Thin

Sharing Spaces, Book 3

By: Alicia Michaels

Narrated by: Rachel Jacobs

Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

Kinsley Simmons does not belong in an inpatient facility for people struggling with eating disorders. However, her doctor and therapist are of the opinion that she does, which is why she's missing out on her college graduation to participate in a recovery program for bulimia nervosa. A girl with a type A personality, Kinsley never thought her life would come to this - dumped by her college sweetheart, flunking most of her classes, caught between bickering parents on the brink of divorce, and spiraling out of control as the dangerous habits of her disorder destroy her health and friendships.

When Royce Adams is invited to speak to her therapy group, Kinsley isn't at all interested in anything he has to say. He can never understand what she is going through or have the first idea of how to help her get better. Yet as he takes a personal interest her recovery, she comes to realize there is more to Royce than meets the eye. While seeming perfect on the surface, he wrestles with demons of his own, including a past riddled with addiction and self-destructive behavior.

As their friendship blossoms into something more, Kinsley will find in Royce the strength to face the reasons behind her disorder. With his help, she may also find what she needs to live a full, healthy life...one filled with happiness and love.

©2017 Alicia Michaels (P)2018 Alicia Michaels

Love Yourself

I really enjoyed this book. Yes it did seem unrealistic at times with how quickly and smoothly Kinsley progressed throughout her treatment. But outside of that this was an amazing story. I love the inside look at an eating disorder facility. I loved how she had friends that cared greatly about her and her family life was very well thought out.
Kinsley is a very very sick young lady that goes to rehab despite it being almost graduation. She falls in love with herself in order to heal. Finds what makes her happy outside of what she was taught she should do and learns to follow her own dreams and not everyone elses. During treatment she meets Royce, one of her counselors. He wants to help her get better and wants to be more with her but knows he cant. It is a very hard situation for both of them. Boy of boy does every character in this book mess with your emotions. I love Dawn too.

This is an amazing story that not only tells the tough story of a young lady desperate to have a normal life and be better but also how she got this way and how long and drawn-out this disease can be. As someone who has been recovered for a few years now this was a wonderful read and I very much enjoyed it. Its a tough subject and is hard for alot of people to read. I did find this a little triggering but I expected that. Overall a great story and Rachel Jacobs did a fantastic job with all the voices and bringing the story to life. I cannot wait to read more by Alicia Michaels! I have not read the other books but if I had I know I would appreciate the characters from those appearing in this book.

I requested and was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review with my honest opinion.

The raw emotion was palpable.

Having experienced this sensational story as it was brought to life by narrator Rachel Jacobs was AH-MAZING. The emotional roller coaster that is Kinsley's disorder and recovery hit me just that much harder hearing, feeling, and seeing it through Rachel Jacobs' eyes. Jacobs nailed it. All that raw emotion was palpable. It left me a bit shaken afterwards. Well Done!!!

Alicia Michaels takes a taboo topic like bulimia and pulls it front and center. The MC, Kinsley had it all, but things quickly spiraled out of control after her cheer coach suggested she drop a few pounds. Getting dumped by her longtime boyfriend only caused things to spin further out of Kinsley’s grasp. Then, her grades followed. Before she knew it everything was beyond her control. Now in a last effort to get herself healthy and back on track Kinsley is entering Willow Creek.

Alicia Michaels peels back the layers of what it is like to battle bulimia and OCD. The reader sees and experiences it all; therapy, meds, family, all of it. I could certainly put myself in Kinsley’s shoes. Like her, I have always strived for perfection so I can see how easy it was for her to spiral downhill.

I love that the author is shedding light on this topic and donating proceeds to this cause. I hope this story gives courage to anyone suffering from an eating disorder to seek the help they need. Kinsley’s story shows us that through perseverance, the support of family & friends, and love you can conquer anything.

Thin

“I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.”
I thought this was a good book, almost educational. Alicia Michaels brings up a topic that not too many people care to talk about. Although she could've taken this book to a much deeper & scarier place, she choose to take it to the softer side while still bringing to light the real issues. She managed to educate you while you delved into Kinsley's life story.
If these topics upset you. I would not recommend this book, however, if the topic doesn't scare you, take the read.

Obvious trigger warning for eating disorders...

Thin, which is Sharing Spaces, Book 3 by Alicia Michaels was a good listen. If the categorization that Audible has this under, New Adult, is one step above YA, then this is an appropriate spot for this book to be put into. I would have said it's a bit more on the YA side, though the very serious topics of various eating disorders are discussed throughout the entire book. I think eating disorders often start earlier than the New Adult stage, so a book like this may be beneficial to someone at more of a YA level as well. Obviously this book is not meant to treat eating disorders, but I could definitely see where it might be beneficial to someone that is heading down that path. Ms. Michaels handles the story well, not coming across stern or preachy, but definitely giving her characters stories that are relatable to issues that very likely may be happening to others out in the real world.

This is the story of Kinsley. Kinsley has an eating disorder that has affected her health, her education and her relationships with others in her life. Kinsley's cheerleading coach tells her that she needs to lose a few more pounds from her already slim frame. That a her idiot boyfriend breaking up with her lead her to start on a dangerous path with losing weight and eating disorders. This leads her to a treatment/rehab center which is pretty much where the story starts off. This story is Kinsley's journey and the story of the other patients and those that coach and help them along the way.

Rachel Jacobs did a good job narrating this story. Her voice fit a high school aged Kinsley perfectly and she voiced the other characters really well also. She read with emotion when needed, which of course always leads to a better listening experience. My only issue with her narration is that there seemed to be weird pauses throughout, which kind of threw me off a bit while listening. It may be just me, but I found that a bit distracting, though I wouldn't let this keep you from listening. I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher for an honest review.

Did you find this review helpful? If so, would you please take a moment and select the 'helpful' button below? Thanks so much!

A challenging subject matter done well!

★¸¸.•*¨*•★Minor spoilers alert★•*¨*•.¸¸★

My tags for this novel are…Informative / Realistic / Ethnically diverse characters / HEA
Format read: Audiobook via Audible’s Romance Package
Writing style: Kinsley’s POV only
Cover design gush: I love it! It’s modestly sexy, and my favorite one in the Sharing Spaces series of standalone novels.
Ratings
Overall ★★★☆☆
Performances ★★★☆☆ Rachel Jacobs returned to complete this last and final novel in the series. She was good with giving the characters vocal personality and keeping me tuned in to a plot that dealt with very serious themes.
Story ★★★☆☆
Technically, I went into this third novel about Kinsley blind. I didn’t read the synopsis before diving in. But I knew from her changing behavior in Chloe’s novel Brat (Sharing Spaces, #2) that something serious was going on with Kinsley. I felt sorry for her, her parents and her friends who weren’t sure how to help her initially. New friend characters in treatment with her were introduced, and I liked how we got a follow up on how they were doing post-treatment as well.

Kudos to the author for tackling this storyline that I wouldn’t have normally picked to read.

If you read the synopsis and aren’t scared off by a more seriously themed new adult college experience, then definitely give this novel a read.