What Comes After: A Novel

Isaac and Lorrie are next-door neighbors and friends, whose teenage sons are friends until the day that one murders the other. Out of the woods comes Evangeline, a young and pregnant teenage girl whose mother abandoned her and who knew the boys just before the tragedy. While incredibly sad, What Comes After is truly beautiful. Isaac takes Evangeline in, and surprisingly, this act begins to mend all of their broken hearts in ways they would have never thought possible.

Rich in characters, atmosphere, and storytelling, this book has it all. While Port Furlong is fictional, it is easy to see the beautiful town of Port Townsend shine through. This story is full of broken people, but not unrealistically so. And even amongst so much brokenness and tragedy, you can still see hope. I enjoyed the author’s insights into each of the characters and how resilient they were as well as what they couldn’t handle. She did a great job showing how we all see people differently, especially how we remember them after they’ve passed. The peek into the life of a Quaker was interesting. If you are looking for something deeply emotional, full of memorable characters, this is it.