After All Is Said And Done: A Novel of Infidelity, Healing & Forgiveness

This is always a sign of a good book for me, when a few days after Ive finished a novel, Im still thinking about it. This is definitely the case with

After All is Said and Done is a powerful story, gripping and unputdownable right from the start. From the opening scene, you are caught up in the drama and the lives of these four characters, watching their joy, pain, anger and depression as though you are viewing it firsthand. Its a fast paced novel, with short bursts of scenes, some only a couple of pages long. It helps to keep the novel moving forward, so you do not even realize how long it is. Even with these brief scenes, you become enthralled with Ethan, angry at Jessica, disgusted with Gavin, and sympathetic to Sarah. There were times when I just wanted to reach out and hug Ethan during his trials... I just couldnt help it. Each character has their flaws and strengths, and you can relate to every one of them as they struggle in life to pick up the pieces and move on. This was such a great tale that I would highly recommend it. I am really looking forward to watching this author grow.

The story is a little unbelievable: that a man (Ethan), would want so much to stay with an unfaithful wife (Jessica) who bore the child (Ryan) of another man (Gavin). Ethan seems to be more condemned for his reaction to the deceit and betrayal than Jessica and Gavin are for having the affair. Ethan is taunted and belittled at work by Jessicas and Gavins comments and confrontations. Their flirting at the company Christmas party drives Ethan to create a disturbance there with both of them. Eventually Ethan is confined to the hospital psych ward through the conspiracy of his sister, Renee, and the hospital staff. Of course his adulterous wife and her cousin, Grace, are assigned to be his doctors and they torment him with humiliating examinations and force-feeding. Jessica is especially cruel by bringing their son, which was fathered by Gavin, to visit Ethan to further remind him what he has lost and her contempt for him. In the end there is no comeuppance for Jessica and Gavin who seem to have had all their desires fulfilled and, I suspect, later on get married and have a family with their son. The hospital staff all go on with their lives while Ethan is left to rebuild from the devastation that has befallen him. He marries Sarah (the other discarded spouse in this love quadrangle) and they move to England. I guess I was expecting more of a story about someone excising a cancer from their life and moving on & moving up. It just did not satisfy me that way.

*SOME SPOILERS* In a nutshell, this story is about one mans triggers and downward spiral to alcoholism as well as his steep climb back to reclaim his life. The last happens only with the friendship and love in one womans heart, which is what really matter After All Is Said And Done. Ms. Buchanan either works in healthcare or has done impressive research. If someone is reading this, do not take that to mean that this story is in any way ugh! gray-and-dreary and therefore to be avoided. I usually sidestep health issue-related novels myself, not wanting to be inundated after a days work of it. But I made the exception here because the author is an excellent writer as well as a storyteller. Once I started reading, I could not stop until I;ve reached the end. The characters, the storylines, the writing is t-h-a-t good & compelling. The hero s basic goodness really shines through so that I was kept rooting for him to come out on top and kept page-flipping for that HEA he richly deserves. There is nothing soap operatic about this story. Such a description implies that life imitates art / fiction whereas this story quite accurately portrays the low-point, rather ugly dramas that do occur in an alcoholics life. It really opens with the repeated cheating of two people who were each married to others. What made it more painful was the cheaters were already forgiven by their spouses the first time around yet they did it again and this time resulted in a pregnancy. If thats not bad enough, the female cheater lets her husband believe the baby is his! He is so happy. Imagine how feels when the truth comes out! At this point Im already looking for a romantic angle and hoping this cheaters husband will end up with someone more deserving of him. Before I can feel too sorry for him, (and yes hes the hero) the story moves on to his fathers death which at first seems like its just another event. In reality this is the last straw that breaks the hero because he, in fact, had an abusive childhood. From herein on, the hero descends into a full-blown alcoholism and all aspects of his life, slowly but surely, falls apart. Again, this might sound either depressing or simply blech. But what makes this story readable is that while Ms Buchanan acquaints us with the main points of certain tragic turns, she does not linger over it ghoulishly through TMI but instead moves along briskly. The reader is spared that dreaded blow-by-blow ugliness of detail and equally dreadful soppy sentimentality. My heart just ached for the hero every time hes in denial about having just a little too much to drink and each time he does so, he loses something / someone. Except one wonderful, wonderful human being who stands by him to the very end. YES! He does get a happy ending. The other characters are just as fascinating though not always in a good way. Theres the other man, the unfaithful but very sorry cheater wife, the other mans wife who is also the heros clinic partner and friend, the innocent baby, the heros troubled, mercenary sister, the abusive dad, the stand-back / hands-off / judgmental friends or colleagues and a couple of supportive ones. The POV is mostly the heros, his cheating wife, the other man and his wife and to a lesser extent, the other characters when they come on. This works for me, I had no problem distinguishing whos thinking what. By the time the story got to the romance part & happy ending, I was just too glad. The hero really deserves it, so does the heroine. Theirs is not merely a first-sight-sexy-pull kind of love but one that survived tests of fire. Because of the storys 2-year span, it might seem too long especially when one looks at the number of pages, not that I noticed. I was just too busy reading and was a little sorry when the story ended. If asked to qualify this book, it isnt Harlequin goody, nor does it have the blitheness of chick-lit, its certainly not erotica. More like A Novel as it ought to mean, with a strong substance and a nice vein of friendship & romance. I liked, too, that towards the end, the setting switches to the UK from Maine. So, I rate this story a solid 5+. Its a keeper. Id suggest looking round for a slightly better price than is offered in this site. I bought my ebook elsewhere.

Ive gotten somewhat into reading books about infidelity and this one was so different from others Ive read. From forgiving the adulterous party, to ending the marriage, I never thought Id read this story where the spouse uses a gun. With the heightened emotions and the fall into alcoholism, you get the real sense of all that is lost in the end of a marriage in which both parties are to blame. Even though there is a hint of forgiveness, it cant be followed through after everything that was said and done. A string of sorries by the guilty party after committing adultery again, leaves a consequence that involves both families and causes subsequent breakups. A very truthful look at what infidelity does and its not sugar-coated. Great read. I couldnt put it down.

Well what a book this turned out to be. When I read the blurb, I really wasnt sure how I would like it, I have been through my own marriage troubles and in the end what was best for me was to end it. I am now very happy with the man of my dreams. I was leary reading it would dredge up feelings I didnt want to visit again, that wasnt the case at all. When starting the book you look at the number of pages it is, 659 on my ereader and sometimes when a book is that long you think goodness is the book going to drag on, not the case at all with this one. Once you start turning the pages you CANNOT put this book down, I was up until 2am so I could try to finish reading it, and when I had to put it down I was finding myself thinking about the book and what was going to happen next. It totally sucked me in and would not let go until I read the very last word, and when I read the last word, I sat in my purple chair and said Holy Crap on a Cracker lol I instantly went to the authors website and found out another book is coming. So I relaxed a bit knowing theres more to come, but then I realized oh man I gotta wait for the next one. The story the author has created for these 2-couples was nothing short of amazing. To see the twists and turns between both couples made me chuckle at times, made my heartbreak, made me gasp as I couldnt believe that just happened, and I actually cried in a few part, I mean tears, some of sadness and some of happiness. I really liked Belindas writing style, the story flowed well and the plot was clear and concise, it was really cool how just when you thought you figured out where the story was heading, Belinda threw in a twist you never saw coming. I did find myself taking a look at my own life and say how much could I forgive. Its a story that makes you think and its a story you will think about long after you have finished reading it. I highly recommend this book to all and I really hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Enjoy!!!!

I am not a fast reader, but this book captured my attention immediately, and I finished 654 pages in less than three days. The book is well written and the pages just flowed throughout the entire story. You can find yourself relating to these characters and their real life situations. I was sad when the book ended, because I missed reading about Ethan, Jessica, Gavin, and Sarah. I loved this book, and hope to read more from this author.

An emotional and different type of story line that is about the aftermath of infidelity. Ethan finds out his wifes affair but forgives Jessica. That is until he finds out that the child, whose conception was after the so called affair. She and Gavin kept up the affair, thus producing a child. Gavin was also married, to Sarah. This was a tormented story that showed how Ethan coped, or not coped. His demons and how he was able to grow and overcome her infidelities. Not an entertaining read. So much hurt. And the adulterous couple didnt seem to get any negative effects toward them It all seemed to focus more on Ethan.

It was definitely a page turner! The way the author wrote was okay. It didnt stop me from reading, but I wish things could have been written differently, like the characters feelings. Thats just my opinion. I also felt like scenes ended quickly and jumped to the next.

After reading Seasons Of Darkness, I couldnt wait to pick up the next book about doctor Ethan Harringtons life. After All Is Said And Done is an emotional, engaging, novel of twists and turns. I could not put it down and the ending wraps everything up perfectly. I highly recommend it. If you havent read anything by Belinda G. Buchanan, you need to. She weaves a very intimate tapestry of life, love, emotion and the human condition.