Review : Life After

Life After by Katie Ganshert

Genre: Contemporary, Romance

Goodreads: Click

Page: 352
Expected publication: April 18th 2017 by Waterbrook

It could have been me.

     Snow whirls around an elevated train platform in Chicago. A distracted woman boards the train, takes her seat, and moments later a fiery explosion rips through the frigid air, tearing the car apart in a horrific attack on the city’s transit system. One life is spared. Twenty-two are lost.

     A year later, Autumn Manning can’t remember the day of the bombing and she is tormented by grief—by guilt. Twelve months of the question constantly echoing. Why? Why? Why? Searching for answers, she haunts the lives of the victims, unable to rest. 

     Paul Elliott lost his wife in the train bombing and wants to let the dead rest in peace, undisturbed and unable to cause more pain for his loved ones. He wants normalcy for his twelve year-old daughter and young son, to see them move beyond the heartbreak. But when the Elliotts and Autumn are unexpectedly forced together, he fears she’ll bring more wreckage in her wake.  

     In Life After, Katie Ganshert’s most complex and unforgettable novel yet, the stirring prose and authentic characters pose questions of truth, goodness, and ultimate purpose in this emotionally resonant tale.

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Its been a year since the train bombing and the sole survivor, Autumn, is still dealing with survivors guilt. But it seems shes not the only one having a hard time dealing with tragedy, since day one shes been receiving letters from one of the victim's young daughter Reese. Together they will try to see if they can work out some type of tribute and learn to getting past what they have went through.

I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into when I first got this book. I had never read a book that had dealt with survivor guilt and I was curious where this book was going to go. I was not disappointed this book turned out to be really good. I manged to finish the last 200 pages in like under 2 hours because I just found myself sucked into this book. I thought it was interesting seeing how Autumn was dealing with everything. It was also interesting getting to know a bit about the victims of the train bomb tragedy and seeing how their family and relations dealt with what has happens. I enjoyed Reeses character, she was a sweet and confused young girl but she was so well meaning at times even if it came and bit her in the butt sometimes. I loved that there was the dual point of view between Paul and Autumn and I also loved getting to see Reeses letters and Autumns journaling it really added a whole lot more perspective to the characters. Overall this was a pretty great book that was very based in faith and healing and I loved it.

Christy Award finalist, Katie Ganshert is the author of Wildflowers from Winter and Wishing on Willows. She lives in Iowa with her handsome husband, their dinosaur-loving son, and their goofy black lab, Bubba. When she’s not busy writing or playing or reading or snuggling, she is obsessing over the paperwork and the waiting that comes with adoption, which she and her husband hope to complete sometime before they are fifty.

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