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jennp28's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Really loved this one! A cute premise of being sent back to earth from the afterlife and an ending/resolution that wasn’t completely obvious from the beginning. Just a hint of spice. A main character that’s just cringeworthy enough to be relatable without becoming unlikeable. A funny, quirky cast of ensemble characters with a heartwarming plot about friendship woven through. Really fun, light, enjoyable read.
I received a complimentary advanced copy of this book for from NetGalley and this is my honest, voluntary review.
I received a complimentary advanced copy of this book for from NetGalley and this is my honest, voluntary review.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Car accident, Grief, and Death
coffeekitaab's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
In a freak accident involving a microwaveable burger, introvert Delphie finds herself in the afterlife. Her "afterlife therapist" tells her she can live again, provided she finds and kisses her soulmate in the next 10 days. And so begins the journey - you can imagine trying to find friends in the capital city is no small feat so to find a soulmate and getting them to like you enough to kiss you, will be next to impossible. But what do you do when your life depends on making it happen?
The premise was an interesting one and I was taken by the author's fun and quick witted writing style, which meant I finished this in a couple of days. There were so many one liners that had me laughing out loud and in fits of giggles, featuring brilliant moments requiring Delphie to be bold and she delivered on the basis she had nothing left to lose, if she died. All the characters were sweet too and overall I did enjoy the read. The only downside for me was after a while there were far too many near misses which made the story drag to the point I didn't enjoy the plot twist at the end as much. A shorter story with that ending would have been perfect imo - kudo to the author for that ending too and the message - Kirsty Greenwood did a brilliant job with character growth so the bond/loss between the main protagonists felt very relateable and I was rooting for them to get their happy ending. I know alot of people will love this one so would still recommend.
Thank you @netgalley @randomhouseUK and @cornerstone for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Out on 20 June 2024.
The premise was an interesting one and I was taken by the author's fun and quick witted writing style, which meant I finished this in a couple of days. There were so many one liners that had me laughing out loud and in fits of giggles, featuring brilliant moments requiring Delphie to be bold and she delivered on the basis she had nothing left to lose, if she died. All the characters were sweet too and overall I did enjoy the read. The only downside for me was after a while there were far too many near misses which made the story drag to the point I didn't enjoy the plot twist at the end as much. A shorter story with that ending would have been perfect imo - kudo to the author for that ending too and the message - Kirsty Greenwood did a brilliant job with character growth so the bond/loss between the main protagonists felt very relateable and I was rooting for them to get their happy ending. I know alot of people will love this one so would still recommend.
Thank you @netgalley @randomhouseUK and @cornerstone for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Out on 20 June 2024.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death
abidavisf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Wow. The Love of My Afterlife is a masterpiece. My first ever ARC and I am truly honoured to have read it. Kirsty Greenwood is a sensation.
The Love of My Afterlife takes a stunning look at the fragility of life and the importance of love and community. Themes of grief, love, friendship, community and gratitude weave themselves beautifully into a truly life-affirming tale. It encourages its readers to embrace the people around them who may have been trying to play a role in their lives but who have been shut out, even in a big, scary, cold city in London. In contrast, it also teaches you that it is okay to release those people who are undeserving of your time. A quote that I will be saving for a rainy day: "If people want to go, sometimes it's easier to just let them."
My favourite thing about this book is definitely the multitude of characters, from such different walks of life who all brought me so much joy.
Merritt is one of my favourite characters of all time. She is chaotic and romantic and optimistic. She sees the beauty in both life and death, and truly wants the best for everybody (added bonus if she can mix some drama in there too though).
I think I could probably talk about Delphie all day. I am sad to say that a large part of me relates to her. There are so many quotes that I highlighted that were truly tragic but that hit home for me so intensely, particularly "All your days looked exactly the same as each other. You were so alone." With that being said, the hope that I felt throughout the story as Delphie began to involve herself in her community, make friends and fall in love is second-to-none. The irony is that I sat home tonight and devoured this book instead of going to see my favourite band because I was afraid of going alone. The New and Improved Delphie would never have done that. Merritt would be heartbroken to see me do that.
Greenwood's ability to make me root for Cooper even though I knew that Delphie falling in love with him could potentially kill her was exquisite. I found myself genuinely writing notes saying, "Don't go to Jonah!" and "I swear if Delphie goes to find Jonah, I'll sue." At the end of the day, am I happy with how it all worked out? Of course, but there were definitely some moments that had me yelling at my phone as I read.
My only cons: some of the dialogue was slightly stunted in parts, particularly when a character was talking to themselves. In those instances, you'd expect the dialogue to be less formal, which wasn't the case. Also, though his true intentions turned out to be honourable and innocent, Aled creeped me out a fair bit at first. There was a clear breach of GDPR with him texting Delphie and that ain't cool.
I am truly in awe of The Love of My Afterlife. I will be recommending it to everybody, and I cannot wait to purchase my own physical copy as soon as it is released. Thank you so much to Penguin Random House UK and Cornerstone for this opportunity.
The Love of My Afterlife takes a stunning look at the fragility of life and the importance of love and community. Themes of grief, love, friendship, community and gratitude weave themselves beautifully into a truly life-affirming tale. It encourages its readers to embrace the people around them who may have been trying to play a role in their lives but who have been shut out, even in a big, scary, cold city in London. In contrast, it also teaches you that it is okay to release those people who are undeserving of your time. A quote that I will be saving for a rainy day: "If people want to go, sometimes it's easier to just let them."
My favourite thing about this book is definitely the multitude of characters, from such different walks of life who all brought me so much joy.
Merritt is one of my favourite characters of all time. She is chaotic and romantic and optimistic. She sees the beauty in both life and death, and truly wants the best for everybody (added bonus if she can mix some drama in there too though).
I think I could probably talk about Delphie all day. I am sad to say that a large part of me relates to her. There are so many quotes that I highlighted that were truly tragic but that hit home for me so intensely, particularly "All your days looked exactly the same as each other. You were so alone." With that being said, the hope that I felt throughout the story as Delphie began to involve herself in her community, make friends and fall in love is second-to-none. The irony is that I sat home tonight and devoured this book instead of going to see my favourite band because I was afraid of going alone. The New and Improved Delphie would never have done that. Merritt would be heartbroken to see me do that.
Greenwood's ability to make me root for Cooper even though I knew that Delphie falling in love with him could potentially kill her was exquisite. I found myself genuinely writing notes saying, "Don't go to Jonah!" and "I swear if Delphie goes to find Jonah, I'll sue." At the end of the day, am I happy with how it all worked out? Of course, but there were definitely some moments that had me yelling at my phone as I read.
My only cons: some of the dialogue was slightly stunted in parts, particularly when a character was talking to themselves. In those instances, you'd expect the dialogue to be less formal, which wasn't the case. Also, though his true intentions turned out to be honourable and innocent, Aled creeped me out a fair bit at first. There was a clear breach of GDPR with him texting Delphie and that ain't cool.
I am truly in awe of The Love of My Afterlife. I will be recommending it to everybody, and I cannot wait to purchase my own physical copy as soon as it is released. Thank you so much to Penguin Random House UK and Cornerstone for this opportunity.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Car accident, Grief, Medical content, and Abandonment
Minor: Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Dementia, Blood, and Sexual content
beate251's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for an ARC.
This story uses all the romance tropes liberally - let's see how many you can count! Normally I'm not a fan of tropes but the author uses them so cleverly and deliberately to further a story, that it's a delight.
Delphie is a young woman who seems to have given up on life and on her painting. She goes to work and she checks in on her elderly neighbour, but that's about all she does. One day, she chokes on her microwaved burger and finds herself in a white room resembling a launderette where a cheerful woman named Merritt tells her she's her afterlife therapist. Before she can quite grasp that she is dead, another person arrives - a beautiful man who she feels drawn to in a case of insta-love. Before he can tell her his full name he is pulled back to Earth as he was only unconscious from dental sedation. Merritt allows her to return to Earth for a second chance and creates a contract that if she finds Jonah within ten days and gets him to kiss her, she can stay alive.
Enter Cooper, her grumpy neighbour, whom she hates but harangues to help her with finding Jonah (Enemies to... That's the one). The two spend more and more time together as a consequence of fake dating and forced proximity tropes. We even get the having to share a bed and love triangle scenarios, as Delphie is still hellbent on finding Jonah and getting in ever more strange situations to do so, ranging from a live drawing class to a dance event to gatecrashing a posh charity ball. The more she forces herself to do, the more friends she makes, and she even confronts her childhood bully. We also find out why Cooper is so grumpy - five years ago his twin sister died and he hasn't been able to write books since.
But such is the persuasiveness of Merritt that I was also fully fixated on finding Delphie's soulmate who most definitely is not Cooper!
This book is everything. It is chock full with quirky, lovable characters, it is extremely funny and very emotional. There were twists at the end I didn't see coming and which made me cry - that hasn't happened in a while. I read this in one sitting. You will have a ball - solid five stars.
This is my first Kirsty Greenwood book, but it won't be my last!
"... being alive is about experiencing the full gamut of emotions. If you’re not feeling pushed and pulled and scared and delighted instead of just safe, then you’re not doing it right."
This story uses all the romance tropes liberally - let's see how many you can count! Normally I'm not a fan of tropes but the author uses them so cleverly and deliberately to further a story, that it's a delight.
Delphie is a young woman who seems to have given up on life and on her painting. She goes to work and she checks in on her elderly neighbour, but that's about all she does. One day, she chokes on her microwaved burger and finds herself in a white room resembling a launderette where a cheerful woman named Merritt tells her she's her afterlife therapist. Before she can quite grasp that she is dead, another person arrives - a beautiful man who she feels drawn to in a case of insta-love. Before he can tell her his full name he is pulled back to Earth as he was only unconscious from dental sedation. Merritt allows her to return to Earth for a second chance and creates a contract that if she finds Jonah within ten days and gets him to kiss her, she can stay alive.
Enter Cooper, her grumpy neighbour, whom she hates but harangues to help her with finding Jonah (Enemies to... That's the one). The two spend more and more time together as a consequence of fake dating and forced proximity tropes. We even get the having to share a bed and love triangle scenarios, as Delphie is still hellbent on finding Jonah and getting in ever more strange situations to do so, ranging from a live drawing class to a dance event to gatecrashing a posh charity ball. The more she forces herself to do, the more friends she makes, and she even confronts her childhood bully. We also find out why Cooper is so grumpy - five years ago his twin sister died and he hasn't been able to write books since.
But such is the persuasiveness of Merritt that I was also fully fixated on finding Delphie's soulmate who most definitely is not Cooper!
This book is everything. It is chock full with quirky, lovable characters, it is extremely funny and very emotional. There were twists at the end I didn't see coming and which made me cry - that hasn't happened in a while. I read this in one sitting. You will have a ball - solid five stars.
This is my first Kirsty Greenwood book, but it won't be my last!
"... being alive is about experiencing the full gamut of emotions. If you’re not feeling pushed and pulled and scared and delighted instead of just safe, then you’re not doing it right."
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Death, Grief, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical trauma
stephkmcg's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book has a great title and premise however, I felt the execution didn't live up to the hype. A recently deceased woman meets “the one” in the afterlife and has a second chance at life, only if she can get him to kiss her. The author clearly loves romance and I loved her inclusion of romance books and tropes in the text yet I felt this was a very average romance read. With a premise like this, I felt the author had a lot of plot options to play with but kept it very safe. You could take the afterlife aspect out of this book and it would be the exact same story. What is the point?! This book has great marketability, I just wish the story lived up to my expectations.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Bullying
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