This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

As a parent with a son, it's hard to read about someone's child dying. Perhaps if I had chosen to read this at a different time (not during a pandemic while working in healthcare) I would have been able to handle the heartbreaking subject. But apart from feeling quite depressed as I was reading this, the split possible endings just didn't do it for me.

This heartbreaking story is going to stay with me for a long time. I haven’t had a book hangover this bad in awhile!

As a mother of 4, it is my biggest fear having one of my children become terminally ill. When Max and Pip had to make big decisions regarding the future of Dylan’s life, I just couldn’t even imagine having to do something like that myself. The strength of these parents! Even though my heart was breaking, Mackintosh writes with quick chapters, relatable and developed characters, and hope woven throughout the story.  

When a book breaks your heart, makes you mad, makes you cry, and has you contemplate life and all things introspective, I’m not sure how you can rate that experience!

Absolutely amazing read. I enjoy her books very much and this was no exception. It was not what i was expecting and wound up being so much more. I have already recommended to two of my coworkers!

Pip and Max Adams life is turned upside down when their young child is diagnosed with cancer. Their days are marked by countless hours at the pediatric unit where Dylan receives his chemotherapy.

They see other children come and go and when a child is released healthy and happy they imagine that one day that will be their child but those dreams are shattered when Dr. Leila Khalili comes back with a grim diagnosis.

After thinking things through Pip and Max reach a conclusion on what to do next however they are not on the same page and now the courts must intervene to determine what is best for Dylan. The couple who thought their love would get them through this tragedy is now faced with being on opposite sides. Both fighting for their son and both still very much in love but how will they face this challenge?

At this part of the narrative the author decides to take the reader through two different story lines to imagine what happens depending on which choice the parents will have to take. I really liked this and thought it was an interesting way to show that regardless of the path, this family was going to go through the most difficult time of their lives. This was a sad and moving story and despite the subject matter it was a page-turner because I was invested in what happened to the characters.

Aaaaand I’m crying. I cried through so much of this book. I don’t have kids, but After The End hit close to home for me in other ways. I had no idea what to expect from this book, and am pleasantly surprised I’m giving it an 8/10!! Thank you so much to @putnambooks and @meagankharris for the digital copy (and for recommending this to me!!)⁣
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Pip and Max Adams’ 3 year-old son, Dylan, has a brain tumor. His case is terminal. His quality of life is almost non-existent, and he is severely disabled. His parents are faced with a decision no one should ever have to make: take Dylan to the U.S. for a new treatment that might give him a few more years, or let him go. The first half of After The End shows us “Before”. Faced with the most horrible decision of their lives, Pip and Max do not agree on which course of action is in Dylan’s best interest, and they eventually face each other in court to let the judge decide. The second half is “After”, alternating between two different timelines: one in which the court sided with Pip, and the other with Max.⁣
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I was WITH these characters every step of the way. The alternate timelines in the second half was EXACTLY what I wanted from this book, and that's exactly what makes it unique. The first half was great, but the second half was incredible. I tore through it desperately wanting an answer to which parent was “right” (I sided very firmly with Pip), but that’s not what this book is about. When we make a life altering decision, we can’t look down both paths and see where each one leads. We use the information we have at the time to make the best decision we can, and that’s all we can do. For anyone who has ever wondered “what if”, After The End explores that idea in such a powerful way, and I was absolutely glued to the story.⁣

I will not be reviewing this book. It is a book that I typically would gravitate to, however, for some reason my timing is off, and it has not held my interest. instead of giving it a poor review, I will read and review at a later time. thank you.

This is not what I expected from Clare Mackintosh....I wanted a thriller but this was not it. A good read nonetheless,

As a parent, this book rocked me.  What choices you make as a parent can seem tough day to day, but the decision Max and Pip are faced with is unbearable.  This book was so unique I don't think it's getting near the attention and accolades it deserves.  I don't reread too many books, but I want to read this one again soon.  Pick it up - you won't regret it!

I have loved all of Clare’s previous books, and so I assumed I would love this one too. Unfortunately this book is a lot different than her previous books and I had a very difficult time getting into the story. It was also extremely depressing and as such, it just was not for me. I have chosen not to post a negative review on my social media for this book, but have posted raving reviews of her others books instead.

Warning, my review contains spoilers. However, this is not really a thriller so I don't think my review will spoil the book.  The book deals with one of those cases we keep reading about in the news.  A couple with a terminally ill child want to take their child to another country for treatment but the hospital feels it is not in the child's best interests. The case ends up in court.  In this case, though, the parents disagree on the child's treatment. The father wants to take his son to the US for new "experimental" treatment which MAY give the child more time to live.  The mother, however, feels that the child has suffered enough and even with the US treatment will not be able to live a meaningful and pain-free life.  The child has suffered brain damage and is paraplegic.  It is a parents' worst nightmare.  Naturally there is always hope for a miracle cure, something that will give them longer time with their son, but at the same time, especially the mother has seen how much their son has suffered over the last year in the hospital.  What makes this book especially interesting is that the author provides two endings, so to speak.  One in which the court refuses the request to transport the child to the US and one in which it agrees.  It becomes apparent that the decision to take the case to court is the point of no return for the parents' marriage.  Both outcomes lead to the marriage falling apart.  The author does a great job of describing all the issues faced by the parents and how long an effect this kind of situation has on people. A very emotional and well thought out book which I really enjoyed.

I have loved all of Claire Mackintosh's previous books.  This one was no exception.  Told in 3 viewpoints, the story of Max and Pip and their terminally ill son was just heartbreaking.  Evenmoreso was the author's note at the end on why she had written the novel.  Thank you for the advanced copy of an amazing book!

After the End was such an emotional roller coaster, and  super-fast read. What if parents could provide more than one future for their child, giving them everything they want and the parents want for the child? As a parent myself, this book put me through a lot of emotions and made me rethink all that I had done for my daughter when she was growing up. A great read!

A beautiful, emotionally charged story of how the love of a child not only brings families together, it can tear them apart. Clare Mackintosh has written a story that you will think and talk about long after you've finished reading. The characters are so will defined you'll feel their heartbreak and cry along with them. The back story flows smoothly leaving an impact that really can't be described, it has to be felt. Lovely, if sad, story that you'll love through your tears.

The problem with this book is that it wants to be everything and while it ends up being a little bit of everything, that means it is mostly a whole lot of nothing. In the attempt to provide a novel that's both heartbreaking and uplifting, After the End runs the gamut. It's a medical mystery/thriller, it's a story about family it's a story about losing the one you love and finding love again. It's about loss and renewal. This novel wants you to cry, both in sorrow and in joy. 

It's too much to do and there just isn't enough there to hit all the emotional notes that After the End wants to hit. I like Clare Mackintosh and her work a lot but this book is a big departure and a big mess

Max and Pip have to make the hardest decision of their life.  Their son has brain cancer and is fighting for his life.  They must chose to let him go or proceed with advanced treatment.  The couple each want something different for their son.  Halfway through the book the story is split into Pip’s perspective and her choice and then in Max’s perspectives and his choice.    

I wasn’t a huge fan of this one because I didn’t like how the book was split up in the end and there was no definite outcome.  You don’t get to see what actually happened in the whole situation and I felt like there was no good conclusion to the story.  However, I did like the medical aspect of the book and it made me feel like I was reading a Jodi Picoult book and I really like her books.  Overall, I wasn’t satisfied with the ending and was disappointed.

After The End is a powerful book about the incredibly difficult decisions that need to be made and the inability to know what would happen if you chose differently. 

Pip and Max are given the news that after months of treatment and surgery - their son won’t be getting better. His brain tumor is growing back and they recommend hospice care. Max finds an experimental treatment that could extend his life for months or years. When the doctors disagree and the couple is split about what they want to do - they end up in court.

From there, we get to see both paths and learn what would happen either way. This is a challenging read - there are no right choices, there aren’t good guys and bad guys - everyone is trying to do what they believe is best. 

I really enjoyed the concepts and most of this book. Some parts felt a little slow for me. And there is one part right near the ending - last paragraph of the second to last chapter - that has really confused me. 

However, those parts aside - I do still think this is a really powerful read and even more after reading the author’s note about how personal this is to her own experiences. 

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I adore Clare Mackintosh’s writing. All of her thrillers are unputdownable (I Let you Go is my favorite). Her new book is unlike her others, but equally good. This one is inspired by a tragic choice she and her husband were forced to face when their child was terminally ill. In the novel, Pip and Max are faced with the unimaginable. Their two year old son, Dylan, is dying of a brain tumor. After exhausting almost all treatments, they are advised to let him go. Pip wants to end Dylan’s suffering while Max wants to keep fighting no matter what. Forced to face off in court, the storylines split midway into the book. What if Pip wins and their son is allowed to die peacefully? What if Max gets his way and takes Dylan to Houston for alternative treatments? The reader gets to see the story play out both ways, each path equal parts emotional, believable and heartbreaking.

Content warning: this story does deal with terminally-ill children, so if this is a subject you are sensitive to, read with care. I enjoyed this book a lot more than I initially thought I was going to. We meet Pip and Max, whose toddler is diagnosed with a terminal illness. The first half of the book is them fighting for their son's life, but each has a different hope for what the future looks like for him. The second half of the book looks more at the aftermath. (This is not a spoiler. You know early on the child is going to die, but don't know when or under what circumstances.) What happens to a family who has lost a child? What happens to their marriage? The author takes you on a very intimate journey of this couple's pain and some of the things that come up in this type of circumstance that can break your heart, like what to do with your child's clothes after they are gone, how to do holidays like Christmas. After finishing this book, I learned that the Mackintosh actually did suffer this loss and was able to write this pain in the first person. I appreciated the rawness of the novel. The only downside for me was the way in which this book was told. The second part, after, bounced back and forth between dates and made it slightly difficult to keep track of what was happening and what part of their lives we were in. I understand that telling the story this way was necessary to fully encapsulate the emotion between this couple, but it did take some intentional effort to find your place in time. *Advance copy provided by the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

I'm astounded to have not heard more buzz about this book—hands down one of my favorite reads of the year. The story begins in the midst of a couple's worst nightmare, when they have to make an impossible decision about the fate of their terminally ill toddler. The opening chapters were difficult to read for this reason, but I'm so glad I stayed with them. It's a choice they'll both spend the rest of their lives second guessing, and that's where the true magic of the story begins. Mackintosh gifts her readers with what we can never have in real life: A chance to see how both outcomes play out. In parallel universes, we watch a husband and wife fall apart and put themselves together again. We see how two divergent paths can still lead to redemption and grace, in very different forms. The result is far more than a Sliding Doors-style Choose Your Own Adventure tale: After the End is a moving, enlightening, and memorable portrait of the triumph of the human spirit.