Review: The Aftermath by R.J. Prescott (The Hurricane #2)


Note: This ARC was provided by Forever (Grand Central Publishing) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn't a technical fighter. I was a wild card, always would be. When I got knocked down, when my ribs were bruised and every single part of my body felt fucking broken, I got back up. Heart is what got me a shot at the world heavyweight title, not fear or anger, but heart. In the end, it's why I would win.


The Aftermath is the sequel to the author R.J. Prescott's bestselling series starter The Hurricane and was one of my most highly anticipated reads, what with how much I had fallen in love with the first book. When a series begins with as much of a bang as The Hurricane did, expectations can become unreasonably high for the follow-up, especially when it's a direct sequel, and yes, my expectations were indeed at astronomical levels for The Aftermath. But that's what happens when you're so swept away by such an intensely heartrending story as the one university student and waitress Emily McCarthy and professional boxer Cormac O'Connell shared. With Em and Con now married and Em's abuser arrested and awaiting trial, Con wants to protect her the way he wasn't able to before...but he may be unable to do so once again.

It was clear from the way things ended in the first book that nothing was completely over when it came to Em and Con's battle with Em's stepfather, Frank Thomas, who may have been incarcerated but certainly had no qualms continuing his unholy torment over poor Em. Not all fights are fought with fists--though I can fully appreciate the satisfaction one gets from the more physical exercise of settling a dispute or two--so Con finds himself having to learn how to deal with both his anger and his feeling of helplessness. Between the two of them, Con may be the stronger one physically, but it's Em's courage to see this seemingly never-ending episode with Frank to its hopeful conclusion that showcases just how much strength she has mentally and emotionally, even as she allows herself to break down every once in a while.

The Hurricane was told from Em's perspective, save for the epilogue, which was done from Con's; with The Aftermath, roles were reversed, with all chapters told from Con's point of view and Em doing her part with the epilogue. I quite liked seeing things from Con's viewpoint because while it was obvious in the first book how devoted he was to Em and that he was willing to do whatever was humanly possible to shield her from harm, we now get to feel what he's feeling, and if I thought his passion for his wife, his Driscoll's Boxing Gym family, and his sport was fierce, this made me witness how much I underestimated his capacity to do whatever was necessary to be the man they all needed. I adore Con, not only because of the kind of husband he was, but because he was someone who had flaws and faults but loved unconditionally.

With Con and Em's story at an end, I'm going to seriously keep my fingers crossed that the rest of the guys at Driscoll's Boxing Gym get their time in the spotlight as well. Kieran, Liam, and Tommy have already presented themselves as more than hangers-on, each one having a story to tell and I'm sure I'm not the only one who wants to read every single thing they have to share with us. Earnshaw is a new character who's already gotten my attention as well. So, hopefully, we'll be seeing more of these Irish lads (and one American transplant) in the future. For now, I highly recommend you read The Aftermath, which joins its predecessor on my list of 2015 favorite reads, but I do suggest that you read it after The Hurricane, if you haven't gotten around to reading the series starter yet. R.J Prescott has done it yet again. Five-plus stars. ♥

Date Read: 27 December 2015

Learn more about R.J. Prescott.

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