10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A delightful sequel that continues and lends depth to the series and characters, October 4, 2008
This review is from: Aftershock (Shaken Series) (Paperback)
A good sequel maintains the tone of the original, versus trying to "outdo" the previous book by being more shocking, bigger, better, and ultimately introducing elements of the ridiculous. It treats the characters we've come to love and know with respect, versus creating manipulative situations just to keep the story going, or causing the protagonists to create their own uncharacteristic drama. A good sequel feels like a natural progression, breaking new ground with the characters and their lives.
Aftershock is a good sequel. A minor complaint of mine about Without Warning was that it ended too abruptly, but that was all right because I knew there were at least two more books in the series. Aftershock alleviates that annoyance well. We're returned in this book to the lives of Lily and Anna over a year after they first got together. Anna suddenly assumes a larger amount of responsibility at her family's Premier dealership as her father decides to finally retire, leaving her as CEO. Nearly simultaneously all her plans for growth become possible much sooner than she'd ever imagined as several other dealerships in the region go up for sale in an opportunity too good to pass up.
Unfortunately, this means working long hours, and making sacrifices in her life in order that her brother-in-law can be there for his wife and son. Lily is something of a workaholic herself, so maintains an understanding attitude. But she finds herself falling into self-destructive patterns, exacerbated by childhood insecurities, as some unhappy personal events in her life shake her foundations, and she unhappily turns to alcohol.
Anna struggles to be a supportive partner, while hiding their problems from the rest of the family, and finally has to make some tough decisions in order to stop enabling Lily. Lily finds herself drowning in her out-of-control life, and it takes extreme personal courage and the help from some friends to begin fighting her addiction. The compassionate and seemingly realistic ways these issues are handled makes what could be a very difficult story (read: a downer, something I don't necessarily like in my romantic, escapist fiction) end up being a very touching and life-affirming continuation of the lives of Anna and Lily.
An excellent novel. Can't wait for the next one.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Tough Issues, December 25, 2008
This review is from: Aftershock (Shaken Series) (Paperback)
It is no secret to anyone who has read my reviews that I love KG MacGregor (her work that is). She has never written a book I haven't liked. That said, I found this one a little hard to swallow. As it was originally published as part of "Shaken," this installment truly added to the story. However, as a stand-alone book it seems a little isolated. By that I mean it deals with alcoholism and workaholism, but otherwise doesn't take the protagonists, Anna and Lily, forward. For that reason, I won't go into any more detail in this review.
Note - I'm looking forward to installment 3 of the "Shaken" series (I think it's called "Small Packages"). One has to read "Aftershock" to bridge the gap between "Without Warning" and the final book. However, don't expect any revelations or peace from this second book in the series.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome, September 9, 2011
This review is from: Aftershock (Shaken Series) (Paperback)
This book was received in a timely manner and was in excellent condition. All of which met my expectations. I have had no bad experiences with Amazon.
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