Having read moving addiction memoirs like "Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction" (a title lauded here) I had expectations about this that were not met. The initial recollections of athletics triumph and drunk/drug scenes felt like some variety of disaster porn and I was not sure what I was supposed to get our of it. Was I too be impressed by the extreme success and lapses of a jock addict? Was I supposed to laugh?

One thing I really did like was the trade off of female and male voices from narrators Will Tulin and Linda Jones is one of the techniques that audiobooks can deliver on and enjoyed having it here.

The conclusion is the transformation I did hope to see and on that I am truly impressed with the journey of Tom Boldt.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3.

I love memoirs. I really love it when people wrench open the windows and let you see inside their messy lives.

I thought I would love this book based on the premise - Mother and Son with similar addiction issues tell their stories. Sounds like a pretty great episode of Maury Povich. I'm in.

The authors, Laura Cook Boldt and Tom H. Boldt, have distinct voices. So do the narrators, Will Tulin, who reads Tom's chapters and Linda Jones, who reads Laura's. Unfortunately, I think this is a story that suffers from not being read by the actual authors. Tulin, in particular reads the words of Tommy with attitude and a bit of a snarky tone- leaving the audience to wonder if he really has any shame or remorse about any of it.

I found the stories sad, but I really found the Boldts to be so self-congratulatory and sanctimonious that it turned me off entirely. Tommy is almost insufferable. While he says the WORDS that would make you think he has changed, the tone of the story and the entire self-importance of their family and their privileged experiences was just entirely tone-deaf to me. Tommy's self-destruction was just a waste. And Laura and her husband Tom were clearly enablers.

I was not inspired by their story. It made me irritated and frustrated and rather than giving you the sense that he would be a great counsellor I felt like I would avoid any center where he works!!

2.5 stars for the writing-Laura actually has a terrific voice. But Tommy is the most annoying kind of Millenial memoir writer. You can't get an audience to believe you regret parts of your life when you tell the story like you wish you were still there and it makes you the coolest guy in the room. His chapters are lacking in self-exploration. It just made me feel icky. Not sympathy.

*with thanks to NetGalley for the advance digital audiobook in exchange for this honest review.

Unraveled is the riveting true story of a family surviving generations of addiction. The disease manifested in different ways and wielded different levels of destruction on each member of the Boldt family. This book was full of unflinching self-reflection. Tom’s story is devastating but told with self-deprecating humor, so the content felt lighter than it was. His mother has her own flawed story of survival and it shines brightly with the unwavering glow of a mother’s love.

Thank you NetGalley, authors, and publisher for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook. The opinions in this review are entirely my own.

This is an audiobook where I got halfway and just couldn't continue, but I blame it mostly on the narration. While I appreciated that the narration was divided by two actors so you have a female providing the mom's story and a man reading the son's, the delivery just felt very dry. I felt as though there wasn't any true emotion behind the story and I think that had the authors provided the narration, they would have given great inflections and heart in telling their own stories.

I switched over to a printed version to finish and will provide that review on that edition.

I really enjoyed listening to this audiobook! The story is about two addicts. Mother, Laura and son, Tom, both share their addiction experiences. They shared their individual experiences with relationships, work, social issues, and life experiences. Laura was an alcoholic and had been sober for some time when Toms addictions started. More of Tom’s drug addiction experiences are shared in the book. Tom grew up very privileged. He was athletic and a good snowboarder but allowed his addictions to interfere with his success. Laura slowly realizes the depth of Toms addiction and is able to quickly transitions from mom to advocate.

Both Laura and Tom tell their stories with tremendous courage and honestly. The chaos, fear, untrust, and suffering that both the addict and families experience is gut wrenching. There was a lot of attention given to how the spiral took place from first drink or first hit to total addiction. I would have enjoyed reading much more about the recovery process at the end. I am thankful that Laura and Tom both willingly shared their stories in hopes of potentially helping someone else who suffers with alcoholism or addiction

This audiobook was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

This is a true story about a mother and son's struggles with each of their addictions to substances. The concept is very interesting, and I feel it's very brave of them to come forth and share their stories together. I just felt the storytelling itself needed some work. Calling the book "Unraveled" gives the impression that their stories should have unwound with more cohesion than they did. Their rock bottoms were revealed too early, making the rest of the pieces of the puzzle too easy to fill in. I also felt moments like the intro, where they speculated about actors taking on unhinged roles, went on too long-- leaving actual moments that were actually important were glazed over. You can't rewrite the truth, but had the storytelling of that truth been stronger-- and even a bit more vulnerable-- this could have been a ground-breaking book that would have had everyone talking about this important issue.

Unraveled is a memoir about overcoming addiction from the parallel view points of a mother, Laura and son, Tommy. Its clear that Tommy grows up in a privileged home with two parents, prep school education and nice family vacations where Tommy finds his love of snowboarding. He loves it so much that he aims to become a professional snow boarder.

Throughout the story we learn that Tommy begins his drug use at an early age. He was able to hide it for many years until he began to spiral out of control. He starts stealing from his family, getting into accidents and rejecting rehab opportunities. Meanwhile his mother was in the dark about the excessive drug use her son was engaging in. After many failed attempts of sobriety Tommy was able to get the help he needed to overcome his addiction.

Let me just say standing by an addict and overcoming addiction is extremely difficult. I understand the difficult situations families are put in when dealing with a loved one that refuses to acknowledge they have a problem. However, I did not feel sympathy for this family. I felt the majority of the story was them boasting about their lifestyle. To be a memoir about such a difficult topic I found the story was kept very surface level. It did not hit me very deep in any way. The mother/son duo were not relatable to me nor very likable.

Trigger Warnings:
-Alcoholism
-Bullying
-Depression
-Drugs
-Emotional Abuse


Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity for an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for my honest review.

In Unraveled: A Mother and Son Story of Addiction and Redemption, Laura and Tom Boldt share their experiences with addiction and paths to sobriety. This memoir, which was told in alternating and dual viewpoints – and voices for the audiobook, enabled listeners a glimpse at familial addiction issues. Laura, the mother, suffered from alcoholism when her boys were young. Her son, Tom, would later struggle with alcohol and drug addiction. Unraveled discusses their trials and tribulations as well as their growth and gratitude. #Unraveled #NetGalley

This was a hard one to get through at some points, with the world the way it is most people have experienced some type of addiction weather themselves or watched a loved one go through it. I appreciated the honesty and bravery it took to write this book. This was very inspiring in the end and I think many people would benefit from reading this. It was interesting getting inside an addicts head as I've never read a book like this before. The dual perspectives really worked for this memoir and I couldn't imagine it written another way.

Thank you NetGalley for providing the audio to me for free in exchange for feedback. I thought this book was sufficiently interesting overall and I commend the authors for speaking so freely about their addictions. I found this book to be just a scratch on the surface though, and felt it could have been more impactful. Addiction does not discriminate, but this family is clearly wealthy and better equipped to address addiction issues. I think that subtopic deserved a little more time and effort. I also wanted more from the book in the end. This was written like a conversational, tell your neighbor about your addiction problem. I do see value in that, people can relate to books when they cannot find anyone else to relate to them.

Thomas Henry Boldt is a son, brother, athlete, and business owner. He has travelled the path to addiction and returned to sobriety. His mother Laura Cook Boldt has been down the same path. Unraveled is their story.

Tom was born into a life of privilege – loving two-parent household, prep school, debutante balls, family ski trips, competitive skiing and snowboarding. It looks great from the outside, but from Tom’s daily humiliation at the hands of prep school bullies to his spiraling drug addiction, life only gets more difficult.

Tom tells the harrowing – and riveting – story of his abuse at prep school with feeling, and he does the same when describing the transcendence of skiing and snowboarding. When detailing his long litany of drug-influenced exploits, he sounds like he’s in a confessional. Maybe that’s what Tom needed to do – just get it out – and it’s not a bad narrative; just flat. It still works. Laura’s voice, interspersed throughout, provides perspective and insight into Tom’s behavior as she shares her concern and love for Tom. She also wonders aloud what actions of hers might have contributed to Tom’s addiction, in an expression of parental guilt and self-doubt that rings true.

Although this book is not a dialogue between two people, the alternating first-person narrators use their mother-son dynamic effectively. Each narrator’s role evolves as Tom’s independence grows; Laura’s maternal role naturally and gradually shifts from in-charge caretaker to steadfast supporter and advocate.

Then toward the end of the book, something beautiful happens: the two narratives are so in tune with each other that adult, sober Tom is sharing on the same level as his mother as each discusses their personal understanding of redemption, gratitude, and God.

Some thoughts on narration of this audiobook: Linda Jones is the perfect choice to be the voice of Laura. Her voice is that of a concerned mother. Will Tulin as Tom – not so much. It was difficult to get past the fact that a snowboarder is speaking with the voice of a newscaster who sounds like he’s twenty years older. Oddly, as the ‘voices’ of Tom and Laura converge, the narrator’s voice seems to work toward the end of the story as well. I wonder if that’s because now, Tom is no longer thirteen – or if I just got used to it.

Mothers everywhere and readers of James Frey’s notorious memoir/novel A Million Little Pieces will appreciate this story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an Advance Reader Copy, given in exchange for my honest review.

What is the most memorable experience you’ve shared with a family member? For most of us, battling the grips of addiction may not be one of them. For Laura Cook Boldt and her son Tom, overcoming respective addictions has been woven into their family story.

In their debut memoir, Unraveled: A Mother and Son Story of Addiction and Redemption, Laura and Tom recount their journey to become sober and lead fulfilling lives. I was captivated by the unique premise of generational addiction and appreciated their courage in the face of a relentless disease. Told in alternating viewpoints, readers get a raw picture of life with an addict through unique lenses of a mother and son. The audiobook had separate narrators for Laura and Tom which made for an easy distinction between their stories.

Laura, a mother of four boys, battled alcoholism which took a toll on her young family. After a disastrous accident, Laura vowed to become sober. She did not know that her son’s journey would later parallel her own struggles with addition. Years later, Tommy faced relentless bullying and shame at the hands of his middle school classmates. Fearing for his mental health and safety, Tommy’s parents grappled with how to help their son who had become crippled with anxiety. Ultimately, Tommy became addicted to drugs and alcohol which damaged relationships with family and impacted his passion for snowboarding.

Throughout Unraveled, Laura’s abiding love and concern for her son was so evident. As a mother of boys, I felt heartbroken for Laura as she wrestled with the shame of potentially enabling her son’s addiction and the helplessness she felt in the midst of her son’s battle. While we hear Tommy’s story in great detail, readers don’t learn much of Laura’s experience with her own addiction. A single disastrous incident is discussed, but how her addiction began and her path to recovery was not explored. Her battle was briefly alluded to, but reading more about how her personal battle informed her parenting and decision-making would have made for a more well-rounded narrative.

Undoubtedly, Laura and Tom have written a compelling story that took grit and courage. Readers who have family members battling addiction, or a personal history of addiction will find this memoir raw but hopeful.

A big thank you to netgalley for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this book, but I didn't love it.
Though I think it is a very interesting story, I found myself not drawn into it, and got very distracted during the narration. It's probably been just my experience since I see it has very good ratings.

This is a dual perspective on addiction from a mother and son. It explores how they unraveled and how they found their way to recovery. It talks about both their experiences, from relationships to travel to life occurrence and how they handled them all and what led to their desire to be sober and clean.
It’s easy to listen to despite the strong subject matter and I enjoyed it being told from their own voices and how they looked to their faith to give them strength.
It’s a great cautionary tale of truth and bravery.

Thanks to netgalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

I could not get in to this book at all so I didn't finish it. It just talked about all of these experiences but with no real purpose.. I also didn't like the narrators.

I really enjoyed this book, although biographies aren't my preference genre.
There were several reasons I picked this book. Addiction is something I have never need to fight with, never encountered. Therefore I was really curious, how the addicts feel, what journey they must go through from the beginning and what is the trigger. I know this is individual in each case.

In this book I really enjoyed the energy of Tommy and Laura, although I feel this was a book more about Tommy's life. I didn't learn how Laura started exactly with her addiction, yeap, she mentioned that it was "in the family" but never said the details, neither how she managed to really stop. So this I see as a missing point in the whole story and with Tommy I have also some blind spots. Maybe they were there and I just cannot recall, but I can't remember when was the moment he broke up with Sara and her point of view, why she at the end realized Tommy is not worth saving , would help a bit to the story.
Overall a great book which will stay with me for some time and gives questions. I assume it will help many people, addicts, to open their eyes and fight cause there is always something worth the living.

I'm not completely blown away by this. With many addiction stories, we get one side and only see the negatives from their eyes. I enjoyed getting to see the two sides (mother and son) in this story. HOWEVER, I found myself drifting off and not really paying attention to the audiobook. I wasn't thrilled with this story in the way that I thought I might based on the description.

Unraveled is a book that gives an inspirational front row seat into finding a way out of the grips of addiction from the lens of a mother and son.

Tom and Laura tell their story honestly and unapologetically. While their addiction was different, they both came to grips after hitting their own "rock bottom" before accepting their addiction and asking for help. From stealing from family to the eventual family support and rehab, Tom details how he began using and how he turned his life around. Laura's story with addiction took a back seat throughout the book, but I found that her own battles impacted her level of empathy for her son's struggles. They overcame separately, but together at the same time.

Overall, an informative and inspirational read that kept me wanting even more of their story. Thank you for sharing your experiences, Laura & Tom.

As a daughter of a mom who was an addict I really appreciated this book. I loved seeing the both sides of addiction from a mom to a son point of view.
My only wish would of been more about the recovery process of the mom.
Audio narration was spot on and sucked me right in!

Unraveled
Laura cook Boldt and Tom Boldt
Publication 1/25/21

4.5 stars

This is a beautifully written memoir about addiction written by a mother and son. Having lost a loved one to addiction these books provide comfort to me. When I came across this title I knew it was a sign. The audio was soothing, The points of view change in the chapters and you learn their personal struggle with addiction and how with love, support, knowledge and readiness one can become clean. This is a wonderful memoir and I highly recommend reading or listening to the audio!!

Thank you to NetGalley for approving this early edition of Unraveled for an honest review.

Goodreads
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