on September 20 2016
Pages: 172
Amazon UK
Goodreads
Also by this author: The Serial Dater's Shopping List, Hitman Sam
Jessica is an ordinary girl who comes across extraordinary circumstances and pays for them with her life. As well as identifying her body, her
brother Simon then has to wind up her affairs but gets more than he bargains for. Who is Alexis, and why are Veronica and Daniel searching for her? Why is there a roll of cash in Jessica’s house, and what’s the connection between his sister and Alexis?
Today I am so pleased to welcome back Morgen Bailey back to my blog, with my review of After Jessica. Be sure to go and check out what Claire @ A Knight’s Read has for you too.
✮ My Review ✮
So I was completely overwhelmed with my reading schedule a couple of weeks ago, and I was considering not reviewing this but hosting content on the blog…..well I am so glad I found the time to read this – what a little gem!
Like most reviews, I write less is more when it comes to the plot, and more so here. This is a short snappy novella, but that has over 50 chapters in it, each chapter is given a persons’ name as we delve in further into life After Jessica and the mystery of Who is Alexis?
I loved how when reading this you are introduced to different characters by the alternating chapters but Bailey never really reveals the links between everyone until nearer the end and I thought it was clever. I adored it! I didn’t realise I had got to the end at first, I was too gobsmacked by what I had read, jaw had dropped and then I started to read about Ms Bailey! I was like hang on a second what the hell. It was fab!
The beginning was shocking, the ending was shocking and the middle tied up a lot of loose ends and made for a thoroughly enjoyable read. It is easy to read this in one sitting because the short snappy chapters got me falling into the one more chapter trap! I could not wait to see how everything would play out and how the fallout from Jessica’s death would affect everyone. All I could think about was the six degrees of separation theory because it so rang true here!
Being a novella, you are never sure if you would get enough time to care about the characters or whether or not you would be engaged enough in the storyline. By heck was I both! In so few pages I was hooked and I knew I had to finish this book.
This is not my first rodeo with Bailey so I knew I would be in for a treat, as I have loved her other book albeit completely different genre to this! I will be back again very soon with another book to champion about!
Until next time xxx
So what has been said so far on tour?
Ginger Book Geek says
For me, ‘After Jessica’ is very well written. The author has a writing style that is easy to get used to and which draws you in from the very first word on the very first page. She entices you into her web and she doesn’t let you go until you have finished reading the book. It’s as if the author via the book casts a spell over you. That’s how I felt at any rate.
Between the Pages book Club says
After Jessica is a fairly short, easy to read story which could easily be devoured in a day or hours. It kept me intrigued throughout. Jessica may have passed away in a quick accident, but that’s not the end to this story… It’s the beginning.
Chat about Books says
I was totally hooked into Jessica’s story. Each chapter is written from the perspective of different characters, some of whom seem to have no connection to Jessica, or her family, whatsoever. It is quite suspenseful and I was eager to discover what had been going on in Jessica’s life that her family had no clue about. All becomes clear as the story progresses. The truth might just surprise you! I did sort of guess part way through, but this didn’t have any impact on my enjoyment of the book. I was fascinated by how Simon was going to solve the mystery, if at all!
The Writing Garnet says
The characters involved in ‘After Jessica’ were a unique bunch and I thought that the ideology of showing readers that grief is handled differently, was a clever move on the authors part.
‘After Jessica’ is a straight to the point, nifty and unique read. I highly recommend it if you’re after a little something just to whet your appetite.
Cathy’s World says
This story was woven together much like a crazy quilt that is made up of scraps of fabric. Why do I say that? Well, the scraps of information we find out about the various players in this piece are all sewn together through those brief chapters read one after another that eventually create quite a pattern as seen in the final story.
B for Bookreview says
You might think you really know it all, but oh no, the author has a surprising ending up her sleeve. Normally when I finish a book, I feel relieved : the charachters have found love or the culprits are in jail or a victim has been saved, but here it was the opposite. ‘What? How? Why?’ were chasing each other in my head but to no avail. The story was devoured completely. There was no more.
Books are my Cwtches says
The writer packs a lot into the story and does so both in an entertaining and enjoyable way and therefore it works. On top of that it is nice to be left wondering sometimes and not have everything tied up neatly at the end!
The story was exciting, addictive and very enjoyable. I would definitely recommend it if you’re looking for a short read that doesn’t compromise on story and entertainment.
Donna’s Book blog says
The characters are really well developed and I loved seeing how the story developed and as everything started to become clearer to the characters too, I was waiting to see how it would all end! I think that the ending was perfect for the book!
Thank you so much to Sarah at BOTBS Publicity for the tour invite and the author for a copy of this book in return for my honest and unbiased review.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
Sarah Hardy says
Thanks Zoé for being part of the blog tour and for the review. Greatly appreciated x
Zoé says
Thanks for having me lovely xx
Rae Reads says
Fab review Zoé ❤️
Zoé says
You da best x
J R Lynn says
Great review Zoé! I’m going to go check it out ?