Book Review: After You

Title After You

Series Me Before You, book 2

Author Jojo Moyes

Release Date September 29, 2015

A NOTE FROM JOJO MOYES ABOUT HER EXCITING NEW NOVEL, AFTER YOU:

Dear Reader,

I wasn't going to write a sequel to Me Before You. But for years, readers kept asking and I kept wondering what Lou did with her life. In the end the idea came, as they sometimes do, at 5:30 in the morning, leaving me sitting bolt upright in my bed and scrambling for my pen.

It has been such a pleasure revisiting Lou and her family, and the Traynors, and confronting them with a whole new set of issues. As ever, they have made me laugh, and cry. I hope readers feel the same way at meeting them—especially Lou—again. And I'm hoping that those who love Will will find plenty to enjoy.

—Jojo Moyes

Review

My review for Me Before You can be found here.

Me Before You was a wonderful book. It was powerful and emotional. It was heartbreaking. It made me ugly cry. I loved it so much.

When I heard that there was going to be a sequel, my first thought was "Oh yay!" Who wouldn't want a sequel to a book that they loved? Well... maybe I wouldn't. As the release date came and went, I still hadn't picked up After You. The more I thought about reading the sequel, the more hesitant I became. What if it's just not as good? Is a sequel really necessary?

The answer, for me, is no. No hesitation. No doubt. After You wasn't needed. It didn't enhance Me Before You. I didn't feel like I did when I read the first book. Luckily, it didn't ruin my enjoyment for it, either. It just made me kind of... sad and disappointed.

Lily didn't improve the story. In fact, I would have preferred she wasn't there at all. Sam didn't really make me feel much of anything. There's wasn't some big spark between him and Louisa that I wanted after her and Will.

Sometimes, I think a standalone should remain a standalone. Me Before You definitely falls into this category. Not all questions need to be answered. Sometimes it's best to just let readers wonder.

Rating

2.5 out of 5 stars