This book was hard to read and emotional due to the realistic and often heartbreaking depiction of alcoholism. I ultimately did not finish it for that reason.

I requested this mistakenly thinking it was a thriller. I gave it a try but am not the biggest fan of literary fiction so I'm finding it hard to get into. I'm glad to have it on my shelf and may come back to it some day if my mood changes, but I'm removing it from my to=do list for now!

The writing reminded me of This Might Hurt by Stephanie Wrobel, where I had a very unattractive WTF look on my face the entire time. I did end up liking that book (4⭐) in all it's quirkiness, so pushed forward on this one.

This book was intense! It dealt with alcoholism, abuse, unhealthy relationships, but had me constantly on the defense that something terrible was going to happen, so I'm currently hungover.

In reading the Goodreads reviews, I think this book is best listened to on audio, but I'm not going back. All in all, a fine read, but not something I would necessarily recommend.

Thank you, Netgalley and Harper Via Books, for the ARC.

As someone who has family members with substance issues, I'm always drawn to reading books about addiction. This book is beautiful. It really shows the effects that addiction and I couldn't put it down.

Unfortunately I didn't have any particularly strong feelings about this one. It read really quickly and provided some interesting insight/commentary on addiction, but nothing I felt I hadn't already seen. I enjoyed the writing, though, so I will look for more by this author in the future.

“These moments of lucidity are the worst, when the fog has cleared and cold reality lays claim to me, nipping at my heels, making me need to run again, and fast. Can’t sit with this laying-bare of my failings, and again I find myself in the kitchen opening another bottle…I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry…I drive the bottle opener too deep into the cork so it crumbles and splinters. Next time I’ll make sure they’re screw-tops. Next time . . . There won’t be a next time. I manage, I swallow, I soothe, I sleep, my boys climbing on top of me.”

Sonya is an alcoholic. She is also a mom to four year old Tommy. Can her love for her son win out over the demons that have her running towards the bottle?

Sonya’s story was what I would assume to be a very accurate representation of what it is like inside the head of someone with demons. Someone who will do anything to quiet those demons, even if it means losing everything they love.

This book was beautifully written and really humanizes addiction. I felt like I was inside Sonya’s head and heart and I could feel her struggles with honoring both of those things. This book will make you feel things, uncomfortable things. You will root for her and get frustrated with her in this gripping story. Another Read With Jenna winner!

Thank you to Netgalley, HarperVia, and the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Bright Burning Things is not an easy book to read. Books about alcoholics, especially those who are parents, never are. But Lisa Harding's second novel is an important read because it highlights with alarming intensity the aftermath that the addicted leave in their wake, destroying not only themselves, but their families. Reading Bright Burning Things will make you uncomfortable, it will likely leave you angry, but it will also make you stop and consider how dysfunction cycles through generations of families with patterns that are learned and reinforced, and are difficult to break.

Bright Burning Things opens on a chaotic, frenetic scene with our protagonist, former actress Sonya on a drinking binge, recklessly putting herself, her young son Tommy, and their dog Herbie in grave danger. The novel pushes forward as such in an unfiltered stream of consciousness, with every drunken thought of Sonya's spilling across the page with rapid-fire intensity. Is this is what it is like to be in the mind of an alcoholic? If so, the result is dizzying and terrifying.

The book follows Sonya to rehab, which is pushed upon her by her distant father, and shows her struggle to regain custody of Tommy after her release. The entire story is focused on Sonya's addiction to the drink and also hints at an underlying mental illness, which she may be using alcohol to quiet and hide. The neglect of her child due to her addiction is at the forefront of this book, which does not hold back in highlighting how those with the disease of addiction destroy their families.

Bright Burning Things is a frenzied account of one woman's spiral into madness as she prioritizes alcohol and allows it take over her life. While this book's writing style won't be for everyone - frankly, it is all over the place, but such is the thought processes of someone under the influence - it has a lot to teach those who take the time to unravel its quirks and intricacies.

I found the premise of this book and this cover completely 10/10. I just wished I could get into it. Ultimately this book just wasn't for me and I had to DNF. I've heard some mixed reviews on it and ultimately that it gets better, but couldn't keep reading.

thank you for the opportunity to review. I couldn't really get into this however I think others will love it

I very much enjoyed this story. It was wonderfully written. I look forward to the author’s next book!

When I first started this book, I did not like how it was written! It was difficult to read and some of the sentences felt stilted. But when you realize this is how Sonya's brain works when she is under the influence or struggling with something, it makes it far more impactful!

I really enjoyed this book and the feeling of being inside someone's brain as they struggle with addiction. It was a fascinating read! My only reason for knocking off a star is I felt that it ended abruptly and didn't give us a lot of closure!

Thank you to @NetGalley for the gifted copy of Bright Burning Things!

This was a little hard to get used to because it is written in a very stream of consciousness, erratic way, to reflect the main character's struggle with mental health and addiction. However, I became enthralled in the story and wanted Sonya - and her small son - to be ok. Not my favorite, but certainly a fast and unique read.

Sonya is struggling with her use of alcohol and being a mom to her little boy Tommy. She also struggles with something that happened when she was younger. Then she is forced to make a choice, get help with her addiction or face the consequences of trying to live this way with Tommy. There has been incidents that have happened. I was anxious throughout the story. I was worried that something bad was going to happen. I was anxious for Sonya to fight her addiction and keep her son. I wanted everything to end well for them in the end...

This is a really good book about a young alcoholic mother. She has a son named Tommy who she loves with all her heart but he is not well-cared for due to her problem with drinking way too much. You feel terribly sorry for her when she has to lose custody of him and go into rehab because you can feel how terribly she misses him. - her heart is ripped out. You feel terribly sorry for Tommy when he's with her though because he is not cared for and is put in harms way too many times, but you also feel sorry for him when he has to go live with strangers because he loves his mother so much. This book has all the feels. She does finally do everything needed to get him back. When I got to the last page I was not happy with the ending as it felt left up in the air - wait, did I miss a page? Is that it? Did they live happily ever after? After closing the book, and I thought about my own family member with an addiction, I realized that this ending was probably written exactly this way by the author for a reason - true to life, with addiction, it's taken day by day...

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

"Bright Burning Things" by Lisa Harding was a heartfelt story of a young mother struggling with her addiction while raising her little boy, as well as pets. Painfully dysfunctional, eye-opening spiral of powerful alcoholism and poor functioning skills, with the struggle to overcome demons, in order to raise her son. Thank you NetGalley, author and publisher for the review copy. All opinions are my own.

This is a book that brought out all the feelings and added triggers for any struggling with addiction and the issues that arise when the addiction is threatening the family or children surrounding you. The fear of lost nights, lack of money, issues with others and a child who needs help. This was one that I would recommend to anyone

Uhhh…

This was a Read With Jenna book club pick why?

I felt like when I started the book, I had been dropped out of a plane onto a beach, sprained both ankles in the fall, but then was told to sprint away from imminent danger. I really felt like I couldn’t get a grip on this book the whole time. I wanted more character development, more resolution, more depth. But it wasn’t there. It was a really watered down version of something that could have been profound.

Sorry. :/

Sonya is a devoted mother, she really is…well, she wants to be. She loves her son and their dog, Herbie, more than life itself. Unfortunately, Sonya struggles with alcoholism, which prevents her from being the parent she strives to be, the parent her young son, Tommy, needs. When her father, with the help of her neighbor, stages an intervention that leads Sonya to rehab, she has the opportunity to learn how to manage her addiction and find the support she needs to start again.

I liked the book. It was well-written and honest. I liked the way Harding humanized the characters - other than Tommy, no one was likable. But who, when laid completely bare, is likable? We are human and come complete with our dark sides. I can’t say that I liked Sonya, but I grew to respect her. The David storyline, as well as Sonya’s relationship with her dad, left me with so many questions, but maybe that was intentional.

This book comes highly recommended and I see why. The hard truths of alcoholism, especially for mothers (don’t forget, we are supposed to be perfect) need to be talked about. Overall, the inner workings of Sonya’s mind (which arguably are the brilliance of the book) were just a bit too scattered for me, but I can see why the book is so well loved, and yes, I wholeheartedly recommend that you grab a copy. Reader beware, this is not a light read. So. Many. Trigger. Warnings. I don’t have room for them all here, so if this is something you need to be aware of, please do your research first.

Thanks to Lisa Harding, HarperVia and Netgalley for this ARC in return for my honest review.

This book was an incredible look at alcohol addiction and a mother’s love for her son.

Sonya was a London party girl and actress when she get pregnant with her son. She moves home to Dublin to a dingy apartment with her son and has taking up drinking constantly. She does take care of Tommy, her four year old son, but there are whole nights when she can’t remember what happened. Sonya lost her mother when she was young and never really got over it. Sonya’s father is not close with either of Sonya or Tommy, but he’s been paying a neighbor to keep an eye on her. When it finally gets out of control when she fell asleep cooking and nearly starts a fire, her father issues an ultimatum: go to rehab or I’m sending Tommy to Social Services.

This book was absolutely heartbreaking, but so good. It’s hard to read at some points and you just want to step in and help her. She has such love for her son and pets. I did love that the dog and cat were such a big part. Her dad shows her tough love, and while I think he’s harsh, Sonya really needed this push to get her life together.

I wanted to love this one but I really had a hard time connecting with the characters. Sonia was so unlikable and really didn't seem to have any remorse for any of her actions. The audio was excellent, but this one won't be one I recommend.