First reviews give it 5 stars!

A gritty, perfectly crafted cautionary tale

I read this book pre-release and am anxious for the world to read it as well. It is a gritty and cautionary tale about how an ordinary girl can fall into addiction. Beautifully written; terrifying as you hope for the heroine’s redemption and a page-turner that will make your heart pound. Ms. Mann captures the fall into addiction with precision and detail, so much so, that you feel almost like it’s happening to you. Anyone with teenagers or young adults should read this, as well as anyone touched by addition in their own circles.  I look forward to more from this young author.  – Tess Hardwick, Author of Bestselling Riversong (December 20, 2011)

Soul-Wrenching and Breathtaking Storytelling

The storytelling is unparalleled. The characters are powerful, unique, and real. The pacing was spot on. The emotions tasted thick on the pages. I couldn’t get enough. The suspense I felt with each passing word grew. I wanted Nicole to find hope. I needed her to. I felt what her family felt as they watched her fade into darkness, and it tore my heart and soul open.

The writing was incredible. Mann’s created such a powerful voice, and managed to make it come alive in a character we might otherwise think was hopeless. Even when you think there’s no hope left, she’s taken you so deeply into this world, you can’t help but reach out for it, and hope Nicole will do the same.  – M.R. Merrick, Amazon Reviewer (December 20, 2011)

Here’s the set-up:

Leaving behind a nightmarish college experience, nineteen-year-old Nicole and her best friend Eric escape their home of Bangor, Maine to start a new life in Boston. Fragile and scared, Nicole desperately seeks a new beginning to help erase her past. But there is something besides freedom waiting for her in the shadows–a drug that will make every day a nightmare.

Heroin.

With one taste, the love that once flowed through Nicole’s veins turns into cravings. Tracks mark the passing of time, and heroin’s grip gets tighter. It holds her hand through deaths and prostitution, but her addiction keeps her in the darkness. When her family tries to strike a match to help light her way, Nicole must choose between a life she can hardly remember, or a love for heroin she’ll never forget.

A Taste from the Book:

“I could feel my chin falling towards my chest, my back hunching forward. My body was acting on its own, and my mind was empty, like all my memories had been erased. There was scenery behind my lids. Aqua colored water and powdery sand that extended for miles. I was never going back to coke. I wanted more heroin. And I wanted it now.”

About the Author:

A New Englander at heart, Marni Mann, now a Floridian is inspired by the sandy beaches and hot pink sunsets of Sarasota. A writer of literary fiction, she taps a mainstream appeal and shakes worldwide taboos, taking her readers on a dark, harrowing, and gritty journey. When she’s not nose deep into her laptop, she’s scouring for chocolate, traveling, reading, or walking her four-legged children. Memoirs Aren’t Fairytales is her first novel.