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Things Fall Apart
An emotional journey of awakening, through broken trust, heartbreak, and family conflict. Despite being at the depths of despair, in the face of adversity, there is always a belief for the promise of a hopeful future. This is a coming of age story with a difference. It’s 35 year old single mother Mandy who is forced to mature and grow up quickly, by the time we reach the final chapters of this incredible chronicle that takes us from the blindness of naivety into pain, despair and eventually, at great cost, the maturity of hard-won wisdom.
Set in the mid nineteen eighties in Edinburgh, a city dubbed as the drug’s capital of Europe, a place where Mandy faces a mother’s worst nightmare. The warning signs are staring her in the face, but at first she doesn’t heed them. All she wants to do is love, nurture and protect her family, but despite all her efforts she has to stand by, watching helplessly as it fragments, and things fall apart. How does she bring things to a peaceful conclusion? Is it even possible?
Set in the mid nineteen eighties in Edinburgh, a city dubbed as the drug’s capital of Europe, a place where Mandy faces a mother’s worst nightmare. The warning signs are staring her in the face, but at first she doesn’t heed them. All she wants to do is love, nurture and protect her family, but despite all her efforts she has to stand by, watching helplessly as it fragments, and things fall apart. How does she bring things to a peaceful conclusion? Is it even possible?
342 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 18, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
August 11, 2015
Great book. Living through the 80's in Dublin in many ways gave me a connection to Edinburgh during the same period. Both cities were ravaged by drugs, particularly an influx of cheap heroin and families and communities were destroyed by the devastating effect it had on them. Here we have a mother trying to cope with her children as the epidemic sneaks up on her and her struggle with the self-denial is at sometimes painful. This is an excellent portrayal of people on the edge, fighting to cope with the colossal assault that addiction is on a family. Having witnessed the effect on families in my own community at the time, I can confidently applaud the author for getting her portrayal spot on. But leave that aside for a minute. Was I hooked from early on, did I love the narrative and was I convinced by the dialogue and drawn in by the story as it developed. It was a yes in every case. This is a cracking read. A well deserved 5 stars from me.
August 30, 2015
This is the second book I have read by this author and it again is a very gritty, emotional story about the impact of drug addiction on a working class family in Scotland. Mandy is the mother and initially she is terribly naïve and doesn't believe her children would be taking drugs when in fact two of them are very addicted. The story traces Mandy's awakening to the truth and then the steps she takes to help her children with some very rough love. It is a difficult journey full of pain and emotional scenes that due to the author's skill had me thinking I could be reading a true story not fiction. Sadly the story is all too true for too many families.
I'm not sure it's right to say I enjoyed the book exactly but I was gripped from start to finish. I admit to shedding a tear, something that frequently occurs when I read books which feature children suffering.
I must mention Maureen who I thought was a wonderful character.
Highly recommended.
I'm not sure it's right to say I enjoyed the book exactly but I was gripped from start to finish. I admit to shedding a tear, something that frequently occurs when I read books which feature children suffering.
I must mention Maureen who I thought was a wonderful character.
Highly recommended.
July 30, 2015
Synopsis (from the author): A Powerful and emotive story. Mandy McCabe is a single parent trying to cope with her three children. All she wants in life is to love, nurture and protect them.
Without warning her world begins to crumble.
For the sake of her family Mandy has to find the strength, knowledge and will-power to face her problems. With her world falling down around her, she is forced to take drastic measures, but will it be enough to save her family?
Review: Things Fall Apart is a brutal and unflinching portrayal of life in Scotland in the 1980s. As I look back to my teenage years, it's easy to see that decade in anything other than a nostalgic haze. This is not helpful as we must look at things as they are.
Well. The first thing to say is that it is a family drama of the highest standard. The MC is Mandy McCabe, a mother who does her best to keep her family together, but as they descend into a vicious cocktail of drugs and alcohol (though the latter seems gentle in comparision as a method of abuse), things really do fall apart.
Part of the main issue I felt was the mother's often blanket denial that nothing was wrong, yet knowing it was. I am not a parent, but I can imagine protecting my kids from the outside world, yet might end up scolding them in private if they went off the rails.
It's hard not to think of one of the most famous portrayals of life - Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting. The book and the film gave us a flavour of Scotland, and it is far from the national pride displayed in the recent referendum. Scots are a proud people - as they should be,but drugs is not about pride - in fact it will take your pride and leave you with nothing.
As I read the book, I wondered why the author had given us such a hard read. Well, life is certainly not all sunshine, rabbits and rainbows. It's hard, and for some readers, the realism on offer amongst its pages may be a little too much to take. Having said that, if you do read this book, it's not likely to leave your mind for a while.
This is one of those books that hits you so hard, I think it is best to read once, take your time over it and absorb it all. I mean, Schindler's List is a very hard film for me to watch, and to date I have only seen it twice. Once in the cinema, once at home. Its dark, uncompromising tone meant that I only had to view it a few times to take it in.
After reading this book, I promise that you will do whatever you can to protect your kids and those around you from drugs.
The first third of the book has a lot of police involvement, the middle third a descent into madness and depravity caused by drug abuse, and yet, by the third segment, I began to feel that maybe this dark story could have a good ending. That doesn't mean I wasn't put through the ringer, because I was.
Ultimately I think this story is about hope - that through a terrible set of tragedies there is a possible sunrise that one can aim for. But I was genuinely shocked that the falls were not the final humiliation for some of the characters. Some of them just kept on falling.
As I was reading I was thinking 'come on, get a grip.' But they can't. How can they? Drugs offer a different reality. No wonder the outer effects are so hideous.
So why should you read this? I suppose because not every story needs a zombie, vampire, mermaid, or billionaire boss. Sometimes a book needs to bring us back to Earth. This one does, and whilst you will find it hard to read (not because of the writing style - which is excellent) but because it examines so clearly the brutal truth about drug abuse. When it is happening under your nose as a parent, I cannot think of anything worse.
Read this unflinching drama. It will make you think that your next day, your next moment is one to treasure. When you are drowning in drugs, or those around you are, you really can't see the rainbow - not the real one anyway. But the fight is worth it.
Without warning her world begins to crumble.
For the sake of her family Mandy has to find the strength, knowledge and will-power to face her problems. With her world falling down around her, she is forced to take drastic measures, but will it be enough to save her family?
Review: Things Fall Apart is a brutal and unflinching portrayal of life in Scotland in the 1980s. As I look back to my teenage years, it's easy to see that decade in anything other than a nostalgic haze. This is not helpful as we must look at things as they are.
Well. The first thing to say is that it is a family drama of the highest standard. The MC is Mandy McCabe, a mother who does her best to keep her family together, but as they descend into a vicious cocktail of drugs and alcohol (though the latter seems gentle in comparision as a method of abuse), things really do fall apart.
Part of the main issue I felt was the mother's often blanket denial that nothing was wrong, yet knowing it was. I am not a parent, but I can imagine protecting my kids from the outside world, yet might end up scolding them in private if they went off the rails.
It's hard not to think of one of the most famous portrayals of life - Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting. The book and the film gave us a flavour of Scotland, and it is far from the national pride displayed in the recent referendum. Scots are a proud people - as they should be,but drugs is not about pride - in fact it will take your pride and leave you with nothing.
As I read the book, I wondered why the author had given us such a hard read. Well, life is certainly not all sunshine, rabbits and rainbows. It's hard, and for some readers, the realism on offer amongst its pages may be a little too much to take. Having said that, if you do read this book, it's not likely to leave your mind for a while.
This is one of those books that hits you so hard, I think it is best to read once, take your time over it and absorb it all. I mean, Schindler's List is a very hard film for me to watch, and to date I have only seen it twice. Once in the cinema, once at home. Its dark, uncompromising tone meant that I only had to view it a few times to take it in.
After reading this book, I promise that you will do whatever you can to protect your kids and those around you from drugs.
The first third of the book has a lot of police involvement, the middle third a descent into madness and depravity caused by drug abuse, and yet, by the third segment, I began to feel that maybe this dark story could have a good ending. That doesn't mean I wasn't put through the ringer, because I was.
Ultimately I think this story is about hope - that through a terrible set of tragedies there is a possible sunrise that one can aim for. But I was genuinely shocked that the falls were not the final humiliation for some of the characters. Some of them just kept on falling.
As I was reading I was thinking 'come on, get a grip.' But they can't. How can they? Drugs offer a different reality. No wonder the outer effects are so hideous.
So why should you read this? I suppose because not every story needs a zombie, vampire, mermaid, or billionaire boss. Sometimes a book needs to bring us back to Earth. This one does, and whilst you will find it hard to read (not because of the writing style - which is excellent) but because it examines so clearly the brutal truth about drug abuse. When it is happening under your nose as a parent, I cannot think of anything worse.
Read this unflinching drama. It will make you think that your next day, your next moment is one to treasure. When you are drowning in drugs, or those around you are, you really can't see the rainbow - not the real one anyway. But the fight is worth it.
July 15, 2015
This book brought back many memories for me as I moved to Edinburgh in 1991, just a few years after the year the story is set in. Edinburgh at that time was the drug capital of Europe and it was a rude awakening for me to discover that the beautiful city I had moved to had such a seedy underbelly. I quickly learned to recognise a junky. Working in the jewellery trade, a runny nose, glassy eyes and an unkempt appearance made us extra alert. It should have made Mandy, the mother in the book alert too, but she didn’t realise her two eldest were using drugs until one ended up in hospital to have her stomach pumped. Her son was by this time a frequent Heroine user. A lot of people might be baffled by her naivity, but I think Edinburgh’s drug and AIDS problem got so out of hand because people in 1986 were not as knowledgeable as we are today. What I found harder to believe was the fact that Mandy couldn’t see that her youngest son was having problems of a different kind. Her neglect of him, led him to act out by shoplifting. She should have realised that he needed her too and that his problem was easier to fix than the drug use of the other two. I thought the book was well written, and even though the subject matter was harrowing at times I had no hesitation in reading on. I can’t say that stories like this don’t happen anymore in Edinburgh, but a lot of the areas in the book have improved, especially The Shore. In the book it is an area where street walkers ply their trade. These days it’s full of trendy bars and expensive restaurants. Read Train Spotting and this book as it will give you a good insight into Edinburgh of the 80’s and 90’s, but don’t let it put you off visiting this beautiful town.
September 28, 2015
'Things Fall Apart' was a compelling novel that I found difficult to put down from the first pages when Amanda, a single mother of three, is accosted by a group of young boys trying to steal her bag to its heartbreaking conclusion.
The story is set in the mid-80s in Leith, ‘the carbuncle of Edinburgh’. Amanda is trying to raise her 16-year-old twins, Mark and Jenny and 11-year-old Jakey. They live in dreary and cold tenements and Amanda is stuck in a boring job as a payroll clerk but she does her best. She has split from her husband who physically abused her and gambled her inheritance. Her long since dead mother aptly described her existence as having gone from ‘riches to rags’.
Tracy Black gives a harrowing account of Amanda’s struggle to protect her children from the toxic drug culture in the streets of Leith. She soon discovers there is no formal help or counselling and must rely on her friends in the battle to save her children. Her story reveals issues surrounding drug addiction such as stealing, physical violence, deception, rehabilitation and death. Amanda heroically contends with these challenges in a tragic yet powerful tale.
This is a powerful novel that evokes awareness of and compassion for families like Amanda’s whose lives are devastated by drug issues.
The story is set in the mid-80s in Leith, ‘the carbuncle of Edinburgh’. Amanda is trying to raise her 16-year-old twins, Mark and Jenny and 11-year-old Jakey. They live in dreary and cold tenements and Amanda is stuck in a boring job as a payroll clerk but she does her best. She has split from her husband who physically abused her and gambled her inheritance. Her long since dead mother aptly described her existence as having gone from ‘riches to rags’.
Tracy Black gives a harrowing account of Amanda’s struggle to protect her children from the toxic drug culture in the streets of Leith. She soon discovers there is no formal help or counselling and must rely on her friends in the battle to save her children. Her story reveals issues surrounding drug addiction such as stealing, physical violence, deception, rehabilitation and death. Amanda heroically contends with these challenges in a tragic yet powerful tale.
This is a powerful novel that evokes awareness of and compassion for families like Amanda’s whose lives are devastated by drug issues.
December 4, 2015
This book is a roller coaster of emotions. As a mother, I can only imagine the nightmare mandy McCabe found herself living when her children began walking down a road littered with drugs and alcohol. Tracy Black vividly portrays a mother's denial and the immediate jump to her childrens' defense when they're accused of being addicts. Maybe a little too vivdly--that's my only issue with the book. (I personally don't believe anyone can be that blind when the evidence is right in front of them.) But, that aside, I enjoyed Things Fall Apart. It was raw, gritty, and real. You can feel the denial, heartbreak, and bitter acceptance that Mandy feels. Even thought set in the 1980s, the book still sheds light on today's drug culture and those who have to pick up the pieces of the lives that drugs destroy.The writing flows and just drags you into the story right from the beginning. It's a very moving, very real book that every parent would benefit from reading.
September 27, 2015
'Things Fall Apart' is not a feelgood novel, nor should it be. It is a stark and uncompromising account of how drug abuse destroys lives. Nor does it shy away from showing how drug abuse affects not only the abusers, but all members of a family and all parts of family life. Indeed, without wanting to spoil things, the heaviest price in the book is paid by someone who had never abused drugs.
The author doesn't try to hide the web of denials, lies and deceit (and indeed self-deceit) which can hinder dealing with the problem. Nor are any easy solutions offered. It's a fairly harrowing and desperate tale and the mother does the best she knows how.
The book is set in Edinburgh in the 1980s, imagine 'Trainspotting' told from a parent's perspective.
It's a thought-provoking, informative and valuable read, well worth your time.
The author doesn't try to hide the web of denials, lies and deceit (and indeed self-deceit) which can hinder dealing with the problem. Nor are any easy solutions offered. It's a fairly harrowing and desperate tale and the mother does the best she knows how.
The book is set in Edinburgh in the 1980s, imagine 'Trainspotting' told from a parent's perspective.
It's a thought-provoking, informative and valuable read, well worth your time.
October 1, 2015
A harrowing tale of a mother's struggle to come to terms with her children's addiction. This story is gritty, raw, and painfully realistic. I enjoyed every page and applaud the author's ability to describe the addiction, trauma, and impact this family endured. The MC, who is completely in the dark about her kids' drug usage, gets a very frightening wake up call. This story is about transformation, and the changes we saw in her stood out to me most. She was so courageous and relatable. The writing was beautiful, the story perfectly plotted, and the delivery executed flawlessly. This is not a story for the faint of heart. It's realistic, troubling, and will stick with me for a long time. I'm eager to read more books by this author now.
July 14, 2015
This is quite a gripping drama, heartbreaking at times and with a great sense of realism. It is the story of a mother whose children get out of line with drugs. It is terrifying to read how quickly single mother Mandy needs to face the harsh facts of her life. The book starts well with a scene where she is attacked by kids for her handbag but soon after petty theft seems to be the least of her worries. The book shows with great honesty and without compromise the heartache for this woman, her thoughts and her emotional journey. Despite the bitter reality it delivers hope and understanding, coming to terms and learning. Very powerful
October 5, 2015
Very much a thought provoking book. There are things that annoy you in it, the mothers ignorance and refusing to believe what is happening right before her eyes. The neglect of her third child, the one who wasn't doing drugs, the hard exterior of a woman, who was weak when it came to her own children. Yes it did annoy me, that's what made it a bloody good read. Tracy black allows you to develop with the characters and you get absorbed into their lives. This could happen to anyone and probably is at this very moment. A delightful read that makes you want to shout at the main character.
August 6, 2015
A compelling read. A gripping story of secrets and lies. It depicts the story of a mother dealing with the hardship of bringing up three children on her own. The mother, who is somewhat naive at the beginning, is soon forced to face the harsh and heart breaking reality that her teenage twins have a drug problem and she soon finds herself in a world she knew nothing about. ‘Things Fall Apart’ is an emotional journey of self-discovery.
September 16, 2015
This is an incredibly emotive and real book, sometimes its almost difficult to read because this is the life many people are living. I have probably lived a very naive lifestyle and not been impacted by addiction and drugs, and reading this was certainly an eye opener! The telling of addiction, and this harrowing story shows how at a very early age, it can take hold, destroy and essentially hold a family hostage to its power.
Great read!
Great read!
September 29, 2015
It is not a new story, the devastation of drug use on young people, but it is told in such a dramatic and heartfelt way the reader is pulled into the tortured, if not at times naive, mind of the mother as she tries to come to grips with the addictions of her children. A serious read for a serious topic that really has no answers or solutions - some will be saved and others will fall into a pit of no return. Reads like a personal account.
September 26, 2015
Intensely Emotional
Things Fall Apart is an intensely emotional read, heartbreaking at times, that pulls you in from the first page all the way to the end. A powerful drama with realistic characters, this is a story that offers insights into the world of drug abuse. Excellent read.
Things Fall Apart is an intensely emotional read, heartbreaking at times, that pulls you in from the first page all the way to the end. A powerful drama with realistic characters, this is a story that offers insights into the world of drug abuse. Excellent read.
October 25, 2015
A terrible chronicle of a mother's awakening to her children's drug abuse and the horrid fall out. A well told story of a terrible situation for any single mother to find herself in. This story didn't let me go until I read it all.
February 12, 2017
Every parent likes to think they'd see the warning signs that something is wrong with their child before it is too late. Mandy was no different, sure, her children had the occasion problem, and her hours made it difficult to scrape a living and spend time with them. But still, she thought she knew them. That was until the police knocked at the door with the most terrifying news, her daughter Jenny was in hospital with a suspected drug overdose, all on the same day the school principal reports Jenny's twin brother, Mark, has been skipping school. The signs had been there, missing jewellery, tempers, but she had been too naive, she never thought her own children would be tempted by Edinburgh's drug scene. How wrong she had been. Can she hold her broken family together before tragedy further embraces their lives?
Dark, and full of heartbreak we join Mandy through her journey of tragedy. Written in such a manner you can feel and empathise with the mother at every step as she tries her best to support her children while trying to scrape a living together and trying to find answers. There's an old saying, it takes a town to raise a child, but this town, or city as the case is, is as dark and terrible as can be. A well written, thought promoting and emotional read that could very well be based on a true story. Compelling and real, truly worthy of the five gold stars I'm giving it.
Dark, and full of heartbreak we join Mandy through her journey of tragedy. Written in such a manner you can feel and empathise with the mother at every step as she tries her best to support her children while trying to scrape a living together and trying to find answers. There's an old saying, it takes a town to raise a child, but this town, or city as the case is, is as dark and terrible as can be. A well written, thought promoting and emotional read that could very well be based on a true story. Compelling and real, truly worthy of the five gold stars I'm giving it.
August 18, 2015
When I first began reading Things Fall Apart, I thought I was reading a novel, but the more I read, the more I was convinced I was reading a true to life memoir of this woman's struggles with the evils of drug addiction. To me this says everything about the author's ability to convey the sense of utter frustration and helplessness she felt in dealing with drug addiction in her two teenage twins.
Set in Edinburgh, the drug capital of Europe in the 1980's, this book is gritty, real and painful in places, but it is also filled with a sense of hope and a sense of power that gives it such character. It was so easy to identify with Mandy, the main character - her life, her struggles and her complete disbelief at what was happening to her family, a family she thought she had worked so hard and successfully to bring up on her own. We see her go through the phases of denial, anger and finally action to deal with her children's drug addiction.
The narrative is very readable and the characterizations true and believable. This is an exceptional book that I couldn't stop reading once I had started it. It would be an excellent read for anyone.
In case anyone reading this is unsure, let me make it quite clear. I ABSOLUTELY LOVED THIS BOOK. Well done to the author and much more success in the future I hope.
Set in Edinburgh, the drug capital of Europe in the 1980's, this book is gritty, real and painful in places, but it is also filled with a sense of hope and a sense of power that gives it such character. It was so easy to identify with Mandy, the main character - her life, her struggles and her complete disbelief at what was happening to her family, a family she thought she had worked so hard and successfully to bring up on her own. We see her go through the phases of denial, anger and finally action to deal with her children's drug addiction.
The narrative is very readable and the characterizations true and believable. This is an exceptional book that I couldn't stop reading once I had started it. It would be an excellent read for anyone.
In case anyone reading this is unsure, let me make it quite clear. I ABSOLUTELY LOVED THIS BOOK. Well done to the author and much more success in the future I hope.
July 27, 2015
I have to give this book 5 stars, for two reasons. The book was a realistic and powerful story, full of emotional turmoil and denial, which at times, left me highly frustrated. It was also written in such an engaging way, that the main character Mandy felt like someone I was having a cup of tea with across the kitchen table, instead of being a book's protagonist.
In the 1980's drug abuse was not as widely recognised. I believe many mothers and fathers found it difficult to believe that their little darling/s could get involved with such a nasty destructive business. I can say this because I am reminded of one of my family members at the same age and same situation as Mandy's twins. Denial and anger at the mere suggestion that a loving child could be so foolish was how my parents reacted, and it is exactly how Tracy Black wrote her character,Mandy to react.
The realism, Edinburgh atmosphere, natural dialogue, and intense emotion, kept me reading this little gem way into the night. I can't say I admire Mandy, or the way she handled things with her three children, but I can say that she was true to real life, and very believable.
In the 1980's drug abuse was not as widely recognised. I believe many mothers and fathers found it difficult to believe that their little darling/s could get involved with such a nasty destructive business. I can say this because I am reminded of one of my family members at the same age and same situation as Mandy's twins. Denial and anger at the mere suggestion that a loving child could be so foolish was how my parents reacted, and it is exactly how Tracy Black wrote her character,Mandy to react.
The realism, Edinburgh atmosphere, natural dialogue, and intense emotion, kept me reading this little gem way into the night. I can't say I admire Mandy, or the way she handled things with her three children, but I can say that she was true to real life, and very believable.
August 26, 2015
Highly recommend.
An incredibly moving story of one family's battle with drug addiction. In the late 198os in towns such as Edinburgh the level of drug addiction amongst the young was unprecedented. Medical and social services were ill-equipped to cope with the situation. This is one mother's story of her determination to prevent her teenage children becoming another statistic.
Through fantastic writing I feel like I've been on an emotional journey with Mandy and her family. From the first few chapters Mandy became more than a character with traits I recognised, I genuinely believed her to be a real person I'd come to know. The story is harrowing and brutal at times but always infused with the powerful love a mother has for her children.
Overall an emotionally charged book I highly recommend.
An incredibly moving story of one family's battle with drug addiction. In the late 198os in towns such as Edinburgh the level of drug addiction amongst the young was unprecedented. Medical and social services were ill-equipped to cope with the situation. This is one mother's story of her determination to prevent her teenage children becoming another statistic.
Through fantastic writing I feel like I've been on an emotional journey with Mandy and her family. From the first few chapters Mandy became more than a character with traits I recognised, I genuinely believed her to be a real person I'd come to know. The story is harrowing and brutal at times but always infused with the powerful love a mother has for her children.
Overall an emotionally charged book I highly recommend.
April 25, 2016
A Rollercoaster read!
I was all over the place with this book. Some moments I couldn’t wait to find out how the story would turn out, and in other moments, I was so frustrated with Mandy McCabe I wanted to stop reading. Her naivety was an issue for me, but in the end I’m glad I kept reading.
This book is emotional with a brutal look at what drug addiction can do to a family. The characters and their struggles were believable and realistic, and that’s the best part about this story. There were some editing issues here and there and I thought it could have benefited from a little more editing, but overall, it was well done.
This is a book that lingers with you and makes you think. Well worth the read, but get some tissues.
I was all over the place with this book. Some moments I couldn’t wait to find out how the story would turn out, and in other moments, I was so frustrated with Mandy McCabe I wanted to stop reading. Her naivety was an issue for me, but in the end I’m glad I kept reading.
This book is emotional with a brutal look at what drug addiction can do to a family. The characters and their struggles were believable and realistic, and that’s the best part about this story. There were some editing issues here and there and I thought it could have benefited from a little more editing, but overall, it was well done.
This is a book that lingers with you and makes you think. Well worth the read, but get some tissues.
November 13, 2015
Things fall Apart – Tracy Black
Five stars
The heartrending story of a single mother fighting to stop her teenage children abusing drugs. Having been a single mother of teenage boys, the story reeks authenticity, though thankfully I was spared this particular horror. My heart goes out to all parents who are going through this; the denial and guilt, the hope and despair, the fear and the heartbreak – the waste of young lives. Beautifully written, it’s a harsh reality compellingly told, and a story perhaps all parents of pre-teen children should read. It made me cry.
http://www.amazon.com/Things-Fall-Apa...
Five stars
The heartrending story of a single mother fighting to stop her teenage children abusing drugs. Having been a single mother of teenage boys, the story reeks authenticity, though thankfully I was spared this particular horror. My heart goes out to all parents who are going through this; the denial and guilt, the hope and despair, the fear and the heartbreak – the waste of young lives. Beautifully written, it’s a harsh reality compellingly told, and a story perhaps all parents of pre-teen children should read. It made me cry.
http://www.amazon.com/Things-Fall-Apa...
April 25, 2016
From page one I felt for Mandy McCabe as things started badly for her and never let up. Although set in the eighties and in a Scottish city, this story is universal and is happening now, probably in every city in the world. Drugs are freely available everywhere and there's never a shortage of ruffians and hoodlums to distribute them and in the process cause heartache, societal and family upset. The question is what do you do when you are caught up in such a world? Do you take the law into your own hands, particularly as the police are either unable, unwilling or just plain apathetic to do anything about it? This is a novel that hits home and hits at the heart.
August 31, 2015
This is a gripping tale of drama, hardship, sorrow and a bunch of other emotions. I felt, most of the time, like I was reading an autobiography, the characters were so real. At first I was annoyed with 'there's none so blind as a mother who won't see the truth about her children.' But then I came to a place of utter respect as she did exactly what I would have done in her shoes. This is a great reflection of the drug culture of that era, for which I was there, and saw, albeit much further south, so a bit more affluent. Had to keep reading to the end; didn't put it down once I'd got going.
August 11, 2015
I know I am reading a good book when the dishes are ignored, the world goes by and I sit and read it from beginning to end. This story had me transfixed. I can’t praise it enough. I am not sure if it is in any way autobiographical, but if not, then this author can get right inside her characters. You feel their pain, their joy and their precarious position. This is a book which should be read by every parent with teenage children. Highly recommended.
March 14, 2016
Almost TOO heart-wrenching at times! An excellent book that feels authentic and packs an emotional punch. Ugh, anybody who has suffered through a loved one's struggles with drug addiction will feel a familiar horror when experiencing the main character's plight, as she has to face the reality of her daughter's drug use. Well-written, with realistic characters, and evocative descriptions, you'll be engrossed from page one until the excellent ending.
December 12, 2015
A harrowing story of the devastation caused by drugs, not only on those who take them but on their families and those around them. This book felt more like a personal account (I do not know if it is) than a novel that I would wish to read for pleasure, but it certainly seemed to come from the heart
October 6, 2015
Things Fall Apart by Tracy Black starts with introducing the reader to 35-year-old Mandy McCabe who works at a boring minimal wage job as a payroll clerk for an accounting firm. She has three children: 16-year-old twins Mark & Jenny, and eleven-year-old Jakey. Six year ago, her husband Mike ended their marriage. From the first pages when Mandy’s children are introduced we get a sense something’s wrong, and what stands out immediately is Mandy’s denial. It never enters her consciousness that it could be drugs or something serious. Even when her daughter Jenny lands in the hospital and the doctor and police believe it’s related to drugs and alcohol, even when she senses that her son Mark is lying about what’s happened, she still justifies; she’s in serious denial. This creates the beginning of a really well defined character that albeit frustrating in her naivety is being set up for the unimaginable heartbreak and conflict/tension a story needs to propel it along.
I don’t want to retell the plot here as some reviews have lightly done. Suffice it to say that I’ve read other books by this author, which is what drew me to this one. And it does not disappoint. This is a well-written story line, authentic in its conveyance and delivery of emotions that burn from the page and make the reader want to scream at the protagonist to wake up and get real; all the mark of a talented author. Even thought the time line is the 1980s, the subject matter is as relevant today as it was then and a mother’s heartbreak at having kids addicted to drugs no less painful. The unanticipated devastating consequences can knock on anyone’s door when drug addiction is involved and the author drives this home page after page until the shocking unexpected ending. It’s going to be a long time before I forget about this book. I highly recommend this for any parent who suspects their child may be involved with drugs, for any child/teenager considering dabbling in drugs, or anyone involved in the culture of drug abuse and wants a great emotionally packed rollercoaster authentic story to recommend to someone in need. I also recommend this for anyone who wants to read a well-written fiction that buys its content from reality, very harsh reality.
I don’t want to retell the plot here as some reviews have lightly done. Suffice it to say that I’ve read other books by this author, which is what drew me to this one. And it does not disappoint. This is a well-written story line, authentic in its conveyance and delivery of emotions that burn from the page and make the reader want to scream at the protagonist to wake up and get real; all the mark of a talented author. Even thought the time line is the 1980s, the subject matter is as relevant today as it was then and a mother’s heartbreak at having kids addicted to drugs no less painful. The unanticipated devastating consequences can knock on anyone’s door when drug addiction is involved and the author drives this home page after page until the shocking unexpected ending. It’s going to be a long time before I forget about this book. I highly recommend this for any parent who suspects their child may be involved with drugs, for any child/teenager considering dabbling in drugs, or anyone involved in the culture of drug abuse and wants a great emotionally packed rollercoaster authentic story to recommend to someone in need. I also recommend this for anyone who wants to read a well-written fiction that buys its content from reality, very harsh reality.
September 1, 2015
This book is every parent's nightmare. This poor mother had no clue what was going on in her children's hidden lives until it came busting through her front door--literally. I felt her terror when she answered the door, the fear of having to explain to the authorities why she had two bottles of Methodone, and the pain she expressed in the last chapter.
I was raised in Nancy Reagan's "Just Say No" American culture at the time of this book's setting, While Public Service Announcements were repetitive, there was an underworld brewing involving an explosion of drugs, IV users, and AIDS cases--most of which went ignored. Thirty years later, the war on drugs is nowhere near won. This book explores the never ending downward spiral into the abyss of despair that not just one addict faces, but an entire family. It also demonstrates how ignorance, denial and a lack of support can lead to an impossible balancing act for a parent facing such a situation. Eventually, everything comes crashing down. Sadly, most readers will be able to relate to the story, as most of the Western world is afflicted with this devastation, and it touches more of our lives personally.
I was raised in Nancy Reagan's "Just Say No" American culture at the time of this book's setting, While Public Service Announcements were repetitive, there was an underworld brewing involving an explosion of drugs, IV users, and AIDS cases--most of which went ignored. Thirty years later, the war on drugs is nowhere near won. This book explores the never ending downward spiral into the abyss of despair that not just one addict faces, but an entire family. It also demonstrates how ignorance, denial and a lack of support can lead to an impossible balancing act for a parent facing such a situation. Eventually, everything comes crashing down. Sadly, most readers will be able to relate to the story, as most of the Western world is afflicted with this devastation, and it touches more of our lives personally.
January 28, 2016
This is one of those extremely true to life stories you don’t want to miss. It’s heart-wrenching, highly emotional and very, very realistic. Set in the 1980s in Edinburg – the drug capital of Europe – it tells a story of a single mother, Mandy, who tries to deal with her teenage children’s drug addiction. Well, at first she actually doesn’t, despite all the dangerous signs pointing to the problem, Mandy chooses to close her eyes and goes into complete denial. But even though some can find her behavior frustrating, at the same time it is also understandable: think how many parents go through the same, thinking, ‘no, not my children, they would never…’ Mandy makes a lot of mistakes, one of the saddest ones is concentrating on the eldest kids and leaving out the one, who isn’t a drug user, which leads to another problem eventually. However, even the somber tone of desperation, anger and depression prevails, it lightens up closer to the end; I don’t want to give away the ending, I’ll just say, read the story and it won’t disappoint. Definitely an excellently written, five star read!
August 3, 2015
Mandy, a single mum, presents as hard-working, caring, and sensible. An abused wife who had the guts to retaliate when Mike McCabe punched her once too often, she has no doubts that she’s coping well with her three children, teenage twins Mark and Jenny, and 11-year-old Jakey. Her life falls apart in June 1986, when the police take her to hospital where Jenny is ill. Maureen, Mandy’s neighbour, who has been down the drugs road with her two eldest sons, tries to warn her she mustn’t bury her head I the sand. Even when two men arrive demanding money Mark owes, and punch her in an attempt to get it, she refuses to face the truth. The atmosphere of the nineteen-eighties, before the dangers of shared needles was widely understood, is brilliantly captured, and the action Maddy takes to protect her children from themselves makes this novel a compelling read.
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