The After Wife is the story of Abby, a recently widowed writer who is forced into making a new start when she can’t afford her apartment following her husband’s death. She takes a giant leap and moves to a fixer upper in a small town in Canada. She wants to be left alone in her grief and find her way back to her writing. The nosy neighbors in the town have other ideas, they embrace her right away and practically force her to immerse herself in their attentions. In a familiar trope, she is thrown together with a handsome contractor while he is fixing her house and she begins to wonder if her life is over after all.
Abby’s journey reminds me in a lot of ways of Mel’s in Virgin River. The town is full of lovely people, the love interest becomes a friend first, there is a lot of focus on grief and finding a path forward after loss. There were times where I was annoyed with Abby’s behavior but I understand the need for the arc in her behavior. There is a twist at the end that I didn’t expect so while the book sounds like it follows a pretty popular trope, it just may surprise you. ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Thanks to Netgalley for advanced access to this novel and apologies it took me so long to get to it! All opinions above are my own.
What title has been in your NetGalley or on your shelf the longest waiting for you?
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