Hereafter by Tara Hudson

Hereafter by Tara Hudson
"Can there truly be love after death?

Drifting in the dark waters of a mysterious river, the only thing Amelia knows for sure is that she's dead. With no recollection of her past life—or her actual death—she's trapped alone in a nightmarish existence. All of this changes when she tries to rescue a boy, Joshua, from drowning in her river. As a ghost, she can do nothing but will him to live. Yet in an unforgettable moment of connection, she helps him survive.

Amelia and Joshua grow ever closer as they begin to uncover the strange circumstances of her death and the secrets of the dark river that held her captive for so long. But even while they struggle to keep their bond hidden from the living world, a frightening spirit named Eli is doing everything in his power to destroy their newfound happiness and drag Amelia back into the ghost world . . . forever."- summary from Amazon

I was really excited to read this book because it sounded really cool. Hudson really does a good job with the whole idea of the Hereafter and what happens there. Amelia's journey in regaining her memories is intriguing and her time with Joshua is fun. I enjoyed reading their scenes together because it would usually elicit a few chuckles from me.

So yes, there are good things about the novel; it's not bad or horrid, but for me, it was just average. It just didn't scream "AMAZING BOOK!" to me. I didn't feel hugely compelled to turn the pages and if I hadn't pushed myself, it probably would've taken me longer to finish the book. My connection to the characters was minimal and there wasn't a huge sense of urgency until the very end.

Overall, the book is not a bad read but, in my opinion, it's not really a book to rush out for. Definitely a library read for me.

FTC: Received e-galley from Netgalley. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.