Terri White's honest and brave memoir "Coming Undone" is a tough read in places but compelling nonetheless.

This book is an emotional and very traumatic read, but it’s also beautiful, brutal, and unputdownable! It was one that will definitely resonate with me for a while, as it really showed what some have to endure and just how much it takes to overcome what life deals out! I would only recommend to those that can handle reading about abuse, in a way that can definitely be hard, as it dies deal with it and can be very hard to read, especially knowing it’s true! I do think whomever is able to read, should, as the author definitely deserves to be heard!

Terri White shares the worst of herself in her memoir, Coming Undone, a heartbreaking honest account of a time where her disdain for herself, and her addiction completely took over her life. A woman who was on the top of her game when it came to her career was careening out of control in her personal life, leading her to an inpatient psychiatric stay in New York City. Terri bravely shares her history of trauma, sexual abuse, self loathing, self hate and account after embarrassing account of the impact alcohol had on her life, leading her to make some unpopular decisions to gain some semblance of safety and stability. I would have loved to hear more about Terri's recovery, possible sobriety and how she gained this control but overall a moving and honest memoir surrounding trauma, and addiction.

Thank you NetGalley and Canongate for the ARC!

Trigger warning: Explicit descriptions of sexual and physical abuse, self-harm, addiction and suicidal ideation.

Born to a teenage mum in the small village of Inkersall, just north of the Derbyshire town of Chesterfield, Terri White’s childhood is a nightmare of violence, poverty and abuse (two of her mother’s boyfriends sexually abuse her), leaving her feeling that her life ended at the age of five.

She works hard to attend university, then moves to London where she begins her career in journalism, quickly rising through the ranks, while increasingly seeking escape through drink, drugs and self-harming.

In 2012, a successful magazine editor, she moves to New York, the glittering skyline of her dreams, to begin a new job, yet she quickly begins unravelling due to her mental state, addictions and unsustainable lifestyle.

Eighteen months later she returns to London afraid of what will happen to her if she stays in New York. She falls into an impossible love affair in London and when she is offered a top editorial position in New York she returns once again, putting distance between her and the heartbreak that threatens to destroy her.

In New York, at the age of thirty-four, she is hospitalized after an overdose and forced to receive treatment in a psychiatric ward before she returns to England and the position of editor-in-chief of the world’s biggest movie magazine.

‘Coming Undone’ is a powerful, eloquent and searing memoir about life lived in the depths of pain and self-destruction. It is often an uncomfortable, harrowing read. White has offered up her most private experiences to scrutiny in the hope that her past will be of help to anyone in a similar situation. I would not recommend ‘Coming Undone’ to anyone who may be triggered by graphic descriptions of sexual and physical abuse, self-harm, addiction and suicidal ideation.

A huge thank you to @NetGalley and @CanongateBooks for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Great memoir about resiliency and success doesn’t erase past trauma. This writer has an uncanny ability to draw us into her stories and make us feel apart of them. Real and harrowing I recommend this book.