Hear Me

by Julia North

After yet another shameful one-night stand, Lissa has to accept that her sisters are right - she is an alcoholic, and it's time for rehab. She hates the idea of therapy and doesn't want to examine her past, but just as she begins to see reasons for her drinking, life takes a brutal turn.
Who are her fellow patients? Why is one of them so damned perfect?

Set in South Africa at the end of apartheid, H ear Me is a powerful story about addiction and sobriety, racism, the fight for justice and life after death - but above all, it is a story about the indestructible power of love.

252 pages, Paperback

Published April 4, 2017

Reviews

[Eva · Rating 2 out of 5]

When Lissa wakes up one morning in a stranger's bed with no idea how she got there, she finally admits to herself that she may have a wee drinking problem. Her sisters convince her to join a six week program in rehab and Lissa's life will change forever.

Set against turbulent times in South Africa, we follow Lissa on her journey to becoming sober once and for all as she confronts some horrible events in her past. Not only does she have to deal with her own demons, there's something wicked happening around her and the consequences are devastating.

Hear Me started off quite well but didn't really turn out the way I was expecting and I must admit there were parts along the way where it completely lost me. While the historical background sometimes made for some disturbing reading, I had trouble understanding its relevance. And when the story then took an unexpected turn towards the supernatural, which is so not my thing, I found it all became a little too confusing.

There's a mystery to be solved which I think might have worked better without so many other distractions. But for the most part, I wish the story had just focused on Lissa's experience in rehab as I feel that would have made for a much better read.

As it is, the book deals with harrowing topics such as racism and alcoholism which the author handles well, but also the fight for justice, not just for Lissa but for those caught up in the apartheid regime. While this book wasn't really my cup of tea, I'm sure it will appeal to other readers.

My thanks to Yvonne at Hookline Books for my electronic copy, which I chose to review honestly.

[Helga چـو ایـران نباشد تن من مـباد · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5
The story started well, but then halfway through it became entangled with supernatural elements, which is a big no-no for me. I don't believe in ghosts, specially those who can open filing cabinets and look through someone's medical file, but then can't pick an ashtray and hit someone in the head :)) There were also many repetitions and many things going on, which was confusing.

[Pauline Horner · Rating 5 out of 5]

After an utterly unsavoury one-night encounter with a seedy character, about whom she remembers nothing, Lissa comes to terms with her alcoholic illness, and accepts the fact that she needs therapy.

The reader is given good insight into the sheer determination required, and guts it must take, for a person to willingly enter a rehabilitation institution.

Lissa responds well to the treatment and believes that her life is on the mend. The story takes a dramatic turn when she finds herself attracted to a seemingly pleasant individual, also from rehab, who, unbeknown to her, has an alternative agenda. The romance is not all what it seems. What unfolds as a result of this, is left for the reader to discover.

Extremely well writen. The book was difficult to put down.
Well done to the Author.

[Yvonne Barlow · Rating 5 out of 5]

A strong start as the alcoholic narrator tries to deny her habit and then wanders downhill into a shameful one-night stand. By the end of the story we wonder who is telling the truth - until it all dawns! I won't give spoilers.

[Kathryn Kazali · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a compelling novel. It gives insight into the vulnerability and harrowing life of an addict. My heart was in my mouth as I journeyed with Lissa through her fight, defeat and emotional turmoil as she battles her own demons and the wickedness of those around her.

[Katherine Konyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic read, I thoroughly recommend this book!

[Andrew Pender-Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to receive a free copy of ‘Hear Me’ in return for a review. In Lissa, the book’s main character, the author has created a raw, gritty and thoroughly believable woman who needs to recognise and conquer her inner demons to survive. Lissa and the other characters in ‘Hear Me’ have all been carefully drawn by Julia North. This adds to the book’s readability. The author’s descriptions of Durban and South Africa are strongly captured and enhance ‘Hear Me’, helping to make it an authentic portrayal of contemporary South Africa. Though set in South Africa, Lissa’s story is universal and is highly recommended. Andrew Pender-Smith, South Africa.

[Sem Kazali · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast paced and absorbing. This book deals with the plight of a young woman's alcohol addiction as a criminal vulture sets about wooing and entrapping her for personal gain. Set in South Africa, during its dawn into democracy, there is no justice to be found for Lissa here as the plots twists and turns in a shocking and moving way.

[Sam (Clues and Reviews) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hear Me, by Julia North, opens with a prologue so compelling, a reader would be able to do nothing but turn the next page. A dead woman, speaking from the grave, trying to figure out how she died. Following that, we meet Melissa (Lissa) who is heading into rehab after another drunken one-night stand. As Lissa enters a rehab center, with the help of her sisters, she navigates through her recovery until tragedy strikes and her sisters are forced to try and pick up the pieces. At its core Hear Me is a story of dichotomies; life and death, addiction and sobriety, racism and the fight for justice. I’m just not sure if it worked for me.

To start, Hear Me is set in South Africa. I don’t know a lot about South Africa (the history or the culture) so some of the book was over my head and I had to spend sometime googling some things. Although I did find some of the history interesting, it felt like it belonged in a different book.

The book is narrated partially in the present during Melissa’s rehab stay and the rest is flashbacks to the past as she goes through her recovery and forced to visit her childhood and incidents of her past. I did like this form of narration and felt like it helped to set a general ominous tone for the novel. Now, the first third of the book, I was enjoying but then this one kind of went all over the place. I had trouble following the plot, didn’t really understand the relevance to many of the events. I think I understand what the author was trying to achieve, but the execution ended up feeling as if I was reading several different novels all mushed into one.

I don’t think I would call this one a mystery or a suspense novel. It reads a bit like contemporary women’s fiction with a political twist.

[Bobbi Wagner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this emotional story. This is a newer author for me which I enjoyed the author's attention to details that made the story realistic. It made me feel as if I was part of the story and had me coming back for more. This is a well written story where the characters brought the story to life. This is a story about the power of love. A story were fighting addiction and you never know when life will throw you a lemon. I enjoyed this story and the emotional roller coaster ride the characters took me on. They are connectable and just added so much to the story. i enjoyed watching their growth throughout which made the story easy to read. This is a hard to put down, fast paced story that I highly recommend.

[Nicole Fitton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book felt messy. It started well enough with Lissa (the main protagonist) trying to figure out how she died. The writing is solid and the story flowed well. It dipped back to Lissa’s life before she died and I was settling into it nicely. Then, well then it went from woman’s fiction to politics to contemporary to supernatural to just plain messy. I found it too disjointed. At times it felt as if I was reading a lot of different books cobbled together and bashed around a bit to make them mould into one. It was a shame because there were some delightful descriptive passages and some good writing. This one just wasn’t for me.

[Alli Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A compelling novel about addiction and loss. The first half of the book introduces us to recently deceased Lissa. We are given the backstory of her family life and her battle with addiction. This part of the book is harrowing, but sensitively written. You can’t help but feel empathy and warmth for her.
The second half is where Lissa learns about what led to her death, and this is a strong murder mystery. A fast paced novel which I couldn’t put down.
Thank you Bloodhound Books for the ARC ahead of republication.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lissa is persuaded to go into rehab by her sisters who are concerned about her drinking habits. They didn’t bargain on her falling in love with one of her inmates and falling prey to his greed. The story follows Lissa in the afterlife trying to point them in the direction of her killer.
I didn’t really enjoy this novel, I just couldn’t engage with the characters. Not sure if it was down to the style of writing or the subject but I wasn’t able to see the characters in my imagination which detracted from my enjoyment.

[Jaclyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found the political aspects confusing as I'm not familiar with South Africa politics and some of the terms were unfamiliar to me.

More so, about half way through the book there was an unexpected turn. I couldn't figure out if the continued story was a dream of the main character or actually happening. I ended up skimming until the end trying to figure out what was going on. The second half was confusing and just somewhat disturbing for me.

[Becca Ashton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn’t sure of this book to start with, it took me a little while to connect with the protagonist, however it soon hooked me and I couldn’t put it down. Thoroughly enjoyable once I got into it!

[Faye Ridpath · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book for free from Bloodhound Books.

This book kept me guessing.

I was absorbed throughout the book.

I will definitely read more by this author.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book. Pretty fast paced. I liked the characters, except for one. lol

[Sonja Charters · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such an emotional and intriguing read.

Lissa has awoken to find herself in the afterlife. We follow her back and forth through her life, learningwhatbked to her death.
Struggling with grief and succumbing to alcoholism, it's confirmed that her death was alcohol poisoning, but her sisters can't believe that there's not more to it and start to investigate.
Lissa struggles, from her realm, to point the sisters in the right direction and to warn them of the danger they might face.

I had literally just read another book about someone stuck in the afterlife, but that was a humorous tale - I think that made this one even more hard-hitting as it deals with some stark and serious issues within society - and this made it tough to read at times, emotional and raw.

I found the characters a little hard to connect with, but I think this was ust due to the nature of the book rather than me disliking them. There was a great sense of connection between them throughout the story.

A rather thought-provoking read which will keep you engaged throughout and beyond.

[Gillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

28 year old Melissa (Liss) Windsor realises she’s dead she has no idea how, why or when it happened. Everything seems in turmoil she will have to fit the jigsaw pieces together to find the answers.
Having had traumatic experiences in the past when she split with her long term boyfriend after he cheated she turned to Red Label Jack Daniels for comfort, at her lowest she woke up in a hotel room with the most disgusting man ever, she realised she had wet herself then slept with this man. That’s when she agreed with her sisters Elsa and Nat that she would go into rehab.
A bit rebellious at first after a few days Liss decides to stick it out. She settles in and meets the rest of the group. They are from all different backgrounds and some have been here before. There’s Heroin Hattie, Karlos, Alison, Wolf, George and Nic. She becomes particularly close to Karlos and when they leave they become an item.
A few months after leaving rehab Melissa turns up dead has she returned to alcohol or is someone out there staged it to look that way and why?
I read this book in staves with Pigeonhole it was a brilliant read. Reading along with the author is always good you find out a lot of information where they have got ideas from etc.
I particularly think this would be a perfect read for book clubs as a friend was also reading along at the same time after discussing it we came to different conclusions was good to hear another persons view.

[Eleanor Jordan O'Farrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set during Nelson Mandela's successful resistance, this book is about a woman who finally realises she's an alcoholic, and checks into rehab. She falls in love with another inmate and does not live happily every after! A very unusual but we'll written and story, especially because it includes such an important political event.

[Gill · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started off quite well but when it got to revivalist meetings and dead spirits I started to skim pages. At last I couldn't even be bothered to do that.

[Julia North · Rating 5 out of 5]

please note thst this rating and review is from Pastor Edie: This story is one which will reach so many people. Lissa's story is a life changing one which will resonate powerfully on your memory long after you have closed the last page.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chilling and refreshing read!