Dean Lilleyman

This is such an astonishing debut that I read this book in one sitting; it was so addictive that I couldn't bear to put it down. I have never read a book like it - it is so poetic and beautifully dark. The subject matter of an alcoholic spiralling into self-destruction was at times difficult to read but I was completely entranced by the devil in my inability to stop reading.

From the moment that his father left his mother pregnant, Billy's path was mapped out for him. It was a path he happily followed as long as there were bottles of Bells along the way. Billy travelled through life like a tornado, leaving damage and destruction in his wake, not caring who he hurt or what he did as long as he could drink himself into oblivion.

As dark as this book was, there are some really funny moments in it. The book is so realistic, emotive and raw that Billy's actions caused me to both laugh and cry. There are incidents in the social club and in Burtons that made me cry with laughter but also to question the effect of alcohol to make Billy do these things in the first place.

This is a book that should be given to all alcoholics on their road to recovery - highlighting the damage caused by excessive alcohol consumption to your life and your body. It is an absolutely amazing debut novel that shows the effects of alcoholism in a sobering light.

I received this book from the publisher, Urbane, in exchange for an honest review.… (mehr)