I received a complimentary Kindle e-book in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. Thank you to Anna Quindlen, Random House, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

This book is perfectly beautiful.

The only way that I can describe this novel succinctly is that it is a beautiful love letter to a character. The title says it all - if is AFTER ANNIE.

The characters were so real as they worked through their grief - it was just amazing.

I could keep on saying how beautiful this book was, but I will stop!

5.0 stars
HIGHLY RECOMMEND

I have always loved Anna Quindlen’s writing, and this novel was no exception. She immediately draws you into the place, the characters, and the situation. You want to know more about these people, and as they reveal themselves, you continue to be drawn in.

Quindlen is a master at conveying the small things that make the individuals real—the way they speak, the little things they notice, the seemingly unimportant, inconsequential things we all do but rarely think about. Her characters have personality, foibles, and make choices that reveal who they are and how they think and why you might want to know them better.

In this book, we participate with the members of a young family in the aftermath of the young wife and mother’s untimely death, and we mourn with her best friend as the woman reminisces about their friendship and its many rough spots as well as its joys. It’s as though they are all there in the room with you, and watching them come to terms with their loss reveals insights into grief in all its stages without being maudlin or depressing. Very well done.

This author never disappoints. What an amazing story that portrays grief and loss so beautifully. We need more books like this, especially for those of us who struggle to live with unimaginable heartbreak. All of the characters are so thoughtfully given the voice they deserve, how they are living and trying to cope with the absence of someone so dear. Many tears were shed. I loved it.

If Anna Quindlen wrote it, I’m going to read it. She is an author who consistently writes beautiful books and AFTER ANNIE is no exception. A young mother to four children complains of a headache and dies suddenly before her husband can get her the Advil she asks for (this is not a spoiler). Annie’s death leaves not only her immediate family grief-stricken but everyone whose lives she touched. Written with gentleness, there is something so realistic about the story that grabs you. This woman impacted so many in such subtle ways. While she might not have thought she was remarkable in any way while living, her loss had a profound effect on those who loved, cared about, and relied on her. Central to the story is Annemarie, Annie’s best friend since childhood, struggling to navigate life without her, as she begins to recognize glaringly different turns their lives took, and what she must do to move forward.

Quindlen has created memorable characters by showing us who Annie is through the eyes of her husband Bill, her children, especially her eldest Ali, and Annemarie, as well as her mother-in-law, whose demeanor screams envy, never having accepted Annie as good enough for her son.

Just my thoughts... If there is an afterlife and the departed have a chance to look and listen to what their loved ones have to say about them, wouldn’t that be something? Since we’re not certain this is possible, Annemarie makes it her responsibility by eavesdropping on what people are whispering, gossiping, and so forth, after the funeral and later, I like to think of this as her small contribution to remaining a loyal friend. As if she’s telepathically passing along important messages to Annie.

I loved this book because it captures the essence of the absence of a parent and how that loss begets such profound grief in the everyday but can enlighten us at the same time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Annie was a young mother and wife who dies unexpectedly and through the Seasons after she dies each one, her children, husband and friends tell how they cope with her death and how they are feeling about Annie and how they knew her. An inspiring read that I couldn't put down after reading each Season.

Annie Brown, wife to Bill, and mother of four school-age children, drops dead suddenly just as she is about to feed dinner to her family. Bill is suddenly hit with the realization that he didn't know just how much Annie did to keep family life running smoothly. Oldest child, Ali, feels like she needs to pick up the slack while also dealing with her grief. And then there's Annie's best friend Annemarie who has a substance abuse problem and whose anchor is now gone.

Anna Quindlen's novel sensitively and realistically portrays the actions and feelings of those who are experiencing tremendous grief and loss. Having lost my mother at a relatively young age and being widowed fairly young, I could relate to several of the situations in this story. Life does go on, maybe not as you'd once pictured it would, but there is growth in the healing.

Annie Brown is a nurses’ aide in a nursing home, the mother of four and the wife of a plumber. When she drops dead in her kitchen, no one knows how to cope. Quindlen follows their lives for a year from the viewpoints of her husband, her best friend and her fourteen-year-old daughter. Though not much happens, the writing was beautiful and the grieving process was explored from many different aspects. I thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Oh, Anna Quindlen, how I've missed you! Grief, in After Annie, never seemed so real or so warranted. Anne Brown, young mother of four and wife to Bill, is suddenly dead from a brain aneurysm. She had been preparing dinner, asking for an Advil for her headache, when she falls to the kitchen floor.

The repercussions from this traumatic event move like ripples through her family, her friend and her co-workers. Annie was a force; everyone loved her, except for her mother-in-law. (But that was one of the most supremely dislikable characters you will ever meet.)

Annie leaves behind her 13-year-old daughter Ali and her three younger sons. Bill is devastated, as is her best friend from childhood, Annemarie. Their heart-rending grief manifests itself in different ways. Ali, always the responsible one, takes on the responsibility of running the house and mothering her siblings. Bill is so torn that he escapes into his plumbing business and ignores his suffering children. Perhaps worst off is Annemarie. Her pain puts her in danger of reverting to her addiction.

If you choose to read this fine novel, you should be prepared to suffer the pain and loss because Quindlen brings to life the woman who was Annie. The yearlong span of the novel illustrates how the stages of grief differ among the bereaved. Your feelings of loss and sadness will persist until the story ends. And beyond.

My sincere thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read the ARC copy.

I thoroughly enjoyed this entire book. It’s real, it’s heart warming and so well written. You feel the struggles, the pain and ultimately, the recovery of all the characters. Anyone who has lost a mother, a sister, a spouse or a best friend, can relate to this absorbing storyline. Anna Quindlen has a gift for relating to your deepest, inward feelings. Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. #AfterAnnie, #RandomHousePublishingGroup.

A very well-written book about how family and friends react to the sudden loss of a still-young mother (Annie) of four young children. The featured characters are all doing their best to cope, but all are finding it challenging.

Bill, the husband, is a hard-working plumber who appreciates how important Annie was more than ever, as he attempts to be more of a parent than a plumber.

Annmarie is Annie's lifelong friend, married but without children, much more a free spirit than Annie ever was. She stays close to Annie's family in the role of an involved aunt, though not related by blood.

Ali is Bill and Annie's teenage daughter, mature beyond her years, but still a teenager. She inherited many of the traits of her mother and tries to help fill her shoes.

Though built around a sad, tragic event, this is actually an uplifting story.

This is a generic story of Annie, a mother of 4, who dies suddenly leaving behind 4 children, a husband, a best friend and clients who relied on her as a nursing aid. The story follows the many characters for a year after her death: Bill, the husband, Ali, the oldest and only daughter, Ant, the oldest son, and Annemarie, Annie's drug-addicted best friend. There is nothing truly new or invigorating in this story; it took me half way through the book to begin to care about the characters. There is a weird side-story about a character named Jenny, who is a friend of Ali, and as it turns out a victim of molestation and abuse by her father. But, she disappears a the end. Anna Quindlen, is a well-respected and well-known author. She hasn't published fiction since before COVID. I think her fans will like it. Nothing special for me.

Your absence has gone through me
Like thread through a needle.
Everything I do is stitched with its color.
–W. S. Merwin

This is a story of family, of love and loss, of finding a way through grief, and memories.

This story is told over four seasons: Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall, and begins in the kitchen of their home, as Annie Brown is making dinner for their family, her husband Bill is home, along with their children who are in another room. Annie calls out to her husband, asking him to bring her some Advil, and when he doesn’t respond, she calls his name again. It is the last word she speaks before she falls to the floor.

Bill asks their daughter Ali to call 911, but when the woman who answers asks what her emergency is, she can only say that her mother fell, not knowing what else to say, so her father takes the phone. Soon they will hear the siren approaching, followed by the crew at the door. Soon, both their parents were on their way to the hospital, leaving Ali in charge of her brothers.

This is a story of the effect this has on their family and close friends, their sons, Jamie, Ant and Benjy, and his daughter Ali, who is still a relatively young girl, and is suddenly put in a spot to take on more than she should have to. Bill wanders around after, as if he is lost. Their lives have all been changed.

This is a beautifully shared story, if also a heartbreaking one at times. A story of navigating grief, coming to terms with loss, accepting that loss and finding a path through it all.


Pub Date: 12 Mar 2024

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Random House Publishing Group - Random House, Random House

This beautiful story is about love, marriage, loss, family, adolescence, friendship, forgiveness and memory. I wasn't sure it was for me initially as the story revolves around loss of a parent at a young age. As I was 8 when my father died those memories and missing pages of my story still tinge with sadness. Yet, Anna Quindlen is brilliant in her storytelling - the bobs and weaves that create this intricate balance of life and death, family and friendship, love and loss are remarkable. Death is sad, yet so is living. I've learned to find the bright spots along the way - people, places, experiences that fill those broken places with hope and love. You'll find plenty of that in this story. Perhaps a few tears as well.

This is a book that you start and get pulled into its grip. I can't say the it had the usual story plot that is exciting or there was mystery, I couldn't put it down. The gentle pull into the family life and friendships felt real and comforting. The grief and love was so spot on. Loved this book and recommend.

Every book should be this beautifully written.

Annie is a wife, mother and best friend, and those she leaves behind are wracked with grief.

I was, too.

I ugly-cried as I sat in my favorite cafe, reading Anna Quindlen's "After Annie." I was only a little embarrassed. Quindlen writes such a raw and powerful story. Annie's death leaves a gaping wound as her husband, children and best friend try to navigate the first year after her death. They're lost, for the most part. They make mistakes. They mourn.

I received an advance copy of this novel via Netgalley. I'm glad of it. I might not have picked up the book, otherwise. I've read and enjoyed Quindlen's novels in the past, but she's not an author I follow devotedly. Perhaps, I should.

"After Annie" is a heartfelt novel that offers a fairly realistic look at a family in crisis. Quindlen doesn't rely on huge moments to make her point. It's the little things like the lack of toilet tissue, the insults lobbed at younger siblings and the observation that your daughter might need tampons.

Every book should be this beautifully written.

This review has been shared on Goodreads.

Annie Brown dies suddenly from a brain aneurysm, leaving her husband, her four young children and her closest friend left to struggle without her. Bill Brown finds himself overwhelmed with advice from his mother, support from an old girlfriend and the needs of the children. Bill didn't realize how much Annie did in their lives and how much her planning made each day run smoothly. Annie’s best friend Annemarie is lost without Annie’s support to keep her from her addiction. It falls to Annie's daughter, Ali, to take on her mother's duties and to seek help for her and her brothers while struggling to understand what is happening to her best friend.

Anna Quindlen has written a poignant story about love, grief, acceptance, and family. Annie as a person is developed through the eyes of those who loved and knew her. Far from perfect, her message and beliefs are strong and filled with love. At times I wanted to know Annie and at others to be Annie. There are so many discussion points that I highly recommend this book for a Book Club book. Quindlen reminds us of the unpredictability of our lives and the importance of female friendships.

Lovely book. Definitely have tissues handy.
Thanks to author, publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

I've enjoyed many of Quindlen's books and this was a slower but very tender and moving story about Annie, her family and friends after her sudden passing right before dinner. Her children are, of course, devastated but don't quite understand how their mother could just "cease to exist." Her friends, especially Annemarie, has difficulty dealing with it as well and she recalls many tender moments in their lives that intersected and brought them both joy. It's easy to get caught up in this lovely story and even easier to hug your loved ones after reading it!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

Thank you Net Galley for the free ARC. I have read other books by Anna Quindlen and was looking forward to this one. The basic story is that the mother/wife/daughter and mainstay of a family dies and how her family deals with her death in the months after. I !iked the characters, but it felt a little dragging at times.

Over the course of 1 year, we see how Annie's death affected her husband, children, and best friend. I thought the different viewpoints were all very well written and easy to get into the mind of each of the characters. I thought it was an incredibly thoughtful and touching story.