Thank you NetGalley for this eARC!

I was surprised when telling others I was reading this book, that not many people were familiar with Amanda Knox & her story. Amanda’s story is harrowing and powerful, and I invite you all to read her rendition of the injustices brought against her. I particularly enjoyed the way she describes the idea of being “free” as not starting when she was released from prison, but as a journey to finding her own freedom. I feel for this woman who had everything ripped out from under her at such a young, impressionable age. & I hope one day she finds the peace & freedom she so desperately deserves. Not to mention, she is a stunning, skilled writer.

This book described Amanda Knox's journey from an apartment in Perugia through her trial, imprisonment, and return to the US. She describes her experience with the Italian justice system, and the resilience that she developed in her quest to be free.
The story of her wrongful conviction was just heartbreaking - there was absolutely no evidence that she had anything to do with Meredith's murder, yet the Italian justice system did nothing to admit this to the court. She was a young college student in a foreign country, who was arrested and jailed on an unfair detainment, and spent 4 years there. Fortunately, in prison, she met a priest who provided a lifeline and some hope.
In addition, somehow the press got word of her soccer nickname- Foxy Knoxy- and smeared her reputation through documentaries and , tabloid stories. She became an unwilling celebrity and was constantly photographed by paparazzi here and abroad. Whenever she did something that she enjoyed, or tackled another life affirming event, she could only think...Meredith could never do/experience this".
She was able to marry a wonderful man and has 2 children. However, I don't understand why she reconnected with Guiuliano Magnini - the prosecutor who believed her incarceration was justified and who went after her so viciously. He never admits that the case was poorly handled, or that there was a lack of evidence. She and her husband did travel to Italy and met with him. I just can't imagine ever facing the man who ruined my life based on little or no truth. She maintains a relationship with him even today.
The book also describes the life she has today and her work with projects associated with wrongly accused and incarcerated people. Amanda Know is truly a woman, who shows strength and resilience, and who has learned how precious freedom really is.

WOW I am blown away by this book and beyond impressed at Amanda Knox's ability to articulate the ways she has processed her trauma and found her way back to her core values of compassion and kindness in a world that has largely shown her neither. I didn't read Amanda's previous memoir and I am sad to say that most of what I knew of her story was from the headlines, but I loved that this book was mostly about the aftermath rather than the true crime details. Her story didn't end when she was freed and it hasn't ended now. While the book has a structure and flow, it does often read like a journal, allowing you to process alongside her in a way that is really beautiful. My favorite parts were her reflections on grieving her past self, the one who went to Italy to study abroad, her journey to motherhood, and the ways she has found community. Highly recommend!

I would like to thank NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for providing me an eARC of this book.

I usually do not like to provide ratings for a memoir - who am I to rate someone's experience? Also, for context I did not read Amanda's first book so I do have a comparison between the two nor did I know the writing style of Amanda.

First - Amanda is an extremely talented writer, I hope she continues to write in some capacity. I started college when Amanda was first convicted, I was not someone to deep dive into the details of the case but I never understood why she was found guilty. Based off of what was provided here in 'Free' she has come a long way to reflect on her journey and attempt to find peace in the aftermath and is overall a much bigger person than 99% of the population. The lessons she has put forward in this book is a template anyone with hardship (of any size) can turn to to help them in their own personal journey.

Amanda - Cheers to your freedom and and your beautiful family

Thank you Net Galley, Amanda Knox, and Grand Central Publishing for an eARC of this book.

This is a very interesting and powerful memoir that recounts for Amanda Knox’s time in an Italian prison and as she adjusts to life when she is able to return home to the states. I recall all of the news stories and magazine articles on Amanda Knox and how absorbed I became with her story so I was quick to read her memoir. Themes of personal growth and justice are heavily felt through this book through her alluring writing as readers get to truly hear her side of the events from her trial cases.

I found this book a little hard to get through - there was a lot of repetition between chapters; Knox was saying the same thing over and over, but with different words. The pace felt really slow, but I don't feel like I can really fault that part too much, being that it's her story and not something that she made up.

I did find it interesting to read in depth from her perspective about her time in prison (I didn't read her first memoir) and her time trying to reintegrate into society in the US.

I'm giving it 3 stars because it was interesting, but it was too wordy, and I felt like she only glossed over the other victims of this tragic event.

**Thank you NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for sending this book for review. All opinions are my own.**

Thanks so much to NetGalley for an advanced readers version of this book. In Free, Amanda Knox shares her life after spending nearly four years in an Italian prison for a crime she didn’t commit. While many know her story from the media, this book reveals a more personal side—her struggles to rebuild her life, find purpose, and move beyond her infamous past. Knox writes about her time in prison, the challenges of returning to “normal” life, and even her unexpected connection with the man who once helped convict her. Her story is both heartbreaking and, at times, surprisingly funny, showing her resilience and growth. This book isn’t about rehashing the trial—it’s about what comes after. It’s a powerful read for anyone interested in her case or stories of overcoming hardship.

Amanda Knox’s memoir, Free: My Search for Meaning, is an evocative exploration of her journey to self-discovery and healing following the tumultuous years spent wrongfully imprisoned in Italy. Beyond the specifics of her wrongful conviction and subsequent release, Knox delves into her personal evolution, focusing on the deep, spiritual path that helped her find peace and understanding both during and after the trauma of being wrongfully convicted, imprisoned, and constantly watched by the media. One of the most personally relatable elements of Knox’s memoir is the way she integrates Zen Buddhism into her narrative, creating a framework for reflection that resonates throughout her story.

At the heart of Knox’s spiritual exploration is the realization that true freedom and peace cannot be found in external circumstances, possessions, or accolades. This understanding is beautifully encapsulated in the quote from early in her memoir: “... any sustainable form of joy or peace must come from within. It can't be grounded in what you can hold, what you can buy, or what you can treasure.” This insight forms the foundation of Knox’s revelatory journey from victim to empowered individual. The idea that peace is an internal state—one that transcends someone's current circumstances and troubles—permeates her story, offering readers not only a glimpse into her personal growth and healing, but also a larger, more universal truth.

Incorporating Zen Buddhist principles is not just a backdrop for Knox’s story, but a deeply integral part of her healing. She utilized its teachings as a means of navigating the emotional and psychological turbulence that came with her wrongful imprisonment. The practices and philosophies allowed her to step back from the overwhelming noise of her past, helping her move beyond anger and resentment. Instead, Knox begins to focus on the present moment, embracing mindfulness as a way to heal, grow, and move forward. By turning inward, she unearths the quiet joy and peace that had previously seemed unattainable amid the chaos of her imprisonment. This also allows her to prioritize kindness and grace to many people that others would find it impossible to extend those things to, including her Italian prosecutor. It is through this philosophy that she is able to connect with him and continue her journey of healing.

As someone who struggles with anxiety and depression, I too have found internal peace through meditation and trying to live more in the present. It was these shared truths about how healing those practices can be that really made me feel connected to Amanda as I was reading this memoir. I found her insights to be applicable to my own struggles and I can see myself revisiting passages from this book again and again in the future as I face my own struggles. l would recommend this to anyone who, like me, has had to learn to manage anxiety and/or depression because it details someone else's (Amanda's) thought process about the same things and can really help you to not feel alone.

Thanks to Grand Central Publishing for gifted access via Netgalley. All opinions below are my own.

I'm definitely a true crime junkie and was definitely pressed to the TV for the Amanda Knox trials when they happened. I have not read her previous memoir but I think I will now. The writing in this book was really well done. She is a very thoughtful person and I felt like she was very raw and honest about so many topics. She touches upon the case but not in detail (which is why I want to read the previous book) but focuses more on the way she navigated psychologically through the interrogation, trial, prison, her release and getting back to regular life. What I appreciated is that she did acknowledge that while she was struggling, Meredith didn't get the opportunities she has had. 4 years of strife has had a ton of impact and shaped her life but she still has one. I really appreciated her talking about social justice reform and was so intrigued by her relationship with the man who prosecuted her. There is a bit about motherhood and some about religion and personal growth but it really felt to me most about resilience and her telling her truth and showing her character with a little more maturity.

Amanda has quite the story to tell. I was hooked from the beginning. The trial, the 4 years in prison, her outlook. Where it could have been so negative and down, she kept fighting. Her message on religion, forgiveness and her work with The Innocence Project really moved me. I now need to go back and read her first book.

5 stars

A beautiful follow-up to her previous memoir about her experiences as a prisoner in Italy, Free is Amanda Knox's thoughtful exploration of her experiences building a meaningful life after her exoneration. She walks the reader through what it felt like to return to her life in the US and adjust to her new post-confinement reality, coping with her notoriety, finding a vocation in advocacy for the wrongfully convicted, starting a family, and perhaps most interesting, forming a connection with the Italian prosecutor who helped destroy her reputation on a global level and painstakingly finding a way toward something like forgiveness. Beautifully written, immensely thought provoking work. Thank you to Ms. Knox for sharing her thoughts and experiences, and thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read this in advance of publication.

Growing up I remember hearing my parents talk about what was happening to Amanda Knox, I remember watching the tv movie about the case as well. I was excited to dive into this, but feel like I came out with no more understanding of who Amanda is as a person than before I started it. I liked the look into the justice system and the trials and tribulations, but felt like it was missing something.

Thank you for this ARC! I did not know much about Amanda Knox, and, unfortunately, still don't feel I know much about her. I may go back and read her previous memoir. This fell a little flat to me and did not seem incredible informative.

ARC - What do you do when the life you were expecting to live gets ripped away? That's what Amanda Knox addresses in this book. It's kind of like her own "Man's Search for Meaning."
It was interesting to read her healing journey. If you are looking for the story of her court case and the murder of her roommate, this is not it..... go read her other book. If you want to read about her time in prison and time after her release, this is what you are looking for. It was a good story about finding a new path when the one you were on disappears.

I did follow, vaguely, the saga of "Foxy Knoxy". At the time I was a single mother of 3 and the peril of Meredith Kercher and Amanda Knox saddened me, but I wasn't a cult follower at all.

I was, however, curious about hearing directly from Amanda how her life has unfolded. This book really humanizes Amanda. She has the same anxieties many of us share, and in some respects on a heightened level, based on her life experience. She shares a great deal about the Italian prison which shows a contrast with our prisons in the United States. In part, due to her imprisonment, she is incredibly well read.

At first glance, I felt like Amanda had a privileged life and didn’t realize it. When I say privileged, I don’t necessarily mean wealthy. But here is this American citizen, stuck in an Italian prison, but who receives mail almost daily, and has family visitors every week during visitation. She has money on her books. Her family was able to afford to travel to Italy and in some respects stay in Italy for extended periods. Amanda traveled quite a bit as a child. All of these things add up to a type of privilege many would not experience were they in her shoes. As I continued to read, it became apparent that Amanda knew she was incredibly fortunate. She had an uncomplicated and loving upbringing. And her awareness of her situation makes her more enduring as a person.

She truly suffered, and lost years of her life she will never get back. However, she is not bitter. She is incredibly optimistic. She carries with her the mantra she was raised with by her mother, be kind.

She mourns Meredith, although she knew her for such a short time. She acknowledges life milestones she has the benefit of reaching that Meredith never will. But she also give herself permission to live.

One quote I found compelling (there are many in this book, this one just really spoke to me) was: “Part of being human is confronting tragedy and getting through it.”

✨this memoir is powerful. having not read amanda's first memoir, i was not lost or felt left behind at all while reading this one.

✨free is a collection of anecdotes from amanda's life as she details and heals from her time as a wrongly convicted murderer in prison in italy. a story most elder gen-z-ers are familiar with, one that maligned amanda as a deviant, ruthless killer using coercion, a lack of evidence, and false confessions to convict and then re-convict amanda knox and raffaele for the murder of meredith kercher.

✨all of these essays, pretty short in length, lead the reader to the ultimate event in amanda's life thus far after being exonerated. she wants to come face to face with the prosecutor who, against all sound logic, plowed the defense against amanda's innocence.

✨bouncing around from her childhood to her life as recent as 2023, there is an emphasis on who she feels like she was before her time in italy and after, being fundamentally changed after prison. a good third of this book could be divided into her life while in prison, another her life post prison, and another as she mentally and emotionally prepares to go back to italy to see giuliani, the prosecutor.

✨i will not lie and say that i don't remember this whole story play out, that i was someone who was never so invested in the events as it happened, being only in middle school, but i remember seeing the news in my periphery and the eventual infamous Lifetime adaptation of the story. all of which piled on amanda and forced her to be guilty in the court of public opinion. it wasn't until i watched a Netflix documentary a few years ago when i really took in all of the information and realized how horrible this situation truly was.

✨when i was able to read this as an e-arc i was very interested in it, unaware of a previous memoir having been published, and i thought the structure of this book was a little odd. knowing now that there is probably a more standard structure of a memoir out there, Free felt like fresh air to read. it is honest and raw and real, knox really knows how to write and that is evident. i found her mental fortitude fascinating and she seems to have really built a life for herself. it is inspiring to read about.

✨i recommend this to read to anyone who has this vague knowledge about the amanda knox story, who remembers people speculating about her innocence. true crime vultures stay away though, because amanda's story deserves more than the true crime treatment. the way she has been able to cope and move on the best way that she can is absolutely a marvel to the human condition.

Free: My Search for Meaning by Amanda Knox
Anticipated Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Four Stars- ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thank you to NetGalley, Grand Central Publishing and Amanda Knox for providing an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I read Amanda Knox’s first book, Waiting to Be Heard, several years ago and have closely followed her story in the media ever since. Amanda is only a few years younger than me, I had just graduated college when she was wrongfully convicted. I could never truly grasp the pain and hardship she and her family endured during the four years she spent in prison and the eight years spent on trial.

This book was well-written, and I appreciated learning more about her life after returning to Seattle and seeing her navigate trying to live a “normal” life. It was also inspiring to read about her decision to return to Italy to confront her past, something I, personally, could never do.. I’m happy to see that she is now a mother—something she feared might never happen because of her wrongful conviction.

While Meredith Kercher’s death will never be forgotten, it’s clear that justice has not been fully served. Rudy Guede, Meredith’s real murderer, only spent thirteen years behind bars, leaving much of the legal process feeling incomplete.

"Free" by Amanda Knox is a fascinating memoir that shares her intense experiences with the justice system. The book is an honest look at the ups and downs she faced, making it a captivating read for anyone interested in true crime stories. Knox writes in a way that is easy to connect with, sharing her feelings and thoughts clearly. Her journey through such a difficult time shows her strength and determination. Overall, "Free" is an inspiring story of resilience and moving forward after a tough ordeal.

Free by Amanda Knox is a thrilling tell all of her experiences in the justice system. Anyone who followed the case close or who just enjoys crime stories would enjoy.

I’m a huge fan of Amanda, and this book was so powerful and special. In such a challenging time she learned how to be present, to trust herself, when so many would have broken. Moving and important.