Malone has hit gold with a plot that takes root from the unsettling truth surrounding the loves of our lives, we think we know everything about them… but everyone keeps secrets.
Paula has just lost her husband and is grieving heavily. This is not her first lost, she lost her son seven years ago. The funeral is unbearable, so many people offering their condolences whom she can’t even remember their names, and then a young woman comes over and her words are not what Paula expects to hear…
“You need to know who your husband really was”
And from that point onwards, doubt is planted in Paula’s mind, what on earth has Tommy been up to.
Malone then sends us down the path to unveil the truth – secrets old and new, some good but many bad; and through twists and revelations, Paula and us (the readers) find out the answer to the question that has been on our lips from the start: Was Tommy a good man?
The plot is told from Paula’s perspective and also Cara’s – the young woman who approached Paula at the funeral. Cara’s motives are driven by a pain which she’s been carrying for a very long time and she needs Paula to give her the answers. But as Paula is realising, there are a lot of family secrets knocking about that she’s been kept in the dark about.
Malone’s skills as a writer are on full display in After He Died, the complexity of the plot keeps you guessing throughout and hungry to uncover the facts!
What I loved most about this book, (the twists being a close second!) were the characters. Malone has created two women that launch themselves off the pages and fill your mind. I could feel Paula’s vulnerability and confusion as if it was my own, and it was the same with Cara’s curiosity and strength. These two women were like yin and yang, so very different, and yet complimented one another; together they worked.
The ‘goodies’, the ‘badies’ and even the background characters were all so intriguing and perfectly moved around the board creating a truly unique and engrossing game of chess for your brain.
If you like twists, suspicion in every direction and secrets galore, this will be right up your street!
After He Died is out on 20 September in paperback, but you can grab the eBook NOW!
If you want to hear other perspectives on the book, be sure to check out the rest of the tour:
Thank you so much Anne Cater for organising such a wonderful #RandomThingsTours book tour, I have had a marvellous time!
Until next time, Chloé x
Reviews by Chloé 
fab review Chloé !
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