Gayle Forman’s new book is so nostalgic, it whisked me back to my teen years when I devoured her books and wept in my bedroom at the beauty and devastation she wrote. “After Life” is no different! It’s trademark Forman— it was fast paced with characters you can’t help but root for, going a journey of trauma and grief that ends up giving you hope.

Such a beautiful book!

This is a really thoughtful, twisty tale of the ripples left by the untimely death of a seventeen year old girl who dies in a car accident (and then returns seven years later, totally unaware of her own death). I love Gayle Forman's writing, I think she has an excellent grasp of the human psyche, and this is a really beautiful, layered exploration of the multivariate impacts of one terrible event on a plethora of seemingly unrelated individuals. Amber and Melissa's relationship is complex and layered, and seven years is a long time for relationships to change and twist, fracture and reform, and I think it's the centerpiece of this book. Teenaged siblings are very different to adults, and from my own sibling relationships that my feelings about my siblings would've been so different if they hadn't been given the time and space to mature as adults.
I think my difficulty with this book was that Amber is, intrinsically, a seventeen-year-old trying to solve adult problems, and I found it a little difficult at times to credit that her teenaged self, absent seven years of context, would manage to wrap up all the loose ends that her death had left dangling. But perhaps what I needed was simply to accept that this is a book and that's how books work. I might just be a bit too cynical for that.
Suspending disbelief for a time, though, the layers of the book come together beautifully to tie up in a lovely knot at the end, with a bittersweet feeling that death is a tragedy that leaves many things unsaid and changes everyone it touches, but sometimes grief is not the only thing that comes from it, and Amber, perhaps, was sent back for a reason.

This book was a very quick read for me but also discusses compelling topics such as how individuals deal with grief. Amber 17 with her life ahead of her is one day knocked off her bike in a hit and run accident. Seven years later, she returns home on the same bike as if she is still living the same day as when she left.

I really enjoyed this book, I found it interesting how Gayle highlighted the ways each family member dealt with grief differently.

I was completely entranced by this novel. From the synopsis I knew it was something I wanted to read so was grateful for the ARC. This novel is a tale about a family coping with loss. Amber rides her bike home from school, just like any normal day but when she gets home her mother screams. Why? Because Amber died seven years ago. The family is thrown into turmoil as they all including Amber struggle with what happened and Amber being back home. This novel explores the area between life and death and examining the impact people have on the world. It’s written with sensitivity and will captivate you from start to finish. Thank you to NetGalley, Bonnier Books UK and the author for the chance to review.

What a compelling five-star read. This was such an absorbing story, there was just something so special about Amber and her story, it is different to your normal story and some people may be triggered by the death and reanimation of Amber, but at its heart this is a story about love, and how much we love those we have lost. There are a couple of amazing twists in the story, some that are great and some that will leave your jaw hanging. You will just love Amber and her journey, you will be rooting for her, to keep going and not have the inevitable happen. Pick this story up and give it a go, as you need to understand the level of depth this story will take you to.

When Amber arrives home from school one afternoon, the last thing she expects is for her mother to scream at the sight of her. But Amber died 7 years ago in a cycling accident. So how, abs why, has she walked through the door as solidly corporeal as the next person?

After Life is a classic Gayle Forman novel; it will tug at your heartstrings and make you consider life and death.

It only took me two days to read this book - I think that’s the definition of an easy-read for me. I also got so distracted by it that I got rather sunburnt on my recent holiday! So clearly it’s engrossing.

There were a few things about it that stopped me from feeling like this was the amazing book I’d recommend for friends:

1. Characters: I liked the jumping around different perspectives, but some of them I felt like I didn’t get enough time in to bond with the person, and some characters just fell a little flat for my liking. Casey seemed very one dimensional bitchy friend and even her issues with her father didn’t make her much more three-dimensional in my eyes. Calvin also seems like he was just going about his life without much emotional connection to anything. I didn’t connect with as many people as I had hoped. I think I got the closest with Melissa, she was the most interesting and well rounded person in my opinion.

2. Pacing: some parts felt incredibly poetic and descriptive, when others felt quite sped through and overly fast. I couldn’t quite get a grasp on what parts I should be focused on and care more about.

3. Resolution: I loved the meaning and the cultural links with how everything ended, but it honestly felt very unsatisfying to me, and wrapped up overly quickly. I wish the mystery of who killed Amber would have been drawn out even more and breadcrumb clues left for us along the way.

What I liked:
The idea as a whole was intriguing and compelling and I hadn’t heard of a book doing this before. Even my dad found it intriguing and he pretty much solely reads science fiction high-brow style novels.

It had some lovey sweet moments showing how strong and amazing family love can be. Yes, there were relationship there too, but they seemed to be a side piece for the familial bonding which is a nice change of pace, a flip to the usual.

I think it was very fun to start at the middle and not show us Amber’s regular day at school before she disappeared. It gives us a similar amnesia effect that Amber has at the beginning, we also don’t know about her last moments or what may have caused her accident, which just makes it even more intriguing.

Overall this is a book and author I’d recommend to someone who’s looking for a beach read or something to rattle their way through and enjoy at speed. Very enjoyable with a few flaws for me.

4 stars - YA contemporary.

Afterlife depicts the return of Amber who returns home from school one day, to the shock of her Mom and Sister, as Amber died seven years previous. The story is intertwined with multiple POVs from Amber and her family and friends and those who weren’t close to Amber but affected by her death.

Overall, I enjoyed this story, but I wasn’t expecting it to be the way it was. I was expecting the story to revolve around Amber and her family and how they coped with her return . The story itself, however, is a story of how people cope with grief, and how death affects those close to you and even those not around you. The ending I found bittersweet and although I wasn’t expecting the twist I wasn’t shocked by it either.

The story is quite short but very compelling and I finished it within one sitting. I liked Amber even though she was an average character, but I think that was what the author was trying to put across. Amber was an entirely normal, typical teen - sometimes mean to her younger sister, likely to lead an average life but death still happens, and people are still affected.

when i read the blurb for this book i had to request it, so thank you for letting me read this!!
i loved it, it was a beautifully written story about loss, friendship, family and betrayal but mostly about life.
a great read and one o have already recommended

What is it about YA books and Gayle Forman in particular that just tugs at the heartstrings? I was definitely working hard to hold in the tears at the end of this beautiful portrayal of love and grief and I was completely absorbed for hours. Every single character was portrayed with the literary equivalent of a few brush strokes but that's the author's talent, she shows the deepest emotions with the fewest words but just sucks you in to an emotional whirlpool. I loved this book and can't praise it highly enough.

Gayle Forman has always been one of my favorite authors to share and acquire for our readers. I’m beyond excited to share my full thoughts and review. I loved her series about One Day and falling in love and the repercussions of that so I know this book will touch readers hearts just like that book touched mine.