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What About After
Scott Boscoe is on a rollercoaster to gain his independence as he preps to start his next chapter in life. He's inches away from getting a degree in a highly esteemed Californian college, and he's just been promoted at a job he hasn't even started yet. Success and freedom from a stifling, prejudiced household seem right around the corner. However, a lie he's been hiding behind since high school has resurfaced, one he thought he dusted under the rug years ago. Now he's falling back on a deal he made with David "After" Después, his childhood ex-best friend turned celebrity and household name. Through the course of Scott cashing in his favor, and After making the best of it for his own gain, both of them get stuck learning a difficult you can make all the promises in the world as a kid to be there for your best friend...but what about after?
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For readers who enjoyed Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall, and the Simon Snow trilogy by Rainbow Rowell -- What About After is full of romance, drama, and comedy, with an occasionally unreliable, witty main character who loves to throw out a side (or snide) comment to the reader. What About After has everything from fake dating, strong family bonds, and friends-to-enemies-to-friends again...to maybe something more. (That neither Scott nor After are willing to admit to.)
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For readers who enjoyed Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall, and the Simon Snow trilogy by Rainbow Rowell -- What About After is full of romance, drama, and comedy, with an occasionally unreliable, witty main character who loves to throw out a side (or snide) comment to the reader. What About After has everything from fake dating, strong family bonds, and friends-to-enemies-to-friends again...to maybe something more. (That neither Scott nor After are willing to admit to.)
ebook
Published April 3, 2023
2 people are currently reading
93 people want to read
About the author
Quinn Coleman
5 books11 followersAuthor and artist currently located in Austin.
Newest book: The Letterman, book 1 in the Masc Narrative, a new adult coming of age story.
Find me on Instagram for book drawings and updates! @_quinnwrites
Newest book: The Letterman, book 1 in the Masc Narrative, a new adult coming of age story.
Find me on Instagram for book drawings and updates! @_quinnwrites
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 17, 2023
What About After is, hands down, one of the best books I’ve ever had the privilege to read. I can already tell that I’ll be able to open it on any page and feel right at home between the lines, and I can’t wait to discover all kinds of additional details and nuances on my third, ninth, seventeenth, and 781st read. The very second this book is released, I will order the paperback, and when it gets to my house, I will literally hug it like a long-lost friend. It deserves all the love in the world.
THE BASICS
”Incredible.” He’s still grinning and my neck stings. “I can literally hear—there’s a whistle, like a cartoon whistle in my ear right now. It’s you, falling to the earth. Splat, Scotty Everett.”
After shakes his head with a sigh, one last chuckle, and goes back to his fries. “Yeah, I’ll do it.”
Whiplash. “Wait, what?”
“But you gotta do something for me in turn.”
— chapter 4
Coleman’s debut occupies the liminal space between New Adult and Adult fiction. The novel’s protagonists are in their early 20s and on the brink of the “oh-fuck-I’m-a-real-adult-so-I-better-get-my-shit-together“ kind of adulthood. I’m not going to regurgitate the blurb here, but readers who live for tropes like fake dating, hurt and comfort, second chances, friends to lovers, and found family will feel right at home in What About After. The central conflict is refreshingly clear from the first chapter and pretty straight-forward on the surface, but the protagonists’ complicated history makes it gorgeously multilayered. The pacing is flawless: Coleman is preternaturally discerning when it comes to choosing which scenes to revel in and which ones to skip. There are no lulls at all, and the ending is as realistic as it is rewarding.
CHARACTERS AND POV
Cute and handsome and sexy and flesh and bone and muscle. Articles never talk about his heart. About the kid who would stop his jeep on the side of the road to help turtles cross into the ravines. Who’d give his best friend’s little sister the perfect slice of cake on his own birthday.
— chapter 21
What About After is narrated by Scott “Bo” Everett Boscoe, a thoughtful and sensitive nerd racked with guilt over plagiarizing his former best friend’s college essay. David “After” Después, the aforementioned ex-friend, has since made it big as an actor, but maintaining his A-lister status forces him to put on an act even when the cameras stop rolling. Thanks to their relatable flaws, the main characters strike me as beautifully human in an “I-love-you-but-I-don’t-love-your-choices” sort of way. As the complexity of their relationship is revealed, this impression only intensifies; at the same time, both of them demonstrate genuine growth, making the dynamics of their connection remarkably believable. Despite their struggles, the love between Scott and David is palpable on every page, and they’re so endearing that anybody unwilling to root for them is probably the kind of person who kicks puppies recreationally.
The composition of the supporting cast feels well-balanced. The conflicts that arise when the different characters’ choices, wants, and needs clash with one another are thoroughly believable. There are obvious villains I’d love to throw into the nearest volcano, and there are more subtle villains whose subliminal cruelty strikes me as all too real. Refreshingly, Coleman eschews the clichéd portrayal of LGBTQIA+ characters as good versus cishet characters as bad; instead, several straight characters have hearts of sunrise gold while some of the novel’s most toxic assholes are members of the LGBTIA+ community.
Antagonists aside, it’s family that makes What About After a masterpiece. The protagonists’ friendship with Cat-Cat serves as an aspirational example of found family while Bevett, Scott’s sister who might as well also be David’s, stands out for giving and receiving all the platonic affection a tender-hearted reader could ever wish for. Seeing non-romantic forms of love (and snuggles!) represented on the page is one of my personal benchmarks for worthwhile novels, and Coleman gets it right.
WRITING STYLE
“Please, Scott. Don’t leave me. You’re like...way more than I deserve. You’re a...what is it—a sunflower. Gold. And taller. Than I could ever be. You’re so full of life. And you let me hide. I can hide under you, under your leaves.”
— David, chapter 26
If I had to describe Coleman’s style in three words, I’d choose personality, poignancy, and poetry.
- Personality: Scott, our narrator-protagonist, tells his story in a conversational tone reminiscent of the emotionally intense conversations one might have at the margins of a party, when most of the guests have already passed out or left and the fire is burning low. A self-aware unreliable narrator, Scott reveals his personality as well as his true feelings through his diction. His refreshing bluntness and self-deprecating honesty are a near-endless source of comic relief and gallows humor. Coleman masterfully juxtaposes light-hearted and serious passages, easily shifting between a playful and an earnestly vulnerable tone.
- Poignancy: Scott’s gut-punch way of giving voice to hidden pain had me in tears a few (read: a few dozen) times. Coleman excels at finding just the right metaphors for emotions so complex and agonizing they usually defy words. Plenty of the novel’s sentences shine and sing, but they’re never just beautiful for beauty’s sake. Coleman’s writing is deeply thought-provoking, and while it can be heartbreaking at times, so much of it is also affirming, reassuring, and heart-mending for those of us who can relate to Bo.
- Poetry: With two protagonists who love to write, What About After is truly a writers’ novel, guaranteed to spark conversations about the art of storytelling among its fans. It may be a 600-page behemoth, but it still feels like every single word matters. I often found myself holding my breath for several pages because I was so absorbed by Coleman’s storytelling. Coleman is particularly adept at making the vulnerability and closeness of intimate moments physically palpable. Their sex scenes are dynamic, visceral, stirring, warm, and loving.
HOW DOES WAA COMPARE TO OTHER BOOKS?
His smile is all blue from the pool lights and pink from the sunset. He’d fit right into my Pashmina scarf.
— chapter 52
What About After combines all of Heartstopper’s most beloved characteristics — its warmth, its quiet beauty, it’s endearing cast — with the maturity of a book geared toward adults. Like Dante and Aristotle, it is a coming-of-age novel full of soft little details that mean the world. Both novels tell the story of two friends, but the central conflict of What About After is clear from the start, providing a strong sense of direction — something I struggled to see in Dante & Aristotle until I was about halfway done with the novel. Finally, What About After is everything I wish Rainbow Rowell’s Simon Snow books had been in areas such as writing style, pacing, character depth, and the arduous journey of forging one’s own path while healing from trauma. In short, if you loved the bestselling novels I just mentioned, you will absolutely adore What About After, which is likely to become your new benchmark for heartfelt LGBTQIA+ fiction.
WHO WILL LOVE THIS BOOK?
The love we want isn’t always something that exists.
— chapter 58
You need to be sensitive in order to truly appreciate What About After; you also need to enjoy being fully immersed in a story and be willing to go with the turbulent flow of Scott’s emotions. Those who have had to endure discrimination, have been forced to hide their true identities, have lost loved ones and haven’t been loved the way they deserve — this book will be a salve for your soul’s wounds. Despite the fact that there are steamy scenes, I have no qualms about recommending What About After to teenagers, particularly LGBTQIA+ youths, as Coleman centers the importance of consent throughout the book, whose readers will be likely to view it as a blueprint for healthy interpersonal relationships.
OVERALL IMPRESSION
He cracks a smile and tries to lean toward me, but his arm slips off his knee and his head thunks into my shoulder. That’s gonna bruise, fucking ow. I pull him to my chest and his arms come around my waist. When my fingers brush into his hair, he inhales so deep it lifts me half an inch off the step, and his head tucks under my chin.
— chapter 26
Realizing that Coleman’s debut is more than 600 pages long made me feel like, rather than just getting coffee with my new best friend, we were going to build a blanket fort, have a sleepover, whisper secrets to each other until sunrise, and finally go to sleep all asnuggle. Whether you’re a reader, bookfluencer, or literary agent, missing out on What About After is squarely your loss. I hope with all my heart that this one-of-a-kind novel will find the loving community of devoted superfans it deserves.
Five stars are nowhere near enough. I need a whole sky full of stars for What About After.
(I received a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.)
THE BASICS
”Incredible.” He’s still grinning and my neck stings. “I can literally hear—there’s a whistle, like a cartoon whistle in my ear right now. It’s you, falling to the earth. Splat, Scotty Everett.”
After shakes his head with a sigh, one last chuckle, and goes back to his fries. “Yeah, I’ll do it.”
Whiplash. “Wait, what?”
“But you gotta do something for me in turn.”
— chapter 4
Coleman’s debut occupies the liminal space between New Adult and Adult fiction. The novel’s protagonists are in their early 20s and on the brink of the “oh-fuck-I’m-a-real-adult-so-I-better-get-my-shit-together“ kind of adulthood. I’m not going to regurgitate the blurb here, but readers who live for tropes like fake dating, hurt and comfort, second chances, friends to lovers, and found family will feel right at home in What About After. The central conflict is refreshingly clear from the first chapter and pretty straight-forward on the surface, but the protagonists’ complicated history makes it gorgeously multilayered. The pacing is flawless: Coleman is preternaturally discerning when it comes to choosing which scenes to revel in and which ones to skip. There are no lulls at all, and the ending is as realistic as it is rewarding.
CHARACTERS AND POV
Cute and handsome and sexy and flesh and bone and muscle. Articles never talk about his heart. About the kid who would stop his jeep on the side of the road to help turtles cross into the ravines. Who’d give his best friend’s little sister the perfect slice of cake on his own birthday.
— chapter 21
What About After is narrated by Scott “Bo” Everett Boscoe, a thoughtful and sensitive nerd racked with guilt over plagiarizing his former best friend’s college essay. David “After” Después, the aforementioned ex-friend, has since made it big as an actor, but maintaining his A-lister status forces him to put on an act even when the cameras stop rolling. Thanks to their relatable flaws, the main characters strike me as beautifully human in an “I-love-you-but-I-don’t-love-your-choices” sort of way. As the complexity of their relationship is revealed, this impression only intensifies; at the same time, both of them demonstrate genuine growth, making the dynamics of their connection remarkably believable. Despite their struggles, the love between Scott and David is palpable on every page, and they’re so endearing that anybody unwilling to root for them is probably the kind of person who kicks puppies recreationally.
The composition of the supporting cast feels well-balanced. The conflicts that arise when the different characters’ choices, wants, and needs clash with one another are thoroughly believable. There are obvious villains I’d love to throw into the nearest volcano, and there are more subtle villains whose subliminal cruelty strikes me as all too real. Refreshingly, Coleman eschews the clichéd portrayal of LGBTQIA+ characters as good versus cishet characters as bad; instead, several straight characters have hearts of sunrise gold while some of the novel’s most toxic assholes are members of the LGBTIA+ community.
Antagonists aside, it’s family that makes What About After a masterpiece. The protagonists’ friendship with Cat-Cat serves as an aspirational example of found family while Bevett, Scott’s sister who might as well also be David’s, stands out for giving and receiving all the platonic affection a tender-hearted reader could ever wish for. Seeing non-romantic forms of love (and snuggles!) represented on the page is one of my personal benchmarks for worthwhile novels, and Coleman gets it right.
WRITING STYLE
“Please, Scott. Don’t leave me. You’re like...way more than I deserve. You’re a...what is it—a sunflower. Gold. And taller. Than I could ever be. You’re so full of life. And you let me hide. I can hide under you, under your leaves.”
— David, chapter 26
If I had to describe Coleman’s style in three words, I’d choose personality, poignancy, and poetry.
- Personality: Scott, our narrator-protagonist, tells his story in a conversational tone reminiscent of the emotionally intense conversations one might have at the margins of a party, when most of the guests have already passed out or left and the fire is burning low. A self-aware unreliable narrator, Scott reveals his personality as well as his true feelings through his diction. His refreshing bluntness and self-deprecating honesty are a near-endless source of comic relief and gallows humor. Coleman masterfully juxtaposes light-hearted and serious passages, easily shifting between a playful and an earnestly vulnerable tone.
- Poignancy: Scott’s gut-punch way of giving voice to hidden pain had me in tears a few (read: a few dozen) times. Coleman excels at finding just the right metaphors for emotions so complex and agonizing they usually defy words. Plenty of the novel’s sentences shine and sing, but they’re never just beautiful for beauty’s sake. Coleman’s writing is deeply thought-provoking, and while it can be heartbreaking at times, so much of it is also affirming, reassuring, and heart-mending for those of us who can relate to Bo.
- Poetry: With two protagonists who love to write, What About After is truly a writers’ novel, guaranteed to spark conversations about the art of storytelling among its fans. It may be a 600-page behemoth, but it still feels like every single word matters. I often found myself holding my breath for several pages because I was so absorbed by Coleman’s storytelling. Coleman is particularly adept at making the vulnerability and closeness of intimate moments physically palpable. Their sex scenes are dynamic, visceral, stirring, warm, and loving.
HOW DOES WAA COMPARE TO OTHER BOOKS?
His smile is all blue from the pool lights and pink from the sunset. He’d fit right into my Pashmina scarf.
— chapter 52
What About After combines all of Heartstopper’s most beloved characteristics — its warmth, its quiet beauty, it’s endearing cast — with the maturity of a book geared toward adults. Like Dante and Aristotle, it is a coming-of-age novel full of soft little details that mean the world. Both novels tell the story of two friends, but the central conflict of What About After is clear from the start, providing a strong sense of direction — something I struggled to see in Dante & Aristotle until I was about halfway done with the novel. Finally, What About After is everything I wish Rainbow Rowell’s Simon Snow books had been in areas such as writing style, pacing, character depth, and the arduous journey of forging one’s own path while healing from trauma. In short, if you loved the bestselling novels I just mentioned, you will absolutely adore What About After, which is likely to become your new benchmark for heartfelt LGBTQIA+ fiction.
WHO WILL LOVE THIS BOOK?
The love we want isn’t always something that exists.
— chapter 58
You need to be sensitive in order to truly appreciate What About After; you also need to enjoy being fully immersed in a story and be willing to go with the turbulent flow of Scott’s emotions. Those who have had to endure discrimination, have been forced to hide their true identities, have lost loved ones and haven’t been loved the way they deserve — this book will be a salve for your soul’s wounds. Despite the fact that there are steamy scenes, I have no qualms about recommending What About After to teenagers, particularly LGBTQIA+ youths, as Coleman centers the importance of consent throughout the book, whose readers will be likely to view it as a blueprint for healthy interpersonal relationships.
OVERALL IMPRESSION
He cracks a smile and tries to lean toward me, but his arm slips off his knee and his head thunks into my shoulder. That’s gonna bruise, fucking ow. I pull him to my chest and his arms come around my waist. When my fingers brush into his hair, he inhales so deep it lifts me half an inch off the step, and his head tucks under my chin.
— chapter 26
Realizing that Coleman’s debut is more than 600 pages long made me feel like, rather than just getting coffee with my new best friend, we were going to build a blanket fort, have a sleepover, whisper secrets to each other until sunrise, and finally go to sleep all asnuggle. Whether you’re a reader, bookfluencer, or literary agent, missing out on What About After is squarely your loss. I hope with all my heart that this one-of-a-kind novel will find the loving community of devoted superfans it deserves.
Five stars are nowhere near enough. I need a whole sky full of stars for What About After.
(I received a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.)
March 14, 2023
Quinn Coleman’s debut novel, What About After, is a beautifully written heart wrenching romance. This LQBTIA+ novel follows two characters, David and Scott, reuniting after being separated for years due to an abrupt end to their friendship. The main tropes are fake dating (my favorite) and friends to lovers! Throughout the story I fell in love with both Scott and David because they both possess very different, but relatable characteristics. I especially relate to Scott’s bubbly humor and David’s desire to be accepted and loved.
One of my favorite parts about this book is how much more I learned about the LGBTIA+ spectrum. I found myself googling and reading more about the meaning of abrosexuality. Coleman also does a fantastic job of discussing a series of serious topics that their characters experience and how those experiences have developed them into the men they are presently. Despite these hardships, David and Scott learn, develop, and become stronger by working through their issues.
There are so many great scenes in this book, and I don’t want to spoil the story. I can tell you there is glam, fast cars, hard conversations, Spanish getaways, and two old friends finally learning to love themselves and each other. I absolutely recommend this read to anyone! This book will make you hate putting it down and think about it until you pick it back up again!!
One of my favorite parts about this book is how much more I learned about the LGBTIA+ spectrum. I found myself googling and reading more about the meaning of abrosexuality. Coleman also does a fantastic job of discussing a series of serious topics that their characters experience and how those experiences have developed them into the men they are presently. Despite these hardships, David and Scott learn, develop, and become stronger by working through their issues.
There are so many great scenes in this book, and I don’t want to spoil the story. I can tell you there is glam, fast cars, hard conversations, Spanish getaways, and two old friends finally learning to love themselves and each other. I absolutely recommend this read to anyone! This book will make you hate putting it down and think about it until you pick it back up again!!
July 19, 2024
What a freaking mess.
Jam-packed with drugs, trauma, shame.
But it's zany! Lolz.
Jam-packed with drugs, trauma, shame.
But it's zany! Lolz.
July 8, 2024
This is a new to me author as well as their debut novel. I did enjoy it, even though I don’t normally like NA/YA books. Nor do I like fake dating. I do like second chance & friends to lovers, and we did get that. I would have liked the book to have been a bit shorter as it did drag in parts. I liked both of our MC’s and the cast of characters. I went ahead & purchased the author’s other book they wrote as I enjoyed their writing style.
July 14, 2024
A little on the long side.
But I did enjoy the read.
The end was a little easy on the resolution.
.
But I did enjoy the read.
The end was a little easy on the resolution.
.
July 26, 2024
I have to say, I did not enjoy this one. It rambled way too long. What was absolutely annoying, is one of the MC name is After. I kept reading the sentences wrong thinking it’s a preposition to the sentence.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews