Breaking Free gives readers a peak into the life of a (successfully) recovering anorexic. Readers who are not familiar or acquainted with the disorder, or the challenges associated with any mental health for that matter, won’t bat an eyelash because the struggles depicted in the book may seem, at times, like extremely ordinary everyday experiences.

People often grumble about having to think what to have for dinner but we only really have to consider our appetite, our budget, and what’s easy. Then, how exhausting it must be to deliberate over the calories of what we put in our body when it’s every three hours of our waking moment? What’s more difficult for Grace is resisting the urge to do so. This invisible shackle was one of many that was holding our main character back from living a full life – hence the title.

References to popular streaming services (cough: Netflix) and trendy TV shows are smart plot instruments that make this book more relatable to the target audience.

What I loved most about Julia Tannenbaum’s writing on Grace’s struggles is that it was not romanticised. It was matter of fact, which I deeply appreciate. Romanticising mental health struggles can be useful and gets the message through to some readers. Other times, it gets in the way.

Breaking Free helps readers understand the process of recovery from a personal perspective and is a great addition to the bookshelf of any young adult and tween.

Thanks to Weaponry Co-op for providing me with a copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own and are based on the advanced digital review copy.

Content Warning(s): Self-harm; Anorexic & anxiety thought patterns

I never read the previous book, but Breaking Free starts with Grace getting released from her treatment facility and re-starting her "normal" life again.
This Julia Tannenbaum book is a wonderful read, following Grace through the "recovery" process as she learns to deal with her eating issues.
This is a heartfelt, honest look at living with an eating disorder. I would definitely recommend this to anyone interested in reading on the topic. It is definitely a worthwhile read for teens.

Totally enjoyable yet lacking to some scenes that needed attention. Characters need more background. Nevertheless, this book got my heart and the fact that recoveries and self care are given, it makes the book a great read.

Grace has problems. Grace is struggling. Grace will survive.
This book is strong and raw but can be tough to get through and hit me hard but I felt like it was an accurate and believable portrayal and I enjoyed reading it.

Grace is struggling with anorexia however upon being released from her treatment facility to back home she soon eggs caught up in other issues, her best friend who goes out drinking and nearly drives too, her mum and her boyfriend moving in, her brother whose showing signs of being gay and acting out as well as her boyfriend who she's now not sure about after something happens...



Grace soon has to get to grips that she's being watched when she eats, told what to eat or try to eat as well as challenging herself as she won't get to college if she can't prove she's doing better and willing to get better, but can faking it initially help her really make herself better over time?



I liked seeing how Grace learns to live again out of treatment as it can be daunting and hard I know first hand how it is and this book portrayed it perfectly in my eyes as you have to get a sense of purpose for life back again and try to keep yourself positive to keep making progress as Grace does by going back to college and making friends.



Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!

Breaking Free was a really interesting book. Most books about eating disorders focus on the descent into the disorder rather than recover, which is what makes this super unique. I think it’s really important to have literature out there about recovery to show to teens struggling with issues like these that it is possible to get better.

“You can’t. Until he wants to get better, nothing you say can or do will make a difference.”

Breaking Free also had good representation of disabilities and sexuality. All the characters were complex and not defined by any single aspect of the identity, which is the best way to write diverse characters.

The relationship between Grace and her mother was tenuous and complex. Even still, the love her mother felt for was evident even when they didn’t get along. Breaking Free does a good job at showing the effect of eating disorders on not only the individual affected but everyone in their life.

One flaw in the book is the jargon used in the book. The teenager slang sounded quite outdated at times. However at some times, the author totally got the teenage experience with little details just the actual writing surrounding it was unnatural. Also there was simply too much emphasis placed on unimportant aspects, like describing what the characters were wearing. The book would flow so much better if exposition unrelated to character development or plot was removed. At times, the book would sound a little clinical when describing self harm or eating disorders but as the book went on, this was less evident.

3.5 stars but rounding up to 4 for the concept and important subject matter.

What drew me to this book was its focus on recovery, the very point where so many other books, fiction and non, seem to cut off at or gloss over. Yet so much more important than how one develops a mental health problem is how one heals and works their way back up. I don’t think I’ve ever read a novel from this perspective and I so appreciated it and know it would’ve meant a lot to me as a teen recovering from some of my own (albeit slightly different) struggles. This book is actually a sequel, something I hadn’t realized when I requested in on Net Galley but for the most part, it was easy to follow and get into so works well as a stand-alone novel. It is worth saying, though, that when I read over the synopsis of the first story, it seems focused more on self injury whereas this one is much more about recovery from anorexia. The cutting comes up a couple of times but seems more to be something she’s already past.

Grace is 17 and at the opening of the book, she’s in her final day of a six week stay in an eating disorder treatment facility. She is nervous about going back home because inside the treatment facility life is very regimented and controlled whereas life outside is much more chaotic, and as anyone who’s ever been in any form of mental health treatment knows, that chaos of everyday life seems especially intense as you’re heading back into it. Luckily she is well supported, first through a partial hospitalization program, then through intensive outpatient treatment. She also has a supportive mom, though things are tough between them and Grace feels like she’s disappointed her. Then there’s her younger brother Jamie, someone who is clearly very important in Grace’s life.

I really enjoyed reading this one because it rang true both in terms of eating disorder and mental illness recovery and the teen prospective in general. I was surprised to learn the author is only just out of high school herself but I think it’s amazing she’s hit the ground running and is no doubt, writing exactly the kinds of books, that like me, she wishes she could have read as a teen.

I really liked the focus on family in this book. Grace’s mother is so supportive- driving her into Manhattan for treatment, eating meals with her, just generally doing her best for Grace. It was sometimes hard to read how much Grace clashes with her mom but as she heals and grows, Grace finally starts to see how lucky she is. Then there is her amazing little brother- a nail painting, fashionista of a kid. He was such a sweet and unique character and I loved his story arc.

What was also nice is that as Grace is dealing with her own problems- learning to stop counting calories, to open up her diet, and eat all her meals- she also gets to see that everyone has problems and she’s not so alone. That was another thing I really liked about this book. There’s her best friend who has her own struggles with her parents, her boyfriend who is recovering from anorexia himself, her brother, and a number of others. Even her mother and mother’s boyfriend end up sharing some of their own teenage troubles and I thought that was fantastic. I think being a teen with serious mental health issues can be so isolating but part of both growing up and healing involves recognizing you’re not the only one. We really get to see Grace grow so much in this book, all around, too.

All that said, I did have a few issues with the writing. There’s a little too much focus on what everyone is wearing and some boring, unnecessary details like the cost of food (maybe the entire ordering process altogether), the seemingly endless slicing of fruit, etc. I get that body image and food issues are important to the story but some of these things just felt like unnecessary details that did nothing to further the story. Also there’s a lot of mentions of social media specifics yet the author gets some of the finer details wrong- you can’t share entire “albums” of photos on Instagram. And you don’t “@“ people when replying to Facebook messages. Interestingly, since social media as a trigger or tough point in the anorexia and mental health points isn’t even really touched upon, I think the story could’ve avoided the mentions altogether but that’s a matter of opinion. Then there were a few things that got left out that I really wanted more of. What happened with Grace’s dad? At the opening of the book we find that Grace has never opened up in treatment about this though her mother wants her to. We kind of dance around the subject and something happens late into the book that I thought would finally address this but it just fizzles out. It kind of distracted me because o was constantly thinking this was important and trying to figure out what happened and I never got an answer. Maybe that’s covered in the first book (same with the minute by minute game she teaches her brother? That would’ve been a great scene, regardless!) but it seems like were lead to believe it’s an important part of Grace’s struggles so I’d really like to see more on that. More delving in deep, less clothing details.

Still, I’m so glad I read this one and glad it’s out there for teens who need it. There are some especially poignant and on point, relatable lines about recovery that I think make this book really special. The one below was perhaps my favorite and sums up the whole struggle of recovery so well-

“It’s like I’m caught between two worlds, and I can’t decide which I’d rather live in. It shouldn’t be a hard decision—after all, I’m not supposed to want to stay sick—yet it is. Sickness is familiar; sickness is safe; sickness is expectable. Living, on the other hand, is scary as hell.”

When reading this synopsis to this book, I had a feeling that this was one of a series, therefore did my research and I'm so very glad I did, as this is the second book to Grace's story. I quickly purchased the first book and whizzed through it, loving every second of it, making me more eager to get reading Breaking Free.

Breaking Free follows on six week's later, after Grace has been referred back in to the hospital for self-harm. I've never read a story like Grace's before, so it was such an interesting read for myself - I learnt so much about eating disorders and what the recovery process is like. While this book can have it's triggering points, I think it's also extremely important that teens dealing with the same as Grace has an outlet where they can relate, learn and know there's a light at the end of a very dark tunnel.

Julia also highlights LGBTQ+ representation and figuring out your sexuality, which fit in brilliantly with the story-line and allowed the other character's to have development as well. Every character we come across are very complex, especially the relationship between Grace and her mother. It was sometimes frustrating to see Grace consistently snap at her mother and act like a brat, but it also represents the affects it can also have on loved ones also.

Besides the consistent bratty attitude, I really enjoyed the second book to the series and have my fingers crossed for a third!

I didn't know this was the second book in the series when i requested it and made me a bit confused and lost with the story and the main character.. The story had some good elements men lacked emotions, and felt packed too much here and there. I didn't get enough character development or time to get to know and like the characters either, sadly.

Thank you to Netgally and the publisher for giving me an Arc to review

I really enjoyed this sequel to the first book Changing ways. Although I sometimes had trouble with some of the things that were happening. I would have liked a trigger warning for some things. But I worked through it and could really enjoy the book.

The book picked up right where it left up and really did a good job of describing how living with anorexia is and how it effects boys and girls in the current society.

The book was shelved under LGBTQ+ representation, but I was actually dissapointed. It was such a small section in the book that I don't think it can be shelved under a LGBTQ+ book.
Another problem I had with the book is that there was that car accident in the end. It felt like too much. The book is already filled with heavy problems surrounding eating disorders, and drunk driving just didn't fit into the story. This could have been left out and saved for the next book if it ever happens.

Overall I enjoyed the book and finished it in record time. I really hope there will be another book in this series.

Breaking Free is a powerful book for young readers and for older readers who want to celebrate quality young adult fiction. A fleshed-out central character, clear prose, and real-world conflicts punctuate the narrative.

I will gladly share this book with those I know who are interested in sharing strong fiction with adolescent readers. Well done.

This book was so easy to get into. The writing style made the pages turn quickly and really made you feel for Grace.

This book looks at mental health and eating disorders. It looks at sexuality and acceptance. It covers highschool tests and the stress of scoring enough to get into the college of your choice.

Breaking Free is easy to read, fast paced and filled with real feeling characters.

Thank you to NetGalley for this review copy.

I hadn't realized this was part of a series of books, as that isn't evident based on the blurb. I feel like that impacted my overall enjoyment of the story, as I found some of the character building and overall plot structure a bit confusing to follow at times and it was hard for me to connect to the main characters. Otherwise, a well written story.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this novel.

Right. Perhaps it's because I haven't read the first book but I wasn't a massive fan of this novel.

+ The writing: the writing was very straightforward and easy to read. In that sense, this book is easy to finish and once you can take to the beach and or read before bed without feeling overwhelmed.

- The writing: because the writing was so easy, it lacked flair and emotion. This book is about a difficult topic and because of that I expected the language to be more beautiful. Sure, simple language and sentence structure is good to get the story going but it didn't hook me in.

- The story of the girl drunk-driving: I don't understand why that was put in the book. It served no purpose within the story. If anything, if they had highlighted her ED, that would have been more relevant.

- The story: A lot of sections are glossed over or briefly mentioned when they could have been given much more space. This drastically reduced the quality of the novel.