Life After Death

Souljah’s mystical, uneven sequel to The Coldest Winter Ever picks up with Winter Santiaga leaving prison after 15 years, having taken the fall for a hustler boyfriend’s drug dealing. Her release is captured on a reality TV show developed for her, as is her murder; she is shot by friend-turned-nemesis Simone, after Simone finds out how much Winter would profit from the show compared to her and other women from the neighborhood. Winter ends up in the underworld, otherwise named the Last Stop Before the Drop, where she lives a twisted version of the life she’d led before ending up in prison. In a series of strange and winding events, Winter becomes romantically involved with a number of biblically and Quran-inspired men—who, just like she’d experienced in her past life, end up mistreating her. She begins to think back on her past with her father, whom she adores, and is able to observe the life of her first love, who is now married with a family. When she meets the souls of unborn children, they tell her she must reflect on her life if she wants to leave the underworld. While Winter’s digressive interior monologue can be hard to follow, Souljah’s saga is conceptually imaginative. The author’s diehard fans will appreciate this. (Mar.)