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About the Book

About the Book

What Comes After

After the shocking death of two teenage boys tears apart a community in the Pacific Northwest, a mysterious pregnant girl emerges out of the woods and into the lives of those same boys’ families --- a moving and hopeful novel about forgiveness and human connection.

In misty, coastal Washington State, Isaac lives alone with his dog, grieving the recent death of his teenage son, Daniel. Next door, Lorrie, a working single mother, struggles with a heinous act committed by her own teenage son. Separated by only a silvery stretch of trees, the two parents are emotionally stranded, isolated by their great losses --- until an unfamiliar 16-year-old girl shows up, bridges the gap and changes everything.

Evangeline’s arrival at first feels like a blessing, but she is also clearly hiding something. When Isaac, who has retreated into his Quaker faith, isn’t equipped to handle her alone, Lorrie forges her own relationship with the girl. Soon all three characters are forced to examine what really happened in their overlapping pasts, and what it all possibly means for a shared future.

With a propulsive mystery at its core, WHAT COMES AFTER offers an unforgettable story of loss and anger, but also of kindness and hope, courage and forgiveness. It is a deeply moving account of strangers and friends not only helping each other forward after tragedy, but inspiring a new kind of family.

Audiobook available; read by Mark Deakins, Kristen DiMercurio and Kirby Heyborne

What Comes After
by JoAnne Tompkins

  • Publication Date: April 5, 2022
  • Genres: Fiction, Mystery
  • Paperback: 432 pages
  • Publisher: Riverhead Books
  • ISBN-10: 0593086007
  • ISBN-13: 9780593086001