After All Is Said And Done: A Novel of Infidelity, Healing & Forgiveness

After All Is Said and Done is a great read! Its full of love, passion, friendships, and betrayal. The story moved at a nice pace and I found it very hard to put down. It kept me guessing and hoping the whole time. I am looking forward to reading more from this author!

What a fantastic read. This book had me in right from the start. Well written, mature characters, interesting storyline and a decent size book (650 pages) for a change. I have read many books about cheating spouses and I can honestly say that this one strands out above the rest. A well deserved 5 stars. I will certainly be reading more from this author.

An emotional and different type of story line that is about the aftermath of infidelity. Ethan finds out his wifes affair but forgives Jessica. That is until he finds out that the child, whose conception was after the so called affair. She and Gavin kept up the affair, thus producing a child. Gavin was also married, to Sarah. This was a tormented story that showed how Ethan coped, or not coped. His demons and how he was able to grow and overcome her infidelities. Not an entertaining read. So much hurt. And the adulterous couple didnt seem to get any negative effects toward them It all seemed to focus more on Ethan.

Great characters but did he really have to forgive her for her actions. Great ending and only fitting for two lost characters

I dont usually read this genre, but I was pleasantly surprised by this book. This novel reminds me of a Danielle Steel book, and I think if it had the benefit of slick editing and the backing of a Random House-type publisher, it would do as well. The story was much deeper than I anticipated and the characters were amazingly fleshed-out. All in all, this was an intricate story well crafted by a first-time author. I recommend it.

Initially, I was drawn to this book because it dealt with alcoholism and unforgiveness. Both are issues that have dramatically affected our family, and the latter is affecting it now. I joined a blog tour to give away a copy of it, and the author did a guest post along with it. After reading her guest post, I knew I had to read this book. I contacted her, and she graciously sent me a copy to review. She warned me about any issues I may find with the book (I cant tell you how much I appreciate it when authors do that), but I was convinced this was a book I was supposed to read. And I am so glad I did! The writing style, plot, and characterization in this book are absolutely exquisite. In the beginning, I struggled to keep the characters straight. (My fault, not the authors). I finally got Gavin, Jessica, Sarah, and Ethan straightened out. Ill let you read the book and figure all that out yourself. I truly feel that this book was very realistic. Sometimes an author will write a book and water down the topics so that there is a happy ending. Belinda Buchanan does not do do this. She handles the issues of infidelity and alcoholism in a way that is real, human, and tragic. And she shows you exactly what bitterness and unforgiveness can do to a person. I am glad that author warned me about the adult portions. Yes, there was some profanity and intimate scenes. Most intimate scenes occurred between married people and did not go into great detail. Practically all profanity was used sparsely and at what most would feel were appropriate moments. I was not nearly as offended as I might have been if the profanity was rampant and incessant. The amazing thing about the characters is that I grew to love Ethan in spite of everything. In fact, I was amazed to discover that through everything (dont want to spoil it for anyone), I still loved him and never stopped. I wanted him to make it, and there were some emotional points. In fact, as I read a good portion of these portions, I was in a classroom with a group of students, and I really forgot where I was! I was not overly aware of what was going on in the class. There were also points that just hit too close to home. I came from an emotionally abusive marriage, and some of the situations very difficult to read. In conclusion, I so wish that those close to me who are struggling with bitterness could learn the lessons that the characters did in the book. They so need to understand that hatred and anger accomplishes nothing if you keep holding onto it. You must let it go. I am very grateful that the author gave me this book for free in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are 100 percent mine.

The story is a little unbelievable: that a man (Ethan), would want so much to stay with an unfaithful wife (Jessica) who bore the child (Ryan) of another man (Gavin). Ethan seems to be more condemned for his reaction to the deceit and betrayal than Jessica and Gavin are for having the affair. Ethan is taunted and belittled at work by Jessicas and Gavins comments and confrontations. Their flirting at the company Christmas party drives Ethan to create a disturbance there with both of them. Eventually Ethan is confined to the hospital psych ward through the conspiracy of his sister, Renee, and the hospital staff. Of course his adulterous wife and her cousin, Grace, are assigned to be his doctors and they torment him with humiliating examinations and force-feeding. Jessica is especially cruel by bringing their son, which was fathered by Gavin, to visit Ethan to further remind him what he has lost and her contempt for him. In the end there is no comeuppance for Jessica and Gavin who seem to have had all their desires fulfilled and, I suspect, later on get married and have a family with their son. The hospital staff all go on with their lives while Ethan is left to rebuild from the devastation that has befallen him. He marries Sarah (the other discarded spouse in this love quadrangle) and they move to England. I guess I was expecting more of a story about someone excising a cancer from their life and moving on & moving up. It just did not satisfy me that way.

Well what a book this turned out to be. When I read the blurb, I really wasnt sure how I would like it, I have been through my own marriage troubles and in the end what was best for me was to end it. I am now very happy with the man of my dreams. I was leary reading it would dredge up feelings I didnt want to visit again, that wasnt the case at all. When starting the book you look at the number of pages it is, 659 on my ereader and sometimes when a book is that long you think goodness is the book going to drag on, not the case at all with this one. Once you start turning the pages you CANNOT put this book down, I was up until 2am so I could try to finish reading it, and when I had to put it down I was finding myself thinking about the book and what was going to happen next. It totally sucked me in and would not let go until I read the very last word, and when I read the last word, I sat in my purple chair and said Holy Crap on a Cracker lol I instantly went to the authors website and found out another book is coming. So I relaxed a bit knowing theres more to come, but then I realized oh man I gotta wait for the next one. The story the author has created for these 2-couples was nothing short of amazing. To see the twists and turns between both couples made me chuckle at times, made my heartbreak, made me gasp as I couldnt believe that just happened, and I actually cried in a few part, I mean tears, some of sadness and some of happiness. I really liked Belindas writing style, the story flowed well and the plot was clear and concise, it was really cool how just when you thought you figured out where the story was heading, Belinda threw in a twist you never saw coming. I did find myself taking a look at my own life and say how much could I forgive. Its a story that makes you think and its a story you will think about long after you have finished reading it. I highly recommend this book to all and I really hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Enjoy!!!!

I wasnt sure what to expect from the description of this book. It seemed like it might be a romance book, and since I dont usually read romance, I didnt have a lot of expectations. However, I was pleasantly surprised after just the first couple of chapters. The actual writing is well done, the characters are realistic, and it wasnt hard to imagine this happening in real life instead of in print.

I honestly felt like she got off too easy. I can’t stand the way she excuses her behavior. I kept waiting for her to get karma... but he ends up begging her for another chance... NOT FOR ME