Title: Afterwards
Author: Rosamund Lupton
ISBN13: 9780307716545
Source: Library Copy
Rating: 3 out of 5
Synopsis: When Grace sees the private school engulfed in smoke, where her daughter works, she runs inside to save her daughter, Jenny. Later, she wakes up in a hospital and finds herself staring down at her body. Both she and Jenny are in coma but their spirits freely roam the inside the hospital. The spirits of mother and daughter follow the people they know to find out the person who started the fire to hurt them.
My Review:
I had thoroughly enjoyed Sister and was excited to read Lupton’s second novel, Afterwards. This is a twisted kind of thriller that keeps you interested from the first page. You know from the start that the fire wasn’t an accident and you try to keep guessing who could have possibly done it and what was the motive. What I found most interesting was the concept of this novel – two trapped spirits trying to deduce the mystery behind the fire and possibly an attempted murder.
The hospital building, its halls and gardens offer solace to these spirits and although they can leave the hospital it is very difficult for them to be outside. Grace who narrates all the incidences following the fire gains a whole new perspective about the people in her life when she follows them around the hospital.
After a point though the book became a bit predictable and while it was still interesting, you could make out what the end was going to be. Despite this, I enjoyed Lupton’s writing. The lyrical and mesmerizing ways in which she depicts emotions, situations and people is very captivating. If not for the mystery, then for the narration and plot premise I would suggest read this book.
Maddie's Musings 