Books by Adrian Simon

My father's last words to me? 'You're out of control, Jan, heading towards a red light.' What happens when you're in the all the wrong places, with all the wrong people, making all the wrong choices? It may look like that from the outside. But these are the real questions: who and what is right, and who gets to decide? The mid-70s. Needing to escape the ghosts of her tortured past, Jan turns to dancing in the seedy underbelly of Australia's notorious Kings Cross in order to fund her way out. Spirited, brave, and very, very broken, she travels throughout Sumatra, Indonesia and Nepal, her strength returning day by day. Fast forward a year or so to Delhi and Jan is desperate for money, selling her blood just to get by. Reconnecting with a former associate, she is propositioned with a tempting offer and faces what turns out to be a life altering decision. But returning home is not an option, so the dice is rolled but little did Jan know, these dice were loaded. Transporting contraband through the shifting sands of Pakistan and northern India's deserts; to the lush rainforests of Madagascar and the devastated, poverty-stricken cities in Bangladesh, Jan becomes a key player in some major, age-old political conflicts raging through these blood-soaked lands. Determined to take control and find her independence, Jan finds love; not once, but twice - at the same time - and the battle for her heart and life begins. Things seemingly take an upward turn for Jan: holidays on houseboats in Kashmir, opulent dinners and penthouse suites in five star hotels, designer clothes and so much cash! But these men, whilst offering her the world, are placing Jan in very real danger; and when all goes to hell, as it inevitably does, she is alone again and learns the hard way that no one is coming to save her. From the author of Milk-Blood, Unbreaking the Girl is a visually stunning tale of travel, action and more than a little romance. The ultimate story of one very strong woman and the men who loved her, Unbreaking the Girl has an ending that will leave you holding your breath. 'I have my reasons for why my life is the way it is, and when push comes to shove, you do what you have to do, for no one else will! I know now my sins are my own to bear and I'll be the judge of them from here on out as I alone must live with them. As for the sins imposed on me by others? Well, only death will resolve that shit.' - Jan, Unbreaking the Girl, by Adrian Simon

And how do you think you'd turn out if your father was a convicted heroin trafficker? 'For a reasonably smart guy I've done some dumb shit, but I've got nothing on my father. His choice in Bangkok, to not flush the heroin, was how my life started. But I'll be damned if it's going to define me. Don't get me wrong - I'm no angel, ask anyone who knows me, but I had to get completely lost so I could find myself.' Adrian Simon, Milk-Blood This is not your standard memoir. I am the son of Warren Fellows, the infamous heroin trafficker who was imprisoned in the Big Tiger in Bangkok, and who later published his internationally bestselling memoir The Damage Done. There is a good chance you, or someone you know has read it, but like all good stories there are two sides. Milk-Blood tells the other side. While my father languished behind foreign bars for 12 years, I was forced to grow up fast, and my mother had to take on some pretty soul-destroying stuff in order to keep us above ground. Thing is, when the flash cars, the big bucks, and the international lifestyle are stripped away, people who claim to have had your back turn on you. Society, the media, they didn't care that I was just a kid. But unlike my father's choices, the risks my mother took were out of love, not greed. As soon as I was able, I took off overseas to "discover" myself, along the way pushing all limits, both mind and body. Turns out I inherited the same wild streak both my parents have, and I learnt first hand how to turn an average set of cards into a winning hand. Albeit at a high cost. There are natural storytellers and then there are people who have lived a story. The real question that faced me every single day: Would I grow up to repeat the mistakes of my father? Everyone expected me to crash and burn. Who wouldn't, through all this dysfunction? If you enjoyed watching Breaking Bad and the story of Pablo Escobar in Narcos, then I think you'll enjoy this family epic - a powerful read, if I may say so myself. No bars are held here - I tell you, intimately, how it really was. And I don't come out the hero, trust me! But I don't turn out too damn bad, either. Why did I write this? Honestly? To shine a light on the invisible people, like my mother who endured the unimaginable. I've been humbled by life but now I'm staking my claim. A person's reach should always exceed their grasp.