Afterlife Audiobook By Julia Alvarez cover art

Afterlife

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for $0.00
Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.

Afterlife

By: Julia Alvarez
Narrated by: Alma Cuervo
Try for $0.00

$0.00/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $17.19

Buy for $17.19

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

The first adult novel in almost 15 years by the internationally best-selling author of In the Time of the Butterflies and How the García Girls Lost Their Accents.

Antonia Vega, the immigrant writer at the center of Afterlife, has had the rug pulled out from under her. She has just retired from the college where she taught English when her beloved husband, Sam, suddenly dies. And then more jolts: her bighearted but unstable sister disappears, and Antonia returns home one evening to find a pregnant, undocumented teenager on her doorstep. Antonia has always sought direction in the literature she loves - lines from her favorite authors play in her head like a soundtrack - but now she finds that the world demands more of her than words.

Afterlife is a compact, nimble, and sharply droll novel. Set in this political moment of tribalism and distrust, it asks: What do we owe those in crisis in our families, including - maybe especially - members of our human family? How do we live in a broken world without losing faith in one another or ourselves? And how do we stay true to those glorious souls we have lost?

©2020 Julia Alvarez (P)2020 Recorded Books Family Life Fiction Genre Fiction Latino American Literary Fiction United States World Literature Heartfelt

Featured Article: The Best Audiobooks Under 8 Hours


Looking to listen to amazing stories and expert narration in less time than it takes to binge-watch your favorite TV series? Some of the best audiobooks aren’t terribly long: you can listen to them in one shot on a long road trip or in just a few sittings, meaning you're not left trying to remember what happened five chapters ago. Shorter audiobooks are also great for commutes and for doing tasks around the house because you can get lost in a listen without getting left on a cliffhanger. If you're looking for your next listen, we've rounded up some of the best audiobooks under eight hours across different genres.

Featured Article The Best Audiobooks Under 8 Hours

Editor's Pick

A welcome listen in times of turmoil
"The arrival of Julia Alvarez’s first work of fiction in 15 years couldn’t have happened at a better time. We are facing a global pandemic that encourages distancing ourselves from others, and we are living through one of the most divisive political climates in more than a generation. In Alvarez’s Afterlife, Antonia is a retired college professor of Dominican descent who is struggling with the sudden death of her husband, Sam. But in h quiet Vermont college town, her life is turned upside down when she finds Estela, a pregnant, undocumented teenager at her door. As Antonia weighs the needs of others and her own, memories of Sam’s goodness help guide her, along with guidance from authors such as Tolstoy and Rilke—and this is where this story shines. I fell in instant love with this story. Alvarez is a brilliant writer who draws from her own Dominican culture to offer a combined message of deep reflection on existence with timely questions about life, loss, and finding the good within yourself in order to help others. Afterlife is a refreshing and welcome listen that reminds us that there is no better time than NOW for this timely message."—Edwin D., Audible Editor

Captivating Story • Heartwarming Relationships • Excellent Narration • Thoughtful Exploration • Wonderful Sisterhood
Highly rated for:
All stars
Most relevant  
A beautiful, moving story read with such care and tenderness . Loved the relationships in the sisterhood and will take away the thoughts on the afterlife.

Highly recommended

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The characters were not offered formulaic answers to their complex human challenges of grieving and loneliness. But they were all encouraged to find energy and desire to love and hope and reach out again

Realistic, thoughtful, timely

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is the first book I’ve read by Julia Alvarez and I can’t wait to read more. As books often do, this one called to me from the shelf at just the right time.

Beautiful, heartbreaking, hopeful.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
short novella. well written. meaningful story leave you pondering about life
situations, and issues surrounding us

still thinking about main character

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I love how she speaks from Dominican culture right out of life in the motherland. Even when the action doesn’t happen there she just connects you to her culture ( which is mine too). It’s like living in a Dominican home. I loved the characters, the sisterhood, what a wonderful family she created for this book. Makes me wonder if she had a ton of siblings too. It’s just so real to me. Doesn’t feel like fiction. Loved it.

Always so real for me

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A well-written story, but not overwhelmingly good. Descriptions of the central character's widowhood are moving. But the resolution of the story is pretty trite.

Good enough

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Julia Alvarez at her best!! But also this is the 4th book I’ve listened to narrated by Alma Cuervo and she is absolutely fantastic. I was so moved by both the story and the incredible narration. I wish Alma Cuervo narrated everything!

Excellent

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Julia Alvarez never disappoints. This story of the widow Antonia navigating family issues with two of her sisters regarding the disappearance of the eldest sister, Izzy, beings home family issues of dealing with mental health issues. She also is involved with an undocumented pregnant teenager with nowhere to turn. This is a thoughtful book with a caring narrator. Alma Cuervo did an excellent job as narrator. For the Taylor Jenkins Reid fans, she was the voice of Evelyn Hugo.

Loved this book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Really enjoyed this book and the reader was perfect for the subject. Topical, facing directly the very real issues of migration, mental illness and loss. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who cares about quality of life, about personal involvement and about both the limits of and the possibilities for one individual to make a difference.

Life After?

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The story is captivating on many levels. The performance is excellent. I enjoyed every minute of this recording.

Breathtaking story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews