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Afterwards
April isn’t just running the London marathon. She’s running to freedom.
Still living at home and doing a job she hates, April is desperate to shake up her mundane existence but can’t find the courage. A serious accident leaves her with a different set of problems, but also the hope of a new beginning.
Both on and off the running track, she faces challenges she had never imagined. With the help of her new friend Art, a retired drag queen, and Al, her obstinate coach, April starts to reinvent herself. Will she reach the finishing line, and will all the pain and anguish be worth it?
Afterwards is the new novel from the bestselling author of The Most Beautiful Thing. Compelling and illuminating, it reminds us that it is never too late to begin over again.
Still living at home and doing a job she hates, April is desperate to shake up her mundane existence but can’t find the courage. A serious accident leaves her with a different set of problems, but also the hope of a new beginning.
Both on and off the running track, she faces challenges she had never imagined. With the help of her new friend Art, a retired drag queen, and Al, her obstinate coach, April starts to reinvent herself. Will she reach the finishing line, and will all the pain and anguish be worth it?
Afterwards is the new novel from the bestselling author of The Most Beautiful Thing. Compelling and illuminating, it reminds us that it is never too late to begin over again.
- GenresFiction
286 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 22, 2013
About the author
Satya Robyn
12 books144 followersSatya Robyn is a writer living in Malvern, the UK. Her newest book is 'Dear Earth: Love, grief and activism'. Her author site is here.
She runs a Buddhist temple with her husband Kaspa and works as a psychotherapist, using Internal Family Systems. She's a member of Extinction Rebellion and takes part in regular Earth Vigils (www.earthvigil.co.uk).
Satya lives in the skirts of the Malvern hills with her husband Kaspa. her cat Roshi, her 3 bunnies and her two dogs Aiko and Ralph.
She runs a Buddhist temple with her husband Kaspa and works as a psychotherapist, using Internal Family Systems. She's a member of Extinction Rebellion and takes part in regular Earth Vigils (www.earthvigil.co.uk).
Satya lives in the skirts of the Malvern hills with her husband Kaspa. her cat Roshi, her 3 bunnies and her two dogs Aiko and Ralph.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 26, 2014
Full disclosure:I received a copy of this book from the author prior to publication its date, but this is my honest review.
Spoiler Alert: There are some things in this review that reveals details of the plot.
Satya Robyn writes a story of hope in her newest novel, which contains a cast of sympathetic characters. Interspersed between her recollection of her marathon attempt, April tells her story. It is easy to have empathy for April as she could be a friend, a sister, or even a reader of this novel. In the beginning she isn't satisfied--with her job, with her boyfriend Luke, with her family, or with her friends, with her life. In other words, she is not perfect; she is flawed like everyone.
Yet to her new friend (a patient) Art (of the Rosie Cheeks), a lovable, colorful character, sees something in her that connects the two of them. This growing friendship drives the novel especially "afterwards." For the novel is divided into the time before and the time after (a life-changing car crash which kills the driver and costs April the loss of a limb).
Afterwards April becomes a better person with the help of Art and Bert, one of Art's friends. Her time in the hospital gives April a new respect for other people, a new caring for others, and ultimately allows healing. Is April now perfect? No, but she is a better person, a more likeable person, and makes this story a highly recommended read of divine grace.
Having read several other novels by Robyn, I find this one joins the ranks of "The Blue Handbag" (now re-titled "Small Kindnesses") and "The Most Beautiful Thing" as a novel to savor with characters worth getting to know.
Spoiler Alert: There are some things in this review that reveals details of the plot.
Satya Robyn writes a story of hope in her newest novel, which contains a cast of sympathetic characters. Interspersed between her recollection of her marathon attempt, April tells her story. It is easy to have empathy for April as she could be a friend, a sister, or even a reader of this novel. In the beginning she isn't satisfied--with her job, with her boyfriend Luke, with her family, or with her friends, with her life. In other words, she is not perfect; she is flawed like everyone.
Yet to her new friend (a patient) Art (of the Rosie Cheeks), a lovable, colorful character, sees something in her that connects the two of them. This growing friendship drives the novel especially "afterwards." For the novel is divided into the time before and the time after (a life-changing car crash which kills the driver and costs April the loss of a limb).
Afterwards April becomes a better person with the help of Art and Bert, one of Art's friends. Her time in the hospital gives April a new respect for other people, a new caring for others, and ultimately allows healing. Is April now perfect? No, but she is a better person, a more likeable person, and makes this story a highly recommended read of divine grace.
Having read several other novels by Robyn, I find this one joins the ranks of "The Blue Handbag" (now re-titled "Small Kindnesses") and "The Most Beautiful Thing" as a novel to savor with characters worth getting to know.
March 11, 2014
This gets the dubious honour of being the first full novel I've read on a Kindle!
There were things I liked and things I didn't. The structure and pacing of the novel were very strong - the miles of the marathon helping to move us ever onwards and allowing for regular glances back to see how our narrator got to this point.
I wasn't so keen on the characters - they felt somewhat stereotyped and I didn't fully buy April's change of character following her accident. And I mourned the absence some of Robyn's more sharp-eyed descriptive prose - and wondered if it had been sacrificed in the name of promoting a tone of personal development.
At times I felt I was reading a chick-lit Coehlo - which might work well for many, but perhaps not for me! But having said that, I downloaded this for free on one of the occasions where Satya generously shares her writing, so who can really complain about a free book!
There were things I liked and things I didn't. The structure and pacing of the novel were very strong - the miles of the marathon helping to move us ever onwards and allowing for regular glances back to see how our narrator got to this point.
I wasn't so keen on the characters - they felt somewhat stereotyped and I didn't fully buy April's change of character following her accident. And I mourned the absence some of Robyn's more sharp-eyed descriptive prose - and wondered if it had been sacrificed in the name of promoting a tone of personal development.
At times I felt I was reading a chick-lit Coehlo - which might work well for many, but perhaps not for me! But having said that, I downloaded this for free on one of the occasions where Satya generously shares her writing, so who can really complain about a free book!
March 30, 2017
Probably closer to 3.5 stars. It took me a while, but once I got into reading this, I enjoyed watching April's journey to becoming less self-involved and opening herself up to a new life and relationships with friends and family. I especially appreciated that this book was about a character's personal development and did NOT include falling in love. That's pretty rare!
March 19, 2024
I did not like the main character in this book, so I was glad she had a lot of personal growth. Overall I wanted to know more about other characters in the story - and less time listening to the main character whine.
November 17, 2013
A very satisfying read that I was reluctant to put down from the first page, this story follows a disenchanted young woman's redemption from her life of quiet desperation via a series of surprising events and sources, which I won't list here for fear of spoiling the plot. Sufficient to say her journey leads to a fulfilling ending that may even have you yearning to run a marathon by the end of it, as the heroine does - or to reach for whatever personal challenge will make you feel more alive.
I knew before reading this book that the author is a Buddhist priest and psychotherapist, and as in another book I've read by her ("Thaw"), Robyn's calm wisdom gained from both of these attributes shines through the telling of this story of ordinary, everyday people seeking to find a sense of belonging, love and meaning in the modern world.
I love the cover design, by the way, which will gain extra meaning once you've finished reading the book.
Highly recommended. I'll be working my way through the rest of her books now!
I knew before reading this book that the author is a Buddhist priest and psychotherapist, and as in another book I've read by her ("Thaw"), Robyn's calm wisdom gained from both of these attributes shines through the telling of this story of ordinary, everyday people seeking to find a sense of belonging, love and meaning in the modern world.
I love the cover design, by the way, which will gain extra meaning once you've finished reading the book.
Highly recommended. I'll be working my way through the rest of her books now!
July 18, 2015
I really enjoyed the previous book I read by this author (Small Kindnesses) and have enjoyed reading her work on Writing our Way Home, so I had high expectations for this book. There are certainly some great descriptions, as I've come to expect from Satya Robyn, and some philosophical passages that made me stop and think about what really matters in life and how we should live it. But there are also long passages of telling rather than showing, passages where a bit of dialogue and 'live' action would have brought it to life just that little bit more.
Overall, I found the story enjoyable and well thought out and the characters mostly true to life, but I just felt like there were sections that would have benefitted from a little extra time and attention to make the book, like April, live up to its potential.
Overall, I found the story enjoyable and well thought out and the characters mostly true to life, but I just felt like there were sections that would have benefitted from a little extra time and attention to make the book, like April, live up to its potential.
December 20, 2013
I love Satya Robyn's website Writing our way home. Her blog writing is warm, witty, and wise. I found this to also be true in her novel. Her work as a psychotherapist is evident in the novel as her character's journey follows the arc of a successful therapy.
Some of the drawbacks to the novel for me is that there is too much time spent in the protagonist's head. It becomes dull at times. Also, the relationship with Art seems false. There is not enough justification for his sudden involvement in April's life. The explanation comes towards the end and although it ties up a loose end it feels forced to me.
Overall, I liked this book and was genuinely surprised midway through the book. The ending satisfies without being platitudinous.
Some of the drawbacks to the novel for me is that there is too much time spent in the protagonist's head. It becomes dull at times. Also, the relationship with Art seems false. There is not enough justification for his sudden involvement in April's life. The explanation comes towards the end and although it ties up a loose end it feels forced to me.
Overall, I liked this book and was genuinely surprised midway through the book. The ending satisfies without being platitudinous.
May 24, 2019
I loved The Beautiful Thing by this author but this book I just couldn't connect with despite reading quite a way into it. DNF.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews