So happy to be part of this exciting and unique blog tour for this awesome book! Each blog is going to feature a different character of the book and I got Kate. So, y'all will get to hear a bit about her, see my review and get some questions answered from the author herself! This blog tour is unique in the way that it's a Scavenger Hunt, so head on over to the event headquarters after you read this post to get in on the fun and maybe even win a giveaway! https://www.facebook.com/events/740484686015914/
My Rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars!
About Between Before and After:
Five friends. Three days. One heart-stopping discovery.
Three years ago, Danny Morris left behind a gun, a tonne of questions and a gaping hole in the lives of those who loved him. What he didn’t leave was a suicide note.
On the anniversary of his death, his closest friends gather at his parents’ beach house in New Zealand's idyllic Marlborough Sounds. Danny’s girlfriend, Kate, holds fast to his memory by continuing to live in the house they shared.
Struggling to move on with her life, her blossoming feelings for Danny’s best friend, Finn, only complicate matters. Withdrawing from his high-flying lifestyle, Max has carved out a much simpler life. Self-medicating with alcohol, fighting off nightmares he refuses to talk about, the memory of finding Danny’s body has him sailing dangerously close to the edge. While Finn is finally ready to address his feelings for Kate, trying to save Max from himself dredges up long-buried anger and frustration that threaten to overwhelm him. For Lacey and Gavin, a recent bereavement gives them a heart-wrenching insight of a different kind.
Instead of time easing the pain, the group find themselves stuck in limbo, awaiting the understanding and peace that has so far eluded them.
Three years ago, a single bullet ricocheted through all of them - and this year everything will change again.
My Thoughts:
* I received this book for review from the author, this in no way affects my thoughts expressed below*
4.5 of 5 Stars
I was so excited going into this book. I follow
this author on her Facebook page, and had seen so many amazing teasers
that really drew me in.
"Three years ago, Danny Morris left
behind a gun, a tonne of questions and a gaping hole in the lives of
those who loved him. What he didn’t leave was a suicide note."
Yeah,
that's enough to make anyone curious! On the anniversary of his death
his friends gather together at his parent's New Zealand beach house.
Though this sounds morbid and scary and maybe not something you'd
usually read I recommend you give it a shot. All of the characters are
dealing with their pain in different ways, and the book truly brought so
many emotions out in me. I was a little confused at some points, but
that happens when there are so many characters I suppose. I don't feel
like it took too much away from the book.
I have to say, the
writing style of the author so made the book. It feels like Amanda Dick
was sitting in front of me telling this story. It flows that smooth. I
feel like this is one of those books that needs to be written. It's not
just about Danny, it's about the people left in the aftermath. The ones
he left behind. Their gut-wrenching, unbearable pain. Their struggle to
move on when they are just as lost and confused as when the bullet
echoed. This beautiful, heart-wrenching story is one that will stay with
me for a long time. To fans of books that make you think, about life,
about death, about everything: this is a book you might just fall in
love with.
*I received this book for review from the author, this in no way affected my thoughts as expressed in this review.*
Meet Kate!
Excerpt:
“I’m in charge of collecting the mussels for dinner – chef’s orders,” she smiled over her shoulder, heading for the steps.
“I’ll come with you,” Finn said immediately, putting his beer on the deck beside his chair and standing up.The thoughts she had had earlier made another appearance, and she quickly pushed them aside. She couldn’t spend the next few days avoiding him just because she had some kind of girly crush she was having trouble getting over.
He fell into step beside her as they made their way over the lawn and down onto the sandy beach. She struggled for something to say to ease the tension but for once, nothing came.
“How’s your stomach?” Finn asked finally.
“It’s fine now.” She smiled over at him briefly as they strolled along the sand towards the jetty closest to the house. “Maybe those seasickness pills finally kicked in.”
They reached the weather-beaten wooden jetty and he climbed up onto it first, offering her his hand. Gingerly, she took it. His fingers closed around hers, safe and solid and reliable, and she had to keep telling herself that it was nothing, he was just being his usual, chivalrous self. She wished her heart would stop thumping in her ears so she could think straight.
He pulled her up onto the jetty next to him. Being in such close proximity didn’t help clear up any of the confusion she felt – if anything, it made it worse. Part of her wanted to crawl into his arms. The other part of her wanted to run from him. She kept telling herself that he had Kelly – he wasn’t available. Even if he was, she wasn’t sure that would make any difference. If he would just keep his distance, she could get over this infatuation, or whatever the hell this was. Only, he didn’t seem to be able to do that.
They walked in silence down the length of the jetty. The water was a gorgeous azure blue, clear and shallow beneath them. A multitude of sea life attached themselves to the pylons, including starfish and mussels. She wasn’t normally a huge fan of mussels, but it always seemed to be the thing to do here, and she was keen to keep up the old traditions, the ones that Danny had started when they first began coming here all those years ago. It seemed important, a way of keeping his memory alive.
“Watch your step,” he warned, heading down the few wooden steps built into the side of the jetty, leading into the water.
The steps were slippery at the best of times, and she took them slowly, following him. He reached for the bowl and she handed it to him as he began to collect the mussels that had attached themselves to the pylons, dropping them into the bowl. It wasn’t a two-person job, so she sat down on the step, smoothing her skirt down over her thighs. She searched for something safe to talk about.
“So, how’s Kelly?” she ventured, keeping her tone casual.
He stopped what he was doing and sat back on his heels. “We broke up.”
“What? When?”
”About a month ago? Something like that.”
Today was February fifteenth. Six weeks after what happened between them at New Years. Was he trying to tell her something?
“I’m so sorry – I didn’t know. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Didn’t want to make a big deal out of it.”
She got the feeling he might have been waiting for the right moment to tell her. Did the others know? If they did, they hadn’t mentioned it. Had he asked them not to? Was she reading too much into this? Her head spun.
“It was a mutual thing,” he continued. “It just wasn’t working. She wanted the whole deal – big wedding, couple of kids, white picket fence.”
“And you didn’t?”
He stared at the mussels he had piled in the bowl at his feet. “That’s the thing,” he said, “I did want all that – I mean, I do want all that. Just not with her.”
The pregnant silence between them was almost as deafening as the cicadas.
About the Author:
Amanda Dick is a night-owl, coffee addict, movie buff and music lover. She also writes.
Born in Opotiki, New Zealand, she is rather partial to dark chocolate and believes in the power of a good vanilla latte. She has a passion for the colour green (particularly in clothes and gemstones) and insists there is nothing sexier than a man in a kilt.
She spent several months traveling around Europe in her late 20’s (there’s a story there – she’ll get around to writing it one day). After ridding herself of her wanderlust, she met the love of her life (while working to pay off said wanderlust) in Edinburgh, Scotland. They moved in together the week after their first date – so yes, she believes in love at first sight. She also believes in Women's Intuition and following your heart.
She writes on her trusty laptop, predominantly late at night, when it's quiet and interruptions are few. Most of all, she enjoys writing about human behaviour - love, loss, joy, grief, friendship and relationships in general. She loves to put normal, everyday people into situations that will test their boundaries. She is passionately curious about how we, as human beings, react when pushed to the edge.
After living in Scotland for five years, she has now settled back home in New Zealand, where she lives with her husband and two children.
Q&A With The Author:
1.)
Hey Amanda! First off, I really loved reading your book: Between Before
And After. One thing I think is really cool about your book is you
don't focus so much on the person who ended their life, but the ones
that have to live with his decision. I feel like this could really help
people going through a similar situation out there I have to ask, what
prompted you to write a book about such a serious subject? You did a
great job with it, I think, by the way!
A: Wow, great question! Yes, this book was always about the aftermath
of suicide, rather than the decision itself. Mainly, I think, because
oftentimes the decision is made in private. I hope that this book WILL
find it's way into those who it may really be able to help, those who
are perhaps thinking the world would be better off without them. If
only they knew the impact their life has made on others, and how their
decision will haunt those left behind. As to my inspiration, it came
from the childhood friend of my husband's, who committed suicide in the
late 90's. I saw how it affected my husband, and the questions it
raised amongst those who knew his friend. It completely blindsided
everyone, so unexpected. My writer's mind wanted to explore that, so I
created Danny Morris. I deliberately kept his character in the
background throughout the book, not showing his side of the story, as I
believe that the story, while overshadowed by his actions, wasn't
actually about him. It was about his decision and how it affected those
who loved him.
2.) What was the hardest part of writing this book?
A: Showing each character as an individual, and how each was handling
their grief. We deal with grief differently, and I wanted to show that
in the book, through the characters. Writing Max's point of view was
harder than the others, only because I was more graphic with what he had
seen. Sitting there at my desk, researching gunshot wounds to the head
on the internet, it was pretty horrifying. It wasn't as difficult as I
thought to put myself in Max's shoes - but it was difficult to get to
sleep some nights, with those images swimming around in my head. It's
hard to switch off sometimes. It's natural for your imagination to
wander, and it doesn't take very much to kick-start it!
3.) So Amanda, I think one more very important question I have to ask
is, what's in store for us next? Do you have another book in the works?
As it happens, I'm working on another story at the moment. Called "Into
the Void", it's a murder/mystery about a missing person. I don't want
to give away any spoilers, but it's a bit darker than my first two
books. As with the others though, it focuses on finding hope out of
tragedy
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