Skip to main content

REVIEW: Clean by Juno Dawson

Hello all! Hope you're all enjoying the summer so far!


My proof copy of Clean in all its shiny glory



Today I have a review of a super gritty and powerful read from Juno Dawson that I highly recommend.


CleanTitle: Clean
Author: Juno Dawson
Series: n/a
Pages: 400
Publisher: Quercus Books
Date of Publication: 5th April, 2018
Source: proof received from book club
Synopsis from Goodreads:
I can feel it swimming through my veins like glitter ... it's liquid gold.

When socialite Lexi Volkov almost overdoses, she thinks she's hit rock bottom.

She's wrong. Rock bottom is when she's forced into an exclusive rehab facility.

From there, the only way is up for Lexi and her fellow inmates, including the mysterious Brady.

As she faces her demons, Lexi realises love is the most powerful drug of all ...

It's a dirty business getting clean ...


My Thoughts:
I haven't read a book by Juno Dawson since Say Her Name which was published in 2014 so I thought it was high time to get back on it. Ever since I heard about Clean I was intrigued, however I tend to avoid books about drugs because drugs are bad and characters who take them make me mad. However, I couldn't resist the shiny cover and the glowing reviews so I decided to put my prejudices aside and give it a go.

Prior to reading this, I decided that I'd gone off contemporary fiction. I don't know whether it's whatever's going on in my personal life (there's some shite tbh) or whether I just am a bit bored, but I haven't enjoyed the last few contemps I've read as much as I was expecting to, but reckon had I read them this time last year, I'd have loved them. Anyway, despite deciding to read something that wasn't contemporary, this grabbed my attention and I gave it a go, and before I knew it I had read 100 pages.

The story starts with a bang as Lexi is 'kidnapped' by her brother and thrown into a rehabilitation centre on a remote island. At first, Lexi is rude and unstable and seemingly uncontainable. I was so ready to dislike her, but I soon realised I'd fallen into the trap that the book makes such an effort to challenge: that Lexi is more than just her addiction, her sickness. I wanted to hate Lexi because how could she do this to herself? But as the book went on I grew to like her more and more as I began to understand her. Juno does such a good job of making her seem so human, and it really blew me away.

The book doesn't shy away from anything. I'm not going to list all of the possible triggers because there are many and I don't want to miss one out, so I'll just say be careful going into it and no matter how good it is, be prepared to stop if it's going to affect you (pls feel free to ping me a message if you do want specifics). There was so much honesty in the writing and I have genuinely been changed by some of the things I read about in the book. I won't be so prejudiced now about drugs and the illness that is addiction. Any book that is able to do that, to influence and make readers more aware about very real issues is surely one to be celebrated.

Overall, I really loved Clean. I was so, so surprised by how strongly it pulled me in and I literally couldn't stop reading. I was late back from my lunch break at work because I was too engrossed (only by five minutes thankfully but still). It's gritty, it's raw, and I cannot recommend it enough.



What did you think of Clean? Have you read anything else by Juno Dawson? 





Comments

Popular posts from this blog

REVIEW: A Sky Painted Gold by Laura Wood

Hello all! Hope you're all enjoying the summer! I'm currently on holiday in a huge castle in the South of France and enjoying relaxing, playing games, and of course reading a lot!  Today's post is a review of a dreamy summer romance that's perfect for your holiday TBRs! Title:  A Sky Painted Gold Author:  Laura Wood Series:   n/a Pages:   356 Publisher:  Scholastic Date of Publication:  5th July, 2018 Source:  Publisher for review* Synopsis from Goodreads: Growing up in her sleepy Cornish village dreaming of being a writer, sixteen-year-old Lou has always wondered about the grand Cardew house which has stood empty for years. And when the owners arrive for the summer - a handsome, dashing brother and sister - Lou is quite swept off her feet and into a world of moonlit cocktail parties and glamour beyond her wildest dreams. But, as she grows closer to the Cardews, is she abandoning her own ambitions... And is there something darker lurking at the

Book Review: Where She Went by Gayle Forman

Title: Where She Went Author: Gayle Forman Series: If I Stay #2 Pages: 260 Publisher: Random House Date of UK Publication: April 28th 2011 Source: Borrowed from friend Synopsis from Goodreads: It's been three years since the devastating accident . . . three years since Mia walked out of Adam's life forever. Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Juilliard's rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend. When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia's home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future and each other. Told from Adam's point of view in the spare, lyrical prose that defined If I Stay, Where She Went explores the devastation of grief, the promise of new hope, and the flame of rekindled romance. My Thoughts: Where She Went continues the story from If I

REVIEW: Floored by Sara Barnard, Holly Bourne, Tanya Byrne, Non Pratt, Melinda Salisbury, Lisa Williamson, and Eleanor Wood

Good morning! Hope you're having a good week! Today I have a review for one of the biggest titles at YALC this year. Title:  Floored Author:  Sara Barnard, Holly Bourne, Tanya Byrne, Non Pratt, Melinda Salisbury, Lisa Williamson, and Eleanor Wood Series:  n/a Pages:   320 Publisher:  Macmillan Date of Publication:  12th July, 2018 Synopsis from Goodreads: When they got in the lift, they were strangers (though didn't that guy used to be on TV?): Sasha, who is desperately trying to deliver a parcel; Hugo, who knows he's the best-looking guy in the lift and is eyeing up Velvet, who knows what that look means when you hear her name and it doesn't match the way she looks, or the way she talks; Dawson, who was on TV, but isn't as good-looking as he was a few years ago and is desperately hoping no one recognizes him; Kaitlyn, who's losing her sight but won't admit it, and who used to have a poster of Dawson on her bedroom wall, and Joe, who shoul