Glow in the F*cking Dark by Tara Schuster is a gorgeous sequel to Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies! Lilies was such a wonderful book that changed my life and gently nudged me to grow. GLOW is the next step, with just as much relatability, vulnerability, encouragement, and grace. And, I love that the book started with a big breakdown/emotional crisis within which Tara thought "I've grown so much - why am I having this breakdown??" Because I've had those moments, and now I feel less alone in them. The third section, Glow, is my favorite :)
#GlowintheFckingDark #NetGalley

This book was really good and I have to say I went into it not thinking I would like it so I was pleasantly surprised. The characters were great and the story was very good. I highly recommend.

If you like extreme oversharing of someone’s trauma written in an uncensored blog or Twitter format, this book is for you. This book was not for me.

5 stars for a therapeutic and hilarious guide to healing and growth!

I smiled, laughed, and got a little emotional at times reading this memoir full of tales of misadventure / guide to growth. Tara Schuster is down-to-earth, brutally honest, relatable and brilliantly funny in this self-help memoir. I loved her previous work, "Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies" and this is a new favorite.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for providing a digital ARC for review!

Three times now I have picked up this book and yet I cannot stick with it. It's true the author's story of being brought up by neglectful/abusive parents has brought her a way to reparent herself into the kind of person she wants to be in spite of the way she was raised, but it's just too depressing for me to continue reading.

This is almost a self help type of book with her guidance based on what worked for her. I'm glad to say I cannot relate to the way she was raised, but I also feel her guidance isn't for me so I did not finish the book. Some day maybe I will pick it up again, but not now. It's too much of a downer for me to continue.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest opinion.

So I don’t tend to read self help books. Unless, of course, they’re written by Tara Schuster! Because hers are ALWAYS worth it!

I read Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies back when it was first released (you all remember that other life before the pandemic, right?) and LOVED IT!!! There’s something about Schuster’s writing that is so open, honest and relatable. It makes me want to stand up and immediately starting fixing all the parts of me that are broken.

And this book was no exception. I laughed, I cried, I wanted to be a better version of me and fix all the bits I’d shoved away, thinking I’d deal with them later while they continue to hurt me now. Her writing is just that powerful!!

I do wish I’d reread Lilies before going into this one though. Just because I missed quite a few of the references. I have the memory of a pea and while I still recall the basics, I would’ve loved to remember everything. (But also things that happened before the pandemic, truly do feel like they happened in a different life?? Including reading Lilies!)

So. HIGHLY recommend this one!! It is part memoir which is what I truly enjoyed. I love listening to anyone talk about their lives and experiences and the way Schuster talks about hers just resonated with me so wholly. I hope she writes more in the future. I know I will gladly read it!

Thank you to NetGalley and The Dial Press for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review!

This is such a good way to approach the self-help genre. It’s completely avoiding the toxic positivity route that too many take on.
Tara is hilarious and has so much courage and vulnerability. Even when I couldn’t relate to her trauma , I kept finding gems if knowledge and hearing myself saying—- yessss I can’t wait to recommend this to this client or this client ( I’m a life coach ) her humor and insight and awareness felt refreshing. Our journeys are always ongoing and it’s good to never feel arrived

Thanks Tara and Netgalley for the arc.

I just want to think NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the advanced reader copy of Glow in the F*cking Dark. I got a lot of great takeaways and advice from the author that I plan on applying to my life.

However, since I don’t line up with some of the same beliefs the author has I found it harder to get into certain chapters and sections. Overall it was a good book though. I’m glad I read it.

I wanted to adore this book, and I think a different version of me would, and will when I re-read it. Tara Schuster has such an approachable tone to her writing, an accessibility, as if you're reading a bolstering letter from a friend who knows you better than you know yourself, one that needs to be full of harsh truths that still manage to be gentle and persuasive. I enjoyed that each chapter had some homework to it, ideas to concretely apply to your own life, questions to ask yourself and make you think beyond the page. I loved her humor. I think I am just in a phase of life where I'm stubbornly mired in my own grief and trauma and this felt so much like something that would work, that would begin to unstick my feet, that it terrified me. I'll be back for you!

Wow! Thank you, NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed all of the feelings and emotions within the deepest parts of myself that this book brought to light. By the end, I was an emotional mess, but it was much needed. I added more books by this author immediately and I’m suggesting others do the same!

I think this is a great book for those who want to learn more about self improvement & the journey that entails. While I appreciated more chapters than others, I found the small tips section at the end of each chapter really helpful and achievable. Thanks netgalley & the publisher for the ARC, in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited to see this book and be able to read it early! I loved Tara Schuster's other novel and this was no different. She has big ideas and bold actions and it was a refreshing take on typical self help ideas. It wasn't anything ground breaking but I really like the way it was brought up. I think this would also make a great audiobook!

I wish I’d had this book when I was younger. In Glow in the F*cking Dark, Tara Schuster recounts how losing her job during the pandemic triggered past trauma that she thought she had already healed. She then recounts how she engaged in deeper healing through methods such as therapy, slowing down and getting to know herself better, exploring spirituality, learning to be with her emotions, and setting boundaries. Part memoir and part self-help, this is a sequel to Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies (which I highly recommend), but it stands on its own.

Tara swears a lot and uses slang and abbreviations that might confuse or turn off some readers, and her stories sometimes ramble so much they are hard to follow, but I appreciate her authenticity and unique voice. She shares her story with incredible honesty and vulnerability as well as humor and compassion for both herself and others. Reading this book felt like having a conversation with a compassionate but foul-mouthed friend over (possibly too many) drinks.

Each chapter includes a suggested healing technique or tips and often resources for further information. Many of Tara’s suggestions might seem familiar, but you’ll probably pick up a few new tips, and repeated exposure to these ideas can be helpful. As someone who often gets bogged down trying to make decisions, I particularly loved Tara’s tips for reconnecting with your essential self, finding your deepest desires, and conjuring Future You.

I think this book could be helpful for many people who are suffering from trauma or mood disorders or just feel unhappy with their current life. Avoid if you dislike swearing, frank discussion of sex and drug use, or books that blend memoir with self-help.

I was provided an unproofed ARC through NetGalley that I volunteered to review.

This book is part memoir and part self-help and will particularly appeal to those who have suffered trauma (isn't that everybody?) Schuster's strength is her self-deprecating humor and her storytelling.

I loved Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies and knew immediately that I would purchase this one as soon as I saw it was coming out. It did not disappoint! Tara's voice is so authentic, and she shares her knowledge and experiences in the most accessible way. I hate that her childhood was so difficult, and I hate that we all have to experience hardships in life; however, I love that Tara is willing to be honest and open about things that have worked for her and is willing to share those with us. I have never met her in person but was able to receive an advance copy of this book through her Glow Getters group and participate in some Zoom meetings that she led. She truly seems like the most genuine human being, and I'm lucky to have been such a small part of the book launch. This does not effect my review in any way. I truly loved the practical ideas, personal stories, and the way that she makes things that we know are helpful for healing (i.e. mindfulness, journaling...) so much less overwhelming and simple. Thanks for another gift, Tara!

I did not connect with this book at all. There was a lot of ramblings I found myself skipping most parts.

This a phenomenal follow-up to Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies!! I highly enjoyed this and took away so many different things to try out and it just felt like I was understood. I will recommend this to everyone.

Tara Schuster is the sweet, loving, funny, and incredibly self-aware friend you’ve always wished you had. She’s done the work to deal with her childhood trauma, relationship challenges, and self-esteem issues. Glow in the F*cking Dark is an insightful extension of Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies, full of tactics, advice, and personal examples of how to deal with life and find the glow inside you.

The author of this book is a very talented writer! Unfortunately the book itself was just not for me. I was hoping for more of a general glow up of life but it was heavily trauma-focused, to almost an obsessive point. The style was also rather anxious (I'm sure due to the author's very real anxiety) and I felt more anxious reading it.

Tara’s first book changed my life in ways I couldn’t imagine and I think Glow is going to do the same. This book was a breath of fresh air after months of feeling “stuck” on my healing journey. Tara wraps you up in her stories and makes you feel as if she’s sitting beside you the whole time. Glow is so relatable, it feels like she was reading my mind when she wrote this book. So many “WOW” moments came for me while reading this and I wrote down so many notes and highlighted so many phrases! This book came at the exact time I needed it and I could not be more grateful that Tara wrote this. Feeling alone? Need that extra little push to put yourself first? Glow is all you need to get started. 5 bazillion stars and then some ✨