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blaarrosir's review against another edition
4.0
This final book in the Hereafter trilogy had all the same elements of the first two that made me like them so much. I found this one a bit harder to follow. Amelia, true to form, came up with her own plans to save the day but in this volume I found it hard to follow along as she set all the pieces into place. I'm very impressed with how the book ended and what became of Amelia. To that end I'm very pleased.
serena2286's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
taylorfennerwrites's review against another edition
3.0
I loved the first two books and was really looking forward to seeing how the trilogy ended. This is not the ending I wanted. At all. I'll leave it at that to avoid spoiling the ending for future readers.
belladonna624's review against another edition
4.0
An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review. This did not influence my thoughts in any way.
The Hereafter Trilogy is a love story between Amelia (a ghost) and Joshua (a living boy). They are both very likable characters and I was rooting for them to overcome their obvious difficulties the whole time. I enjoyed reading their story. I don't want to give anything away, I hate spoilers, but I thought the ending was bittersweet. I was expecting it would go one way and it went a totally different way. I liked Elegy better than the first two books in the series and I'd be interested to read future books by Tara Hudson.
The Hereafter Trilogy is a love story between Amelia (a ghost) and Joshua (a living boy). They are both very likable characters and I was rooting for them to overcome their obvious difficulties the whole time. I enjoyed reading their story. I don't want to give anything away, I hate spoilers, but I thought the ending was bittersweet. I was expecting it would go one way and it went a totally different way. I liked Elegy better than the first two books in the series and I'd be interested to read future books by Tara Hudson.
zoemig's review against another edition
I actually preferred the second book Arise in Tara Hudson's Hereafter Trilogy to the first, so I decided to pick up book three, Elegy not long after, hoping it would be even better. Unfortunately, it was not. In this final book Amelia is threatened by the demons of high bridge that unless she turns herself over to evil forces, one person she knows will die every week. She and her friends plot to destroy the bridge-- and stop evil from crossing over for good. However, Amelia has a plan of her own, and she's not telling anyone until it's too late to stop her.
I felt like a lot of Elegy was a bit of a mess. The plans the teenagers make don't always make sense, like showing up at prom to recruit people for a secret plan. With alcohol. It just felt random and like a bad idea, created only to cause tension that didn't come across as authentic. The ending also felt like it was really trying to tie up all the loose ends and as a result it came across as forced and wasn't overly satisfying-- nor did it really tie many of them up. Despite getting some enjoyment out of book two, I was just really tired (and bored) of this series by the time I finished Elegy.
I felt like a lot of Elegy was a bit of a mess. The plans the teenagers make don't always make sense, like showing up at prom to recruit people for a secret plan. With alcohol. It just felt random and like a bad idea, created only to cause tension that didn't come across as authentic. The ending also felt like it was really trying to tie up all the loose ends and as a result it came across as forced and wasn't overly satisfying-- nor did it really tie many of them up. Despite getting some enjoyment out of book two, I was just really tired (and bored) of this series by the time I finished Elegy.
ceuran's review against another edition
1.0
10/10 would not recommend. The writing is juvenile and the whole plot is based around a ghost and a boy falling in love. Oh yeah, the world building is awful too.
arjunthakrar's review against another edition
5.0
Elegy. Hmmm... Although in the end this was good I feel like this series has gone downwards, not up. Needless to say I did like book 3 and I'm going to go over everything that there really is to talk about.
So book three is the final book in the series and Amelia and Josh and Jillian yet face the same problem again. The dark still wants here, Jillian and Josh are in danger again and she must save the day. It was different from the other book yet still a little samey and although I didn't mind that one thing that did bug me is the fact Amelia doesn't learn from her mistakes but that's not really a fault with the book, come to think of it. That's just her character.
Anyway the book starts of promising and naturally this is the final book so it's all about final showdowns and it was really captivating. Hudson has definitely, within this series, shown her talent to be able to write many different genres well and the story line worked for me. I liked it, and it kept me guessing. It never got confusing or repeated itself but the amount of deaths and if I may add, unessacery deaths were overwhelming in this and sometimes I think you need to draw a line.
The setting in this shifted back to both Amelias and Joshua's hometown and it made sense, as the main plot line was focused around high bridge and bringing it down. I liked the fact that we went back to old places because it really helped us to understand the stories and the emotion behind all of the happenings and understand the light and dark better, in general.
The characters pretty much stayed the same in this which was nice. With the increase of characters in book 2 we were so busy getting know them there was no space to develop or uncovers true colours of other characters. Because the characters were pretty much the same in this we started to see peoples true colours and what they were really like. In fact we got a much better glimpse into the both Joshua and Amelia's past but more Amelia. I felt like this was really good and whilst other characters did come into play it was primarily based back onto Amelia, Josh and Jillian like in book 1 which leas back to my point of growing our knowledge bases on the characters so we ca really connect with them.
As usual Hudson's writing was a dream to read. Description flowed as did the story but what really stuck out to me was her world building. In this book there was a lot more of inter world interaction and they way she used words to craft these worlds in my mind was just perfection. I loved the way she formed the rooms of hell in high bridge and I would've loved to see more of the light worlds but from what she wrote I fell in love with the different places. Hudson had a knack for description, especially with places.
Overall this was the perfect end to this series. Well the ending, I'm not sure if that's how I would have done it, but however it was a beautiful and magical ending and this series had left me speechless. I'll definitely be coming back to it in the future.
So book three is the final book in the series and Amelia and Josh and Jillian yet face the same problem again. The dark still wants here, Jillian and Josh are in danger again and she must save the day. It was different from the other book yet still a little samey and although I didn't mind that one thing that did bug me is the fact Amelia doesn't learn from her mistakes but that's not really a fault with the book, come to think of it. That's just her character.
Anyway the book starts of promising and naturally this is the final book so it's all about final showdowns and it was really captivating. Hudson has definitely, within this series, shown her talent to be able to write many different genres well and the story line worked for me. I liked it, and it kept me guessing. It never got confusing or repeated itself but the amount of deaths and if I may add, unessacery deaths were overwhelming in this and sometimes I think you need to draw a line.
The setting in this shifted back to both Amelias and Joshua's hometown and it made sense, as the main plot line was focused around high bridge and bringing it down. I liked the fact that we went back to old places because it really helped us to understand the stories and the emotion behind all of the happenings and understand the light and dark better, in general.
The characters pretty much stayed the same in this which was nice. With the increase of characters in book 2 we were so busy getting know them there was no space to develop or uncovers true colours of other characters. Because the characters were pretty much the same in this we started to see peoples true colours and what they were really like. In fact we got a much better glimpse into the both Joshua and Amelia's past but more Amelia. I felt like this was really good and whilst other characters did come into play it was primarily based back onto Amelia, Josh and Jillian like in book 1 which leas back to my point of growing our knowledge bases on the characters so we ca really connect with them.
As usual Hudson's writing was a dream to read. Description flowed as did the story but what really stuck out to me was her world building. In this book there was a lot more of inter world interaction and they way she used words to craft these worlds in my mind was just perfection. I loved the way she formed the rooms of hell in high bridge and I would've loved to see more of the light worlds but from what she wrote I fell in love with the different places. Hudson had a knack for description, especially with places.
Overall this was the perfect end to this series. Well the ending, I'm not sure if that's how I would have done it, but however it was a beautiful and magical ending and this series had left me speechless. I'll definitely be coming back to it in the future.
loveisnotatriangle's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
Find this and other reviews on my blog Love is not a triangle
The third book in a ghost trilogy is where I start to dread the fact that I'm reading a series that features a relationship between a human and someone who is dead. It's when reality sets in, and I realize that there aren't a lot of options that end positively for the couple in question. Although I love the HEA ending, it's a little unrealistic for the ghost to come back to life again, and most other endings involve a lot of sadness. Of course I won't divulge what occurs in Elegy, except to say that it is filled with love and hope, and that I was pleasantly surprised by how appropriate and true it felt to these characters and their story.
My favorite part of the Hereafter series, and the reason I've continued to read it, is the relationship between Amelia Ashley and Joshua Mayhew, who only found each other after Amelia's life had ended. Their relationship contains the sweetness of first love, but also strength and maturity from shared trials, as well as an aching inevitability that Amelia is living on borrowed time. Their commitment to each other despite impossible circumstances, and a constant threat from the Netherworld, gives their relationship a steadfastness of a more mature couple. I love that they are always kind, respectful and supportive of each other, and that despite their major life differences (i.e. Joshua is alive and Amelia is not), I felt like they truly understand each other. They also have a normal, inspiring relationships, which is sometimes rare the young adult paranormal genre (especially the relatable/normal part).
Not only together, I appreciated both Amelia and Joshua individually. Amelia is a likable heroine, who has come a long way from the scared and confused girl at the start of the first book. She is smart and determined to save the people that she loves, but she is no martyr. Amelia is dedicated to defeating the demons and wraiths that have been the cause of so much heartbreak and destruction in her town. In all the pressure she faces, she doesn't start pulling away or making irrational decisions, but decides to do what she believes will make the most difference.
Joshua is in many ways a regular teen boy, which is also refreshing in this genre. He is not a mysterious bad boy, or a traumatized, tortured soul. He has friends, plays baseball and respects his parents. He is open about his feelings for Amelia and is always supportive of her. He is the kind of boy that I wish I'd known in high school.
Of course, Amelia and Joshua are not the only two characters in this series. Several others have stood out to me. I enjoyed Amelia's friction and tentative friendship with Jillian, her contentious relationship with Ruth, her constant worry over her living mother and questions about where her father ended up after his death. In the final book we also get a glimpse of past characters again, and some are in much better places than others.
However, throughout the entire series, especially in the second and third books, I had a lot of trouble with the world building, most specifically the ghost mythology. Eventually it got to be distracting enough to affect my reading. I felt like the limits of how much I could suspend my belief in order to enjoy Amelia and Joshua's story, were being tested beyond their bounds. Many of the ghost rules did not make any practical sense to me, especially once elements change in book 2. Some of the rules seemed to be added just to create tension to the plot, and not because of a good explanation.
If you're looking for a sweet love story within a supernatural setting that has ghost elements, this series is great. If you get hung up on world building and the practicalities of mythology, you may have some problems with this series (or maybe not). However, in the end I'm glad I met Amelia Ashely and Joshua Mayhew.
Cliffhanger Scale: Series conclusion
Love Triangle Factor: NONE for the series
Find this and other reviews on my blog Love is not a triangle
The third book in a ghost trilogy is where I start to dread the fact that I'm reading a series that features a relationship between a human and someone who is dead. It's when reality sets in, and I realize that there aren't a lot of options that end positively for the couple in question. Although I love the HEA ending, it's a little unrealistic for the ghost to come back to life again, and most other endings involve a lot of sadness. Of course I won't divulge what occurs in Elegy, except to say that it is filled with love and hope, and that I was pleasantly surprised by how appropriate and true it felt to these characters and their story.
My favorite part of the Hereafter series, and the reason I've continued to read it, is the relationship between Amelia Ashley and Joshua Mayhew, who only found each other after Amelia's life had ended. Their relationship contains the sweetness of first love, but also strength and maturity from shared trials, as well as an aching inevitability that Amelia is living on borrowed time. Their commitment to each other despite impossible circumstances, and a constant threat from the Netherworld, gives their relationship a steadfastness of a more mature couple. I love that they are always kind, respectful and supportive of each other, and that despite their major life differences (i.e. Joshua is alive and Amelia is not), I felt like they truly understand each other. They also have a normal, inspiring relationships, which is sometimes rare the young adult paranormal genre (especially the relatable/normal part).
Not only together, I appreciated both Amelia and Joshua individually. Amelia is a likable heroine, who has come a long way from the scared and confused girl at the start of the first book. She is smart and determined to save the people that she loves, but she is no martyr. Amelia is dedicated to defeating the demons and wraiths that have been the cause of so much heartbreak and destruction in her town. In all the pressure she faces, she doesn't start pulling away or making irrational decisions, but decides to do what she believes will make the most difference.
Joshua is in many ways a regular teen boy, which is also refreshing in this genre. He is not a mysterious bad boy, or a traumatized, tortured soul. He has friends, plays baseball and respects his parents. He is open about his feelings for Amelia and is always supportive of her. He is the kind of boy that I wish I'd known in high school.
Of course, Amelia and Joshua are not the only two characters in this series. Several others have stood out to me. I enjoyed Amelia's friction and tentative friendship with Jillian, her contentious relationship with Ruth, her constant worry over her living mother and questions about where her father ended up after his death. In the final book we also get a glimpse of past characters again, and some are in much better places than others.
However, throughout the entire series, especially in the second and third books, I had a lot of trouble with the world building, most specifically the ghost mythology. Eventually it got to be distracting enough to affect my reading. I felt like the limits of how much I could suspend my belief in order to enjoy Amelia and Joshua's story, were being tested beyond their bounds. Many of the ghost rules did not make any practical sense to me, especially once elements change in book 2. Some of the rules seemed to be added just to create tension to the plot, and not because of a good explanation.
If you're looking for a sweet love story within a supernatural setting that has ghost elements, this series is great. If you get hung up on world building and the practicalities of mythology, you may have some problems with this series (or maybe not). However, in the end I'm glad I met Amelia Ashely and Joshua Mayhew.
Cliffhanger Scale: Series conclusion
Love Triangle Factor: NONE for the series