After Review

Author: Amy Efaw

Pages: 350

Rating: 4 Waffles

Excerpt: 

The microwave beeps. Devon flinches. She hears the door to the microwave open then, hears it shut. Hears her mom stir in the Ovaltine, a spoon clinking against the sides of a mug. 

"You won't believe this, Devon."

Devon thinks of the swirling brown milk. Swirling... swirling... a vortex of brown, swirling milk. She fights the dizziness... closes her eyes.

"You just won't believe what they found in the trash."

Trash. Devon feels a vague anxiety slice through her mind. Trash... something about that word... And the thought seeps away.

Summary: Devon was perfect. Grades, friends, activities, a future, all in pecking order, nice and neat.  Until she did the unthinkable, the inhumane, the worst crime a person can commit. Suddenly she's thrown into the unfamiliar world of the juvenile detention center, for committing such a horrible crime that she can't even admit to herself what she's done. If she can't even reconcile with her conscience, how will she evade the life sentence being thrown at her? 

What’s Up: At first, this book was a little difficult to get into. I felt like I was getting no where with Devon's story, I was like a lost puppy, because the author left out a lot of detail to lead the reader on and get her interested. I typically don't like this approach to getting a reader's attention, I like the details straight up. But after I got into it and understood what was going on, I was happy with what I read. I wouldn't say it was a page-turner, but at times it was pretty hard to put down. I, yet again, was not too pleased when it came to the ending. Then again, I judge book endings very harshly. It has to be perfect and even then I still might want more. Anyways, like most books I read, I felt the ending wasn't enough, like there was so much more to tell. The way the book was written was a bit difficult to understand at times, but I kind of liked it that way. The style really helped out with the story. Another thing that bothered me was (at least I thought) a lack of detail. It just felt like there were time breaks where there shouldn't have been, leaving me wondering what happened. Overall, After was a book on the deeper side, and even though it was confusing and missing some details, I was pleased and enjoyed reading the book.

Do I recommend it? Yes. After was deeper level thinking book, not like the typical YA fiction book about a girl messing up her life. It's not a light read, not one you can just breeze through. So there you have it, the rest is up to you.