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The Wife in the Next Life
I thought about our future, and for the second time that day, I envisioned a long, happy life together. But when my thoughts focused on the eternities, things got blurry. Could I move forward without all the answers?
We finished lunch and carried our dishes to the sink. As I rinsed off my plate, Abel set his dishes on the counter, stood directly behind me, and placed his hands on my hips. I closed my eyes and leaned against him, enjoying the feeling of our bodies pressed together. I knew if I turned around, Abel would kiss me. I rested the back of my head against his chest, unsure if I was ready to take that step.
You don't have to do this, I reminded myself. You can marry someone else. Someone who doesn't have a wife in the next life.
***
When Julianna Taylor goes out on a date with Abel Keogh, she's shocked to discover he's a recent widower--he's only twenty-six. As they continue dating, she falls in love, but a relationship with Abel comes with thorny questions about eternal relationships and her place in Abel’s heart. Can she continue without knowing how thing will work out?
At some point, we all face questions that don’t have easy answers. How we choose to proceed amid doubt and uncertainty can define the rest of our lives.
This is Julianna and Abel’s inspirational, true story about their struggle to open their hearts and endure with faith even when the answers aren’t forthcoming.
We finished lunch and carried our dishes to the sink. As I rinsed off my plate, Abel set his dishes on the counter, stood directly behind me, and placed his hands on my hips. I closed my eyes and leaned against him, enjoying the feeling of our bodies pressed together. I knew if I turned around, Abel would kiss me. I rested the back of my head against his chest, unsure if I was ready to take that step.
You don't have to do this, I reminded myself. You can marry someone else. Someone who doesn't have a wife in the next life.
***
When Julianna Taylor goes out on a date with Abel Keogh, she's shocked to discover he's a recent widower--he's only twenty-six. As they continue dating, she falls in love, but a relationship with Abel comes with thorny questions about eternal relationships and her place in Abel’s heart. Can she continue without knowing how thing will work out?
At some point, we all face questions that don’t have easy answers. How we choose to proceed amid doubt and uncertainty can define the rest of our lives.
This is Julianna and Abel’s inspirational, true story about their struggle to open their hearts and endure with faith even when the answers aren’t forthcoming.
- GenresMemoir
304 pages, Paperback
Published December 1, 2022
10 people are currently reading
561 people want to read
About the author
Abel Keogh
12 books100 followersAbel Keogh is a relationship coach and the expert on widower relationships. A remarried widower, Abel has successfully helped thousands of women know if they widowers they’re dating are ready for a serious relationship. He also helps widowers understand what it takes to overcome grief and open their heart to another woman.
Abel is the author of four books on widower relationships and a memoir about losing his late wife to suicide and falling in love again in the year following her death. His Dating a Widower YouTube channel contains valuable advice for widowers and the women who are dating or married to them.
Abel is also an avid runner and writer. He and his wife, Julianna, live in the beautiful state of Utah and as citizens of the Beehive state are parents of the requisite seven children.
Abel is the author of four books on widower relationships and a memoir about losing his late wife to suicide and falling in love again in the year following her death. His Dating a Widower YouTube channel contains valuable advice for widowers and the women who are dating or married to them.
Abel is also an avid runner and writer. He and his wife, Julianna, live in the beautiful state of Utah and as citizens of the Beehive state are parents of the requisite seven children.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 15, 2023
I absolutely loved reading this memoir about Abel who became a very young widower due to suicide and how he was able to keep living and find love again. This book is so well-written that I consumed it like a page-turning novel! I couldn’t read fast enough as Abel and Julianna share from their unique viewpoints the story of their courtship and marriage.
As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, we believe in eternal marriage and families. It’s a beautiful truth that provides great comfort, but it also brings up a lot of questions when you are sealed to a spouse for eternity and that spouse dies. What happens if you remarry? You don’t stop loving your deceased spouse and they don’t cease to exist after death–in fact, they continue on and the connection remains strong through temple covenants.
As a young widow myself, I found Abel and Julianna’s story comforting, reassuring, and enlightening. They share the good, the bad, and the ugly of dealing with unknowns and factors that most people never consider until they are placed in the harrowing situation of widowhood.
This is a beautiful book that I will be sharing with many as a source of comfort and peace.
As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, we believe in eternal marriage and families. It’s a beautiful truth that provides great comfort, but it also brings up a lot of questions when you are sealed to a spouse for eternity and that spouse dies. What happens if you remarry? You don’t stop loving your deceased spouse and they don’t cease to exist after death–in fact, they continue on and the connection remains strong through temple covenants.
As a young widow myself, I found Abel and Julianna’s story comforting, reassuring, and enlightening. They share the good, the bad, and the ugly of dealing with unknowns and factors that most people never consider until they are placed in the harrowing situation of widowhood.
This is a beautiful book that I will be sharing with many as a source of comfort and peace.
December 28, 2022
I've waited through four years of relationship with my own widower for this book. While I have navigated many of my obstacles through Abel's youtube videos and Facebook group, there some questions that still lingered.
While I don't have the same religious questions, I spent 20 years as a second wife who was always second in that relationship, to a degree I didn't realize until my husband died and left me a legacy of lies. So, my concerns about being second to a late wife weighed heavily.
Not only did I get insight from Julianna and her processes, but also new insight and perspective from Abel as well.
Thank you for your vulnerability and the sharing of your story.
While I don't have the same religious questions, I spent 20 years as a second wife who was always second in that relationship, to a degree I didn't realize until my husband died and left me a legacy of lies. So, my concerns about being second to a late wife weighed heavily.
Not only did I get insight from Julianna and her processes, but also new insight and perspective from Abel as well.
Thank you for your vulnerability and the sharing of your story.
April 30, 2023
A Second Wife.
It is a very good book. It tells the story of Abel and Julianna falling in love. What holds both of them back is Abel's first wife and child. When Krista was seven months pregnant she committed suicide. Their daughter, Hope, was born. She suffered too many birth defects caused by lack of blood after Krista committed suicide and only lives 9 days.
The fact Abel was married before caused Julianna many concerns. The story is LDS. (Church of Later Day Saints, also known as the Morman Church). In the LDS church, if a wedding couple is married in the Temple, they are married for eternity. So being a second wife and getting married in the Temple makes it a spiritual polygamy marriage. That would give any woman a pause before getting married. "Do you want to be a second wife?"
It is a very good book. It tells the story of Abel and Julianna falling in love. What holds both of them back is Abel's first wife and child. When Krista was seven months pregnant she committed suicide. Their daughter, Hope, was born. She suffered too many birth defects caused by lack of blood after Krista committed suicide and only lives 9 days.
The fact Abel was married before caused Julianna many concerns. The story is LDS. (Church of Later Day Saints, also known as the Morman Church). In the LDS church, if a wedding couple is married in the Temple, they are married for eternity. So being a second wife and getting married in the Temple makes it a spiritual polygamy marriage. That would give any woman a pause before getting married. "Do you want to be a second wife?"
February 27, 2023
The Wife in the Next Life is a raw, real account of a couple’s experience navigating a new relationship after the death of a former spouse. Abel and Julianna both describe their feelings and experiences in this situation and offer a chance to take a closer look into both sides of the story.
This book would be an incredible resource for other people going through a similar situation. As they discuss in the book, it is difficult to find others who are willing or able to talk about such a personal and emotional subject and their account could help other couples going through the same struggles and bumps in the road.
This book would be an incredible resource for other people going through a similar situation. As they discuss in the book, it is difficult to find others who are willing or able to talk about such a personal and emotional subject and their account could help other couples going through the same struggles and bumps in the road.
February 16, 2023
Rarely do we get a chance to look into someone's life and see the joy, pain, and sorrow they have lived. Most people are not willing to share. They are afraid of being judged. When emotions are so raw, we usually want to run from them. Relationships can be tricky. Abel and Julianna are gaining experience now that will help them figure out what they want to have in the next future. Abel and Julianna share these feelings with us, perfect strangers, hoping we can somehow understand how hard it is to have faith that things will work. An excellent read!
January 13, 2023
I so much needed a book like this - wish I had read it a few years back!
April 22, 2023
Thank you for the free kindle copy.
I knew nothing about the Latter Day Saints.
This was an interesting read.
I knew nothing about the Latter Day Saints.
This was an interesting read.
September 28, 2023
Beautifully written. More understanding has been given. Still happy that Abel and Julianna found each other.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews