A decent little tale (pun buried in here). Good visual descriptions and settings, some conflict.. It's a bit difficult determining the audience.. I think this is categorized as adult fiction, but it reads as young adult or even juvenile. fiction. The story does follow a nice arch however, and there is a 'reasonable' conclusion.

I loved this short book. It was perfect for a quick read and I loved the book.
I just reviewed Here and Thereafter by Nicholas "Tac" Whitcomb. #HereandThereafter #NetGalley
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I’ve read a number of stories where a young man apprentices to a wizard over the years. This one has a twist that I wasn’t expecting and I enjoyed that. It’s a quick, easy read.

Pick up a sack and leave your home behind for adventure underneath the tutelage of a wise wizard.
A staple of the fantasy genre.

Whitcomb subverts your expectations by keeping his summary vague and twisting the trope an average fantasy reader expects on its head.

The strength of Whitcomb’s writing is in his descriptions to set up scenes and his plotting. Although I had trouble retaining an interest initially because of the slow development I can appreciate it after finishing the book. Recalling the avid description and care he set on getting the reader to understand August’s everyday life mimics the mundane days of being a farmer. The same could be said of his description of a particular house (to make it as spoiler-free as possible), which while reading I thought was quite unnecessary until a key point of the plot.

Not to mention the characters were fascinating as well. I was intrigued by the foil between the honest farmer boy of August and the performative actions and words of Serville the Wizard. Mae, a woman who has not seen what the world has to offer and remains optimistic even in grim circumstances. Lacy, whose strength and pride in her craft plays a key role in their cause. And of course, Ziggy, who helps others find a way to keep on trucking on.

Once the plot kicked off I became heavily invested in the aspects of August’s new situation. Each page is utilized heavily and nothing feels like fluff. His ability to create such a story that mimics the slog of living through a long day and the quick pace of action-packed sequences within just 112 pages is impressive.

Here and Thereafter was a short but sweet read that wraps up quite nicely. No unanswered questions are left behind that might leave a reader unsatisfied.

Thank you to NetGalley for giving eARC access to this sweet tale. More in-depth review in Goodreads.

There’s some good scene setting in this book, and some lovingly rendered descriptions. Some of them go perhaps a bit too far from me: does someone’s voice really need to be described as “dense, yet womanly”? but on the whole, it does a good job of building the picture for the reader. The intense detail could however probably be saved for introducing the reader to a scene, as opposed to appending an adjective to almost every single noun going through - it slowed the pace of the opening sequence. Some variation on this level of description would have made the tale livelier for me.

This does happen about halfway through the story takes quite an unexpected turn. I have to say I started enjoying it a lot more at this point, as the pace picks up significantly - it felt like quite a different type of story. The ending was also definitely not what I expected - questions are left unanswered and resolution is not quite achieved. Nevertheless, the author is clearly an accomplished writer and I’d be interested in reading anything longer and more fully realised by him. There’s a lot of world here left unexplored!

This was so weird and I liked it.

The story was intriguing throughout as you never knew what would happen next. In some ways I wish it stayed cozy like the beginning, but I was here for the ride. The ending left me conflicted. On one hand I wanted the classic happy ending, but on the other I can see why it went in the direction it did. All in all it was a fun, semi-twisted, read.

Classic 'farm boy is apprenticed to a wizard to learn magic' trope, but an enjoyable story even if it never breaks any new ground. Sometimes a classic story is just as good as a brand new one.

What a fun little snack-sized story.
Even though it is so short, it grabbed my attention immediately. I wanted to go along on this magic-learning journey with August, and wanted to know what was going to happen.
Then it takes a turn I did not expect at all, and that is where it lost me a little bit, but I still enjoyed it.
Superfast read, so perfect for a little inbetween.

"What if a seasoned wizard invites you to apprentice under him?" was what drew me in and I'm glad I was able to read this. The story worked well overall and did what I was hoping for in the fantasy genre. I enjoyed the way Nicholas "Tac" Whitcomb wrote this and thought it was a great concept. I'm excited to read more from the author as I enjoyed this a lot.

"It’s very useful, and I even use it to heat the house.” Serville stepped away and said, “Have at it, lad. Let’s see what you know.” Curiously and cautiously, August hunched over the tools laid before him: a small glass of water, forceps, and the boxes with spices and scrub cuttings. He picked a few up, rolled them in his hands, and sniffed them. He recognized thyme, frankincense, parsley, sage, mastic, clove, rosemary, and even dried orange peels."

A quick read that drew me in immediately. The story follows August (Augie), a farmer who can magically water and plant crops with his hands. When a wizard visits their town, he offers Augie an apprenticeship to further develop his magical skills. I enjoyed the characters but felt that the story was a little rushed and underdeveloped. It didn't turn out at all like I thought it would, making for a twisty plot and ending. Overall, a decent short read for fans of magic and wizardry.

Thank you to Nicholas "Tac" Whitcomb, BooksGoSocial, BookBaby, and NetGalley for an advanced eBook in exchange for my honest review.

2,75–3⭐️

A weird tale of a simple but interesting story. Ideas mixed with writing gave it a spark, author is very talented when it comes to planning and showing the world-building to readers. August's story reminded me of books from my childhood, full of strange happenings, peculiar storyline and unusual endings. In the end, I very much enjoyed it.

Here and Thereafter was a quick but enjoyable read. The book opened with some detailed writing. Kudos for promptly establishing the protagonist and his situation. Magic was casually introduced early in the story and I had a great deal of affinity for the idea of a farmer who casually used his trick to grow better crops.

I wish that the story, plot, and characters had been allowed to evolve at a much more measured pace. Once the story picked up, it seemed to hurry to the conclusion extremely rapidly. This novel could definitely benefit from more world-building. The magic system introduced in the novel could have also used more finesse; at times, it seemed blunt and never seemed fully explored. The book was good, but I yearned for just a little bit more plot development and a lot less speed in the storytelling.

I would definitely consider reading Tac's other works. The unique plot line offered some interesting perspectives and set a strong foundation for future works.