I liked this author and felt that I could relate to her and her encounters. I love the way she depicted how the afterlife in her words was instead of adding fear she added a sense of self and reality.

This is a good book in an easy to read format of questions and answers. Hollister Rand is a psychic medium who conducts readings for the living to contact the dead and vice versa. I have to believe that there are ways to communicate with spirits. I have visited Lily Dale, New York truly think it is a spiritual place. She writes with humor and insight. She tells of her personal experiences along with some of her clients encounters. I especially like the questions about pets and how they stay in contact. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It covers everything one could wish to know about the afterlife, as the title suggests. I found it highly informative and comforting. This is a book that I will go back to and read again. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the afterlife.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

“In the afterlife, thought is creation.”

It took time for me to get on board with Rand's writing style. It flows the way a person speaks, with whimsical peaks and valleys, and the formatting was odd, though that's more a galleys issue than a content one.

Once I got past these distractions, I found that the book made elegant points, like the one above, which I liked a great deal: This idea that, like plumes of smoke, our very thoughts can nourish, entertain and convey comfort or fears to the people we have "lost." And we all lose people eventually, though Rand observes that isn't as fixed a border as we believe.

The book is organised as a series of questions one might ask about the afterlife, making it easy to skim for relevance. Those questions include whether there are seasons or climates in the afterlife, whether spirits can communicate with you via animals or flowers, and whether pets have afterlives, too. The whole "god" thing is also addressed.

Throughout the book, Rand uses examples from her work to illustrate abstract ideas—for example, the loss of physical limitations are illustrated by a spirit who "changed outfits" six times in a single sitting. She also provides a primer on mediumship, and gives tips on both managing grief, and becoming more receptive to loving spirit communications in everyday life.

A lot of comfort can be found here, but it's also a charming book for helping address the kinds of questions children might have. There's a feeling of openness and creativity here that echoes the sentiment I first noted above, and I think that's a healthy way to approach a passage that's inevitable for all of us, but shrouded in dread. Much of what Rand has to say comes down to this: Trust yourself. If you feel a loving presence, that is because it is actually there.

Interesting stuff

I really enjoyed this and if you are open to this type of thing then I think you probably will as well. There’s a lot of information covered, really something for everyone.

I found a lot of the messages quite comforting. At a time when the world is so crazy this was a wonderful reprieve.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and Beyond Words Publishing for a copy in exchange for a review.

This was an interesting and informative book, whether you believe or not, the author really shows her passion and her strong beliefs that there is something after we pass on. What was most interesting was her take on the spirits of our loved ones and that they are always with us, but not in a form we have come to know as child stories and ghosts. I particularly enjoyed hearing about the author's encounters with sprits in various situations.

This is surprisingly good. I've never heard of the author, and I"m open to the afterlife, spirits, etc. I expected pithy answers, but most answers are pages long, and provide helpful details and stories. While this won't answer all of your questions, it should cover many. Recommended.

Thanks very much for the ARC for review!!

Sometimes a book comes along just when you need it. When my friend passed away quite suddenly in January of this year, I was devastated and had so many questions. Thankfully, Hollister Rand's new book Everything Your Wanted to Know About the Afterlife But Were Afraid to Ask showed up at just the right time. Designed to be read both straight through, or flipped through to find the answer you need, the book is extremely thorough in regards to spirits, the afterlife, and the like as seen through the eyes of a medium. Hollister Rand used to do a great deal of work with John Edwards. 

Rand's style is easy to read and if you've got a good space of time, it's possible to finish this book on a quiet afternoon. This book answers basic questions like what a spirit is, what the afterlife is like, and even why sometimes people with terminal illness like Alzheimer's disease will show up in a medium reading. 

Everything You Wanted to Know About the Afterlife But Were Afraid to Ask is available May 05, 2020 from Beyond Worlds Publishing.