Life After Yes

by Aidan Donnelley Rowley

Book Overview

"[A] funny and a wickedly accurate picture of the life of a particular breed of Manhattanites--and it's also thought-provoking and deeply moving."
--Gretchen Rubin, New York Times bestselling author of The Happiness Project

A young woman deals with the aftermath of her father's death while she struggles to commit to a future with her fianc? in Life After Yes, the poignant, wry, and very accomplished debut novel from Aidan Donnelley...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0061894478
• ISBN13: 9780061894473
• Release Date: May 2010
• Publisher: William Morrow & Company
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

A Wonderful Debut!

Life After Yes tells the story of young Manhattan attorney Quinn, affianced but afflicted about whether or not her life can withstand the structure of marriage. Hers are the problems of privilege, but no less real or distressing to Quinn because of it. Rattled after losing her father on September 11th she lives her life on the third rail, full of destructive habits that she's forced to confront as she considers bringing another person into her life for good. I was happy to discover within the first few pages that the strong narrative voice I've grown to love on Aidan's blog comes through clearly in her fiction writing as well. She works clever metaphors into tiny places, and her hallmark affection for alliteration (and assonance?) is subtle but ever-present. In addition to quick and flitting nature of her writing, the plot had much to offer as well. It was the glimpse into experiences I never had myself that brought me the most enjoyment from this book. My own foray into marriage was not nearly so fraught with drama, reluctance, or fear. But I know that for many brides this is precisely their experience. So walking in Quinn's shoes for 340 pages gave me insight into an experience about which I'd previously known very little. Her story may be fiction, but her story is also true. Quinn's losses became mine. Her fears became mine. Her mistakes caused me to feel shame and her successes caused me to feel pride. Aidan lifts the outer layers of external perfection from her heroine and carefully reveals a creature who is initially less - but ultimately more - enviable than you thought she was based on her exterior. If the novel deserves any criticism at all it would be that it left me wanting more. Aidan's deft descriptions paint rich and colorful pictures. In several scenes I wished for longer, uninterrupted passages that would allow me to really soak up the settings before commencing with the next plot point. The narrative didn't feel rushed, necessarily, but there is an eagerness to it that in some ways augments the agitation Quinn feels, but also occasionally left me needing to pause for a breath. I hope that in her sophomore effort (which I understand is in the works!) Aidan takes her time and allows the characters and readers just a bit more space to get settled in before being ushered through the story. The final chapter brings a tidy-but-not-trite resolution to a character who struggles to settle on a trajectory that suits her. I finished the book feeling optimistic about Quinn's future, but confident that she still had room to wander. Life After Yes is a truly enjoyable read, marked by honesty, humor, vulnerability, and strength.

Loved It!

I began reading this book and assumed it would be a typical chick-lit type book. I was wrong because this book was fantastic! Quinn was a great character! She was a modern girl who likes her booze - what's not to love? Besides that, she was a realistic character because her life seemed perfect, but she was struggling as much as any other woman out there. Even though she made some {major} mistakes, she was still a sympathetic character. Quinn discovered throughout the course of this novel that many people in her life had imperfect lives as well, even her own parents, and that outward appearances are not everything. I also liked the setting of NYC after 9/11. It was an interesting perspective to hear from someone who has lost someone on that day and it was interesting to see how she had to navigate certain situations and how the people in her life {personally and professionally} treated her after and if they had to censor their thoughts. Without giving away the ending, I am wondering if there will be a sequel to this book {hint, hint}. I would be curious to see how Quinn's life turned out 8 years later. I encourage you all to buy this book because 1.) it's extremely well-written 2.) you will probably cry at some point 3.) you will suddenly get the urge to name your daughter Quinn or some other masculine name {Henri made my future baby name list this weekend} 4.) the cover is simply beautiful 5.) because I said so!

Lucky me. Lucky you.

Lucky me received an early copy of Aidan Donnelley Rowley's Life After Yes. Lucky you can purchase it now. And lucky for all of us who experience Life After Yes, we are taught priceless lessons through the words of Aidan Donnelley Rowley. We are brought into a world of unanswered questions, where pinstriped lawyers wonder where true happiness lies... and if those who lie can still seek happiness and come to relish in it. The philosophical meets the logical meets the questionable in Aidan Donnelley Rowley's rookie novel, asking the questions that so many of us may think but not be brave enough to verbalize. Her protagonist, Quinn, is beautifully flawed. Whether she is fighting off her impulses or submitting to them with an extra spicy Bloody Mary, Quinn reminds us all that we too are flawed, each in our own unique way, giving us all our own stories to share... if we are brave enough. Throughout Life After Yes, I was in awe of Quinn's bravery on numerous levels. I admired the way Aidan Donnelley Rowley took a young, vivacious, contemporary woman and exquisitely depicted her strengths through her weaknesses. It is when we are at the crossroads in our own lives that true bravery exists; and it certainly did with Quinn in Life After Yes. Do we risk asking ourselves the questions that Quinn did? That Aidan Donnelley Rowley asks of us, her readers, through Quinn? Or do we cower and hide, numbing ourselves to the possibility that true happiness can be ours, even if it is flawed. A fantastic and thought-provoking read, Aidan Donnelley Rowley leaves her readers feeling lucky to have experienced her work in Life After Yes, and truly appreciate the beauty in her words as a published author.

Yes. And Life After It.

Although it features a cast of hot, wealthy people cavorting in and around New York City, Life After Yes is much more than your typical "chick lit" offering. For one, it isn't a fairy tale. In fact, Aidan Donnelley Rowley begins her story where many in the genre end: her protagonist Quinn has already "gotten" her Prince Charming (via his romantic proposal in Paris) and the rest of the story unfolds as a sort of Reality Ever After. In Quinn, Rowley offers us a wholly realistic protagonist whose life - although full of the trappings of happiness - is accessorized with grief, fear, and struggles with identity. Quinn tries to cope with her issues through the anesthetics of alcohol and workaholism and makes a series of bad choices on her way to figuring out what she really wants out of life and love. What further sets this novel apart is Rowley's writing. From her facility with dialogue to her lyrical descriptions of the city, her prose is a pleasure to read throughout. She knows her subject matter well and captures pitch-perfectly the mood and anxieties of a group of New Yorkers in the wake of September 11th. At once entertaining and thought-provoking, Life After Yes marks the promising arrival of a smart and witty new voice in contemporary fiction. I thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated this book and look forward to reading more from Rowley.

YES to Life after Yes

The time has come ... (I keep hearing, in my head, "the walrus said, to talk of many things...") But the time has come. It's here. Life After Yes debuts today and I whole-heartedly encourage you to order it. It's been such a pleasure and an honor to live this process a little bit, vicariously, through Aidan. I read snippets of the book as she revised it, listening to Coldplay, at Starbucks. I saw the cover before it was final. And, finally, last week I got to hold it in my hands. And read it. And revel in it. Life After Yes is, first and foremost, an absolute pleasure to read. I gulped it down in two sittings. Aidan's characters are human and likeable, despite their real and visible flaws. The dialog is real, the descriptions of New York vivid, the particular moment in life recognizable to all who've been through it. But Life After Yes also dares to ask some big questions. The book is, in my view, about two main things: about the ways that loss echoes through our lives, crippling and humbling us in ways we cannot anticipate, and about the various crutches and devices we use to keep ourselves from embracing life, from saying, wholeheartedly, YES. The book's protagonist, Quinn, lives in the shadow of her father's unexpected death on 9/11. This is particularly poignant because any reader of Aidan's blog knows that she lost her father very recently. It gives me shivers to think that Aidan wrote this novel before her father was sick, as though her subconscious was prodding her to work through this particular life passage in advance of needing its wisdom. Quinn's fiance, Sage, also struggles with a deep loss. The way that Quinn and Sage and others around them (in particular, each of their mothers) reckon with the ramifications of these deaths forms the beating heart of the book. Quinn's story is also about the myriad ways that we hide from true and honest engagement in our lives. Aidan explores thoughtfully all the various tools that people use to numb themselves, to avoid really looking at the core of who they are and what they have chosen. There is alcohol, there is empty flirtation and sex, there is betrayal, there is plain old denial. We watch Quinn realize the futility of all of these crutches, and ultimately we see the beauty and joy that is possible when we overcome the human instinct to hide from ourselves. Part of this process for Quinn is also about letting go of her need to follow the yellow brick road, the path of great adulation and achievement. I relate to this keenly, and particularly loved the passage where Quinn begins to trust her inner compass: Something clicks. I've spent my whole life stockpiling reasons - for why I should go to law school, or become a litigator, or become a wife. Maybe some things don't need justification to be right. Maybe instinct is the best measure. There are other themes in Life After Yes. Quinn's maturation into herself is integral to the plot, and we watch her dreams of how her life would be confront