After the Thirty Days


Fiction - Short Story/Novela
112 Pages
Reviewed on 06/22/2018
Buy on Amazon

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.

Author Biography

Living in Western Australia, Susan M B Preston uses her middle initials because there is at least one other author called Susan Preston.
This novella came to be because it is an untold 'side story' to the Apostle John Series. It is the first of three related novellas told from the Jewish 'Old Simon's' family members. All are standalone but related.

    Book Review

Reviewed by K.C. Finn for Readers' Favorite

After the Thirty Days is a novella in the Christian historical fiction genre. Written by Susan M.B. Preston, the novella is a companion to the Apostle John Series, which explores the trials and tribulations of Christian life during the first century AD. In this novella, we follow Esther, who has been called back to Ephesus to be married, but there seems to be a great deal of confusion as to whom she will wed. The real story focuses on her reaction to her mother, who has begun to practice Christianity in her absence, and how this affects Esther’s choices about her husband-to-be. The novella runs parallel to Hell Shall Not Prevail, the final book in the series, and fills in more details about Esther’s life for the readership.

Not having read the rest of the series, I can’t comment on the contribution that Esther’s story makes to the overall series, but After the Thirty Days is an intriguing and well-penned novella in itself. I was fascinated to discover the ways of the early Christians and how their shift to the new faith was received by different cultures of the time. Esther’s dilemma really exemplifies how cruel human beings can be to one another, and I felt the Christian lessons, which were woven into the plot, were done without being too pushy or preachy about it. Even for myself as a non-religious person, Susan M.B. Preston drew me in with her sense of hope and faith, and the craft of bringing authentic and relatable characters to life.