BOOK REVIEW: How To Grow An Addict by J.A Wright

4/5 Stars

Blurb:

Randall Grange has been tricked into admitting herself into a treatment center and she doesn’t know why. She’s not a party hound like the others in her therapy group—but then again, she knows she can’t live without pills or booze. Raised by an abusive father, a detached mother, and a loving aunt and uncle, Randall both loves and hates her life. She’s awkward and a misfit. Her parents introduced her to alcohol and tranquilizers at a young age, ensuring that her teenage years would be full of bad choices, and by the time she’s twenty-three years old, she’s a full-blown drug addict, well acquainted with the miraculous power chemicals have to cure just about any problem she could possibly have—and she’s in more trouble than she’s ever known was possible.

Review:

'How to grow an addict' is the story of Randall - a young girl who grows up with an awful father, a distant mother, and an unhealthy attitude to sex, alcohol and drugs. Going through her young life sneaking pills from around the house and falling too quickly for boys who only want one thing, Randall loses her place in the world. She has nothing to stop her from needing the next high and has little to no self worth. 

I'll admit, when I first started this book, I wasn't sure if I would like it or not, but as the story unfolded, I found myself drawn in. I felt so sorry for Randall and desperately wanted things to turn out well for her. There were moments where I saw her get back on top of things, and I wondered what could possibly make things worse, of course, something always did. 

If I didn't know any better, I would think I was reading a true biographical story. J.A Wright does a perfect job of writing Randall's story - I believed every word like she was a real person. I'd be surprised if the author doesn't have some real life experience which she drew on for the book.

Disclaimer: I was provided a free copy by the author in exchange for an honest review. My review is completely unbiased and based off my own true opinion. 

Exploring Goodreads and Seeking Reviews

I joined Goodreads a while ago but I never really explored what you can do on there. I didn't realise there are all sorts of different groups you can join on there, all with their own forums. It's been great to explore and make new connections.

This week I've been focusing on reviews, and a few lovely people have agreed to read and review Synergy, as well as be a Beta reader for part 2. It's pretty scary, putting yourself out there, but you have to, right? You'll never get anywhere if you don't try.

I'm on holiday from work for 2 weeks after today so I'm looking forward to grafting on part 3. I took to pen and paper a few nights ago to plan it out - something I've never done! I even got the highlighters out for key words and made a mind map. Hopefully the chapters will start to flow soon and I'll have a semi-solid plan.

I do find that I write better when I don't plan it out 100% but I still need some sort of structure, so I know exactly where I'm going with it.

I've just finished work so I think I'll have a lazy Sunday with what's left of it, then get to it tomorrow.

 - Georgia

Welcome!

Hi, and welcome to my first ever blog post on my author site. This really isn't anything new to me, since I've blogged regularly for over a year, however, I've never done it specifically about myself. For a while now I've shared my author news on my blog's social media, but I figured it was about time to establish a blog for my books alone.

If you've never heard of me, that's expected, since writing as an author is very new to me. My first e-book 'Synergy' was self-published on Kindle on May 26th 2015, and in just under 3 weeks I've managed to earn myself a good amount of pocket money (that's all I'm seeing this venture as so far.) Previous to posting it on Kindle, I've had over 8,000 people read it at Wattpad, and considering it's 'mature' rating restricts it from showing up in searches, I'm very happy with that number. I've had some lovely comments from some lovely people and am really enjoying getting my story out there.

I'm going to leave the first post at that. I don't want to scare you away! Thanks for reading; I hope you'll follow this blog for details of my writing journey.