After we Burned by Marike Nijkamp

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✦ BLURB ✦

A terrible accident. A horrible loss. A regrettable tragedy. That's all anyone in Fenix can talk about when a fire consumes the local high school, taking the life of a student. The town mourns, except who really knew--let alone cared about--Eden when she was alive? And why was she in the building that night?

Five teens each hold a piece of the truth about what happened. They also have their own secrets, secrets they will fight to protect with the same fury as the blaze that killed Eden. But silence is meant to be broken, and this story can't be extinguished...

She deserved more. They all did.

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✶ PRE-READING ✶

I’ve read a few of Marieke Nijkamp’s previous books (This Is Where It Ends, Even If We Break) and always admire the way they navigate grief, identity, and trauma. I expected After We Burned to be heavy, layered, and emotionally resonant - but I was also curious to see how the mystery would unfold. A multi-POV structure always interests me, especially when each narrator carries a different relationship to the truth.

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✶ POST-READING ✶

As I thought... This is a slow, quiet burn of a book - less about shocking twists than about the slow, aching weight of guilt and silence. Nijkamp handles the emotional nuances of grief beautifully, especially when it comes to characters who are still trying to define themselves even as the world around them seems determined to label or erase them. The mystery is more atmospheric than plot-driven, but it works, because this is really a story about consequences, not just events. The timeline jumps back and forth from various periods before the accident to the aftermath.

It surprised me by... The story isn’t just about uncovering who caused the fire or how Eden died - it’s about the why that lives beneath the surface of every action. The characters aren’t just unreliable narrators; they’re traumatized ones, and the difference matters. Each voice contributes not just a fact but an emotional texture, and together, they paint a picture of a girl who deserved so much more than the town gave her. It’s devastating, in the quietest way.

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✦ RECOMMENDATIONS ✦

Book Recommendation: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart (for layered secrets and beautiful melancholy)

TV or Movie Recommendation: Sharp Objects (TV) (for toxic small towns and fragmented truths)

✦ MUSIC PAIRING ✦

Because sometimes, the heart of a story plays out like a song.

🎵 Featured Song: “bury a friend” – Billie Eilish

That eerie, glitchy pulse and whispered desperation encapsulate the tension and emotional numbness that runs through the novel.

🎶 Vibe Album: Immunity – Clairo
A soft, sad, introspective album that feels like wandering through memories and smoke.

🎧 Artist Recommendation: Mitski
For when you need music that understands emotional repression, loneliness, and the weight of never being fully seen.

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✧ VIBE CHECK ✧

🎨 Colour Palette: Smoke grey, scorched orange, bruise purple
🎬 Soundtrack: Quiet hallway footsteps, crackling fire, whispered confessions
🍂 Season: Late autumn—when the cold sets in, and everything feels brittle
🫧 Mood: Haunted, heavy, fragile

🌫 Scent: Ash and rain on cement

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★ TAROT CARD PULLED ★

Five of Cups – Nightfall Tarot
A lone figure walks beside a river, back turned, sorrow trailing behind her. Grief, regret, and the ache of what might have been weigh heavy here - just as they do in Fenix. This card speaks for Eden, for those left behind, and for the truths washed away by time and silence.

After We Burned publishes on the 1st July, 2025. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.