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The Coldest Winter Ever #2
Life After Death
INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
INSTANT USA TODAY BESTSELLER
The long-anticipated sequel to Sister Souljah’s million copy New York Times bestseller The Coldest Winter Ever.
Winter Santiaga hit time served. Still stunning, still pretty, still bold, still loves her father more than any man in the world, still got her hustle and high fashion flow. She’s eager to pay back her enemies, rebuild her father’s empire, reset his crown, and ultimately to snatch Midnight back into her life no matter which bitch had him while she was locked up. But Winter is not the only one with revenge on her mind. Simone, Winter’s young business partner and friend, is locked and loaded and Winter is her target. Will she blow Winter’s head off? Can Winter dodge the bullets? Or will at least one bullet blast Winter into another world? Either way Winter is fearless. Hell is the same as any hood and certainly the Brooklyn hood she grew up in. That’s what Winter thinks.
A heartwarming, heart-burning, passionate, sexual, comical, and completely original adventure is about to happen in real time—raw, shocking, soulful, and shameless. True fans won’t let Winter travel alone on this amazing journey.
INSTANT USA TODAY BESTSELLER
The long-anticipated sequel to Sister Souljah’s million copy New York Times bestseller The Coldest Winter Ever.
Winter Santiaga hit time served. Still stunning, still pretty, still bold, still loves her father more than any man in the world, still got her hustle and high fashion flow. She’s eager to pay back her enemies, rebuild her father’s empire, reset his crown, and ultimately to snatch Midnight back into her life no matter which bitch had him while she was locked up. But Winter is not the only one with revenge on her mind. Simone, Winter’s young business partner and friend, is locked and loaded and Winter is her target. Will she blow Winter’s head off? Can Winter dodge the bullets? Or will at least one bullet blast Winter into another world? Either way Winter is fearless. Hell is the same as any hood and certainly the Brooklyn hood she grew up in. That’s what Winter thinks.
A heartwarming, heart-burning, passionate, sexual, comical, and completely original adventure is about to happen in real time—raw, shocking, soulful, and shameless. True fans won’t let Winter travel alone on this amazing journey.
349 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 2, 2021
2880 people are currently reading
5891 people want to read
About the author
Sister Souljah
23 books2,846 followersSister Souljah (born Lisa Williamson) was born in 1964 in New York City. She attended Cornell University's advanced placement summer program and Spain's University of Salamanca study-abroad program. She later majored in American history and African studies at Rutgers University. Her travels and lectures have taken her all over America, Europe, and Africa. In the mid-1980s, she founded, in cooperation with the United Church of Christ, the African Youth Survival Camp, located in Enfield, North Carolina, for children of homeless families. In 1992, her rap album, 360 Degrees of Power, and video, "Slavery's Back in Effect," catapulted her to national attention. She lives in New York with her husband and son.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 976 reviews
January 7, 2021
Let me just start with sis, what in the entire hell was this? Also, I'm about to drop spoilers so if you don't want to know why I gave this such a low rating, go ahead and click out, scroll past, do what you have to do.
When I read The Coldest Winter Ever back in 99, it was unlike anything I'd ever read, and I've always read a lot. Up until then, there wasn't a wide variety of street/urban lit. Donald Goines was one of the originators of the genre, but his books were most popular in the early 70s and were mostly out of print by then, as were Iceberg Slim's books. So Sister Souljah, she who inspired some and was a controversial figure for others in the 90s (revisit the role she played in Bill Clinton's 92 presidential campaign https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/c...), was a fresh, new voice in the realm of urban lit.
I was 28 when I read CWE and it wasn't the amazing read others said it was, in my humble opinion, but like I said, it was a different voice. I read Midnight, based on a character from CWE, years later and was also unimpressed. So why would I read Life After Death given how underwhelmed I was by her previous work? Growth. I thought that surely 22 years later, the author would recognize that even readers who were teens when CWE first came out were grown now. Like grown, grown. Unfortunately, it appears neither the author, her characters nor her writing have grown.
Winter Santiaga is still the unlikeable, delusional chick she was in CWE. For the life of me, I can't figure out how your only claim to fame is that your father was once a big time drug dealer in the 90s and you think that should earn you respect well into your 30s? The book opens with her in jail, serving a 15 year bid because, as you'll remember from the end of CWE, she got sentenced for being in Bullet's car which was full of drugs and guns and had been rented with her credit card. She's just about to get released and has secured a reality TV show gig that will center on her release from jail, along with a few of her recently released jail crew. Girl, what? In what world would anyone care about watching that based on her? She was someone with no claim to fame other than who her father was and people are supposed to be interested 15 years later when she gets out of jail? I guess this was supposed to be like Mob Wives, right? Dealer Daughters?
Anyway, Winter makes these ridiculous requests for her reality show, including her father's release from prison where he's serving a life sentence, designer clothes with a matching white mink (I guess she's the Lisa Raye of the prison set), a red carpet from the door of the prison to a new Bentley, etc. Completely ridiculous foolishness. As she exits the jail, she's shot and this is where things go left (just in case you didn't think they'd already gone left). She "wakes" up in what seems like purgatory. First she visits her jail crew and finds out one of them shot her - same chick who held a grudge for 15 years and slashed her face in CWE. Then she visits an over the top palatial estate where she sees Midnight with one of his wives (don't ask) and instead of pondering her death, she's trying to figure out how she can have sex with him. Like, sis, don't you have more important things to worry about?
Then it really gets gets, and by good I mean even more ridiculous, she becomes the son of Satan's sidechick. Y'all. Y'ALL! She's joyriding through hell and is completely unfazed. Like on some, "he's got a nice ride and sexes me up well, what more could a girl ask for?" At some point her turns her into a snake and then a dog and then I quit, because life is short and who has time for bullshit?
I don't know how this got greenlit. What editor read this and was like this is it?!?! Did they think this would get by based on her name alone? Yes, I'm betting they did. This was some hot garbage full of a materialistic character who has learned absolutely nothing in her 33 years on earth and then takes her astounding ignorance on a roadshow through hell. I quit about 35% in because I couldn't imagine it getting any better and didn't want to see how much worse it could get. I know the bookstagram kids were really excited about this one, but nah, fam. Save your coins and your time.
When I read The Coldest Winter Ever back in 99, it was unlike anything I'd ever read, and I've always read a lot. Up until then, there wasn't a wide variety of street/urban lit. Donald Goines was one of the originators of the genre, but his books were most popular in the early 70s and were mostly out of print by then, as were Iceberg Slim's books. So Sister Souljah, she who inspired some and was a controversial figure for others in the 90s (revisit the role she played in Bill Clinton's 92 presidential campaign https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/c...), was a fresh, new voice in the realm of urban lit.
I was 28 when I read CWE and it wasn't the amazing read others said it was, in my humble opinion, but like I said, it was a different voice. I read Midnight, based on a character from CWE, years later and was also unimpressed. So why would I read Life After Death given how underwhelmed I was by her previous work? Growth. I thought that surely 22 years later, the author would recognize that even readers who were teens when CWE first came out were grown now. Like grown, grown. Unfortunately, it appears neither the author, her characters nor her writing have grown.
Winter Santiaga is still the unlikeable, delusional chick she was in CWE. For the life of me, I can't figure out how your only claim to fame is that your father was once a big time drug dealer in the 90s and you think that should earn you respect well into your 30s? The book opens with her in jail, serving a 15 year bid because, as you'll remember from the end of CWE, she got sentenced for being in Bullet's car which was full of drugs and guns and had been rented with her credit card. She's just about to get released and has secured a reality TV show gig that will center on her release from jail, along with a few of her recently released jail crew. Girl, what? In what world would anyone care about watching that based on her? She was someone with no claim to fame other than who her father was and people are supposed to be interested 15 years later when she gets out of jail? I guess this was supposed to be like Mob Wives, right? Dealer Daughters?
Anyway, Winter makes these ridiculous requests for her reality show, including her father's release from prison where he's serving a life sentence, designer clothes with a matching white mink (I guess she's the Lisa Raye of the prison set), a red carpet from the door of the prison to a new Bentley, etc. Completely ridiculous foolishness. As she exits the jail, she's shot and this is where things go left (just in case you didn't think they'd already gone left). She "wakes" up in what seems like purgatory. First she visits her jail crew and finds out one of them shot her - same chick who held a grudge for 15 years and slashed her face in CWE. Then she visits an over the top palatial estate where she sees Midnight with one of his wives (don't ask) and instead of pondering her death, she's trying to figure out how she can have sex with him. Like, sis, don't you have more important things to worry about?
Then it really gets gets, and by good I mean even more ridiculous, she becomes the son of Satan's sidechick. Y'all. Y'ALL! She's joyriding through hell and is completely unfazed. Like on some, "he's got a nice ride and sexes me up well, what more could a girl ask for?" At some point her turns her into a snake and then a dog and then I quit, because life is short and who has time for bullshit?
I don't know how this got greenlit. What editor read this and was like this is it?!?! Did they think this would get by based on her name alone? Yes, I'm betting they did. This was some hot garbage full of a materialistic character who has learned absolutely nothing in her 33 years on earth and then takes her astounding ignorance on a roadshow through hell. I quit about 35% in because I couldn't imagine it getting any better and didn't want to see how much worse it could get. I know the bookstagram kids were really excited about this one, but nah, fam. Save your coins and your time.
April 5, 2021
Let me go ahead and tell ya'll that just because I didn't like this book doesn't mean I didn't understand the author's intention. I got her intention loud and clear; HOWEVER, this book was disgusting, harmful to others, and was a money grab that serves as nothing but a huge disappointment to those who were looking for a follow up to The Coldest Winter Every. CW: beastiality, rape, homophobia, misogyny, anti-abortion rhetoric, graphic descriptions of hell, internalized racism, deplorable descriptions of other ethnicities. Honestly I'm sure there are more.
Like so many others, I was surprised to find out that Sister Souljah was coming out with a second book this year especially since The Coldest Winter Ever was published in 1999. I was intrigued and in many ways excited because Sister Souljah is well-known in the Black community for doing so much for street literature. That's not to say that The Coldest Winter Ever didn't have issues because it definitely does; however, I was hoping that we would be able to get some insight to Winter as a character. It didn't happen. This book was nothing more than a way for Sister Souljah to bash, humiliate, and condemn people whose life choices she doesn't agree with while attempting to convert them over to her religious beliefs. If she wanted to make a statement about how people weren't taking the time to listen to God in the midst of a pandemic THIS WAS NOT IT.
Life After Death takes place 15 years after the events of The Coldest Winter Ever. As Winter is getting released from her time in prison she gets approached with the opportunity to star in a reality TV show. This alone does not make sense. Why would any major broadcast company want to focus on Winter's life and make it into a reality TV show? Before this is even able to occur, she is shot and killed and then begins her descent into hell and this is when this books looses any semblance of being coherent. From joyriding through hell to screwing satan's son to meeting the aborted children of the women in hell, Winter continues to live the same life that she lived while she was alive. She barely makes any changes and actually enjoys being in what seems to be a purgatory before she gets to the "official" hell. It is through this journey that Souljah shares some of her perverse views including equating anal sex to the filth of animals which leads to her homophobic ideals, her misogynistic views, and her complete and total lack of regard for people's experiences. As a reviewer, I refrain from making comments on authors; HOWEVER, in this case she inserted so many of her personal views into this book that to talk about the book is to talk about her.
She intentionally assassinates any credibility that Winter would have had in this book by trying to send a message. She could have sent her message in a different way. She could have highlighted the importance of slowing down and reflecting on life while growing Winter in a positive way without tearing down others. She shames people who are queer, she shames women who have had an abortion, she shames people who enjoy anal sex, she shames people who are spiritual instead of following institutionalized religion, she shames anyone who does not believe what she believes. THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO GET PEOPLE TO SEE AND UNDERSTAND YOUR PERSPECTIVE. YOU DON'T GET TO MAKE PEOPLE FEEL LESS THAN BECAUSE YOU FEEL LIKE IT'S THE WAY TO MAKE THEM BELIEVE YOUR RELIGIOUS PERSPECTIVES. This is exactly what draws people away from God. And I hate it. I hate that people want to spread messages of fear and hatred and then expect people to want to believe in God. It's not right. This who book felt like a cash grab. It was a book that she wrote in 2020 that I believe would have never happened if not because of COVID. S&S should be ashamed. The editor who passed this book through and gave it a green light should be ashamed. If you want to draw people to God this isn't it. When it was all said and done, I still feel like Winter didn't learn a thing except not to worship or idolize anything but God. She learned not a damn thing about compassion, kindness, forgiveness or love--the things that we should be using to draw people to faith. I have never felt more disappointed or hurt by an author in a long time. This was manipulative and wrong and clearly I'm not the only reviewer who feels this way.
I don't ever tell people not to read books. For this one I would say check it out from library if you can.
Like so many others, I was surprised to find out that Sister Souljah was coming out with a second book this year especially since The Coldest Winter Ever was published in 1999. I was intrigued and in many ways excited because Sister Souljah is well-known in the Black community for doing so much for street literature. That's not to say that The Coldest Winter Ever didn't have issues because it definitely does; however, I was hoping that we would be able to get some insight to Winter as a character. It didn't happen. This book was nothing more than a way for Sister Souljah to bash, humiliate, and condemn people whose life choices she doesn't agree with while attempting to convert them over to her religious beliefs. If she wanted to make a statement about how people weren't taking the time to listen to God in the midst of a pandemic THIS WAS NOT IT.
Life After Death takes place 15 years after the events of The Coldest Winter Ever. As Winter is getting released from her time in prison she gets approached with the opportunity to star in a reality TV show. This alone does not make sense. Why would any major broadcast company want to focus on Winter's life and make it into a reality TV show? Before this is even able to occur, she is shot and killed and then begins her descent into hell and this is when this books looses any semblance of being coherent. From joyriding through hell to screwing satan's son to meeting the aborted children of the women in hell, Winter continues to live the same life that she lived while she was alive. She barely makes any changes and actually enjoys being in what seems to be a purgatory before she gets to the "official" hell. It is through this journey that Souljah shares some of her perverse views including equating anal sex to the filth of animals which leads to her homophobic ideals, her misogynistic views, and her complete and total lack of regard for people's experiences. As a reviewer, I refrain from making comments on authors; HOWEVER, in this case she inserted so many of her personal views into this book that to talk about the book is to talk about her.
She intentionally assassinates any credibility that Winter would have had in this book by trying to send a message. She could have sent her message in a different way. She could have highlighted the importance of slowing down and reflecting on life while growing Winter in a positive way without tearing down others. She shames people who are queer, she shames women who have had an abortion, she shames people who enjoy anal sex, she shames people who are spiritual instead of following institutionalized religion, she shames anyone who does not believe what she believes. THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO GET PEOPLE TO SEE AND UNDERSTAND YOUR PERSPECTIVE. YOU DON'T GET TO MAKE PEOPLE FEEL LESS THAN BECAUSE YOU FEEL LIKE IT'S THE WAY TO MAKE THEM BELIEVE YOUR RELIGIOUS PERSPECTIVES. This is exactly what draws people away from God. And I hate it. I hate that people want to spread messages of fear and hatred and then expect people to want to believe in God. It's not right. This who book felt like a cash grab. It was a book that she wrote in 2020 that I believe would have never happened if not because of COVID. S&S should be ashamed. The editor who passed this book through and gave it a green light should be ashamed. If you want to draw people to God this isn't it. When it was all said and done, I still feel like Winter didn't learn a thing except not to worship or idolize anything but God. She learned not a damn thing about compassion, kindness, forgiveness or love--the things that we should be using to draw people to faith. I have never felt more disappointed or hurt by an author in a long time. This was manipulative and wrong and clearly I'm not the only reviewer who feels this way.
I don't ever tell people not to read books. For this one I would say check it out from library if you can.
January 13, 2021
Yikes.
Firstly, thank you to Netgalley, Simon & Schuster Canada and Sister Souljah for approving my request for an advanced readers copy of the long-awaited sequel to Coldest Winter Ever in exchange for an honest review. Like many millennial black women, Coldest Winter was a formative reading experience for me as a teen, so I was extremely excited to receive an ARC of the sequel.
Where do I begin with reviewing this? I find it challenging to write bad reviews, and I always try and find something positive to say about a book (if I can), and I try to keep my negative reviews constructive. But honestly, I do not think I can be constructive about this book because there was not one single redeeming thing about my reading experience.
Honestly, this is just a really bad book in almost every measurable way you can assess a book. I am shocked it's being published frankly, and I have to think it’s ONLY being published because it’s a sequel to an intensely popular book, and not because of its actual merit as a novel itself. This story mostly takes place in the grey area between life and death (per the title) of the main character we all loved (and hated) in the first book of this series, Winter Santiaga. The writing is elementary and unsophisticated, the plot is nonsensical/implausible/poorly constructed, and it made Winter Santiaga more cruel and unlikeable that she was in the first book (which says a lot, because in my recollection she was fairly judgmental and unpleasant in Coldest Winter). And honestly, when I got to the end and realized the main message of the book, it was clear to me that this is just some respectability bullshit and messy misogynist propaganda. This book was NOT worth the time I spent on it (and tbh, I skimmed the last half because it was so unbearable and frustrating to read).
[General description of some problematic plot points ahead, these are not super specific spoilers though.] To illustrate my point about the absurdity of the plot, this book included the following: bizarre and underdeveloped notions about Islam/religion in general, some strange cult-y bullshit, sprinklings of body shaming/fatphobia, anti-choice propaganda (i.e. descriptions of abortion as murder), shaming of drug usage/drug addiction, some incredibly culturally insensitive descriptions of various characters of different ethnicities, homophobia, casual and internalized misogyny, a weird obsession with "silky" hair (helllllo internalized anti-blackness/colourism/texturism), AND LITERAL BESTIALITY (seriously, what the fuck, Souljah?!) And that's really just the tip of this disastrous iceberg. Because problematic content aside (Coldest Winter was not without its flaws as we all know), this book was just very poorly done. It did not accomplish what it set out to do, and it didn’t advance Winter’s overall story in the slightest. It was a wholly unnecessary sequel, and quite a jarring and uncomfortable reading experience overall.
Honestly, I wish I could erase this book from my memory entirely. I wish I had never picked it up. And to keep it 100, my giving this book 1 star is quite generous. It doesn’t deserve any stars at all as far as I’m concerned. And though there is no doubt that she changed the reading game and will forever remain an icon of urban literature, this will absolutely be the last Sister Souljah book I ever pick up. Teenage Ebony is BUMMED, and I cannot in good conscience recommend that anyone spend their hard earned money on this book or support it in any way.
Firstly, thank you to Netgalley, Simon & Schuster Canada and Sister Souljah for approving my request for an advanced readers copy of the long-awaited sequel to Coldest Winter Ever in exchange for an honest review. Like many millennial black women, Coldest Winter was a formative reading experience for me as a teen, so I was extremely excited to receive an ARC of the sequel.
Where do I begin with reviewing this? I find it challenging to write bad reviews, and I always try and find something positive to say about a book (if I can), and I try to keep my negative reviews constructive. But honestly, I do not think I can be constructive about this book because there was not one single redeeming thing about my reading experience.
Honestly, this is just a really bad book in almost every measurable way you can assess a book. I am shocked it's being published frankly, and I have to think it’s ONLY being published because it’s a sequel to an intensely popular book, and not because of its actual merit as a novel itself. This story mostly takes place in the grey area between life and death (per the title) of the main character we all loved (and hated) in the first book of this series, Winter Santiaga. The writing is elementary and unsophisticated, the plot is nonsensical/implausible/poorly constructed, and it made Winter Santiaga more cruel and unlikeable that she was in the first book (which says a lot, because in my recollection she was fairly judgmental and unpleasant in Coldest Winter). And honestly, when I got to the end and realized the main message of the book, it was clear to me that this is just some respectability bullshit and messy misogynist propaganda. This book was NOT worth the time I spent on it (and tbh, I skimmed the last half because it was so unbearable and frustrating to read).
[General description of some problematic plot points ahead, these are not super specific spoilers though.] To illustrate my point about the absurdity of the plot, this book included the following: bizarre and underdeveloped notions about Islam/religion in general, some strange cult-y bullshit, sprinklings of body shaming/fatphobia, anti-choice propaganda (i.e. descriptions of abortion as murder), shaming of drug usage/drug addiction, some incredibly culturally insensitive descriptions of various characters of different ethnicities, homophobia, casual and internalized misogyny, a weird obsession with "silky" hair (helllllo internalized anti-blackness/colourism/texturism), AND LITERAL BESTIALITY (seriously, what the fuck, Souljah?!) And that's really just the tip of this disastrous iceberg. Because problematic content aside (Coldest Winter was not without its flaws as we all know), this book was just very poorly done. It did not accomplish what it set out to do, and it didn’t advance Winter’s overall story in the slightest. It was a wholly unnecessary sequel, and quite a jarring and uncomfortable reading experience overall.
Honestly, I wish I could erase this book from my memory entirely. I wish I had never picked it up. And to keep it 100, my giving this book 1 star is quite generous. It doesn’t deserve any stars at all as far as I’m concerned. And though there is no doubt that she changed the reading game and will forever remain an icon of urban literature, this will absolutely be the last Sister Souljah book I ever pick up. Teenage Ebony is BUMMED, and I cannot in good conscience recommend that anyone spend their hard earned money on this book or support it in any way.
January 12, 2021
should've stayed dead tbh
honestly no one asked for this; it was awful.
This picks up 15 years after the first book. Winter is just finishing her prison sentence and is offered a reality show (why anyone would care about her, I have no idea. She wasn't a celebrity, her dad was just a drug lord in the 90s, but anyway). She says she'll do the show but only if her conditions are met (her father being released from prison [he's in jail for life for murder so wtf], a mink coat, a red carpet and Bentley for when she's released - we won't even get into how unrealistic they were and how she should be grateful she's even getting offered a reality show, but this is WiNtEr SaNtIaGa). The day she leaves prison, she's shot and killed and the reader is taken on a journey throughout her life after death (in purgatory or hell - it felt like hell to me, I was in hell reading this).
This was just so stupid. There wasn't much of a point to this book. After getting to a certain point (where she gets turned into snake after doing anal [I know, no words]), I skimmed to the end to see what happened. It was stupid and lacklustre. Sister Souljah, tried to put some Islamic spin in there that if you confess to Allah, you will be forgiven, which is fine but the way she went about it was deplorable. Sister Souljah's writing also hasn't grown in the 20+ years since the first book and it's very apparent in Winter's character and the dialogue used. I get that Winter's unlikeability was, perhaps, supposed to serve as a lesson but it just made this hard to read.
There was literally no point nor reason for this to be published. There's better literature by black authors (without an anti-abortion, homophobic rhetoric, I might add). Read in Colour's Review is a good echo of my thoughts.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
honestly no one asked for this; it was awful.
This picks up 15 years after the first book. Winter is just finishing her prison sentence and is offered a reality show (why anyone would care about her, I have no idea. She wasn't a celebrity, her dad was just a drug lord in the 90s, but anyway). She says she'll do the show but only if her conditions are met (her father being released from prison [he's in jail for life for murder so wtf], a mink coat, a red carpet and Bentley for when she's released - we won't even get into how unrealistic they were and how she should be grateful she's even getting offered a reality show, but this is WiNtEr SaNtIaGa). The day she leaves prison, she's shot and killed and the reader is taken on a journey throughout her life after death (in purgatory or hell - it felt like hell to me, I was in hell reading this).
This was just so stupid. There wasn't much of a point to this book. After getting to a certain point (where she gets turned into snake after doing anal [I know, no words]), I skimmed to the end to see what happened. It was stupid and lacklustre. Sister Souljah, tried to put some Islamic spin in there that if you confess to Allah, you will be forgiven, which is fine but the way she went about it was deplorable. Sister Souljah's writing also hasn't grown in the 20+ years since the first book and it's very apparent in Winter's character and the dialogue used. I get that Winter's unlikeability was, perhaps, supposed to serve as a lesson but it just made this hard to read.
There was literally no point nor reason for this to be published. There's better literature by black authors (without an anti-abortion, homophobic rhetoric, I might add). Read in Colour's Review is a good echo of my thoughts.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
February 9, 2021
Took me a minute to figure out what to say. I don’t like trashing anyone’s work. It’s hard writing a book! But listen, this might be the worst book I’ve ever read. I...don’t know if there’s time to cancel this publication, but if they can, they definitely should. Scrap the whole premise and start anew. I need to erase this from my memory and hold on to The Coldest Winter Ever, those sweet memories of passing a beat up copy of that book around my high school—let that be my last memory of Winter Santiaga. Because this???
I’m rambling so I’ll just say it, this book is a homophobic, sexist, bestiality-filled mess, that uses religion in a very...weird way. I guess this is magical realism? But, dog finger fucking is where I really tapped out. Maybe magical realism should be left in the hands of a more skilled writer. I’m just really upset thinking about how this was the last book I read in 2020; an awful book to close out an awful fucking year. No stars. Do NOT recommend.
I’m rambling so I’ll just say it, this book is a homophobic, sexist, bestiality-filled mess, that uses religion in a very...weird way. I guess this is magical realism? But, dog finger fucking is where I really tapped out. Maybe magical realism should be left in the hands of a more skilled writer. I’m just really upset thinking about how this was the last book I read in 2020; an awful book to close out an awful fucking year. No stars. Do NOT recommend.
January 16, 2021
Oooh. I don’t know about this. She literally means life after death or what does death after life look like, and .......... I really try to avoid writing negative reviews. I mean really what is the point in that. To hoot and holler about how bad something is, doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. So this is a caution review. Souljah literally, yes literally wrote a book about life after death, wow.
The first clue you have that something is amiss, is the publisher blurb. It says so little about the contents, that’s generally a red flag. This is a very dark book. I had trouble sleeping after finishing. Most of the book takes place in the Last Stop Before The Drop, which is a sort of purgatory but complete with earthly things, cars, fashion, attitudes, sex (crazy sex, some involving dead humans and animals) and demonic devils.
I was waiting for some justification for all the madness, and towards the end of the book, just a teeny bit arrives. Not enough to redeem the novel, but at least letting a little light in after pages of darkness. It’s just a bizarre novel in every facet of the word. You will undoubtedly question how the decision to publish was ever agreed upon. So, as a caution, approach carefully, be ready for a what happens when you “die” tale. If you are into that kind of thing this book will work for you.
If you were looking for the continued story of Winter Santiaga on Earth in Brooklyn, NY, that book has not been written. You’ve been warned. Why Souljah why? Perhaps her purpose was to have folks thinking about how their living could impact their afterlife. Believe me, you don’t want to spend any time in “The Last Stop Before The Drop, the County of the Ungrateful, the State of Ignorance, and the Land of Arrogance.”
The first clue you have that something is amiss, is the publisher blurb. It says so little about the contents, that’s generally a red flag. This is a very dark book. I had trouble sleeping after finishing. Most of the book takes place in the Last Stop Before The Drop, which is a sort of purgatory but complete with earthly things, cars, fashion, attitudes, sex (crazy sex, some involving dead humans and animals) and demonic devils.
I was waiting for some justification for all the madness, and towards the end of the book, just a teeny bit arrives. Not enough to redeem the novel, but at least letting a little light in after pages of darkness. It’s just a bizarre novel in every facet of the word. You will undoubtedly question how the decision to publish was ever agreed upon. So, as a caution, approach carefully, be ready for a what happens when you “die” tale. If you are into that kind of thing this book will work for you.
If you were looking for the continued story of Winter Santiaga on Earth in Brooklyn, NY, that book has not been written. You’ve been warned. Why Souljah why? Perhaps her purpose was to have folks thinking about how their living could impact their afterlife. Believe me, you don’t want to spend any time in “The Last Stop Before The Drop, the County of the Ungrateful, the State of Ignorance, and the Land of Arrogance.”
March 4, 2021
Read with your third eye
Sister Soulja will never write another 'The Coldest winter' type of book, so if you're looking to receive the same material, don't bother. But, if you're looking to look "deeper" into the words on these pages, you'll see that AGAIN, Sister Soulja is providing an urban masterpiece. There is no mindless content full of ghetto bastard behavior in this book. It's about life, lessons, vanity and the impact our choices have on everyone around us. Enjoy this book because it's full of gems hidden in plain sight.
Sister Soulja will never write another 'The Coldest winter' type of book, so if you're looking to receive the same material, don't bother. But, if you're looking to look "deeper" into the words on these pages, you'll see that AGAIN, Sister Soulja is providing an urban masterpiece. There is no mindless content full of ghetto bastard behavior in this book. It's about life, lessons, vanity and the impact our choices have on everyone around us. Enjoy this book because it's full of gems hidden in plain sight.
March 18, 2024
I was one of the girls who grew up reading The Coldest Winter ever way before I had business reading it. It changed the way I viewed my own life and I wanted nothing more than to be like Winter Santiaga. Waiting 20 years for this book, I thought I wouldn't be able to put it down, but Life After Death was a hard read. Not because it was hard to follow or particularly difficult in verbiage, but because Winter is still Winter, and I didn't realize I needed Winter to grow up. I needed Winter to be the mature version of herself and all the things we loved about her: super fly, cunning, business minded, loyal and raw. It turns out that being an adult doesn't make Winter mature, and our heroine is not as loveable as she was in her youth. If anything, this book was a pusher for Prison Abolition, because prison made her worse. It stunted her growth, took away 15 years of her life so that a 33 year old woman is still 18 in the mind, and that's dangerous. I pushed myself to finish this book and even when I did, I was a bit sad. There was some growth by the end of the book but it was so minimal it was like feeding someone castor oil for 6 days and giving them a peppermint at the end; it was barely enough to cover the bad taste.
March 2, 2021
PLEASE DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME OR MONEY!!!
I can’t believe I waited all these years for this.. This book is horrible!!!! Sister Souljah is a one hit wonder. Everything she has written is trash except The Coldest Winter Ever. But writing a part 2 could have been so easy. Tell how Winter navigated life in jail, give an update on what her sisters and dad is doing and once she get out of jail let her get revenge on everybody she felt did her and her family wrong. Make her a dope girl getting money and taking over where her dad left off or let her commit petty crimes trying to get on, get caught and thrown back in jail. There are so many different ways that this book could have been written, maybe even turn her religious and let her and Midnight get together, anything would have been better than the trash that was written. Can’t believe she was even given the green light to publish this. I want my money back.. Truly embarrassed for her!!!! I had to force myself to finish reading...
I can’t believe I waited all these years for this.. This book is horrible!!!! Sister Souljah is a one hit wonder. Everything she has written is trash except The Coldest Winter Ever. But writing a part 2 could have been so easy. Tell how Winter navigated life in jail, give an update on what her sisters and dad is doing and once she get out of jail let her get revenge on everybody she felt did her and her family wrong. Make her a dope girl getting money and taking over where her dad left off or let her commit petty crimes trying to get on, get caught and thrown back in jail. There are so many different ways that this book could have been written, maybe even turn her religious and let her and Midnight get together, anything would have been better than the trash that was written. Can’t believe she was even given the green light to publish this. I want my money back.. Truly embarrassed for her!!!! I had to force myself to finish reading...
February 18, 2021
Nostalgia is not enough.
“Life After Death” is the highly anticipated sequel to “The Coldest Winter Ever” by Sister Souljah. As a Black teen growing up in the 90’s, ‘The Coldest Winter Ever” was a staple coming- of- age novel within our community (even though the majority of us had no business reading it back then, lol). Everybody knew about Winter Santiaga and the various obstacles she faced. So of course, twenty years later, people were excited to hear about this sequel.
It takes a lot for me to give a one-star review. In fact, I rarely do, but I honestly struggled to find one thing that I enjoyed about this book. The writing itself was a bit all over the place. Winter as a character has experienced very little growth, which in and of itself is very disappointing. The overall theme of this novel was in one word…bizarre. The religious aspects were jarring, and certain scenes… again, all I can say is bizarre. It was difficult to even finish this book.
If you were expecting a “sequel” to “The Coldest Winter Ever,” unfortunately you will not find it here. Instead, you will get the story of Winter Santiaga’s life after death as she literally experiences hell. Reclaiming my time.
“Life After Death” is the highly anticipated sequel to “The Coldest Winter Ever” by Sister Souljah. As a Black teen growing up in the 90’s, ‘The Coldest Winter Ever” was a staple coming- of- age novel within our community (even though the majority of us had no business reading it back then, lol). Everybody knew about Winter Santiaga and the various obstacles she faced. So of course, twenty years later, people were excited to hear about this sequel.
It takes a lot for me to give a one-star review. In fact, I rarely do, but I honestly struggled to find one thing that I enjoyed about this book. The writing itself was a bit all over the place. Winter as a character has experienced very little growth, which in and of itself is very disappointing. The overall theme of this novel was in one word…bizarre. The religious aspects were jarring, and certain scenes… again, all I can say is bizarre. It was difficult to even finish this book.
If you were expecting a “sequel” to “The Coldest Winter Ever,” unfortunately you will not find it here. Instead, you will get the story of Winter Santiaga’s life after death as she literally experiences hell. Reclaiming my time.
March 4, 2021
Writing a book is not easy. Heck, I can't even write a complete sentence, so I can only imagine the tremendous about of pressure to write a sequel after twenty-something years. All writers have a platform and audience to truly send a message. Whelp, Sister Souljah took her shot.
The book starts with Winter’s release from prison. She ain't learned a damn thing and only got worse in her endeavors to be top b*tch making other b*tches bow down. Well... It's on the first page that we learn she has suffered a tragedy. I like the intent of the book showing that there are consequences for our actions... even after “death”. But, (huge emphasis on the BUT) the exploration of said consequences is deeply disturbing especially to those loyal fans who are probably thinking they didn't sign up for ⚠️ trigger warning ⚠️ beastiality, rape,uncomfortable talks about pedophilia, incest, abortion shaming, homeopathic ideology, theology dumps, and violence (to name a few) all wrapped up like a trippy paranormal novel. While offensive language was expected, even this goes too far. This books was unbearable at times, but I read it completely so here are my thoughts.
While I got an advance reader copy from the publisher months ago I could not force myself to read certain parts. Thank goodness for the audiobook. Nia Long’s narrating got me through this (side note: I can only imagine what she thought as she read the script)!
Anywho, this book has some of the most taboo kinkiest sex you will ever read...If you into that kind of thing. I won't judge you. All and all there is definitely a message being sent with this book. Having read it all, I get it. I don't agree with this over-the-top delivery, but I get it.
I'm not done yet. Continue to the comments. 👇🏾
This is reminiscent of The Divine Comedy volumes 1-3 by Dante Alighieri and A Divine Revelation of Hell by Mary K. Baxter (equally difficult reads). I believe the author was inspired by the former. I highly recommend you read these two as a follow-up or prerequisite. She also incorporates rhetoric of various religions- although she takes jabs along the way through Winter’s commentary 😬.
I would never discourage anyone from reading. Don't let the Internet or anyone censor you. Maybe you are just the one who needs this message.
For those brave enough to read it, hang in there. This is not an easy read and FAR from what you would expect from the first book and many spinoffs.
That was my beauticratic response.
And if you are still reading, here's my blunt response:
⚠️ Spoiler Alert ⚠️
The book is basically a literary “scared straight” to try to convert the reader to Islam. That's what I got as the overarching moral of the story. It felt like the author was doing a “death by author” character suicide. I get the feeling she never meant for Winter to get popular because she was was not the hero... She was meant to be the anti-hero. It's like the author tried to set things right while thoroughly making her point that Winter should not be idolized. That's just my opinion.
My rating? Fashion wise, this one wasn't a donation bin reject but it is definitely so last season for me.
💋 xoxo,
Kat
The book starts with Winter’s release from prison. She ain't learned a damn thing and only got worse in her endeavors to be top b*tch making other b*tches bow down. Well... It's on the first page that we learn she has suffered a tragedy. I like the intent of the book showing that there are consequences for our actions... even after “death”. But, (huge emphasis on the BUT) the exploration of said consequences is deeply disturbing especially to those loyal fans who are probably thinking they didn't sign up for ⚠️ trigger warning ⚠️ beastiality, rape,uncomfortable talks about pedophilia, incest, abortion shaming, homeopathic ideology, theology dumps, and violence (to name a few) all wrapped up like a trippy paranormal novel. While offensive language was expected, even this goes too far. This books was unbearable at times, but I read it completely so here are my thoughts.
While I got an advance reader copy from the publisher months ago I could not force myself to read certain parts. Thank goodness for the audiobook. Nia Long’s narrating got me through this (side note: I can only imagine what she thought as she read the script)!
Anywho, this book has some of the most taboo kinkiest sex you will ever read...If you into that kind of thing. I won't judge you. All and all there is definitely a message being sent with this book. Having read it all, I get it. I don't agree with this over-the-top delivery, but I get it.
I'm not done yet. Continue to the comments. 👇🏾
This is reminiscent of The Divine Comedy volumes 1-3 by Dante Alighieri and A Divine Revelation of Hell by Mary K. Baxter (equally difficult reads). I believe the author was inspired by the former. I highly recommend you read these two as a follow-up or prerequisite. She also incorporates rhetoric of various religions- although she takes jabs along the way through Winter’s commentary 😬.
I would never discourage anyone from reading. Don't let the Internet or anyone censor you. Maybe you are just the one who needs this message.
For those brave enough to read it, hang in there. This is not an easy read and FAR from what you would expect from the first book and many spinoffs.
That was my beauticratic response.
And if you are still reading, here's my blunt response:
⚠️ Spoiler Alert ⚠️
The book is basically a literary “scared straight” to try to convert the reader to Islam. That's what I got as the overarching moral of the story. It felt like the author was doing a “death by author” character suicide. I get the feeling she never meant for Winter to get popular because she was was not the hero... She was meant to be the anti-hero. It's like the author tried to set things right while thoroughly making her point that Winter should not be idolized. That's just my opinion.
My rating? Fashion wise, this one wasn't a donation bin reject but it is definitely so last season for me.
💋 xoxo,
Kat
March 5, 2021
IKYFL
I saw the advance reviews. I knew that this would be a mess. I never expected it to turn out like this. We waited two decades for this! She had so much time to craft a solid project. I don’t understand why she would alienate her loyal readers by going in this direction. The storyline was ridiculous. At times it even became perverse and disgusting. It kept getting worse as the book progressed. I was determined to finish it. I’m glad that I did. She won’t get any more of my time or money after this.
I saw the advance reviews. I knew that this would be a mess. I never expected it to turn out like this. We waited two decades for this! She had so much time to craft a solid project. I don’t understand why she would alienate her loyal readers by going in this direction. The storyline was ridiculous. At times it even became perverse and disgusting. It kept getting worse as the book progressed. I was determined to finish it. I’m glad that I did. She won’t get any more of my time or money after this.
March 12, 2021
This book was probably the strangest, most bizarre book I have ever read in my entire reading life... and it was amazing! I will admit that at first, I was like, “WTF is this?! Who asked for this? We did not need a sequel.” It started off on a note I wasn’t expecting at all. Fantasy is not my genre of choice. BUT I stuck with it and was rewarded, at least to me, for my patience. This book is ahead of it’s time, way WAY ahead of its time. It’s so well crafted and mapped out. Weird and extremely uncomfortable to read at times. I got frustrated with Winter and hoped she wouldn’t eff what little progress she’d make in a chapter only for her to disappoint and eff things up anyway. But her character arc was real, raw, flawed, and consistent. If you do the disservice of starting and not finishing this book, you miss out in a major way. I initially was disappointed at Winter’s lack of growth for the majority of the story, but eventually she got it. I read TCWE as a teen and loved Winter. But when I reread the story again as an adult, I became super aware of how selfish and ugly she was. When I heard there would be a sequel, I was hyped to see if Winter changed, if she grew because she didn’t seem to have matured in the minor scene she appeared in, in Porsche’s story. I was almost sad Winter didn’t show growth at the start or middle of the book, but girlfriend arrives at the end. The religious aspect in this story will always be up for debate but I loved it for Winter, sis needed it. Sister Souljah remains one of my favorite authors. What she did here was brilliant and on a third eye level. If this story proved anything to me, it’s that she’s a visionary.
March 8, 2021
I feel like I just crawled, belly to the ground, thru sewage. This book contains the stuff that megalomaniacs are made of. I would expect these rantings in a 4am tweet. Am I alone in believing that one doesn't need to tear down another's religion to have faith and belief in their own? Sad...so sad. Religious fanaticism aside...this book wasn't the least bit entertaining. Sista Souljah had over 20 years and still no character development or depth. It can be argued that the first book was a cautionary tale so what is this? She had an opportunity to showcase some real talent as a novelist but instead we get demons, d*cks, and designers...oh my! Nothing more than the ramblings of someone who spends too much time listening to their own hype. Refund? Yes, please. I rate this book a negative 2 stars.
February 3, 2021
This book was not what I expected it to be. Not that I want a book to be predictable, we all love a shocking twist or POV we didn't expect etc.. But lets think back on how The Coldest Winter Ever ended.
Mama Santiaga's funeral. Winter and her father seeing each other for what we think may be the last time. Midnight adopting the twins. Porsche showing up looking great and living life. As a reader, I'm hoping this isn't the last time Winter gets to see her Dad. What kind of life are Midnight and the twins going to have? Wow, Winter realizes she is at her lowest, what happens next? What happens years from now? I read Midnight, but didn't read Porsche's story. Maybe I need to in order to get this, but I don't think so?
I'm looking to see what happens with these characters we've invested in 20 years later. The first book had so many important messages in it. I loved reading between the lines and seeing what Sister Souljah wanted the reader to understand. I could see her passion in that book. I loved how raw Winter's story was.
In this book, Winter is shot, and the whole story is of her comatose thoughts of what hell is like after living the life she's lived. For me, it was almost too "wow" for me to really even take in any possible messages that were trying to be told in the story. The demonic presence, the animalistic sex, the demeaning actions from what is clearly the devil as her man... why? Even the ending where she comes back to life didn't fit what I felt would have or should have been her end game. Winters interview and the responses she gave didn't seem like responses she would have had after seeing the mercy she's been given in life. Especially after Winter learns a lesson and realizes what's up, that response should have been way different.
Maybe one day I can re-read this and try to understand why this angle was used to tell Winter's story. Maybe I was way too hyped up to take in whatever story was about to be told. I don't think Sister Souljah is a bad writer at all. Maybe those of us who didn't care for this book are the ones who aren't seeing what is supposed to make this book really great. I just would have liked to see Winter actually living life and see how she has changed and grown as a person. If she didn't have a happy ending and did the same shit she did when she was younger, I still would have preferred to read that than to read the crazy hell limbo dream that was her story 20 years later.
I don't really give bad reviews. If I don't like a book, my review is short and sweet. I don't mean any disrespect to SJ as an author. This is a lengthy review because I genuinely love her books and I'm invested in Winter. I was really looking forward to this one. I think anyone who read Coldest Winter growing up was super hyped about this book. I wish I could ask Sister Souljah all the questions I have about why this was written the way it was.
This book just wasn't for me. And I don't think it was the best sequel to Winter's release either.
Mama Santiaga's funeral. Winter and her father seeing each other for what we think may be the last time. Midnight adopting the twins. Porsche showing up looking great and living life. As a reader, I'm hoping this isn't the last time Winter gets to see her Dad. What kind of life are Midnight and the twins going to have? Wow, Winter realizes she is at her lowest, what happens next? What happens years from now? I read Midnight, but didn't read Porsche's story. Maybe I need to in order to get this, but I don't think so?
I'm looking to see what happens with these characters we've invested in 20 years later. The first book had so many important messages in it. I loved reading between the lines and seeing what Sister Souljah wanted the reader to understand. I could see her passion in that book. I loved how raw Winter's story was.
In this book, Winter is shot, and the whole story is of her comatose thoughts of what hell is like after living the life she's lived. For me, it was almost too "wow" for me to really even take in any possible messages that were trying to be told in the story. The demonic presence, the animalistic sex, the demeaning actions from what is clearly the devil as her man... why? Even the ending where she comes back to life didn't fit what I felt would have or should have been her end game. Winters interview and the responses she gave didn't seem like responses she would have had after seeing the mercy she's been given in life. Especially after Winter learns a lesson and realizes what's up, that response should have been way different.
Maybe one day I can re-read this and try to understand why this angle was used to tell Winter's story. Maybe I was way too hyped up to take in whatever story was about to be told. I don't think Sister Souljah is a bad writer at all. Maybe those of us who didn't care for this book are the ones who aren't seeing what is supposed to make this book really great. I just would have liked to see Winter actually living life and see how she has changed and grown as a person. If she didn't have a happy ending and did the same shit she did when she was younger, I still would have preferred to read that than to read the crazy hell limbo dream that was her story 20 years later.
I don't really give bad reviews. If I don't like a book, my review is short and sweet. I don't mean any disrespect to SJ as an author. This is a lengthy review because I genuinely love her books and I'm invested in Winter. I was really looking forward to this one. I think anyone who read Coldest Winter growing up was super hyped about this book. I wish I could ask Sister Souljah all the questions I have about why this was written the way it was.
This book just wasn't for me. And I don't think it was the best sequel to Winter's release either.
January 5, 2021
Ok, review is up on my blog: http://thereadingdevil.blogspot.com/2...
Or read below:
I was really excited to read this because I loved The Coldest Winter Ever and Midnight and really thought that Sister Souljah could do no wrong! So believe me when I say I am so sad that I have to give this one a less than stellar review. But it just didn't do it for me.
The book is based on Winter's life after she has died (so think heaven, hell, devils, God, etc.). That alone was a bit of a shock to me given the style and content of Sister Souljah's past books. Unfortunately, the storyline ended up being completely disorganized and all over the place. I didn't even know what was happening half of the time. The writing was subpar, not at all the unique style that I have come to know and love from Souljah's books.
The characters that popped up were weird and not very well written. I didn't understand the purpose of quite a few of them (Bridgette for example... could not tell you who she was or what she was doing in this book aside from shouting random nonsense over and over again). The entire last half of the book seemed to be some sort of push/propaganda for the Islamic religion? Not that there is anything wrong with religion, but it was a very odd way of writing about it in what is supposed to be a fictional book.
And don't even get me started on all of the problematic messages littered throughout. I get that Souljah's books are known for being crass and pushing boundaries, but this was just... over the top and not in a good way. I mean, she repeatedly described abortion as murder, condemned any religion that did not worship Allah (those who believed in God/Jesus/Mary, etc. were stuck in the in-between place, couldn't go to Heaven), and that's only 2 of the many issues going on in this book. I'm really not sure how this ended up getting published, honestly.
I guess I can give it props for a little bit of a twist at the end? But even that is not enough to redeem this book. Overall, I don't think I can recommend this book, and I truly feel that good reviews will be few and far between. You are of course more than welcome to read it yourself and form your own opinions, but if I am being completely honest... I don't think you need to.
Or read below:
I was really excited to read this because I loved The Coldest Winter Ever and Midnight and really thought that Sister Souljah could do no wrong! So believe me when I say I am so sad that I have to give this one a less than stellar review. But it just didn't do it for me.
The book is based on Winter's life after she has died (so think heaven, hell, devils, God, etc.). That alone was a bit of a shock to me given the style and content of Sister Souljah's past books. Unfortunately, the storyline ended up being completely disorganized and all over the place. I didn't even know what was happening half of the time. The writing was subpar, not at all the unique style that I have come to know and love from Souljah's books.
The characters that popped up were weird and not very well written. I didn't understand the purpose of quite a few of them (Bridgette for example... could not tell you who she was or what she was doing in this book aside from shouting random nonsense over and over again). The entire last half of the book seemed to be some sort of push/propaganda for the Islamic religion? Not that there is anything wrong with religion, but it was a very odd way of writing about it in what is supposed to be a fictional book.
And don't even get me started on all of the problematic messages littered throughout. I get that Souljah's books are known for being crass and pushing boundaries, but this was just... over the top and not in a good way. I mean, she repeatedly described abortion as murder, condemned any religion that did not worship Allah (those who believed in God/Jesus/Mary, etc. were stuck in the in-between place, couldn't go to Heaven), and that's only 2 of the many issues going on in this book. I'm really not sure how this ended up getting published, honestly.
I guess I can give it props for a little bit of a twist at the end? But even that is not enough to redeem this book. Overall, I don't think I can recommend this book, and I truly feel that good reviews will be few and far between. You are of course more than welcome to read it yourself and form your own opinions, but if I am being completely honest... I don't think you need to.
February 10, 2021
I think it's funny that all of the "5 star" reviews have nothing to say about the book ... probably because there's nothing good to say (and they probably are simply leaving the stellar review because they know the author, it's the only reason why I could think they'd leave a 5-star review, especially without gushing about the book).
I'm not even sure what to say about this book that others haven't already explained in their reviews here on Goodreads. Honestly, read any of the other 1-star reviews, they share my opinion in how horrible this book was, I can't believe any editor would have say yes to this, but as others have stated it is most likely due to her fame from the first novel. Wouldn't recommend this book to ANYONE!
I'm not even sure what to say about this book that others haven't already explained in their reviews here on Goodreads. Honestly, read any of the other 1-star reviews, they share my opinion in how horrible this book was, I can't believe any editor would have say yes to this, but as others have stated it is most likely due to her fame from the first novel. Wouldn't recommend this book to ANYONE!
January 21, 2021
I am beyond disappointed in this book. It's not at all what I expected. The Coldest Winter Ever took me on a wild ride and I loved every minute. From the beginning this book took a dark and silly turn and just fell off the deep end. I really hate the terrible publicity this book will receive when it comes out in March. Sister Souljah really let her fans down with this one. At times I said it wasn't even worth it to finish. I only pressed on to see how bad it could really get.
November 13, 2022
Although The Coldest Winter Ever is one of my all time favorite fiction novels, it saddens me to say, Life After Death is my least favorite sequel.
⠀
I was super excited about the release of this book. I even reread The Coldest Winter in anticipation of it’s release. Unfortunately, I didn’t need to read TCWE again, because Life After Death is a completely different story from TCWE.
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I found this book highly disappointing. As I read each chapter, I continuously contemplated putting the book down, and adding it to my DNF (Did Not Finish) pile. The story was all over the place. As I read each chapter I hoped it would somehow take a turn for the better, and start to make sense. Sadly, that never happened.
⠀
In my attempt to not give any spoilers, I’ve decided not to discuss the plot. However, I will say this...the majority of the characters in this book are new. The story is not set in New York. If you thought Winter was cold in the first book, then she is below freezing in this book.
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There are many controversial topics within the story. This is a book readers will either like, or strongly dislike. I don’t anticipate a middle. This narrative is much too contentious for a middle. I’m sure the reviews will be polarizing.
⠀
I believe the concept of Life After Death is about the ideas of consequence, free will, faith, materialism, divine judgment, angels on assignment, and the unconscious mind. And while I normally find each of these concepts extremely thought provoking, I was minimally moved by the way in which they were delivered in this sequal. As a matter-of-fact, it came off a little sanctimonious.
⠀
For all the above reasons I can only give this book 1⭐️. I really hope Sister Souljah provides an explanation as to why she chose to move in this direction with the story. Maybe hearing her logic, will help me to make sense of it all.
⠀
𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘚𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘚𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.
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I was super excited about the release of this book. I even reread The Coldest Winter in anticipation of it’s release. Unfortunately, I didn’t need to read TCWE again, because Life After Death is a completely different story from TCWE.
⠀
I found this book highly disappointing. As I read each chapter, I continuously contemplated putting the book down, and adding it to my DNF (Did Not Finish) pile. The story was all over the place. As I read each chapter I hoped it would somehow take a turn for the better, and start to make sense. Sadly, that never happened.
⠀
In my attempt to not give any spoilers, I’ve decided not to discuss the plot. However, I will say this...the majority of the characters in this book are new. The story is not set in New York. If you thought Winter was cold in the first book, then she is below freezing in this book.
⠀
There are many controversial topics within the story. This is a book readers will either like, or strongly dislike. I don’t anticipate a middle. This narrative is much too contentious for a middle. I’m sure the reviews will be polarizing.
⠀
I believe the concept of Life After Death is about the ideas of consequence, free will, faith, materialism, divine judgment, angels on assignment, and the unconscious mind. And while I normally find each of these concepts extremely thought provoking, I was minimally moved by the way in which they were delivered in this sequal. As a matter-of-fact, it came off a little sanctimonious.
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For all the above reasons I can only give this book 1⭐️. I really hope Sister Souljah provides an explanation as to why she chose to move in this direction with the story. Maybe hearing her logic, will help me to make sense of it all.
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𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘚𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘚𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.
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March 8, 2021
22 years ago, Sister Souljah blessed the urban literary world with The Coldest Winter Ever. A book that inspired some, if not all, of our favorite authors. Young adults loved Winter for her street smarts and hood celebrity status. Now, Winter, and all her fans are grown. After doing a 15-year bid, Winter Santiaga is back and ready to claim everything that she felt she has lost, and ready to claim everything she feels she deserves. Like any hood celebrity, Winter feels her release should be celebrated. After some convincing from her brother-in-law, Elisha, Porsche's husband, Winter decides to take her release to television, on a reality tv show. But like any other plan that Winter has ever conceived, it's thwarted, changing the game indefinitely. "Everybody know Winter Santiaga is all about action and hustle, plotting and planning, making it and taking it, and a dead bitch can't do that shit."
From the moment this read starts, you can see that Winter has little to no growth from her time in prison. Instead of using her time wisely to grow and learn, she's spent it trying to figure out how to exact revenge on her enemies and on how to be "the top bitch". "That's when I promised myself, I'm moving whoever murdered me to the top of my 'payback's a bitch' list. It had taken me fifteen minutes after my arrest to put together my payback list. But it took me fifteen years to put together each scheme on exactly how I was gonna do it." She befriended people that should have been her enemies, only to later regret it. "'The show must go on,' Simone said in her low, manly voice. 'Life After Death' like B.I.G. said. and dead entertainers sell more merchandise than living entertainers ever die, like B.I.G. did. Bet y'all didn't know that! Winter wanted to be the star, so she got murdered on camera, a dramatic debut.' Simone waved her arms in the air, still holding the Ciroc."
Before Winter starts her after life journey, she's allowed to visit the two people that she loves the most, Midnight and her father, the infamous Ricky Santiaga. "Somebody got me! But don't you worry about who did it. Stay still for me. Don't kill whoever did it. I'm gonna get you the fuck out of here. I'm gonna put you where you belong. Trust me, you're Baby Girl. Poppa, you did everything in life for me. Now I'm gonna be the one to king you!" Winter's unable to see her reflection or even have any interactions with her loved ones. She's even unable to comprehend what's going on, but when she comes to her own conclusion about what's going on, she does what only Winter Santiaga can do, run game in the afterlife. "Someone was trying to break me, I know. But Winter Santiaga is not easily broken."
The next 80% of this book gets really weird, even tricky. Winter Santiaga takes the afterlife on the best way she knows how. The afterlife, which is known as The Last Stop Before the Drop, has all the worldly things Winter can want and more. Her designer labels, expensive cars and even men that can fuck her into oblivion. Old habits die hard and they definitely cost Winter, ultimately teaching her a lesson that is learned almost too late. She's turned in to several different animals, killed in the afterlife twice and even meets the souls of her aborted kids. If any of this sounds weird to you, then you are correct in your assessment. Those aspects of the book were almost hard to digest, but not hard to read. It was like reading a paranormal book. "Unexpectedly, because it was not something anyone would ever imagine is desirable or even possible, I fully awake and with my same Winter Santiaga mind and thoughts, had turned into a red python."
This book was deep. This book was religious. This book made me think. This wasn't your typical junk food book that you love to read. This book was one of the required reading books they assigned you in grade school. I found myself with 4 pages of notes and over a hundred highlights when I finished this book. It was enlightening. It didn't feel good reading, but it was definitely necessary. Winter's way of thinking and her mentality irritated me throughout this read. She knew what needed to be done and refused to do it. Winter reminded me of plenty close-minded people, myself included, so her story wasn't far-fetched. Winter's time in the afterlife broke her down, gave her life meaning and taught her multiple lessons. "Don't know if I will ever be able to let pride go even though I know it's wrong. I don't know if I even want to. I don't cover my hair or wear religious-type clothing. For me that ain't it. But I do worship One God and make my prayers in the early morning and late night, when no one can see me. Once I find and marry a real man who makes my heart and my pussy thump, who loves me right up to the line of worship, I'll let him be the only one that sees me bow down before him, bowing down beside me, to the One who created us both and us all."
My overall assessment is: I enjoyed this book. It held my attention from the beginning until the end. Even with Winter constantly working on my nerves, I was still able to enjoy. Even with all of its weirdness, I was never confused on what was happening in the book. I don't think this book should have been categorized as a sequel. This book had the same characters from The Coldest Winter Ever but was an entirely different vibe from the original book, it only held the tiniest bit of nostalgia. Now we wait, for the next book.
From the moment this read starts, you can see that Winter has little to no growth from her time in prison. Instead of using her time wisely to grow and learn, she's spent it trying to figure out how to exact revenge on her enemies and on how to be "the top bitch". "That's when I promised myself, I'm moving whoever murdered me to the top of my 'payback's a bitch' list. It had taken me fifteen minutes after my arrest to put together my payback list. But it took me fifteen years to put together each scheme on exactly how I was gonna do it." She befriended people that should have been her enemies, only to later regret it. "'The show must go on,' Simone said in her low, manly voice. 'Life After Death' like B.I.G. said. and dead entertainers sell more merchandise than living entertainers ever die, like B.I.G. did. Bet y'all didn't know that! Winter wanted to be the star, so she got murdered on camera, a dramatic debut.' Simone waved her arms in the air, still holding the Ciroc."
Before Winter starts her after life journey, she's allowed to visit the two people that she loves the most, Midnight and her father, the infamous Ricky Santiaga. "Somebody got me! But don't you worry about who did it. Stay still for me. Don't kill whoever did it. I'm gonna get you the fuck out of here. I'm gonna put you where you belong. Trust me, you're Baby Girl. Poppa, you did everything in life for me. Now I'm gonna be the one to king you!" Winter's unable to see her reflection or even have any interactions with her loved ones. She's even unable to comprehend what's going on, but when she comes to her own conclusion about what's going on, she does what only Winter Santiaga can do, run game in the afterlife. "Someone was trying to break me, I know. But Winter Santiaga is not easily broken."
The next 80% of this book gets really weird, even tricky. Winter Santiaga takes the afterlife on the best way she knows how. The afterlife, which is known as The Last Stop Before the Drop, has all the worldly things Winter can want and more. Her designer labels, expensive cars and even men that can fuck her into oblivion. Old habits die hard and they definitely cost Winter, ultimately teaching her a lesson that is learned almost too late. She's turned in to several different animals, killed in the afterlife twice and even meets the souls of her aborted kids. If any of this sounds weird to you, then you are correct in your assessment. Those aspects of the book were almost hard to digest, but not hard to read. It was like reading a paranormal book. "Unexpectedly, because it was not something anyone would ever imagine is desirable or even possible, I fully awake and with my same Winter Santiaga mind and thoughts, had turned into a red python."
This book was deep. This book was religious. This book made me think. This wasn't your typical junk food book that you love to read. This book was one of the required reading books they assigned you in grade school. I found myself with 4 pages of notes and over a hundred highlights when I finished this book. It was enlightening. It didn't feel good reading, but it was definitely necessary. Winter's way of thinking and her mentality irritated me throughout this read. She knew what needed to be done and refused to do it. Winter reminded me of plenty close-minded people, myself included, so her story wasn't far-fetched. Winter's time in the afterlife broke her down, gave her life meaning and taught her multiple lessons. "Don't know if I will ever be able to let pride go even though I know it's wrong. I don't know if I even want to. I don't cover my hair or wear religious-type clothing. For me that ain't it. But I do worship One God and make my prayers in the early morning and late night, when no one can see me. Once I find and marry a real man who makes my heart and my pussy thump, who loves me right up to the line of worship, I'll let him be the only one that sees me bow down before him, bowing down beside me, to the One who created us both and us all."
My overall assessment is: I enjoyed this book. It held my attention from the beginning until the end. Even with Winter constantly working on my nerves, I was still able to enjoy. Even with all of its weirdness, I was never confused on what was happening in the book. I don't think this book should have been categorized as a sequel. This book had the same characters from The Coldest Winter Ever but was an entirely different vibe from the original book, it only held the tiniest bit of nostalgia. Now we wait, for the next book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 1, 2021
2.5 at best!
I’ve thought long and hard about this and I just can’t give this book more than a 2.5. If you are looking for that feeling you felt while reading The Coldest Winter Ever and even the Midnight series you are not going to get it. There was just no thrill for me. About 5 or so chapters in I figured out what the book was solely about. Let’s just say the title speaks for itself, literally. The last two chapters is what made me give it a bit more love on the rating.
The Santiaga family was hottest on the block, nobody was messing with them even while locked up. Winter had a crew in lockup. She had plans for them to star in a reality TV show when they were released. They were going to make their appearances and make their money but nobody will come close to looking better or making more money than Winter Santiaga, she will make sure of that. She was the star of the show, the main attraction! However one of her crew members figures out Winter was up to no good and has her own plan of dealing with Little Miss Hot Shot.
Winter just irked me the ENTIRE time. She literally did not learn a thing after serving 15 years in prison! Brooklyn is where she grew up. Brooklyn is hood. You know what they say: you can take the girl out the hood but you can’t take the hood out the girl. This definitely rings true for little ol Winter.
Lots of religious and cultural lessons which one can take and learn from for sure. There are some triggering and controversial topics that are brought up as well: rape, sodomy, abortion; to name a few.
Just read it with an open mind don’t have high expectations like I did or else you will be (just as I was) highly disappointed.
Also...was anyone else annoyed with the number of times the word “furthermore” was used or was it just me?
I’ve thought long and hard about this and I just can’t give this book more than a 2.5. If you are looking for that feeling you felt while reading The Coldest Winter Ever and even the Midnight series you are not going to get it. There was just no thrill for me. About 5 or so chapters in I figured out what the book was solely about. Let’s just say the title speaks for itself, literally. The last two chapters is what made me give it a bit more love on the rating.
The Santiaga family was hottest on the block, nobody was messing with them even while locked up. Winter had a crew in lockup. She had plans for them to star in a reality TV show when they were released. They were going to make their appearances and make their money but nobody will come close to looking better or making more money than Winter Santiaga, she will make sure of that. She was the star of the show, the main attraction! However one of her crew members figures out Winter was up to no good and has her own plan of dealing with Little Miss Hot Shot.
Winter just irked me the ENTIRE time. She literally did not learn a thing after serving 15 years in prison! Brooklyn is where she grew up. Brooklyn is hood. You know what they say: you can take the girl out the hood but you can’t take the hood out the girl. This definitely rings true for little ol Winter.
Lots of religious and cultural lessons which one can take and learn from for sure. There are some triggering and controversial topics that are brought up as well: rape, sodomy, abortion; to name a few.
Just read it with an open mind don’t have high expectations like I did or else you will be (just as I was) highly disappointed.
Also...was anyone else annoyed with the number of times the word “furthermore” was used or was it just me?
Read
March 11, 2021Okay so... remember that song by 2PAC called, "I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto?"
So... this book made me feel like she heard that song and said I can't imagine Heaven having a ghetto but I bet hell got one. The thought wouldn't leave her so then she said to herself... what would a tour of hell in the hood look like. And then boom... "Life After Death" was born.
There was definitely a message there but not sure which direction that message was trying to go. Also... I did think there were some areas that could've been shorter and it wouldn't have been missed. I'm still processing....
So... this book made me feel like she heard that song and said I can't imagine Heaven having a ghetto but I bet hell got one. The thought wouldn't leave her so then she said to herself... what would a tour of hell in the hood look like. And then boom... "Life After Death" was born.
There was definitely a message there but not sure which direction that message was trying to go. Also... I did think there were some areas that could've been shorter and it wouldn't have been missed. I'm still processing....
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 13, 2021
Ummmmmm🤔
You know what, I could be wrong but I think Souljah used Life after Death to her advantage. She knew many was waiting for it to drop and I think she saw it as a perfect opportunity to try and reach and drop the jewels on as many ears that would listen. And many jewels she dropped! Eventhough she dropped them metaphorically it still made it a dope azz read. Actually it made it more interesting for me. And I will leave it at that.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾
You know what, I could be wrong but I think Souljah used Life after Death to her advantage. She knew many was waiting for it to drop and I think she saw it as a perfect opportunity to try and reach and drop the jewels on as many ears that would listen. And many jewels she dropped! Eventhough she dropped them metaphorically it still made it a dope azz read. Actually it made it more interesting for me. And I will leave it at that.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾
March 11, 2021
RAW!!
This book was EVERYTHING!! Souljah went deep for those who are opened minded. Winter swore that she was the baddest thang walking but in reality, a reality that Souljah showed us, she most certainly wasn't. Souljah dropped so many jewels throughout this book and I'm sure some of it went over some heads but for those of us, who gets it, she did that
This book was EVERYTHING!! Souljah went deep for those who are opened minded. Winter swore that she was the baddest thang walking but in reality, a reality that Souljah showed us, she most certainly wasn't. Souljah dropped so many jewels throughout this book and I'm sure some of it went over some heads but for those of us, who gets it, she did that
March 3, 2021
Ughhhhhhhhhh
What was this!!!!!mess of a read. I can't even explain what I read. I'm so pissed I wasted 12 dollars and 99 cent. Boring boring boring..did not go with the first book at all.WTH I'm pissed at this sequel.if I could give no stars it would be that.
What was this!!!!!mess of a read. I can't even explain what I read. I'm so pissed I wasted 12 dollars and 99 cent. Boring boring boring..did not go with the first book at all.WTH I'm pissed at this sequel.if I could give no stars it would be that.
March 4, 2021
I actually didn’t finish. It wasn’t really my kind of book. I’m a big fan of her previous books but this one was a little demonic for me. I respect everyone’s religious beliefs but the things I read went against mine.
March 5, 2021
The Coldest!!!
Life After Death...
This title is literal. This was a hell of a ride we were taken on. I don’t base my love for a book or an author on the reviews of the basic. This book is for the Winters of the world to save their souls before it’s too late, in case you didn’t get the first message in TCWE. This book is to be read with an OPENED mind. This book is for real readers with the ability to comprehend. Sister Souljah is doing what she does in real life through her literary work, using her platform to attempt to save the soul of the people. Read, absorb and apply as necessary.
The end of this book was worth the confusion and the round about way we were taken to get there!!!! The end of this book is why I upgraded my 4 star review to 5 stars. I was definitely reminded of the reason why Porsche is my most favorite person in any book I’ve ever read. Her level of love is unmatched.
Life After Death...
This title is literal. This was a hell of a ride we were taken on. I don’t base my love for a book or an author on the reviews of the basic. This book is for the Winters of the world to save their souls before it’s too late, in case you didn’t get the first message in TCWE. This book is to be read with an OPENED mind. This book is for real readers with the ability to comprehend. Sister Souljah is doing what she does in real life through her literary work, using her platform to attempt to save the soul of the people. Read, absorb and apply as necessary.
The end of this book was worth the confusion and the round about way we were taken to get there!!!! The end of this book is why I upgraded my 4 star review to 5 stars. I was definitely reminded of the reason why Porsche is my most favorite person in any book I’ve ever read. Her level of love is unmatched.
March 31, 2021
This was hard to finish.
January 10, 2021
Thank you to Netgalley for approving my ARC request in exchange for an honest review.
I've been looking forward to this sequel for years. I consider The Coldest Winter Ever to be a classic and I've re-read it several times since I initially read it in high school. That said, I went into Life After Death with extremely high expectations but ultimately, I am very disappointed. I gave it 1 star but even that feels like a stretch.
I couldn't even finish it. To be honest, it felt like Life After Death was written by a completely different author. The storyline was very messy and confusing. Several times, I would stop to try and understand what was happening and what point Sister Souljah is trying to make. I tried really hard to push through in hopes that it would get better but it was so bad that I just had to stop. It pains me to write a review like this but it's the truth. I don't recommend this book and I'm not sure I could ever pick up another Sister Souljah book again after this.
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@chanele.reads.well
I've been looking forward to this sequel for years. I consider The Coldest Winter Ever to be a classic and I've re-read it several times since I initially read it in high school. That said, I went into Life After Death with extremely high expectations but ultimately, I am very disappointed. I gave it 1 star but even that feels like a stretch.
I couldn't even finish it. To be honest, it felt like Life After Death was written by a completely different author. The storyline was very messy and confusing. Several times, I would stop to try and understand what was happening and what point Sister Souljah is trying to make. I tried really hard to push through in hopes that it would get better but it was so bad that I just had to stop. It pains me to write a review like this but it's the truth. I don't recommend this book and I'm not sure I could ever pick up another Sister Souljah book again after this.
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@chanele.reads.well
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