Tonight at 10: Kicking Booze and Breaking News

By: Courtney Friel

Narrated by: Courtney Friel

As a teenager, Courtney Friel was a shy girl tormented by constant, cruel bullying. Then, at the age of 15, she got drunk for the first time. That’s when she formed her alter ego, “Reporter Friel” - a whip-smart girl who partied hard, bulldozed any haters in her path, and went on to become the youngest on-air anchor ever hired at Fox News.

After falling in love with the big city and the fast life of broadcast television, Friel moved to New York City, married a handsome fellow newscaster, and had two beautiful children. Her career and her status were skyrocketing, and from the outside, her life seemed perfect. In reality, Friel was living a double life as a professional newscaster by day and a debauched party girl by night.

To keep the trauma of the mass shootings, murders, and car accidents she covered at bay, Friel drank more alcohol and ramped up her use of Adderall, Xanax and cocaine…until she ended up in rehab. What came next was a rocky divorce, a spiritual crisis and a hopeful shot at a new life - if she could reckon with who she really was.

In Tonight at 10, Friel gives her tell-all account of everything from paying off cops in Mexico after a cocaine bust to sober sexcapades to, ultimately, adventures in holistic healing to achieve deep inner peace. At every detour along the way, her sobering story stays packed with irreverent humor and hard-won optimism. What emerges is a front-line report on living life to the fullest, #KeepingItFriel and celebrating your inner party girl - even in sobriety.

©2020 Courtney Friel (P)2020 Launch Pad Publishing

Down to earth

I thought it was a straightforward, honest and relatable story of sobriety and enjoyed listening to it.

Courtney! :)

Hey Courtney! I just finished your book! It was incredible! I loved every minute of it! What an absolutely amazing story you have! You definitely had me spit laughing, crying and definitely relating to the reporter stuff! You were brave, raw, vulnerable, inspiring and authentically you. You’ve undoubtedly helped and saved so many lives through this book and your career. You brought back my happy, positive attitude, made me appreciate once again the awesome jobs we have, people we get to help and lives we get to celebrate, made me want to meditate more and most importantly, you reminded me to surrender to God. I love the Bible reference and quote at the end, “There are no comebacks without setbacks. Every setback is a setup for a comeback.” I just prayed about that and got a picture of a slingshot. God pulls us back a bit to prepare to launch us forward! 🌟 Thank you very much, Courtney. P.S. Do you still go to that Unplugged place? 🙏😁☀️❤️

Funny and Charming

This book is not only filled with helpful advice and funny commentary on "kicking booze" but also will remind you to reframe your outlook in other realms of your life. Loved it!

quick listen

I enjoyed learning about her life, struggle and overcoming. she definitely kept it real, relatable and showed vulnerability. Thank you for finding the courageous to write and share your story.

Honest, funny, and inspirational

Once I started listening I couldn’t put it down! So many good stories, and now I’m inspired to want to try a meditation class thanks to Courtney.

All The Friels

Loved this book. It was a very real and honest picture of Courtney's journey to herself.

Wow!

I didn't grow up with or know of anyone in my family with drug/alcohol addiction. I knew people outide of the family who did/do from my negative experiences with them. I listened to Courtney's memoir with an open mind. I'm glad I listened. She's human. She doesn't hold back telling it as it is about her journey with addiction, recovery, and sobriety. I never knew she was going through this while I've been watching her on KTLA 5 News. She opened my eyes even more to learn to be compassionate towards people struggling with addiction. I'm so glad she's still with us.

Love you girl!!!

Totally resonated and am super grateful that you were brave enough to put yourself out there. Thank you. Stay real.