I can't remember the last time I enjoyed a book this much. I took After the Fire on holiday with me last month and rattled through it in a couple of sittings, then had to face up to the fact that I wasn't going to read anything that good again for the rest of my time away. And probably for the rest of the year.
The book follows two main characters and at first I had that feeling of leaning towards one of them and not caring as much about the other, but by the midpoint I was totally engrossed in both. Other reviewers have written about the book's ability to convey things that aren't spoken, and it is very good at the quiet intensity of unspoken emotion. But I was also blown away by the jungle warfare, the bar brawls, the blokes working in good honest backbreaking jobs and the shark encounter. And there's something going on with chickens too, but maybe I'm reading too much into that.
I've given the book five stars but I can't recommend it highly enough. Just brilliant.