Grace Ellis Reviews “What Came After” by Tabor Millien

“What Came After” follows Hannah in an emotional journey of reflection, seeking justice, and finding closure. In the first chapter Hannah is presented as a shallow, unlikable character, but it quickly becomes apparent that she was once a different person. Amidst her passive contemplations about her old life, fate jerks her away from any half-baked plans for the future. Everything established in the first few chapters about Hannah and the people around her is slowly stripped away to reveal the rawness of humanity in times of grief and emotional turmoil.

Tabor Millien does an excellent job addressing the entirety of the grieving process, not hesitating to allow each character to react realistically and viscerally. There is quite a bit of heavy content, and the villain (if that’s even the right thing to call him) will absolutely make your skin crawl. Millien doesn’t shy away from showing how vile some people can be, and furthermore, how their own delusions can misconstrue their views on love and forgiveness. However, even against such people, there is the unrelenting hope that justice will prevail. She allows Hannah to wrestle with how to seek justice against said person, how to reconnect with the people who love her, and ultimately, how to find peace. 

Hannah’s relationship with Art serves as a breath of fresh air. Amidst the grief and struggle, the two of them come together to support each other in a show of perseverance and hope. I appreciate that Millien doesn’t isolate their relationship from the pain and suffering in the rest of the book, but rather connects them through it, letting them lean on each other as they heal. The relationship builds naturally, maintaining a fun dynamic even as the two characters work through their individual traumas together. This was my first time reading one of Tabor Millien’s books, and this one was absolutely a gripping and satisfying read. Highly recommend!