Review: "Still Falling" by S.E. Bevin

Still Falling by S.E. Bevin
Published April 2025
★★★

Year twelve is approaching, and Tessa has it together—good grades, increasing gymnastics skills, a loving family. But her friend and teammate Jade is convinced that being lighter is the key to success at the gym, and Tessa can't help but think that Jade is right—that her shrinking figure indicates a level of control and achievement that Tessa too should strive for.

The writing is nice here and the story clear. The book is quite short (under 150 pages, according to Kindle), which I think is to its detriment; although it's nicely paced, there's no room in the story for anything but Tessa's eating disorder. I'd have loved to see more of Tessa and Jade's friendship before their eating disorders, as at the moment Jade is really nothing but a voice in Tessa's ear shaming her for eating. Would also have liked to see more of Tessa's family life; her family seems lovely, but their role is mostly limited to being worried over how little Tessa is eating.

So a little simple, but all in all a nice debut, especially from a self-published (and I think quite young?) author.