I learned a thing. End-of-life Doulas or Death Doulas are on the rise and they may be necessary. The need for someone, a non-medical care provider, during the end-of-life process is gently explored in The Next Thing You Know. As with all good drama (and real life) the story is multi-dimensional.
Kelly is a single mom running her doula service, Parting Your Way, from her home. Nova is her business partner who lives in an annexed part of the house. When Kelly declines Mason Shaylor's request for a doula, she refers his case to Nova.
Other cases are in the background giving the reader context into the skills and services Parting Your Way performs. But it is the relationship that develops between Nova and her clients, most specifically between Nova and Mason that takes center stage. An unforeseen tragedy occurs setting off a series of reverberations that threaten the future of Parting Your Way, family dynamics unfold, friendships are broken, secrets are revealed, and hearts are broken.
Had a few pieces of information been provided that were key to the storyline, The Next Thing You Know would have been a 5 star read. As is, I give it a 4.5 star rating.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for my early read ARC. All opinions are my own.

At first I wasn't so sure about this book, as it the action seemed to move too slowly for my taste. However, when it picked up the pace, things really began to happen. There is a lot of important points about life we should all read and think about. It turned out to be a great book.

This book was well written but left me feeling sad. The first half of the book was a little slow moving for me. I struggled a little with the switches in viewpoint and time frame. I did feel invested by about the halfway point and the book then moved along quickly. I did end up in tears for about the last 4 or 5 chapters. The conclusion was satisfying but still left me feeling sad. I liked Nova as a character and her journey through life was a bit fascinating. I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Nova Huston is an End of Life Doula, her job is to help terminally ill people make peace and prepare for their death. Mason Shaylor is an up and coming musician who has been hit with a debilitating and deteriorating condition that has left him unable to play guitar, the one thing he truly loves and lives for. He hires Nova to help get his life in order before he dies, but as they spend time together, they connect in a way neither expected, and perhaps Mason will help Nova as much as she can help him. The Next Thing You Know is a well written, well-paced story with interesting and complex characters that explores themes of love, hope, and the importance of human interaction and connection.

The Next Thing You Know deals with some pretty heavy topics and will take you on an emotional journey. Be prepared for moral dilemmas and ethical subjects. While I enjoyed learning about death doulas and what they do, I found this book to be a depressing and tragic love story which is why I’m only giving it 3 stars. It’s very well written but you need to be in the right frame of mind to read something like this.

Nova is a death doula. Her job is to assist with the end of life stage by offering support and assisting with a smooth transition. When Nova takes on Mason as her client, she is surprised at how young he is and it begs the question: Why does he need her services? Nova learns that Mason is suffering for a deteriorating condition that ends his music career. Nova and Mason form and unlikely bond and realize that they have more in common than they think which makes her professional relationship with him even more difficult.

Thank you to #stmartinspress and #netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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I thought I cried a lot during Me Without You......

And I thought I cried even more during A Little Life....

BUT NOW....NOW that I've read The Next Thing You Know? I truly don't know that I have any tears left.

This book is heartbreaking, inspiring and beautiful. It's tragic and wonderful and a story that everyone should read.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this book in advance of its release.

I loved this book more than I expected. I’m typically not a crier when it comes to books but this one hit me in all my soft spots. This book tells the story of partner death doulas, something I personally never knew existed. When I thought of doulas I thought of birth. The story of Nova, Kelly, Mason and Willow and how their lives intertwine up until the very ending had me turning pages while trying to slow myself down to enjoy the journey. I learned with the characters the power of finding peace with the ending. The Next Thing You Know is a story of love, loss, grief, friendship and all the beautiful and heartbreaking in between.

Full review closer to publication date!

I'd like to thank the publisher, St. Martin's Press, and Netgalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

2.5 stars rounded to 3. Unfortunately I DNF'd this book. I'm very disappointed because I've enjoyedeverything else written by this author. I saw quite a few rave reviews so thought I'd get into this book, but I didn't care for any of the characters.

I do think there are many people who would feel good about this book. It just wasn't the one for me at this time. Please do not let that dissuade you from reading this if you think it would be a good read.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and publisher for offering an ARC. All thoughts are my own.

This book deserves a special review. But I'm not sure I'm capable of writing it. I can say with utmost certainty that it is hands-down one of the best books I have read in a while, and I've been fortunate enough to read some really good ones. Nova is an end-of-life doula. Mason is one of her clients. He's mysterious and very tight-lipped about why he has chosen to come to her. But she can tell he is suffering, and she will do everything she can to help him cope. Told in a "Then and Now" format, the mystery deepens and then unfolds and is revealed from different perspectives that leave us guessing until the very end. The character development is so solid that you will unpeel their histories in multiple layers until you get to the very heart of who they are. There were scenes I really connected with. The one with the guitar in particular. That one left me with a solid lump in my throat because I felt so invested. But interspersed with that were smiles amid new surprises that kept me guessing the whole way through. Jessica Strawser is a new-to-me author. I will be checking out her backlist and can't wait to see what she writes next. Thank you to #NetGalley for my early copy. This will publish on March 22, 2022.

I picked up this book without having any idea about the story and never read anything by the same author. I was hooked right away with the idea of a “death doula”.
The story does pull at your heartstrings at times, makes you wonder, think outside the box, question… BUT that wasn’t enough for me. I didn’t dislike it, but it was hard to truly “get to know” the characters, except maybe for Nova, but still I found it really hard to get back to the book at times. Not sure if it’s because of the multiple POVs that makes you feel like you get to see only snippets and not the full picture for each person. Also having all of Nova’s POV in present tense was confusing. It always felt when I was reading the “THEN” that it was happening in the “NOW”. But I know this is only a matter of personal preference, so I could ignore it for the most part. Then I couldn’t quite figure out Bonnie’s motivation and changing of heart at the end. It felt like it was missing something. Then the last Mason chapter… the omni narrator halfway through felt contrived. I would be okay if the author had chosen not to give clear cut answers about what had truly happened to him, or kept that chapter limited 3rd until the crash. We still would’ve known.
But I think 3 stars is the fair rating based on my personal experience reading this book. It wasn’t an awful story, but it didn’t blow me away either, and it’s okay. I will definitely read something else by Mrs. Strawser.
Thanks to NetGalley and St Martins Press for the advance copy provided for review.

Jessica Strawser, you wrote a beautiful, emotional, gripping story about human connection, love, hope, forgiveness and so much more. I did not know anything about death doula’s before reading The Next Thing You Know, but what a wonderful, giving profession. What a wonderful thing, to give dignity to terminal patients and their families, to make their end of life bearable and acceptable. We must all live our life as if each day is our last.

This book will tug at your heart, the human connection between Mason and Nova is mesmerizing. From the first page to the last page, I was fully invested, savoring every word. Nova and Mason are two characters you will never forget. Be prepared to use every last Kleenex in your house.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to reading more books by Jessica Strawser. This book will be out March 22, 2022.

Wow! Mason is a young musician who is forced for medical reasons to have his career end before it has a chance to go in the sky-high direction it is heading. Nova is an end of life doula who knows more about end of life decisions than anyone knows. They meet when Mason overhears an ad for their business and the story that unspools is excellent. This may be my best read this year, it will definitely be ordered for our public library. Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy.

Do you know how to say ‘good-bye’?

It’s easy and rolls off the tongue when we know we will have the opportunity to see someone again. We often say good-bye with little thought. What if it was your own death you were facing? Could you handle good-bye as easily? Would you need a companion to help you transition?

Thirty-six year old Mason Shaylor knows he needs help. He can’t do it alone. That’s why he’s come to ‘Parting Your Way, End of Life Doulas.’

“He’d been doing a lot of pretending lately, but even he drew a line at acting nonchalant about walking through a door labelled END-OF-LIFE. Voluntarily.”

This heavy and emotional novel needs to be read in short spells to allow readers time to process what they’ve read. It centers around two death doulas and a high-profile client, a musician, who can no longer play his guitar due to his deteriorating health. What would you do if the very thing that made you feel alive was taken from you? Would you feel like you’ve got nothing to lose? Strawser highlights the importance of honouring last wishes, dealing with loss, and the transformative power of love. She brings readers to the point where they realize the importance of living every day as if it were their last so that they can approach the end of life with no regrets. Strawser writes to normalize discussions about death and endings.

A dialogue-heavy book, it’s perfect for book clubs as it is thought-provoking and raises questions about assisted suicide and how much control we really have over our own death.

Well-written and meticulously researched, this book was difficult for me. I just wasn’t wanting to read about sadness and death during a pandemic. It brought to mind the countless people who succumbed to Covid after battling their final days all alone. Perhaps with more perspective and time, I could approach this book with a healthier mindset.

I was gifted this advance copy by Jessica Strawser, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

A beautiful story that focuses on what matters in life and how short life is. Death with dignity is something everyone deserves and this book showed me something new. My tears were shed. Well done, Strawser!

The author tackles the complex question on preparing for death and does it beautifully. Kelli and Nova are death doulas and their partnership is called Parting Your Way. Death doulas help people facing death. Mason came for help and was only in his thirties. He was a gifted musician but at times his hands and arms would not do as he wished. He felt he had no life without being able to play his music. This is a marvelous story, very emotional but also uplifting.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Next Thing You Know is the latest book by Jessica Strawer. The story is mostly about Nova's (and some of Mason's) life and her employment as a "Death Doula". Strawer tells us the story going back and forth from then and now. I enjoyed the story but think I would have liked it even more if it had been straightforward rather than going back and forth in time. I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an early copy to review.

Beautiful and wonderful story. I think I cried 6 times! I loved all the writing and characters in this lovely story. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher!

Thank you Net Galley for letting me read this book. Love Jessica Strawser’s story-telling skills. Loved the character, Nova. As the relationship with her new client, Mason, develops, I was reading and reading to find out what happened. You will, too!

A young musician grappling with an ending employs an end-of-life doula to help him say goodbye.

I expected this book to be quite an emotional journey, and it was, but not in the way I anticipated. This story went in an unexpected direction, and Strawser kept me on my toes with multiple twists and turns I didn’t see coming.

Both Mason and Nova were very complex characters. Mason was trying to come to grips with losing his ability to make music and figure out who he was without his music. My heart ached for him and his loss, but it was wonderful to see him open up and grow. Nova was harder to pin down, but when all was revealed, I hurt for her too. Her backstory was very interesting, and helped me better understand some of the choices she made.

The book wasn’t just about an end-of-life doula and an ailing musician. It was about death and dying. It was about endings, and there was a lot of discussions between the different characters that left me with many things to think about. Connection and love were also big themes in this book, and Strawser explored those themes beautifully.

As I mentioned, I knew this book was going to be emotional, but it ended up making me cry for different reasons than I originally predicted. The story was told via an alternating timeline, so I knew some major outcomes early on. As we flipped back and forth, my heart crumbled a bit more as the pieces came together. Primarily told from Nova, Mason’s, and Kelly’s points of view, there were several chapters told via other characters which I thought were wisely used and contributed an interesting view of the story unfolding.

Overall: A beautiful blend of happy and sad; bittersweet with a touch of hope.