What a beautiful book about how life continues after the loss of someone. I felt this deeply within me and these characters will stay with me for a long time.

This is a great debut but I found myself drifting in and out of this book but I didn’t necessarily connect with the characters in a way that I had hope I would.

This is a tedious tale in which the flowery language and use of obscure words and turns of phrase killed off any interest in the characters. I’m very disappointed it is not the family relationships saga I was expecting.

I received a free copy of this novel from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

The World After Alice is an impressive debut, but I found Lauren Aliza Green’s writing style quite jarring, with its convoluted sentences and odd choice of words that brought me up short as a reader. Describing a person as “gracile” and a couple as “fused forever in equipoise”. Things like: “The wine had gone to her head, it’s impasto obfuscating her thoughts”. And “He cringed at that wounding incestuous, its pornographic valence”. And “every person he met was a tentacular extension of himself”. It felt like a student trying to be clever rather than a writer relaxed in their ability to communicate. There were many more examples of awkward language, but I only started making notes about half way through. Other people might not find this a problem- I hope they don’t- as it really spoiled my enjoyment of the novel.

3.5 stars

The bride puzzling over the tricky seating plan is Morgan Helmsley, the groom is Benji Weil, an eternal optimist. However, in the ensuing days darkness threatens the nuptials about to take place in Maine. It’s twelve years since the death of 16 year old Alice, Benji’s older sister and Morgan’s friend and in that time Benji‘s parents, Nicholas and Linnie have separated, divorced and rarely meet. Hopefully, Maine will be neutral ground. Nicholas is hiding much from his second wife Caro and behind the scenes is scheming to secure a new job before she learns he has lost his old one six months ago. It seems too, that Morgan is harbouring secrets with the potential of disrupting the weekend, whilst Benji tries to hold it all together and bring harmony before it implodes in their faces. The story is told in the present day and via flashbacks from the perspectives of the key characters.

This is undoubtedly well written and insightful, it is obvious too that the author is erudite but the novel never truly grabs me although I can admire much about it. The undercurrents are undeniable, here sharp words pierce hearts and it’s full of questioning about not only the wedding, but what came before it, in the world after Alice. The grief and loss of Alice is palpable with the novel examining how it affects them and continues to do so. There’s a weight of guilt and the deep cut of pain. Alice is like the spectre at the feast and it overhangs all and that comes across strongly. What Morgan knows about Alice feels like a millstone around her neck and the presence of one guest definitely rattles her and the reasons for that emerge a bit at a time. There’s bitterness and venom from a number of directions and the knowledge of Nicholas’s behaviour at the time of Alice‘s death doesn’t help the situation much.

This is a character driven novel and concerns the dynamics between them. The characterisation is good, they’re flawed and not necessarily likeable and as the novel develops you grow to understand just how intertwined their lives are and not always in a positive way. Your heart breaks for some, others earn some distain and some are admirably resilient.

Although some scenes stand out either for their drama or the raw sadness, the pace is slow for the most part, although that does serve to make any revelations or secrets stand out as they bubble their way to the surface.

Overall, this is a promising debut and an ambitious first novel. I like the fact the author has set the unravelling at the wedding which should be a joyous occasion, but in this case the baggage is just too great for the happiness to be the primary feeling. I’m not so keen on the back-and-forth storytelling which makes it not quite so easy to follow the narrative and it feels a bit disjointed. The ending/epilogue deserves a final mention as that is very good.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Penguin Michael Joseph for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

An OK book which I didn't particularly enjoy finding it rather slow and pedantic at times. Whether it was the American English that got me (I'm English) but the text just didn't flow for me. The plot was quite interesting and had promise and there were odd highlights but I didn't take to the characters, especially Nick. So not one for me but only a 3 star as some may enjoy as not objectionable but on a personal level probably only a 2 star.

Powerful and poignant this is an exceptional exploration of grief and guilt and the impact it has on family relationships. It will break your heart.

The prose is gorgeous and insightful and the characters are multilayered. Very worthy of five stars.

I found myself drifting off whilst reading this book. The characters were both uninteresting and unbelievable and I didn’t warm to any of them. Overall I didn’t enjoy the writing style and I’m afraid this book was not for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC

This was a well written story of the long lasting impact of grief and loss. I thought the impact on each character was well portrayed and their relationships were well described as the complex things they are. It was quite slow to develop for me but an emotive read.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the chance to read this ARC, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The World After Alice is a moving read. It’s well written, powerful, full of messy family drama and the aftershock of Alice’s death that still haunts her family.

This is a snapshot in time spliced with flashbacks to both life before Alice’s death and during her funeral from each character’s perspective.

It’s dense, descriptive prose littered with words that will make most readers pause to look them up or try and guess. It can be quite jarring and off putting at first.

The pace is slow and purposeful, drawing a parallel with the way days and time stretches out in grief and allowing the author time to fully hone in on the complicated emotions of each of the characters. She does well to identify the question that it’s easy to imagine anyone whose life is intertwined with someone who does by suicide might ask themselves: “could I have seen the signs? Could I have stopped it?”

The book is rich with grief and guilt and the inability to communicate which, I’ll admit, drove me crazy. But I sat with my discomfort and endured the unlikable characters because these are humans in their rawest form, unable to maintain their masks in the face of insurmountable grief.

The author’s choice to juxtapose one of the happiest days of a lifetime (a wedding) with one of the saddest (loss of life) makes it an interesting way to explore the long lasting effects of loss on such a wide group of people.

Would I read it again? No. It was much too heavy for this thriller and fantasy reader and the pace was a slog 🙃 Am I glad I genre hopped to try it and read such beautiful prose? Absolutely.

A compelling and really emotional read of family’s and dealing with grief. It’s a read that stays with you and one that requires a good supply of tissues.

I’m a big fan of the American family saga and while I did enjoy this novel overall, it wasn’t the best of its kind. I found the characters and their complicated histories blurred together which prevented me investing very much emotionally. Some of that was down to the writing style which, as several others have said, is often showy and distracting. But it picked up for me as the wedding approached and I was glad I’d stayed with it. Giving it a generous 4 ⭐️

Oh the family drama! Reading this book feels almost voyeuristic! Alice died over a decade ago and her brother and best friend are now getting married. This brings the two families back together and brings back all the hurt and bad feelings surrounding Alice's death.

When Morgan and Benji tell their family's they are getting married it's a bit of a shock, they've kept the relationship a secret for a few years. Morgan was Alice's best friend and Benji was Alice's brother. She died a few years ago.

This is the story of the families saga that's gone on sinceher death and a little before, it takes you through various stages of events and people involved. There are several characters of various lovability some may not be loveable but most have some redeeming qualities. Family dynamics can be fun at the best of times and these 2 families don't disappoint although it's sort of split into more than 2 now. . Wish the happy couple all the best they will need it but they are definitely in love and know each other well.

I was torn but in the end decided that 5 stars was the fair rating the writing and story telling is excellent

With thanks to Penguin and Netgalley for an ARC in return for an honest review

I’ve spent the past few hours thinking about how to word my review. Actually this book will stay with me. It took me a while to get used to the writing style which is so perfect for this book

A book of loss, finding love and seeing the long term effects of grief. This is not a depressing book, in times very funny. However it has a very thoughtful message

I would be delighted to recommend this book to my friends

This book really gets to the nitty gritty of relationships as it builds up to a wedding between two friends from childhood. As we learn the background of each character it seems that any of them has the potential to create chaos and ruin the happy couple's special day. Initially the relationship between them all was rather confusing and I found the introspection and analysis a bit too intense and drawn out.

I couldn’t put this book down as wanted to know how the story would unfold. I did find the swapping between timelines a little rushed and not always were I wanted them to be but did need the context of what happened before to explain the behaviour at the wedding.
The characters were all interwoven while not seeming to like each other very much. Some of what happened seems irrelevant to the story but gave fillers as to the characters.
I enjoyed it but felt the ending was unsatisfactory.

This is a complex story told over flashbacks as the families and friends reach the event at the focus of the book.
While readers are very familiar with the technique of using several timelines in a story, this book has very little content which is in ‘today’ almost the entire book is in the past. I found myself hoping for part of the story to settle in the present.
The book is exploring the feelings of a bereaved group of people variously affected by the loss of one of their community. I found it well written with great feeling for the different characters who, of course are affected in different ways depending on the relationship with Alice. The end is interesting and different and certainly made me think.
Recommended

I think this may end up being a marmite book - some will love it, and some will hate it. I fell, unfortunately, into the latter camp, finding the prose style too mannered and overwrought. I had been attracted by the comparison to Anne Tyler but, unlike Tyler, the characters in The World After Alice never felt like fully fleshed people with lives and feelings and motivations of their own.