After You: A Novel by Jojo Moyes

(Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!)

about book:

In After You, Lou Clark is living with the loss of quadriplegic Will Traynor, her first love.  Without him, she's floundering - wondering if she has it in her to live the big life he envisioned for her.  After a startling accident, Lou ends up at home, convalescing with her family.  Lou can't help but feel she's right back where she started.  To propel herself forward, Lou attends meetings of the Moving On support group where she encounters Sam Fielding - a man who feels dangerously like someone she could fall in love with.  And just as Lou is getting back on track, a figure from Will's past shows up at her door, forcing her to fully confront her past and change the course of her future. 

my thoughts:

As a HUGE fan of Moyes' bestselling novel, Me Before You, I was excited to learn about the sequel, After You.  I wanted to find out what happened to Lou after she made her way to Paris - what adventures would she pursue?  Of course, I did have some reservations about a "part two".  Would this book even have the same emotional depth as the first - could it?  Should there even be a second book?  So many thoughts ran through my head, but regardless, I just knew that I had to read the book to find out.  Luckily, I was offered a copy and eagerly accepted it.  So, what did I think of the sequel?

Hmm...that's a hard question to answer.  Part of me loved falling into step with Moyes' terrific writing and engaging storytelling.  She really can spin a good yarn.  And I absolutely enjoyed being reunited with a cast of characters (the Clark family) that I remembered quite fondly from Me Before You.    However, that is all I liked about this new book.  In fact, if I'm honest, a sequel shouldn't have been written.  Finding Lou in such a terrible state was heartbreaking and sad, but understandable considering what she had been through with Will.  Grief can last for ages and can come in a variety of ways - I get that.  Yet, at the same time, I had expected more from Lou.  In the last novel she wound up in Paris about to embark on a new life - she had hope.  With this new story she has lost that hope.  She is a complete mess and living a non-life.  All she does is work, drink wine, think about Will, and sleep.  She hasn't seen her family in ages and pretty much keeps to herself.  Until she has an accident that leaves her in the care of her family.  From that point on, Lou's life becomes bogged down with one concern after another - each one seemingly more ridiculous than the last.  There is her crap job at an airport lounge where she is forced to clean the men's loo and wear a red wig.  There are her meetings at a grief support group which don't seem to be helping.  There is her family which is falling apart due to her mum's new found interest in feminism.  There is the new friend/boyfriend who may be just what she needs or not.  Oh, and there is the teen-aged brat who shows up declaring she is Will's daughter.  Yeah, all of that drama combined with Lou's recovery from her accident is just one cliché too many.  Seriously, it felt like Moyes couldn't decide what direction to go in, so she went in all of them.  I found the story to be rushed, predictable, and rather disappointing.  After You was definitely not what I had expected. 

I feel badly writing a negative review about this book.  Especially, as I love the author's writing.  However, I just don't believe that After You is a good read.  Its a story that was better left unwritten.  I'd rather remember Lou being on the brink of a new adventure in Paris, than the Lou we find in this story.  And for those fans of Me Before You, I hope you enjoy After You much more than I did. 

Three Quick Reviews

I have been reading like crazy lately and I have been loving every minute of it!  Summer is nigh and I've started craving quick, easy, and fun reads.  Here are three that I've recently devoured:

A fun and quick read that I gobbled up in two days.  I probably could have read it in one day, but I didn't want the book to end.  So, what's this new Dan Brown about? Well, I don't want to give too much away, so I'll just write this - Robert Langdon is back!  Woo hoo! Our favorite professor is once again swept away in a mysterious and dangerous mission to save humanity from possible destruction.  This time round he's missing his favorite Mickey Mouse watch and his memory - yikes!  Plus, he has no idea who to trust - his own government appears to be out to get him. What? Oh, and all of this is happening in Italy and time is running out!  Suffice it to say, I was on the edge of my seat the whole through with this book and I loved every minute of it!  Brown's latest made for the perfect weekend read - a fun adventure to get lost in. I would definitely urge all Dan Brown fans to check this one out!!

Chick lit at its best!  A fun, sexy romp filled with miscommunications, sisterly (mis)advice, rash decisions, and no sex (well, almost).  Talk about a laugh out loud read!  I absolutely loved Kinsella's latest novel involving two sisters named Lottie and Fliss.  Lottie has just found out her boyfriend of 100 years does not want to get married - and to think she bought him an engagement ring to match the one she had assumed he had bought her - and she is beyond heartbroken.  Fliss, a harried single mother, whose never-ending divorce battle with her ex, and super busy job are all put on hold when she receives her sister, Lottie's latest phone call. She's married!! Say what?  Days after the big breakup and Lottie is married to an ex-boyfriend who showed up out of the blue - WTF!!  Fliss is overcome with worry about her younger sister and decides to do what she can to end this marriage ASAP - and believe me, she does everything and anything she can think of to end this marriage!  Its pretty crazy and funny all the drama that ensues.  I laughed so much that I teared up.  And in the end, I got my happily ever after - a must have for me when it comes to chick lit.  This is one book that I would happily recommend to fans of Kinsella and the chick lit genre - you will love this book!!

Sequels are not always a good idea.  Especially, when the story has been told and there is nothing left to tell.  After reading The Devil Wears Prada and watching the film version, I thought Andy's story was over - she was free from Miranda!!  What else was there to know?  Well, I guess I was wrong.   And, I'm so glad I was wrong, because this sequel was terrific!  I loved reuniting with Andy and finding out what had happened to her post-Runway.  She's launched a successful magazine with her new BFF, Emily - remember her, Miranda's cruel assistant that starved herself to go to Paris but didn't make it?  Crazy to believe, but Andy and Emily became besties and partners in business!  As far as her romantic life goes, Andy is about to marry the love of her life, Max.  Life couldn't get any better, except for those pesky nightmares involving Miranda; and the letter she found in her husband-to-be's gym bag; and the nausea that won't go away; plus a call from Miranda's attorney; and so many other crazy issues that just seem to pop up out of nowhere.  Suffice it to say, Weisberger has done an excellent job of bringing Andy and all of her Runway drama back to life.  I loved the book!  It was a quick, fun, and familiar read.  It made for the perfect rainy day read.  I would definitely recommend this book to fans of The Devil Wears Prada and fans of chick lit - you will enjoy getting lost in Andy's world all over again.

And there you have it - the three last books I just finished reading.  They were the perfect chasers after all of the historical fiction I've recently read.  Plus, they helped remind me that soon the sun will be blazing hot and iced cold glasses of lemonade will be my drink of choice, because summer is almost here!  What about you?  What fun books have you recently found yourself lost in?  Any recommendations for me?