Antonia Vega, a recently retired English professor and immigrant writer, is reeling from the sudden death of her husband. As she grieves, her unstable sister disappears, and a pregnant, undocumented teen appears at her door. Guided by the literature she loves, Antonia must now confront challenges that demand more than words. Afterlife is a concise, witty novel set against a backdrop of political tension. It explores what we owe to those in need- both in our families and in the wider human family- and how we can remain faithful to each other and ourselves in a fractured world.