of this angry, wretched boy. It’s all I can do to witness the stream of abuse I hurl at the world, the boy, who turns and observes me in a detached manner, as if he’s watching a play, and maybe he is, and I’m entirely taken over by the character I’m playing The book will I think inevitably draw comparisons to “Shuggie Bain” (and already has in the Guardian’s 2021 Literary Fiction Preview) – although its important to point out that Bloomsbury announced the pre-emption of this book in January 2020, before Douglas Stuart’s masterpiece was even published in the UK and fully 6 months before the UK publication that lead on to its Booker win.Although there are similarities there are differences. In particular having a first party narrator is a very brave decision as it forces the author to put us in directly the mind of the person suffering with alcoholism – it is I think a gamble that pays off richly. Interestingly for me: although Sonya’s life-choices will be alien to them, I think that her relationship with alcohol – and particular an almost romantic examination of the characters of the white wine she drinks - will be something that resonates a lot more closely with readers of literary fiction that Agnes Bain’s non-discriminatory cravings. In some ways it would have been interesting had this book been due for a February publication as I think it may have lead to a few Dry January’s being extended.I do hope however that for all the differences the coincidental success of Douglas Stuart’s book helps to gain this book’s the attention it richly deserves for another both heartbreaking and yet moving and hopeful portrayal of alcohol addiction viewed through the prism of a mother/son relationship.My thanks to Bloomsbury for an ARC via NetGalley.

My first novel of the year and it'll be very hard to beat.Sonya is a former actress, now a single mum back home in Ireland and suffering from spiralling alcoholism. Her whole world is her four-year-old son Tommy, their rescue dog Herbie and her desperate need for the bottle.We follow this family through a few earth-shattering months as Sonya is forced to confront her drinking problem and is threatened with the loss of everything she holds dear.The prose is alive, the characters are wholly convincing, the story is utterly gripping and deeply, deeply moving. A truly brilliant portrait of a family and a life in jeopardy by a ludicrously gifted writer.

Bright Burning Things is an utterly compelling and beautifully written story about one woman’s journey through addiction and motherhood that I read all in one afternoon, so involved in the unfolding drama that I found it hard to put down.Sonya is a vividly drawn and utterly engaging character, even as you see the darkness around her, the main thing you take away is the pure,unadulterated love she has for her child. Lisa Harding is a genuine wordsmith, using the power of language to bring Sonya to life, to make the reader care as deeply about what happens to her as those around her do.Its actually a very difficult book to describe, its firmly in the “you had to be there” category, but it is completely brilliant and probably one of the most insightful and inspiring novels I have read in some time.Highly recommended.

“One fire burns out another’s burning,One pain is lessen’d by another’s anguish.” -William Shakespeare, Romeo and JulietBright Burning Things tells the story of a former actress named Sonya. Sonya is a single mom to her four year old son named Tommy. Sonya is an alcoholic and she drinks heavily to avoid her painful past. Unfortunately her alcholiam has put her son in serious danger and has caused her to neglected his needs. When a neighbor and friend of Sonya’s fathers starts to notice Tommy has been put in dangerous situations and is being neglected, she informs Sonya’s father of the situation. Even though Sonya and her father have a rocky relationship, her father insists that she goes into treatment for her addiction or she could lose Tommy forever. When I read a book that has an unlikeable main character, I pay more attention to the story. Sonya is a chaotic mess. Not only is she an alcoholic but she clearly has bipolar disorder with uncontrollable bouts of mania. She’s very selfish and diluted enough to believe that she is a good mother. But at Sonya’s core is a fierce burning love for her son Tommy. We learn part of Sonya’s history how certain events could have possibly triggered her alcoholism. At certain points I both detested Sonya but I eventually ended up rooting for her. Bright Burning Things is such a powerful and raw story. The writing(especially the characterization) is nothing short of brilliant. Lisa Harding paints a vivid and intamite portrait on the devastation of alcholism, both on the addict and the family. This has to be one of the more compelling books I've read recently. The pacing and writing style is filled with so much nervous energy but it works beautifully. From the first page to the last I could not put this one down. A massive thanks to my partner Bibliolifestyle and Harper Via Books for the gifted copy!

I unfortunately have a very hard time expressing exactly how I feel when writing a review. All I know is that this book moved me, and I felt so very deeply for that of the character of Sonya. I had a hard time reading this book, as I experienced too many triggers from my own life in this story. I also resonated with that of Sonya’s character as it was obvious she never had any type of support system, and had to learn everything and navigate through life on her own. Was she a bad person? No. Did she make some horrible choices? Yes. There are some people that have to live and learn, and unfortunately there’s many of us that learn the hard way. Since it’s clear in the synopsis that Sonya had an alcohol problem (addiction), I think the problem arose because she was self medicating. Change and constant memories can really affect a person. Sonya didn’t have any family that supported her or ever took her side, and they lied to her constantly. As I said, this was a tough story to read. I definitely recommend reading Bright Burning Things, but be forewarned that this may tend to be a bit of a depressing read. This is a book that I won’t be forgetting soon, and I plan on reading more from this author.

Well done.Full review to come.Thank you to Libro FM, Harper Audio & Lisa Harding for a #gifted ALC in exchange for my honest review.4 ⭐️.

Incredible! I’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. I’ll start by saying, the only hurdle I had was that Sonya was difficult at first to understand, but as I got to know her she had quite an affect on me. I felt an extreme weight of sadness for Sonya and Tommy, her 4 yr. old son. As appalling as she is as a mother, she’s also in full blow addiction — an alcoholic that only thinks of her next drink. You can feel that she truly loves her child, but desperately needs help. With her addiction, Sonya has repeated bad decisions, dangerous situations, and ruined her relationships. “Sonya is forced to make a choice. Give up drinking or lose Tommy—forever.”Lisa Harding has shown us the true paralysis of alcoholism, the day to day struggles in the life of an alcoholic. This is an incredibly powerful and moving novel that brings out the most unsettling feelings. Bright Burning Things is raw and intense, immersing me 100% into seeing addiction from a completely different perspective. Hopefully this book will help others look at addiction from a different viewpoint too.*Caution for triggersMuch thanks to HarperVia and NetGalley for kindly providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Wow wow wow.This book is really going to stick with me and haunt me for years to come.I've been thinking about it on and off for days. It was all at once poetic and heartbreaking and disgusting and devastating.I did the audio and the author narrated. It was absolutely incredible. Her accent was really lyrical and the novel reads like poetry - I honestly felt like I was at a poetry slam. Her voice for Tommy was perfection and I was so invested and enthralled.The first 25% of the novel was incredibly hard (honestly the whole book was pretty hard) and I had to pause often and step away. As a mother, there were moments that I just couldn't bear hearing about Tommy's treatment and his mother's addiction and neglect. I think the low ratings are likely reflective of this part of the book because it absolutely is so hard to get through. However, for me, that's the sign of a really talented author when their words and story can so deeply impact the reader.There was one part of the novel while Sonya is in rehab and a man is speaking and she thinks that all of these damaged men were products of mothers like her. It was just so profound and so crushing. I know I'll think about that moment a lot. It hits home knowing what an impact your behaviors and decisions have on your children.There's something really beautiful about this dark story - Sonya's love for her son is palpable. But her sickness is also so deep that she just can't take care of him or herself or even their pets. My heart hurts just thinking about this novel and thinking about how this is a reality for so many families.This is a very hard read, but wow, it's so worth it.Thank you to Libro.fm for the copy.

Do you ever read a story that is so distressing that it seems a crime to say it was enjoyable? At times this story was so unnerving it made my skin crawl. It's powerful and emotive, and at times the descriptions were so distressing and raw that I could feel my throat clog up. This story focuses on Sonya, an actress who has since fallen victim to alcoholism and struggles to look after her four-year-old son Tommy and dog Herbie. Things become so bad that soon her father, and a meddling neighbour, are forced to intervene for the sake of Tommy's welfare. During a three month stint on a rehab style course at a local convent, Sonya struggles to detox from alcohol which has been her crutch for so long and is forced to face some harsh realities about her life and her character.The themes themselves are challenging and Harding is brave in her approach, especially with the way it handles the disintegration of relationships addiction can cause. It's a fascinating look at how damaging an upbringing under the alcoholic influence can be, and there are real moments of distress particularly when Sonya is separated from her son. I loved the visceral and tainted perspective that Sonya had of the world from her own upbringing, and the effect of the 'bad fairy' when she had been drinking was emotional and convincingly handled. There is a delicate hand used to describe the suffering the family encounters and the result is a moving, enchantingly sincere, all-encompassing alive piece of text. This is both intricately intense and fast-paced, whilst being soothing and sincere at moments, showing how quickly the change and effect Sonya's addiction has on her maternal feelings. *Thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing UK for the ARC

Motherhood is not for everyone. For some it’s the final drop that leads to liquid spilling over the edge of the glass, the knife that pares the skin back to reveal raw flesh. It exposes the best and the worst in us.For Sonya, the main character of Lisa Harding’s brooding novel ‘Bright Burning Things’, her acting career in London has been both a highlight and an outlet. She is attractive, intense, quirky and magnetic but damaged. As we learn through Sonya’s own voice, it’s “…amazing that gap between how someone looks and what’s really going on…” (p.179).When motherhood puts her career on hold, Sonya is a person torn in the middle, fighting herself, her urges, her responsibilities, with little to no support, only judgment. Motherhood is the tipping point for her life to spin out of control into alcoholism, neglect and mental illness. Told through Sonya’s own voice, Harding gives us a view of her world as she struggles to gain control over her addiction, the ‘bad fairy’ voices that torment her, looping through a series of malicious and hateful thoughts and images, turning on the switch for her furies as she spirals downwards.“It’s all I can do to witness the stream of abuse I hurl at the world…”she says of her own dissociative behaviour (p.174).It’s a rare insight into the world of addiction and mental illness, giving rise to mixed emotions in the reader. As much as we want to shake Sonya, to wake her up to the damage she’s doing to her four-year-old son Tommy, we also feel for her, spellbound by her plight, understanding her rationalisations as well as the triggers, feeling our own anger rise at condescension and slights of hand. We are also forced to question how we would have reacted to Sonya if we had not known her story.We witness her rising sense of panic as childhood memories of her own (now deceased) mother emerge, forcing her to face the possibility that she is repeating the pattern of abuse and that she will lose her son.In the midst of the mayhem, Sonya’s mostly absent father steps in and Sonya agrees under duress to enter rehabilitation for three months, separating from Tommy, and learning new routines and methods of present moment awareness “…to help calm the voices, counteract the frantic urges…” (p.206) and even to play “…Ms Sanity, who has to present a neatly packaged front to the world.” (P.216 – 217)We are drawn to Sonya, mesmerised by both her self-destruction and her determination to survive and to give Tommy a better life. It’s as though we are watching an exposé of inner versus outer self. We are with Sonya as she vacuums, pushing the vacuum head “…into dark dusty corners fighting the filth.” (P.274) Beautifully told, ‘Bright Burning Things’ is a multi-layered story, hard to put down, leaving the reader with many questions about our privileged shared journey with Sonya, but also some clues as she slowly ascends the slope of sanity.But do we leave unscathed? I don’t think so. On reflection, we realise that, as readers, we must also delve into our own stories, draw our own truths from our role as onlookers, or silent watchers of the night in each of us. The story confronts the reader, asking us as humans to acknowledge our own brokenness and to face our own demons, to: “…lie down where all the ladders start, In the foul rag and bone shop of the heart.” (William Butler Yeats)Many thanks to Bloomsbury for sending me the proof copy. Novel to be released in March 2021. 4 1/2 stars.