Coming Clean
A True Story of Love, Addiction and Recovery
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Coming Clean
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Narrated by:
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Liz Fraser
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By:
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Liz Fraser
About this listen
Bloomsbury presents Coming Clean by Liz Fraser, read by Liz Fraser.
My name is Liz, and I am the partner of an alcoholic.
Coming Clean is a searingly honest memoir of loving an alcoholic - both through the heaviest drinking years and into recovery.
When Liz Fraser's partner fell into a catastrophic vortex of depression and alcoholism, Liz found herself in a relentless hailstorm of lies, loneliness and fear, looking after their young child on her own, heartbroken, mentally shattered and with no idea what was happening or what to do. As she and her family moved between Cambridge, Venice and Oxford, she kept the often shocking truth entirely to herself for a long time, trying in vain to help her partner find a path to sobriety, until she herself finally broke from the trauma and started to speak out - only to find she was one of hundreds experiencing similar things, also living in silence and fear.
Part diary, part travel journal and part love letter, Coming Clean is the true story of addiction of many kinds, mental collapse and heartbreak. Above all, it offers a voice of deep human compassion, strength and hope for recovery.
I hope that in sharing this story it might change the way addiction is talked about and understood from both sides, encourage open, trusting and supportive dialogue between addicts and those their addiction affects and provide some solace and help for those who need it - as I did.
©2021 Liz Fraser (P)2021 Bloomsbury Publishing PlcListeners also enjoyed...
Critic reviews
"Visceral and gripping." (Amy Liptrot, author of The Outrun)
"An extraordinary book - deeply painful and loving." (Adam Kay)
"A remarkably frank, emotionally charged foray into one woman’s battle to come to terms with her partner’s alcoholism; a desperate fight to protect herself and her child, and to create a world where they could be enough for one another." (Charlotte Philby)
What listeners say about Coming Clean
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Russell Mason
- 04-10-21
Impossible to put down.
I felt every single emotion known to man throughout this book. It’s simply amazing and easily the best money I’ve spent in a long time. Liz Fraser, what a wonderful mother, partner & all round human. I think god sent the only person he thought even remotely capable of helping Mike and If she couldn’t do it then nobody can. I truly hope she finds the happiness she deserves. Remarkable lady.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- helen fox
- 19-02-22
Brilliant
really enjoyed this book 📖. could really understand where Liz was coming from. 😀
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- MISS PAULA CLIFT
- 30-10-22
What an amazing read!
The honest and raw undertone of this book is a powerful reminder of how love and addiction can coexist for many years.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Susan Bryan
- 10-06-23
An Eye Opener on the tragic and furious elements of addiction
I liked Liz unflinching approach to writing this story of an enervating episode of her life. It could have made even more compelling with a closer examination of her own codependency and need for a happy ending at great cost to her wellness
Overall an insightful , wry and in your reading of a condition that we all are potentially vulnerable to.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- christine Sparks
- 28-02-23
Brave, terrifying, honest, necessary
Im not sure what to make of what the power of Liz Frazer’s honesty and integrity ( not to mention her easy, natural writing style ) has moved in me. Seldom am I this bereft once a book has ended. Liz was the voice of a dear friend or companion. I felt her. I feel her. I also question much, as I naturally insert myself into her deeply personal narrative. Would I have done this or accepted that? Truth is, I don’t know. And - and it bears repeating as Liz does herself - it’s not my story.
A truly incredible read; a truly inspirational woman; a thoroughly disarming relationship shared with integrity.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Jorune Hudson
- 24-10-24
Honest, relatable, hopeful
So many of the books on living with an addict focus on separating yourself from the drama and do not really explore the love part of the relationship. Love gets downgraded to codependency. This book gives hope that there can be a future and is realistic about the price that comes with it. Great read!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- R
- 04-10-21
Extraordinary Honesty
This is a gripping, compelling yet remarkable reflection of the title. The completely agonising and at times extremely uncomfortable honesty in this book, combined with an almost macabre sense of humour, is both humbling and painful to the listener. It is both brutal and tough to hear, yet impossible to put down. It is so vivid at times you almost feel like you are intruding on someone else's pain and trauma. Yet Liz makes it very clear that her intention is to open up the very hidden and concealed world of the addict and those closest to them, and to encourage all those affected not to feel alone and to despair. She shows how there is hope, even in the darkest of places.
The love and compassion demonstrated here is clear to all. Liz has been very courageous, as has Mike in encouraging her to share their story, and it is written in a very direct and candid manner. For me it demonstrated how easy it is in this world of social media to portray a sanitised version of life, when behind the images there is devastating pain and agony. The narrative also shows the overlap and consequences to those both suffering from a wide range of mental health disorders and those who love and care for them. Above all, Liz's powerful testament and capacity to love is so evident - to Mike, to her young daughter and older children. Yet she so vividly reveals how hard it can be to show love and compassion to oneself.
This book must have come at great cost to Liz. However, I truly hope it has also been part of the healing process for her, and its impact on those who read it will be far reaching. It is indeed and extraordinary book. I learnt so much.
Thank you!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 14-01-22
Superb
I am a sober alcoholic who loves listening to memoirs on alcoholism, and this is the first book I have coma across that tells the story from the other side. It’s a great listen, even if Liz is telling stories of some very traumatic times, living and dealing with Mike’s alcoholism. It’s also narrated wonderfully by Liz. If you like quit lit, I highly recommend this book
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- Bee
- 03-02-22
Important book
At times horrifying tale of the combined effect of depression and alcohol.
Of course there's lots of those sorts of tales out there but this is written from the point of view of the partner of the Ill person.
Partners, especially if you have a child are in a bind. Should I stay? Should I go? Can I go? A really good description of the toll it takes to love someone with a mental illness and remain strong for your child.
I'd like to hear a book from the partner's POV now.
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- Laura Pountney
- 26-03-23
Brilliant, real and powerful.
Incredibly raw and honest look into the effects of abusive, alcoholic behaviour. I really felt Liz’s story and much of it resonated with me.
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