Love, After All by Ewald Arenz

 

Love, After All by Ewald Arenz.

Translated from the German by Rachel Ward.

Published 18th June 2026 by Orenda Books.

From the cover of the book:

When Clara meets Elias, she isn’t looking for love. Widowed and wary of being hurt again, she has built a careful life of work and quiet independence. Elias, an actor in his thirties, is trapped in a relationship that no longer feels real, more at ease slipping into a role than being himself. Yet from the moment they meet, something genuine sparks between them – something neither has felt in years.

They fall into step easily, sharing secrets, laughter and the sense of being seen. But there is the age difference, the miles between their worlds, and the lingering guilt that ties Clara to her past. When a new job takes her to another part of the country, she ends the relationship before he can – certain that love like theirs cannot last. And then Elias falls ill, forcing them both to confront what truly matters.

Told with warmth, gentle humour and quiet insight, Love, After All is a luminous portrait of two people finding the courage to open their hearts again – proof that love, at any age, can still take us by surprise.

***********

Widow Clara is navigating the single life, happily settled in a flat that is perfect for her, and working part-time as a photographer for a newspaper. She decides the time is ripe to let go of the holiday cottage she bought with her late husband, Paul, and is glad of the funds this will bring when she discovers her job is to be phased out.

Elias is drifting through life as an actor. He enjoys his work, but other aspects of his life are less satisfying. He acknowledges that his private life involves a good deal of play-acting, especially when it comes to his some-time girlfriend, Vera. However, when it comes to his relationship with his daughter, Jule, he does his best to be 'real'.

Neither Clara, nor Elias, are looking for love, but when they meet - at the threshold of Clara's cottage, when Elias accompanies Vera so they can have a nose around the quaint property - something clicks between them. A relationship ensures, but the age difference between them eventually proves a stumbling block... until Elias becomes seriously ill.

Best-selling German author Ewald Arenz has a deft touch when it comes to writing about family and relationships, and this latest novel is a great showcase for his talents. The story unfurls from the perspectives of Clara and Elias, delving into the subtleties of their lives, and showing how their expectations and experiences come between them.

For Clara, this means examining her contradictory recollections of marriage to Paul, especially about the late-diagnosed cancer that rapidly consumed him; her acceptance of widowhood; the sudden prospect of unemployment in middle life; and the growing burden of dealing with her father's paranoia, and her mother's increasingly worse dementia. In parallel, Elias has troubles of his own to contend with, which mostly revolve around his inability to connect with anyone on a meaningful level, leading to relationship dramas and self-doubt.

Arenz writes compellingly about them both, showing sensitivity and insight when it comes to the past that has shaped them, their hopes and dreams, and more particularly their fears. The way Clara gradually reveals the course of Paul's illness is handled very well, and the combination of warmth, humour and heartache that threads through Clara's experiences with her family is wonderful. Elias' determination to be a good father to Jule is also examined nicely, although he does tend to come across as rather self-absorbed in other areas of his life.

What absolutely shines throughout this novel is the way Arenz charts the course of Clara and Elias' relationship from the first spark of attraction, to a rupture in their romance, and beyond to when Elias' sudden illness brings them into back into the same orbit. If you love a quiet novel that brings to mind the way Elizabeth Strout writes about feelings, family ties, and the myriad things that fate throws in the way of happiness then you will adore what Arenz does in this story - emotional highs and lows, moments that stand still, tenderness, unburdening, laughter and tears, and a realisation of what is important in life... all this is here and more.

I was already a fan of Arenz before embarking on this novel, and it cements everything I admire about his writing. Rachel Ward's translation is a thing of beauty too, bringing every carefully-crafted nuance alive. I swallowed it whole!

Love, After All is available to buy now in paperback, ebook and audio formats. You can support indie publishing by buying direct from Orenda Books HERE.

Thank you to Orenda Books for sending me a proof of this book, and to Random Things Tours for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

About the author:

Ewald Arenz, born in Nürnberg in 1965, studied English and American literature and history. He is a teacher at a secondary school in Nürnberg. His novels and plays have received many awards. Ewald lives near Fürth with his family.

About the translator:

Rachel Ward is a freelance translator of literary and creative texts from German and French to English. Having always been an avid reader and enjoyed word games and puzzles, she discovered a flair for languages at school and went on to study modern languages at the University of East Anglia. She spent the third year working as a language assistant at two grammar schools in Saaebrücken, Germany. During her final year, she realised that she wanted to put these skills and passions to use professionally and applied for UEA’s MA in Literary Translation, which she completed in 2002. Her published translations include Traitor by Gudrun Pausewang and Red Rage by Brigitte Blobel, and she is a Member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting.