Allison Weiss is a typical working mother, trying to balance a business, ageing parents, a demanding daughter and a marriage. But when the website she develops becomes a huge success, she finds herself challenged to the point of being completely overwhelmed.
As she struggles to hold her life together and meet the needs of all the people around her, Allison finds that the painkillers she was prescribed for a back injury help her deal with more than just physical discomfort - they make her feel calm and get her through the increasingly hectic days. Sure, she worries that the bottles seem to empty a bit faster each week, but it's not like she's some Hollywood starlet partying all night. It's not as if she has an actual problem.
Until she ends up in a world she never thought she'd experience outside of a movie theatre: rehab. And as Allison struggles to get her life back on track, she learns a few life lessons along the way.
Review: I've had this book for a while, but after reading Hungry Heart by this author all about her life and writing, I wanted to hear more from her and so I finally got round to picking up this one, boy am I glad that I did!
This book reminded me so much of Rachel's Holiday by Marian Keyes (one of my favourite authors) although it is definitely set in today's world of smart phones and aniline pharmacies and of course this book is set in the USA. I have to say that I loved the setting for this one, it encompassed everything about family life and yet had the feel of someone still trying to live a life of independence and have it all really. It really does explore the question that we all ask ourselves and are asking by others on a daily basis, can we really have it all?
Allison is a hard character to like because of her thoughts and actions and yet she is such an easy character to relate to because of those thoughts and the fact that she is trying to, and thinks she is doing, the best that she can! I really felt her pain and her struggle and could see why she was continually telling herself things that weren't true. I loved the fact that she was a blogger, that made it even easier to relate to. When you have a job like that or even just a commitment to that kind of entity, it can be really hard to switch off because you are always within reach of a computer and always connected to social media!
Obviously this storyline involves addiction, but the kind of addiction that isn't always explored in mainstream media. We often think of people who are drug addicts living and behaving like those in Trainspotting, living up to the stereotype but Allison proved that there is access to a range of different drugs in many different walks of life and I really love that Jennifer Weiner has brought this to the forefront here in this novel!
This was a really gripping read and I really found myself routing for Allison and her family. I think the issues dealt with are dealt with well and I really loved the way the book ended as well, not giving anything away of course! This was a great read and I can't wait to read more by this author!
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