The Beginning after the End
by Hafsa Idrees
Blurb
What can the fear of losing the ones we love push us to do? In Chrissie’s case, it has pushed her to distance herself from Allan, the man she loves more than anything else in the world. She knows he will not marry her, that they don’t have a future together. But why does “out of sight” not mean “out of mind”?
The wall that Chrissie has built around herself becomes a prison. As she fights for survival in the cold world she has created, she gets an unexpected letter from Allan. This letter changes her life forever.
Review:
After I read the book, my emotions were all over the place- for a long time I really didn't know if I should write the review or to talk with the author about not writing it and simply post the blog tour. You may ask yourself "why would she do that?It's really that book so bad?"
My answer would be no- a resoundig no! And that's how I made the final decision. But let me start to explain...
In the first place we have a young woman named Chrissie. She's trying, with her own consent, to isolate herself from the world, especially from people. She's doing this, thinking she can escape her best friend, Allan- or her feelings for him- she knows that's a stupid decision, but it's her manner to cope with her own deception, because being around human beings it's tiresome and faking emotions it's not easy. Even if we not have a timeline fixed, it's easy to know when the events are happening because we have Chrissie's feelings and emotions about every detail in the story.
We find out about how Allan couldn't respond with the same intensity to her feelings and he warns her to forget such fooling emotions, because he can't be her boyfriend. After some time, she receives a really beautiful letter from him and this is how she finds out about his true motivations behind his refusal...
My first problem with the story is not how it's written or about the plot- because, let's face it, it's one of the best story I have read in my all life, it's a story about love, true friendship, loss, life and death in one, and Chrissie's feelings are detailed in such a manner that it pulls the strings of your heart. Her view about love and marriage are so pure and completely innocent- and if we try to find another story that expresses such a innocent view about love, then we could try all month and maybe all year...
My real problem was about their situation, because Chrissie and Allan are a couple, even if they can't see it- they spend almost all the time speaking with each other, have meals together, write to each other, spend time and all the little things that a real couple would do, with one exception- they are not in a romantic and sexual relationship. It really pisses me of that they can't see what it's in front of their eyes.
Another thing that pisses me of it's Allan's feelings about himself and his future- he views himself like the bad guy, like the big bad wolf that's going to destroy her and himself- and let's not forget that Chrissie accepts all this treatment from him and doesn't say a bad word about his stupidity and self destruction- no!Let me reformulate... their destruction, their miserable situation, when they could be happy together.
And my final issue on this matter it's about how it all ends so badly for them, but I must accept that life's a cruel, so cruel b**** ....
Characters:
Chrissie- sweet, innocent, beautiful and a good person - she's also the storyteller in this book. And, like it says 'what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger'- well she's a very good example that life doesn't always ends when your heart is destroyed- personally, I admire and envy her strength, but I know that the source of it it's Allan. He's so deep in her mind and heart, that his strength impulses her...
Allan- Chrissie's strength, Chrissie's love, Chrissie's life, Chrissie's best friend, Chrissie's partner, Chrissie's soul mate...
He's the guy that has always been there for her, he's protecting her virtue and her feelings by destroying and disregarding his own. He's the bad guy that for her wants to be her knight in shine armor. He's hers and she's his, but they can't be together....
Final Verdict- The Beginning after the End- even thought I was crying like a baby and cursing them in the same time- it's a story about friendship, love, life and death, but most of all it's a story about being together without being together...
My rating: 5/5
Author info
Hafsa Idrees, is a multifaceted budding 21 years old Pakistani writer who has contributed as a content writer for a number of websites and magazines. She holds “The 2010 Regional Ricoh (USA) Sustainable and Development Award” for her contribution to the joint Entomology research paper for INTEL ISEF 2010. She also wrote for GOI Peace Foundation Japan. She has numerous honors credited to her name including the Editor and Ambassador of Pakistan’s First Youth Newspaper “Shascha”, SEO Manager of Revolution Flame, Head of the Creative Department at Fortune Technologies and the Award for “Best Ten Paintings” on World Science Day For Peace Development (2006) by Pakistan Science Foundation. She just published her debut novel on Contemporary Literary Fiction “The Beginning after the End”. Her short story “Bridge of Sighs” was the only one from Pakistan which made its way in to the 100 words’ stories collection of 2013 from all over the world. Having graduated from Punjab University, Lahore with roll of honor, currently she is pursuing her Masters in Anthropology from Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad.
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