Ophelia’s hobby of gardening (specifically roses) is very unique. What is the significance behind her passion for horticulture? Ophelia’s story definitely moved the recently-turned-adult-me to tears. It’s written in such a raw, heartfelt manner that I had no other choice actually. There’s the feel good contemporaries and there are contemporaries like this… that just get you, that deeply resonate with you, that bring light to feelings within you that you didn’t know existed.

I loved Ophelia's growth throughout the novel. Her journey reminded me a lot of my own experiences, so it was heartwarming to see her embracing herself little by little. Raquel does an exceptional job making her main character reliable while at the same time keeping her realistic. It’s one of my favourite things I’ve ever written, and think it gets to the core of a lot of what Ophelia’s dealing with throughout the book. In every fantasy I’ve ever had of prom, not once did I imagine decor reminiscent of the scuba-diving expedition Mom and Dad took me on during our family vacation to Mexico two summers ago. Evidently, neither did Agatha.

At the core, Ophelia After All centers around prom. But what leads up to it is a mix of merging friend groups, a love triangle and the conversations surrounding the different places these characters will be quite soon. The tide of change that hits these group of friends and their fallouts with Ophelia at the center never feels overdone or some event just to further the plot in a contemporary novel. Agatha shakes her head while chewing. “They broke up last week.” She swallows. “He got into NYU and she’s staying local, so they called it quits early. She was a mess in ceramics.” That’s unfortunately no longer the first line, mainly because Ophelia isn’t quite that aware of her sexuality at the start of the book now, but that sentiment was the starting point for me—feeling overwhelmed by the realisation I wasn’t straight and not knowing where to go from there—and as I continued to write about a girl learning to celebrate her queerness, I was able to learn the same. and ophelia’s hopelessly romantic outlook on life. how she falls in love fast fully. how she gives her heart away to those who don’t see the gift that it is. it was how i too used to see the world.

we’ve watched this shit show love triangle bullshit go on for months. i think it’s our business now Change is inevitable in life. You can't stay the same throughout your whole life. But we have to admit that changes are scary. We all, at some points of our lives, wonder if our loved ones would accept our changes, whether they would love the "new us" all the same. "Ophelia After All" says with so much gentleness and love - it’s okay to change, it’s okay to be unsure about who you are. The people who truly love you will always stay by your side, no matter what. Ophelia After All was one of my most anticipated releases of the year. I've followed Raquel for years so ever since she announced her debut I knew I was going to absolutely love it, and I wasn't wrong.

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Ophelia Rojas is a wonderful realistic character. reading through her point of view truly was a new kind of experience.