Book Shelf: Hereafter (Hereafter, #1) by Tara Hudson

Can there truly be love after death?

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.

Blurb taken from Goodreads...

Review:

I’m not sure I even have the words to accurately describe how incredible I think this book was. The very first chapter draws you in and captures you, refusing to let you go throughout the whole story! The whole time I was reading, I dreaded stopping and in those few moments when I wasn’t reading, I wanted to be reading. The story itself isn’t exactly fast paced or overly exciting, instead it flows from one moment to the other. Each part of the story has meaning and purpose and never once did I sit there wondering why this page or part was in the story; what the point of it was, it all went together perfectly. The writing is excellent and descriptive, painting the picture wonderfully. I do love the idea of this story. There’s something so magical about two people meeting and yet being separated by something such as life and death. The way the two main characters met and came together was so sweet and I enjoyed every moment they spent together.

I loved Amelia. She was such a fabulous heroine! The author has written her so perfectly. You really feel the confusion and the frustration she feels, along with her pain over being unable to remember who she is or her life before her death. She’s so easy to emphasis with and I found that once or twice I put myself in her shoes and imagined what I’d do if I was in her situation, and I feel like when you can do that with a character, then they really are something incredible. I thought Joshua was a really sweetie too. I liked the way he treated Amelia and how he cared about her the way he did. He gave her a reason to feel again, and their entire relationship was so sweet and endearing. There was nothing false or rushed about it, and I honestly believed it. I loved how much they were willing to do for each other and even when Amelia began to face issues with Eli, he still stood by her and refused to lose her or let her go--it was adorable.

The ending of this book was quite intriguing in my mind. We learn some interesting things about Amelia and what she can do, and the world behind the one of the living in general. The story ends well, and yet I really feel like it isn’t finished. The way things are left, uncompleted and filled with possibilities, there needs to be a sequel. Amelia and Joshua’s story still isn’t finished and there are a lot of loose ends left untied. Jillian, Ruth, even the creatures of the netherworld are all things that we still need to learn about and I for one, can’t wait to see what this author has in store for Amelia and Joshua next.

Bring on the next book!!

Rating: ***** stars

Recommend: Yes!!

Did I Buy, Borrow or is it an ARC: ARC

Recommend Buy or Borrow: Buy

Ebook or Actual Book: Ebook

Cover: Stunning! It's beautiful the way she's fading into everything---amazing.

Read sequel/continue with series: YES!!!!