THE AFTER WIFE

A woman must face her fear of loss in Summers’ (The Suite Life, 2019, etc.) bittersweet modern romance.

Abby Carson is still reeling from the sudden death of her beloved husband, Isaac, which occurred nearly a year ago. Depressed and uninspired, she isolates herself in her New York City apartment in an effort to shut out the world. Unsurprisingly, her professional life as a writer quickly begins to crumble, due to a lack of ideas. To make things worse, she finds out that she’ll soon have to move out of her place because she can’t afford a new co-op buy-in in her apartment building. Abby decides to do something drastic; she sells her apartment and moves to a little town in Nova Scotia, where she buys a small house in the country. It soon becomes clear, however, that any ideas of remaining a hermit are out of the question; her neighbors seem intent on becoming best friends despite her attempts to avoid them. To her surprise, as a handyman works on her new place, Abby finds herself slowly warming up to her new community. Things take an interesting turn when romance appears where Abby least expects it. But will she be able to love again after suffering such a tragic loss? Whip-smart, sarcastic, and self-effacing, Abby is delightful as a disillusioned romantic afraid of heartache. It’s hard not to chuckle at some of her observations on love: “This is why I prefer cats. They don’t make you feel things you don’t want to feel. Humiliation. Rejection. Longing.” However, there are also strong narrative threads about dealing with trauma and overcoming adversity that make the main character seem realistically vulnerable. Summers shows readers, through Abby’s choices and actions, how trauma and loss affect many aspects of her protagonist’s daily existence. This makes the story particularly relatable for those who’ve experienced similar emotional challenges. The plot develops gradually, so there’s plenty of time to slow down and savor the journey.

A poignant take on grief and perseverance.