Afterworlds

Last updated
Afterworlds
Afterworlds.jpg
Afterworlds book cover
Author Scott Westerfeld
Audio read by
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Publisher Simon Pulse
Publication date
September 23, 2014
Pages599
ISBN 978-1481422345
OCLC 903329534

Afterworlds is a fiction novel by New York Times bestselling author Scott Westerfeld that was published on September 23, 2014. The slogan for the book is, "Darcy writes the words. Lizzie lives them." [1]

Contents

Plot

Darcy Patel has put college and everything else on hold to move to New York to rewrite and publish her teen novel, 'Afterworlds'. Arriving with no apartment or friends she wonders whether she's made the right decision, until she falls in with a crowd of other seasoned and fledgling writers who take her under their wings. Darcy weathers on through the whirlwind that is a first publication and learns multiple lessons not just in YA writing, but also in romance and relationships. Told in alternating chapters is Darcy's novel, a suspenseful thriller about Lizzie, a teen who slips into the Afterworld to survive a terrorist attack. Upon venturing into the underworld, Lizzie meets another mortal afterlife transcender who has been in the Afterworld for thousands of years and attempts to support Lizzie’s transition as a psychopomp. But the Afterworld is a place between the living and the dead, and as Lizzie drifts between our world and that of the Afterworld, she discovers that many unsolved - and terrifying - stories need to be reconciled. [2]

Characters

Darcy's Story

Lizzie's Story

Reception

The majority of the reviews for Afterworlds are positive and applaud Westerfeld for representing the passion of reading and writing in Darcy. Most reviewers felt that Darcy's story was the stronger of the two. Stephanie Zacharek of the New York Times writes, "the otherworldly story Darcy has invented for Lizzie isn't nearly as compelling as Darcy's real-world one." [3] Tasha Robinson of NPR writes, "while Lizzie's story is briskly thrilling, it's ultimately more valuable as a window into Darcy's mind." [4]

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References

  1. "Afterworlds". simonandschuster.com. 29 September 2015.
  2. "Afterworlds - Scott Westerfeld". scottwesterfeld.com.
  3. Zacharek, Stephanie (7 November 2014). "'Afterworlds,' by Scott Westerfeld" via NYTimes.com.
  4. "In 'Afterworlds,' A Teen Imagines Worlds Within Worlds". npr.org.