• r e v i e w •

"Ryan and I are two people who used to be in love. What a beautiful thing to have been. What a sad thing to be." - Taylor Jenkins Reid

After I Do is a simple story of a troubled marriage. They are tricky things, marriages. While some last decades, few crash and burn within a few years. You go in with love but sometimes come out empty-handed. Lauren and Ryan fell in love at 19 and marry years later. With marriage comes monotony and stability. They know each other better than they know themselves. After a fight one day, Lauren realises that she doesn't love her husband anymore. It wasn't an overnight process but months of bickering and irritation. Ryan too, admits to not loving his wife. They decide to live apart for a year without formally separating.

Narrated by Lauren, After I Do is an honest take on how marriages lose their shine over time. It's not necessarily a bad thing but rekindling any relationship requires dedication and communication. This novel is exactly that. That one year of separation pushes the two to ponder over their relationship, to put in efforts to make it work and to reflect on their actions. Much like her other book 'Evidence of the Affair', this one too has small chapters, which makes it incredibly fast-paced and given the simplicity of the story, it's hard to put it down. This story gives hope and assurance that love sometimes fades but it's never too late to find and work on it.

4.3/5.

(Note : Taylor's advice for writers in the second slide)