Source: Review copy
Publication: 6th September 2018 from Trapeze Books
Pp: 368
ISBN-13: 978-1409172642
When Rachel and Aidan fell in love, they thought it was forever.
She was a brilliant, high-flying scientist. He was her loving and supportive husband.
Now she’s gone, and Aidan must carry on and raise their daughter alone.
But Rachel has left behind her life’s work, a gift of love to see them through the dark days after her death.
A gift called iRachel.
The advances in technology today are such that Cass Hunter’s The After Wife is not so unbelievable as it might have been even 10 years ago. And that makes her book all the more poignant and touching.
The After Wife is a book about love, loss and what touches the heart. Beautifully written with humour and verve, I liked this so much more than I expected to. We have all experienced loss in our lives and how we come to terms with it is different in every case. Sometimes we get angry, or withdraw from the world; sometimes we fall to pieces, though others may seek to suppress the pain and ‘soldier on’.
Cass Green has drawn a convincing and heart-rending picture of a father and daughter experiencing a massive loss in their lives and how the wife and mother they have lost has prepared for her passing. In a novel that is often very funny, this is a caring and perceptive look that unashamedly deals with the emotional struggle after the death of a loved one.
Aiden and Chloe are devastated at their loss and both in their different ways are very angry. Cass lets it affect her friendships; Aiden is too stunned to notice what is going on around him. But as Rachel’s preparations begin to impact upon them, it is like watching the first ray of sunshine touch their faces after an abnormally cold, long winter.
Though The After Wife deals with loss, it is principally a book that asks a fundamental question – what does it take to be human? Who we are and what makes us unique and individual is a fascinating area for exploration and Cass Green has got the balance absolutely right in this delicate, clever and deeply moving book.
A novel that will make you laugh as well as cry, the characters are richly drawn and believable and these are all people you come to care about, especially iRachel.
Verdict: Surprising, entrancing and enjoyable, this is a novel to make you think about what humanity really means.
About Cass Hunter
Cass Hunter was born in South Africa and moved to the UK in 2000. She lives in North London with her husband and two sons. She is an avid lifelong learner, and works at a London university. Cass Hunter is the pen name of Rosie Fiore, whose novels include After Isabella, What She Left, Babies in Waiting and Wonder Women.
You can follow Cass on Twitter @C_HunterAuthor and visit her website for more information.
Read more about The After Wife here:
Live and Deadly 