The book was good, not great. I enjoyed the story…but I expected a little more detail about Alice. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

I just reviewed The World After Alice by Lauren Aliza Green. #TheWorldAfterAlice #NetGalley

I would like to thank Viking, Raven Ross and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book as an ARC. I started out really intrigued by this premise. Alice is a 16 year old girl-bright, a gifted violinist, a loving family. She jumps off a bridge and her body is never found. 12 years later, her brother and her best friend are getting married. The story is told in 2 different timelines- the time just before and just after the suicide, and the current timeline- the wedding. The timelines are not well delineated. The chapters are arranged in 4 sections, but no hint as you start the section as to when it is happening. Is it too much to ask for a present day, or a 12 years ago subtitle? The past timelines review the suicide and the what led to it( although that is not ever made completely clear). The current timeline is the wedding and the families reuniting. Alice and Benji's parents are now divorced. Nick, the father is remarried with a child and a deep secret. Linnie has a boyfriend who used to teach at Alice's school. There is also an illusion to a possible relationship between Peter ( Morgan's father) and Linnie.There are also flashbacks within the sections, making things a bit unwieldy- Alice and Benji's parents are now divorced and there are flashbacks to their relationship that could use clarifying. Actually there is a lot that could use clarifying. The whole character of Linnie's boyfriend is muddled and vague. Morgan's mother- Sequoia, is absent, as she apparently has been most of Morgan's life , but that is really not addressed.Story lines meander and disappear. I see that other readers have mentioned the use of big obscure words, which I partially agree with, ( some were odd choices) but to me, the whole book needed an editor. Things were vague and blurry, and were hard to understand. There is an epilogue, but that does not clear much up either. All in all, it was an interesting premise, that started out well, but faded for me.

A family drama, white privilege, and mostly unlikeable characters. The most interesting character is Alice, and she commits suicide before the story begins. Perhaps they can be forgiven because they are utterly broken after Alice dies. There are secret relationships, and a surprise wedding that brings the troubled families together. Alice looms over the wedding weekend as the timeline moves from present to past, and back again.

This book gripped me from the beginning; I was immediately invested. This is a well-written debut novel and I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you, NatGalley for the advanced copy. This one will be released in July.

4.5 stars

Lauren Aliza Green’s debut THE WORLD AFTER ALICE is a strong character-driven novel that shows the repercussions of Alice’s suicide on her family, friends, and acquaintances 12 years later.

Alice committed suicide as a successful 16 year old violinist, and now Alice’s younger brother Benji is marrying Alice’s friend Morgan, and the family comes together for their wedding weekend. The last time they were all together was at Alice’s funeral under very different circumstances.

I really liked the portrait the author created of each character, particularly Alice’s parents Nick and Linnie, who divorced after Alice’s death. I thought the author treated Nick’s second wife Caro with a lot of tenderness. The author’s writing style really spoke to me and, while this novel is slower-paced, I couldn’t stop turning the pages. The reader doesn’t hear from Alice, but I didn’t feel shortchanged by not hearing from her directly. I felt like I learned Alice’s essence from the characters we heard from.

At first I was a bit leery of this debut because on the first page of Chapter 1 I saw a word (“averred”) that I had never seen before. Fortunately, there were only a handful of words I didn’t know throughout the whole novel because I can find it intimidating when I have to look up one or more words on every page.

I liked hearing from a few different characters, but there are not an overwhelming number of perspectives. I’m not sure I “got” the Peter character in the way I should have. I appreciated hearing his perspective, but maybe I might have missed something, or perhaps he should have had a tighter arc.

All in all, this was a very strong debut, and I will definitely pick up Green’s future novels. THE WORLD AFTER ALICE publishes July 2, 2024.

This was an intense novel about grief, family and moving on.
The characters had a lot of depth and we learn about Alice through these characters. But it was still a dark book as the family is still trying to move forward from tragedy.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC

To be honest, the blurb did not interest me —a story of two families. One family has lost their daughter, Alice. Now the son, Alice's brother Benji, is getting married to the best friend of Alice and so the families are reuniting for the first time after Alice's death.

The only reason I wanted to read this book is because it's from a renowned and a favourite publishing house, Penguin.

Sadly, this book didn't work for me. The writing, the storytelling, the execution of the story, too many characters —everything was so confusing. I found it really hard to follow. I didn't understand why Alice’s character or her death was even necessary.

I didn't know what was going on and after a point, I wasn't interested to know. Very disappointed.

I requested to read and review this book for free from Penguin Random House LLC. This story is about death, love, mystery, and drama. When death happens to someone does it shape everyone around them differently or would they still make the same choices. Given another chance would Alice make another choice? Would her family and friends really see what is happening before them? Or would life simply go on without anything changing. Secrets have a way of coming out or what we think we know as secrets. Life is unpredictable. This story can be read anywhere but by a mature audience.

I loved this book. The writing was smooth with poignant metaphors and analogies, life observations and interpersonal dynamics. Some characters I liked, some I didn’t, but I enjoyed each one and how the writer wove the story through the multiple 3rd person POVs. The anticipation of getting the answers to the unknowns leading up to Alice’s untimely death was perfect. Often character study books can drag, but this story kept me engaged throughout. I marvel at thoughtful intricacies of the book through the life lessons, or lack there of, revelations, character flaws, acceptances, and forgiveness. I highly recommend this book and feel it will be a great success. Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Viking publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

An evocative novel tracing Benji and Morgan’s approaching wedding celebrations. The young couple are certain about their relationship but apprehensive of their fractured families reuniting on the first occasion since the funeral of Benji’s sister and Morgan’s best friend Alice. Similarly, Benji’s parents and Morgan’s father are concerned and skeptical of their recently revealed relationship. The story moves to the past, recounting the brilliance and luminosity of Alice, who hides her emotional suffering. As each character is intricately described, their secrets are slowly divulged. The impending wedding is an unavoidable confrontation to suppressed emotional trauma and as each character revisits their relationship with Alice, there are expressions of regret coupled with a version of their truth that allows them to cope. When Benji and Morgan finally reveal their own untold truths, there is a chance to heal the sadness of the past and hope for their relationship. A beautifully portrayed story of the devastation when a cherished daughter, sister, friend and student is lost.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

The basic premise of the story centers around the life of 2 families years after the death of the teenage daughter of one of the families. One family has lost a daughter and the second family has lost their daughter's best friend. The friend that is left becomes romantically involved with the dead girl's brother and they decide to marry. Both families are shocked by this because the young couple had kept it a secret that they were even in contact with one another, let alone dating. I did enjoy the story but there was one feature of the writing that just totally distracted me while reading. The author seemed to be on a quest to use as many obscure words as she could find throughout the whole book. Even though I am a highly educated reader, many of the words were new to me and, in a lot cases, I couldn't even deduce what they meant from the context in which they were written. If I had been reading the book for educational purposes, that might be ok. Stop, look up the word, and remember it as a learning exercise. But I read for entertainment and having to stop so many times to look up a word was just annoying. I did finish the book because I wanted to know how it ended, but I doubt that I will ever read another book by this author.

As a huge fan of debut novels and the excitement of seeing an authors dreams become a reality, this book was pretty fun! This book was psychological, intriguing, and even with some slow pacing at times, I wanted to keep reading to figure out the mystery behind everyone's connected story. When I first picked it up I had to force myself to put it down and go to bed so I could a) enjoy the book for longer and b) not hate myself for staying up past 2am haha.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book.

It has a tense start. A beautiful high school girl is seen on the edge of the icy-cold Hudson River holding on to her violin case. It appears she’s about to jump. And yet, her parents hope that maybe – just maybe – this can’t be true. Will Alice unexpectedly show up? It immediately grabs your attention.

From the dramatic beginning, it shifts into a wedding. I like it when an author tells you fairly quickly the names of the characters. The bride is Morgan Hensley and the groom is Benji Weil. By the end of the book, it feels like people we know and like or don’t like. We get a clear picture of their parents and family life. There is not a dull moment.

The amazing part of the book is the detail descriptions of each person that many of us can relate to -- those somehow linked together trying to solve their problems. This story shows how we all make rash decisions at times which can turn into one bad thing after another if we’re not careful. And yet, there’s always positives to ponder. It’s not long but it can feel like it with a lot to digest. What does it all mean? Just like music, I suppose there are many interpretations.

My thanks to Viking Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book with an expected release date of July 2, 2024.

This book tended to jump around a lot but I did enjoy once I got the hang of it. Alice, though never seen was described by each family member and friend. There were many sides to Alice and her effect on each person in her world. Everyone deals with death in their own way which is shown in this story.

The World After Alice explores an interesting side to grief and how those are left behind cope. I found it very heartbreaking and very real and true. Some of the back and forth was a little difficult to follow, but overall, it was enjoyable yet very sad. Very good debut novel!

Thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange of an honest review.

Lauren Aliza Green wrote a somber, heart aching novel with The World After Alice.
Alice was a child prodigy in violin, until one day she wasn’t. Her mother thought she still could be, but Alice had lost her interest.
Her dad lost his interest in her mom. Alice though a teen, lost interest in everything.
Come find the cause of the heart ache Alice.
It was a slow moving storyline for me, but a powerful look into feelings I hope I never experienced.

This was a really sad book. Also kinda hard to follow with the back and forth time line and being there for a surprise party I mean wedding. The characters also made me mad with thoughts and emotions. Decently written for their first book

Highly recommend this one!! This is my first time reading one of their books but it won't be the last! This book sucks you in from the get-go and you will find yourself thinking about the characters long after you finish it. Do yourself a favor and get this book!!

Well, while I enjoyed this book, I felt a lot of emotions. Mostly a black hole of depression. I had questions and concerns and I felt all over the place. With that being said, it was great! I was happy for the change of pace, a breath of fresh air was welcomed!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ ½
Genre: Literary Fiction

This is the author’s debut novel and tells the story of the Weil family members after the tragic death of sixteen-year-old Alice. The book starts with Alice’s brother Benji and her best friend Morgan getting married.

The present time is about twelve years after the death of Alice, and the book occasionally goes into the past period to show how this tragic death has affected all the members of the family. Nick, Benji’s father, has been fired from his job, and he doesn’t want his second and younger wife, Cara, who used to be his secretary and mistress, to find out. On the other hand, his first wife, Linnie, has a new boyfriend with a disturbing past.

Each and every person there is confronted with a multitude of challenges. I believe that the author did an excellent job of developing the characters by revealing both their previous selves and their current personalities. The characters had a genuine and believable feel to them. This debut novel reinforces the idea that nobody is perfect and that people should stick together in harsh and difficult times.

There were times when the pace was a little slow, but I believe that is to be expected for a story of this nature. The story is told from the perspective of a third person, which is a good choice because the viewpoint continues to shift from one character to another throughout the narrative. The author's decision to stick to this style rather than using first-person narration is something I sincerely appreciate. This ended up being a nice and fascinating read. All in all, a good debut novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book.

The World After Alice is a book that explores grief related to suicide. The story is told through the eyes of those who were close to Alice on her brother and best friend’s wedding day with flashbacks to the past. It shows how death and grief can change how you love and interact with those around for years afterwards. The book was well written and even though I do not have a personal connection with the topic I gained perspective from these characters.