The Aftermath - Tapa blanda

"Rhidian Brook's arresting novel brings vividly to life a little-told aspect of World War II." --Claire Messud

"Superb. . . . Conjures surprise after surprise as it shows how the forces of politics and history penetrate even the most intimate moments of its characters' emotional lives." --The Guardian (London)

"A brilliant novel. . . . A moving, always enthralling journey into the dark and light of history." --Joseph O'Neill, author of Netherland

"A captivating tale of love among the ruins but also of treachery and vengeance. . . . It poses many complex questions." --Literary Review

"Reading The Aftermath, one can't help but wonder if this is the sort of literary memorialization . . . that Sebald might have wished for." --The Washington Post

"A fine, moving novel. . . . Brook addresses weighty themes--forgiveness, familial loss--with a light touch . . . . Bring[s] to mind no less a novel than J.G. Ballard's Empire of the Sun." --Financial Times

"Brook is wonderful at evoking the atmosphere of this forgotten time and place. . . . Brook handles the often shocking turn of events with a spareness matched to the harshness of that winter . . . There is much to think about here. It is a moral book but not a moralising one." --The Times (London)

"Engrossing. . . . Brook is a master with mixing the mundane details with characters' trials and tribulations. . . . This story of passion, betrayal and ultimate truth and forgiveness will have you hooked." --Portland Book Review

"Profoundly moving. . . . Brook's beautifully written novel ponders issues of decency, guilt and forgiveness. . . . The meticulous integrity of [his] prose style builds a narrative of chastened humans . . . turning back from the brink." --The Independent (London)

"Masterly. . . . The story develops with many a deft twist. . . . Brook wrings every drop of feeling out of a gripping human situation, and his vignettes of war-ravaged Hamburg are superb." --Mail on Sunday

"A stylish, heart-searching, and convincing story. . . . Memorably refashions this period." --The Herald (Scotland)

"An entertaining blend of romance, history and suspense, one to which Brook's style is perfectly suited: it's sturdy, stripped down with the just the right amount of gnarled beauty poking through the cracks." --The Toronto Star

"Rhidian Brook takes a piece of history I thought I knew well and breaks it open; The Aftermath is a compelling, surprising, and moving novel." --Sadie Jones, author of The Uninvited Guests

"Riveting. . . . Emotionally charged. . . . Fans of WWII-era historical fiction will be drawn to this novel." --Publishers Weekly