I Found Heaven In "Hereafter"

Title:  Hereafter
Author:  Tara Hudson
Format:  E-book
Length:  233 pages
Publisher:  HarperCollins Publishing
Age Range:  Mid-Teen-Adult
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
 
Drifting in the dark waters of a mysterious river, the only thing Amelia knows for sure is that she's dead. With no recollection of her past life—or her actual death—she's trapped alone in a nightmarish existence. All of this changes when she tries to rescue a boy, Joshua, from drowning in her river. As a ghost, she can do nothing but will him to live. Yet in an unforgettable moment of connection, she helps him survive.
Amelia and Joshua grow ever closer as they begin to uncover the strange circumstances of her death and the secrets of the dark river that held her captive for so long. But even while they struggle to keep their bond hidden from the living world, a frightening spirit named Eli is doing everything in his power to destroy their new found happiness and drag Amelia back into the ghost world . . . forever.
Thrilling and evocative, with moments of pure pleasure, Hereafter is a sensation you won't want to miss.  -Goodreads
     
There is so much to say about this wonderful book!
     Let me start with a very heartfelt thank you to Ms. Tara Hudson for giving her readers something other than vampires, wares, and angels!
And now...the good stuff!  
     Though Amelia is the main character of  "Hereafter," I was taken and delighted with the fact that the opening chapters centered around Josh.  This gave me as the reader an early understanding of his importance to the structure of the story.  I was also able to 'get to know' him along with Amelia; experiencing more and more of him over time  through her eyes.  His role in this story is so well written that it could serve as the foundation for a stand alone book or novella.  He and his family are definitely worth a closer look.

 Amelia...Amelia...Amelia...hmmmmm. 
     I was overjoyed that she knew and accepted the fact that she was DEAD.  Whooohoo!  She did not bore me to tears with long winded diatribes about her loss of life.  Nor did she try to drag Josh into the afterlife in a misguided attempt at her version of together forever.  Instead, she took the afterlife as it was, only seeking to find her place in it and understand love, the circumstances behind her death, and the actualization of her power of self.

Eli
     I though of him as a pawn in the very sinister game of his masters.  I didn't come to that conclusion until the end of the book.  Until then, I just thought of him as a very manipulative and slightly creepy pain in the ass.

This book is by far one of the best that I have read this year!  If you are a fan of love, the afterlife, teens with brains that work in spite of their hormones, and wonderful plot lines with a hint of Dante.  This is the read for you.

6 comments:

  1. I've actually seen this in bookstores. Now, I think I want one. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wonderful book review. Look forward to reading more. I am a new follower from Book blogs. I would like to invite you over to my blog for a follow and to enter a giveaway I'm having this week. I tweeted your post and posted it to my Facebook page: My Life. One Story at a Time. I invite you to join there and post your coming reviews. Donna

    http://mylife-in-stories.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks for the reviews. Always nice find good reviewers. I'm with Book Blogs and would love it if you stopped in at the WriteGame to say hi!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I am totally feeling your blog ambiance. Loving the title and the review was banging. Isn't it great to find a heroine in a book that doesn't want to wax philosophically on and on every other page. I will definitely be a frequent visitor. Check me out at

    http://www.ragesexandteddybears.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. Great review, and awesome blog! Love the name and the look. :) I'm following you now!

    http://cameorenae.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  6. Great review! This is one of my favorites actually! The ghost + human = romance thing had me immediately hooked. Plus the rock star evil dude and a death causing bridge. You might like to see what I wrote about it too. it's on our blog :)
    -Gilbert

    ReplyDelete

Thanks so much for stopping by. I love comments, so please leave a few.