The Aftermath: Review

The Aftermath by R.J. Prescott
Pages: 368


Series: The Hurricane #2
Genres: Sports Romance, New Adult
Also by this author: Christmas With You: an anthology
Goodreads

The second book in a New Adult fiction series from USA Today bestselling author R.J. Prescott.
Cormac "The Hurricane" O'Connell's star is on the rise. Billed as the most promising young boxer of his generation, his new career is taking him to places he never dreamed. But O'Connell only needs one thing in life: his wife. In her final year of college, Em cannot follow him around the world but together they make it work. Just when everything they ever wanted is on the horizon, the past resurfaces to haunt them, and O'Connell realizes that justice might not be a part of his happy ever after. He couldn't protect Em once before, but in the aftermath of the hurricane, he will make sure that never happens again.

The Aftermath
RJ Prescott

The Aftermath has been one of my most anticipated books this year! I picked up The Hurricane on a whim last year when it was released because, hello, its about a fighter and I love fighter books! It was one of those books that made me remember why I love reading!! Seriously, if you haven’t read The Hurricane, go now and get it!

So, how much did I love The Aftermath? A lot. An enormous amount. I could go on but you get the point. Con and Em are probably 2 of my favorite characters from any new adult novel. They have really crummy pasts (typical in NA books). However, these two deal with it in ways that are actually believable! For example, Em is strong and tough, but still sad and vulnerable as well. If she were just strong and tough it wouldn’t be realistic. Con is even better. He struggles with his anger but not in the way you think. Yes, he hates his mom and he hates Frank. But his anger is over his inability to help Em! Its really deep and powerful. And, this book is told from his POV so you get in his head and its REAL! His desperation to feel like he is ‘doing something’ is palpable! I cried for Em because her story is tragic but I really wept for Con because his emotions are raw. That feeling of helplessness is so much more realistic than just straight anger. Its so well written, so kudos to RJ Prescott for that!

The secondary characters are the bomb! I really hope that Liam, Tommy, and Keir get their own books (please RJ Prescott!!!). They are funny, devoted, and charming so I think getting to hear their stories would be awesome!

The Aftermath managed to give me ‘The Feels’ without the eye roll factor. You know what I mean-you read so many NA books that get a bit cheesy. The emotions come off as overly dramatic. This is not the case in The Aftermath and its everything I want in an NA book .

[bctt tweet=”The Aftermath gives you all ‘The Feels’ without being cheesy or overly dramatic!”]

 

• POV: 1st (Con’s)
• Tears: Yes
• Trope: Fighter, Alpha Male, Tortured Hero
• Triggers: Rape, Kidnapping
• Cliffhanger: No
• HEA: View Spoiler »Yes « Hide Spoiler

 

Fighting for Flight by JB Salsbury, Fighting Silence by Aly Martinez, Real by Katy Evans, Fighting to Start by SL Ziegler…then you will probably like The Aftermath!

 

 

 

 

USA Today bestselling author R.J. Prescott was born in Cardiff, South Wales, and studied law at the University of Bristol, England. Four weeks before graduation she fell in love, and stayed. Ten years later, she convinced her crazy, wonderful firefighter husband to move back to Cardiff where they now live with their two equally crazy sons.

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“Okay. Open your eyes. What do you think?” I took my hands away and let Em look. This was almost as nerve wracking as asking her to marry me. Back then I was asking her to forget all the crap surrounding me and imagine a better version who’d make something of themselves. I was asking her to take a chance on me. Now I was doing the same with this house.

Tommy was right. It was a shit hole. But when I was done, it would be a palace. A home for the two of us no one could ever take away. I stared at her expression, looking for any sign at all about how she felt.

“I love it,” she whispered, looking up at it in awe. I let out a deep breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding.

“I know it doesn’t look like much now, but imagine if I cleared out and repaired the front garden, put in new windows and new fencing. Liam and I have gone over this place inch by inch, and the roof is sound. With a bit of hard work, it’ll look great.”

I was rambling now. She’d already agreed to it, so I have no idea why I was giving her the hard sell.

“Can we afford it?” she asked, her eyes full of wonder.

“It’d take all our money and then some. But I’ve worked out a loan with Danny for what we need, and we can pay him back with the rent money we’ll save on our flat. We’ll have to fix it up on a budget but the boys have offered to help with the labor.”

With a squeal, Em threw her arms around my neck and kissed me loudly. “I can’t believe you found this place. It’s going to be amazing! I know I can’t do any building work but I can clean, strip wallpaper, and paint,” she babbled excitedly. “Ooow, we could go and get some paint samples today,” she suggested.

“We haven’t even had an offer accepted yet,” I pointed out with a chuckle.

“I know, but there’s nothing wrong with planning ahead. Can we look inside?”

“Sure. The agent is meeting us in a few minutes to show us around. It’s pretty rough inside, but the rooms are a nice size. You just have to use your imagination.”

“I can do that,” she whispered as she smiled at me adoringly. Her eyes were full of everything I’d felt when I’d first seen the place, and I knew she was imagining our future in a real home of our own.

My heart was so full I felt invincible. The way she was looking at me, you’d think I’d built this place brick by brick myself. I’d spend the rest of the day trailing after her doing whatever she liked just to keep that look. With another squeal, she covered my face in tiny kisses, making me laugh, until a discrete cough sounded behind us.

“Are you here for the viewing?” a skinny kid who looked about my age asked.

“Yes please,” Em answered. She was lit up inside and practically radiated happiness. People couldn’t help but be charmed by her natural warmth, and he was no exception. He smiled broadly at her and with a wink said, “Let’s go and check it out.”

My crossed arms and fierce glare told him that I wouldn’t tolerate another wink, and he got the message as he messed around with the keys nervously. Rolling her eyes, Em pulled on my arms until I uncrossed them and clasped her fingers between mine. She was used to me getting territorial around her but she really had no idea how many hungry looks followed her around.

The agent used his shoulder to push open the front door, past a mountain of junk mail, then fussed about brushing the dirt and paint chips off his suit. The previous owner really had gone to town with a baseball bat, and literally everything would need replacing but it didn’t matter. The more we looked, the more Em fell in love.

By the time we were done, there were stars in her eyes. Having realized that flirting with Em was hazardous to his health, the agent couldn’t get out of there quick enough. He told us to call the office if we wanted to make an offer.

“I’ll be in touch,” I promised him menacingly, mostly just to fuck with him, but he practically wet himself as he hightailed it back to his car. Em was so caught up in the house she didn’t notice. It was going to be a hell of a day.

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