Here After

A Memoir

De: Amy Lin

Narrado por: Amy Lin

Starred reviews from Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, and Library Journal

A March Book of the Month Selection

An Apple Books Best Book of March

A SheReads and ELLE Most Anticipated Book of 2024

Here After is a poetic, raw depiction of an unlikely love followed by a dizzying loss. A stunning, taut memoir from debut Canadian author Amy Lin that will resonate deeply with anyone who has been in grief’s grasp.

“When he dies, I fall out of time.”

Amy Lin never expected to find a love like the one she shares with her husband, Kurtis, a gifted young architect who pulls her toward joy, adventure, and greater self-acceptance. On a sweltering August morning, only a few months shy of the newlyweds’ move to Vancouver, thirty-two-year-old Kurtis heads out to run a half-marathon with Amy’s family. It’s the last time she sees her husband alive.

What follows is a rich and unflinchingly honest portrayal of her life with Kurtis, the vortex created by his death, and the ongoing struggle Amy faces as she attempts to understand her own experience in the context of commonly held “truths” about what the grieving process looks like.

Here After is an intimate story of deep love followed by dizzying loss; a memoir so finely etched that its power will remain with you long after the final word.

©2024 Zibby Media LLC (P)2024 Amy Lin

Love is longer than time — Amy Lin shares her story ✨

For the times when we don’t always know how to remember, this book is for you. It’s about the willingness to learn the names of one’s pains & how can anyone be gone when they’re very much a part of your present. Fall for Amy Lin’s Kurtis & his capacity to love as he decisively tells her: “You weren’t a choice. It was always you.” A lyrical marvel that will hold your heart tenderly, please let it.

Recommended by a widower

Recommended by a widower, my wife died sixteen months ago. Worth reading. I relate a lot.

Raw and real. Timeless.

I selected this book on instinct. Once I got just a few minutes in I realized this was the kind of love story that would draw out the most authentic version of love and fear. I just want to thank the author for sharing as much of her heart and experience as she does. It is a tribute to your marriage and love between any two people - in that way we enter into it with the stark reality that nothing is guaranteed and everything is possible. The way you captured the time leaping of memory and perception helped my own experience of past feel recognized. You also gave me the courage to write about it- even though I am still in pain.

5/5

Beautiful book about pain and loss and grief and emotions. It makes your heart ache, but with the good memories too.

Powerful

Written in short snippets, detailing how Amy and Kurtis met and her life after he died, grief is laid out for everyone to see. Having dealt with grief in a different way, I resonated with some of the things the author went through. This book was powerful and grief should be talked about more often in all its forms. Everyone should read this book.

The prose is beautiful!!

This book is so beautifully written; like poetry. I too lost my husband, the love of my life, my heart on 8/19/2023 so this book was both gut-wrenching and healing. This book will stay with me forever. Thank you Amy for sharing your heart, soul and tears as balm to others’ wounds.

A Tender, Creative Exploration of Grief

This book was short in length but deeply resonant in its exploration of grief. I expected a gut-wrenching tearjerker, but instead found something more nuanced and tender—an honest, moving portrayal of love, loss, and the quiet endurance of memory. The author beautifully wove in moments with her late husband that felt celebratory rather than tragic, reminding me to slow down and notice the small, meaningful details in my own life.

One of the most poignant moments was her reflection on their shared “language,” and the loneliness of being its only remaining speaker after his passing. It hit hard. If you’re in a relationship, this book will make you more present. It quietly nudges you to consider how fragile everything is—and how real and inevitable grief can be.

What stood out most was how bravely the author examined not only her grief but the fears and insecurities that predated her loss. The isolation she experienced afterward—being ghosted and emotionally abandoned as others grew weary of her sorrow—was heartbreaking. It's a powerful reminder that grief isn’t linear or time-bound, and for many, it never really ends.

The writing was thoughtful and artful, likely a reflection of her creative writing background. My only complaint is that I listened to the audiobook, and the constant announcement of chapter numbers disrupted the flow. I’d recommend reading this one in print to really appreciate its structure. Overall, a beautifully told and important memoir.