After You'd Gone - Maggie O'Farrell

On a whim Alice Raikes takes a train to Edinburgh to see her family. She has only been there a few minutes when she sees something which she finds so upsetting that she immediately boards the train back to Kings Cross. Within hours she is hit by a car in London traffic and is taken to hospital in a coma. Was this an accident or a suicide attempt? What was it that she saw in Edinburgh that so upset her? Her family gathers at her bedside as Alice drifts through varying levels of consciousness and her story is revealed in a series of flashbacks. When I first started this book I made the mistake of picking it up now and again when I had a few minutes to ...  Read the complete review

If I had to place this book in a 'genre' I would say it is definitely a mystery or thriller. Whilst it isn't a traditional fast paced crime type thriller, it definitely keeps you on the edge of your seat wanting to know what's going to happen next by feeding you just enough bits of information to keep you hooked and wanting to know more, it is this that drives the book forward and makes it hard to put down, as you're always waiting for a bit more to be revealed. The story starts with Alice, who is clearly quite troubled as it is, taking an impromptu train journey from London to Edinborough to visit her sisters. Shortly after arriving she goes to the toilet in ...  Read the complete review

" Not once did they ask me what had prompted me to set fire to the curtains..." This is a book I found on my daughter's bookshelf when I was having a mooch. Something about the cover and the wording on the back made it sound intriguing, so I decided to read it. I finished it within two days! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Maggie O'Farrell was born in Northern Ireland and grew up in Wales and Scotland. She now lives in London. 'After You'd Gone' is her first novel. ~~~~~~~ SYNOPSIS ~~~~~~~ Alice Raikes boards a train at King's Cross on a spontaneous trip to visit her ...  Read the complete review

"What are you supposed to do with all the love you have for somebody if that person is no longer there?" This is the central question of Maggie O'Farrell's debut novel, After You'd Gone. When Alice Raikes makes an impromptu visit to her childhood home in Scotland she inadvertently witnesses something that turns her world upside down. Shaken and numb, she immediately catches the train back to her home in London where, caught up in her own thoughts, she steps out into a busy London road and is knocked down and consequently plunges into a coma. But what was it that Alice saw? And was her 'accident' really an accident or did Alice ...  Read the complete review

I saw this book on a stand in Waterstones last year when it had just been published and after reading the blurb on the back I thought it sounded really interesting. As ever, I had to rush off and promised myself that I would come back later that week to buy a copy. I didn’t and as I could not remember the title either it has taken me a whole year to track it down. I am so glad that I did as “After You’d gone” by Maggie O’Farrell is absolutely brilliant in every way, from the style of writing, to the characterization, the twists and turns in the plot and the emotional rollarcoaster that it takes you on. ~~The Author~~ This ...  Read the complete review