Release Date: February 14th 2019
Publisher: Ink Road
Pages: 352
Find it on: Goodreads. BookDepository. Waterstones.
Source: The publisher kindly sent me a copy of this book to review.
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Synopsis
New Years’ Eve, San Francisco. The most promising party of the year ends in a tragic accident. Cara survives. Her best friend Georgina doesn’t.
Nine months later, Cara is struggling, consumed by guilt and grief. Her mum decides a Swiss boarding school will be the fresh start Cara needs. But Cara knows that swapping sunshine for snow won’t make a blind bit of difference. Georgina is gone, and nothing will bring her back.
Up in the Alps, Cara’s old life feels a million miles away. At Hope Hall, nobody knows about her past. And she intends to keep it that way. But classmates Ren and Hector have other ideas. Cara tries to keep her distance, but she’s drawn to the offbeat, straight-talking Hector, who understands her grief better than anyone. Her new friends are determined to break down the walls she has so carefully built up. And, despite it all, Cara wants them to.
The closer Cara grows to Hector, the more Georgina slips away. Embracing life at Hope Hall means letting go of the past; of her memories of that fatal New Year’s Eve. But Cara is quite sure she doesn’t deserve a second chance.
Review
The Year After You follows a young girl named Cara who is sent to a boarding school in the remote Swiss Alps. On New Years Eve she survived a fatal accident, but her best friend Georgina did not. Consumed by grief, she wants nothing more than to complete the school year and move on, nothing is going to bring down the walls she has built around herself. But as she is drawn into life at Hope Hall, she begins to hope that maybe, things will get better.
The Year After You is such a beautifully told story. It begins with a single tragic event that completely changes Cara’s life. The story focuses very heavily on grief and PTSD and it handled both of those issues extremely deftly. It really hones in on the idea of loss how others around Cara – such as her mother – don’t want to believe that she’s suffering from a mental illness. The story is stunningly told with beautiful writing and I definitely felt myself becoming wrapped up in this well executed plot.
The thing that really made the book for me is the characters. Cara is a real fleshed out character and she seems very realistic, but I also really liked Ren, Hector and Fred. They’re all loyal and fascinating characters and each one is dealing with their own secrets. I really liked seeing them develop as friends and grow as characters and that’s definitely one of the reasons I enjoyed this story so much.
The Year After You also features a really stunning setting and the remote boarding school trope is one that I absolutely adore. The beautiful old building in the snowy Alps, the cable car journeys and the remoteness of the school really helped to bring this beautiful story to life.
The Year After You is a beautifully told tale of friendship, grief and ultimately of second chances. The story completely blew me away and if you’re looking for a brilliant new read – I can’t recommend this highly enough.
This story follows the events of in which a series of nuclear bombings occur which triggers the end of the world as we know it. Jon Keller is attending a conference at a hotel in the middle of nowhere in Switzerland and so survives the attack along with 19 other people. Jon decides to document his time at the hotel in an attempt to process what has happened to the world. Whilst checking the water tanks the boy of a young girl is found and Jon begins to investigate her murder – but how will he get justice for her murder when the world as they know it no longer exists?
After many years of writing at home, I’ve recently managed to dedicate most of a room to writing. I painted it the deepest, darkest blue, which I find helps with concentration. It’s also filled with plants—on shelves, stands, even hanging from the walls—most of them on NASA’s list of top plants for using on the ISS, because I’m a nerd like that. There’s also another beloved item hanging from my study wall, my whiteboard. Here’s where the plotting and planning happens, usually beginning with a cast of characters (blurred out in this photo because it’s for a Sekrit Project!)
There’s a reason that multiple libraries feature in Shadowscent. I love them. There was a particular time in my childhood where we couldn’t afford to buy books, so the library was a paradise. When I went on to university study, I veritably lived in libraries. My favourite is the State Library of Victoria in Melbourne, Australia. Then, whenever I visit London, I try to make room for a writing or research session at the British Library. In Edinburgh, I love the Central Library for getting my fix of hushed voices and the scent of old tomes—it also has a gorgeous ceiling to gaze at while figuring out thorny plot points.
I do a fair bit of travel, both for author stuff and for my other job, so I’m often furiously drafting or desperately editing while on the go. I’ve learned to work in airports, and on planes and trains wherever possible. Last year, I finally invested in some noise-cancelling headphones and this has made all the difference.
Scotland doesn’t make a frequent habit of putting on prime outdoor writing weather, but when it does, I’ll grab the laptop and head out into one of Edinburgh’s beautiful parks. I’m also fortunate enough to able to get back to Australia once (sometimes twice) annually, so I squeeze in as much outdoor writing time while I’m there—hat and SPF 30+ essential! My favourite place is on the veranda at my sister’s house, if I can get the locals to let me concentrate…
The Awakening – Kate Chopin
Artificial Condition – Martha Wells
The Witch Doesn’t Burn in This One – Amanda Lovelace
The Mermaid’s Voice Returns in This One – Amanda Lovelace
This book is a really important own voices read, that tackles a number of really difficult issues in an interesting way. Maya stands on the precipice of her future and there are two options – going to NYU and following her dreams of studying film, or going to a more local University and finding a new suitable boy to marry – the option that her parents want her to take. I thought she was a really fascinating character and I loved her perspectives on life, and her dedication to film. She was strong and determined, she made difficult choices and stuck to her guns even when things were hard.
This was such a gripping thriller and a really unique read. The book made me feel uneasy and uncomfortable – partly because the story is somewhat based on the authors own experiences, and also because it was so believable, it could so easily happen to you or someone you know.
Last year I read The Witchfinder’s Sister by Beth Underdown and was completely captivated by the story so when I heard about The Familiars which centres on a young woman accused of witchcraft. The story follows Fleetwood Shuttleworth a young gentlewoman who after miscarrying three children, finds a letter which suggests if she has another child she will not survive. Horrified by this she desperately seeks a midwife who can help her deliver the child that is already growing. When she stumbles upon Alice Gray a local woman with the skills she needs, the two women are caught up in the accusations of witchcraft that are spreading across Lancaster. Only Alice is capable of delivering the baby but will Fleetwood be able to save her from a guilty verdict?
Synopsis
It’s time for another Waiting on Wednesday! Today I wanted to talk about King of Fools, the highly anticipated next instalment in the Shadow Game series. This series started last year with Ace of Shades. Ace of Shades is set in a City of Sin, where casino families reign. The story follows Enne Salta, a young woman who comes to the city in search of her missing mother. As she delves into the secrets of her mother’s past she meets Levi, a local street lord and all round crook. As she digs deeper Enne begins to lose herself in the glamour and corruption of New Reynes – but will that be enough to save her mother?
Some days there’s nothing I love better than curling with a good historical fiction and enveloping myself in a different time period. When I was offered the chance to review Beautiful Star & Other Stories I jumped at the chance, not only because I love Andrew Swanston’s Incendium, but because something I’ve read very little of is historical fiction short stories. This collection has seven different tales, all from differing time periods and locations. I thoroughly enjoyed each one, giving a fascinating snapshot of that time period.
The Bibliophile Chronicles 