The After Girls by Leah Konen

The After Girls by Leah Konen

Publisher: Adams Media Corporation

Publishing date: April 18, 2013

ISBN13: 9781440561085

304 Pages

Synopsis

Ella, Astrid, and Sydney were planning the perfect summer after high school graduation. But when Astrid commits suicide in a lonely cabin, the other girls' worlds are shattered. How could their best friend have done this—to herself and to them? They knew everything about Astrid. Shouldn't they have seen this coming? Couldn't they have saved her?

As Ella hunts for the truth, and Sydney tries to dull the pain, a chilling Facebook message from Astrid leaves them wondering whether their beloved friend is communicating from the after life. The girls embark on a journey to uncover Astrid's dark secrets. The answers to those questions—questions they never dreamed of asking—will change their lives forever.

My Review

I received this ebook free from Netgalley’s review program. I enjoyed reading this book because it had a little bit of everything: romance, tragedy, hopefulness, friendship and intriguing family relationships. The book starts off with Astrid’s suicide and dives in to how Sydney and Ella cope with their grief. Sydney parties and plays in her band, while Ella is consumed with finding out why Astrid did this. It’s easy to relate with these girls while reading the story. Like most people, Ella just wants to know why this happened; she needs an explanation as to why she didn’t see it coming. Sydney, on the other hand, doesn’t want to delve into the reasoning; she just wants to move on with her life and cope with her grief in her own way. She feels like you can’t change what’s already happened, so why dwell on it and cause more anguish. I think when someone goes through a tragedy in their life, they often encounter both of the feelings Ella and Sydney experienced. Many people wonder why, but at the same time, they know it can’t be changed, so they should try to move on with their lives. I thought Ms. Konen did a wonderful job bringing out the emotions experienced with losing a loved one. She was thoughtful in her writing and easily conveyed the feelings of all characters. I look forward to reading other novels by Ms. Konen in the future.