We have to like ourselves, and even love ourselves, before we can truly give love to someone else. Sometimes realizing that and doing the work can be tough.

Alex finds this out the hard way while we are along for the ride. Self-discovery is tough and doing the work can be a tough cookie to take on, especially when it also includes someone you love to hate.

Will is a sweetheart and honestly the best part of this story for me. He is kind-hearted, giving, and loves to take care of Alex when she lets him. He protects her and stands by her as she goes through the mental clarity she needs to work through to finally admit the truth about Will and find her true self.

Thank You, Next is a fresh and relatable romantic journey. The characters are beautifully developed. I especially love Lexi. She is a trip. The second chance romance is worth the wait but I wish we got more of the future and a bit less of their history.

Overall a delightful read!

I really wanted to like this story, the blurb sounded so cute and entertaining but unfortunately, this one just didn’t do it for me and it was a bit of struggle to push myself to get through the whole thing.

What I did like was the poignant commentary on gender/race - there were moments here and there within all the inner dialogue that really resonated with me, and I really appreciated the enby and bi/pansexual representation via side characters. What I struggled with though is that there was sooooooo much repetition in the MCs inner dialogue, it felt like reading the same thing over and over again worded ever so slightly differently, for the majority of the book. The writing style in general felt very choppy and discordant to me. Paragraphs would jump around, characters would say/think one thing then almost the exact opposite in the next breath, it was confusing to try and decipher what the author was trying to say. The depictions of characters also felt like they were flip flopping and inconsistent, and for as much time as we spent in Alex and Will’s heads I felt like we never *really* got to know them…beyond how much they hate/love each other.

Overall the bones of the story had a lot of potential but it felt like a first draft in need of a lot of revising and editing.

THANK YOU, NEXT
A new to me author, I was thrilled to finally get to read an Andie J. Christopher title, and I have to say Thank You, Next made me want to reach for the author's backlist. I am a total sucker for a play on words title, I feel like it just sets the right tone for the book I'm picking up. As soon as I was sent this one I had to read it, and I have no regrets.

The concept of this book had me really excited as it puts a spin on second chance romance as we meet Alex, a divorce lawyer who has been a serial dater and has never been interested in the idea of marriage.

She's been in love with her grandmother's ex step-son, Will, for years and we get a complicated childhood friends trope storyline that is refreshing and full of emotion. What I liked most about the story was how different it was, this fierce female who is successful and set in her idea of never wanting to get married struggles when she realizes she is the last girlfriend before each of her exes gets married.

"And just maybe excavating old shit was part of her DNA. That's what her mother did for a living, after all. How would she understand her past and be able to move forward if she didn't look at all the mistakes she'd made? If she didn't spread them out on a plastic tarp, examine them closely, document them and file them away."

As we're taken on her journey of self-awareness and discovery, we meet a variety of men in her past dating pool and her delightful friends who made the story even more fun and interesting. I LOVED the diversity and each personality of every character, even the exes we were meant to not like - who DOESN'T have an ex like that?!

While I enjoyed the flashbacks of Alex and Will's past and present, at times I did find myself wishing we hadn't gotten MORE from the action and less in their head. The thoughts and feelings were important of course, but I would've loved more scene-setting / visual aspects of the romance versus the retrospective viewpoints.

I can't write a review without loving on this book cover, I thought it was SO perfect!

Thank you to Berkley Romance + NetGalley for the eARC, I'm thrilled to be a part of the upcoming blog tour for this title!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing the ARC.

I really wanted to like this book, but it fell really flat for me.

The prose felt really disjointed, with a lot of repetition. I felt like I was reading the same information over and over again. Any time Will's POV happened, we were once again reminded that it didn't work out with his ex. And when Alex, there was the same undercurrent when she spoke of her past relationships.

Additionally, it didn't really make sense for Alex to be so mean to Will when he only rejected her advances as a teen, and with good reasons! So her excuse was flimsy at best and made it weird when they actually did get together. And speaking on that, I felt like their relationship happened so quickly and not line with where their characters were at in the story.

Overall, it was kind of a boring, messy read. It had so much potential, but it didn't quite hit the mark in the end.

DNF at 20%

I could tell right away that the writing style was not working for me. It was too slow and repetitive. I think this could have been solved by starting the action a little sooner; there was just so much exposition and not enough actually happening. I prefer to have the exposition mixed in with current events. There were so many characters and they were all too similar to each other. (Except the Grandma, who was funny.)

Also, I thought it was really weird that Alexis and Will were kind of related? He is her grandma's ex step son. Just, why?

Thank you to Netgallery and Berkley to give me a review copy of this book! What intrigued me the most about this book was it’s title! It’s so catchy that you straight away want to get to the story.

Thank You, Next is an amazing tale of the female MC, Alex in her retrospective journey of events that shaped her through life. The author has illustrated a serious topic in such an amazing fashion that at the end of the topic you do want to stand up where ever you are and give her a standing ovation.

The story is as follows:
Alex is always the woman that men date last before finding The One. This doesn’t always hurt Alex, being the head strong woman she is but I can compare her composure to that of a coconut in a sense that the shell is hard but once that core is opened there is nothing better than that soft center. It’s the same with Alex. For the world or to the naked eye, she’ll stand her guard and take any shitty comments you throw on her without flinching and with a witty reply back of course. But there are a few people that she can literally count on one finger who know how much those bitter words go and hit their mark. On her journey on finding about why she is always the last person her exes date before getting married, she goes on a trip to find answers. Upcoming her is up and rising chef, Will who always gets into a cross with Alex. As they say, something opposites do attract and there is a reaosning behind both of them being cross with one another always.

What I loved about the book was the way the topic of shielding yourself is portrayed in the book. It’s not uncommon for each child to start putting a wall through the experiences they face as they grow up. When they’re in their twenties l, these walls determine almost every facet of their life and very rarely do you come across a person who is ready to tear down those walls and look at the real you, the person who does want/make you be the person you show others. This is such an intense topic and it’s so hard to put it so beautifully in words that I want to tell the author Kudos! I loved the way it was put forth. There are bits in the book about parental issues as well and they have been tackled in a very good way.

Overall, a relaxing read, Thank You, Next was a great road trip read for me!

Thank You, Next by Andie J. Christopher is a contemporary romantic comedy. Combining romance and humor, it features single divorce attorney Alex Turner and gifted chef Will Harkness. When Alex sees her latest ex-boyfriend’s new girlfriend picking out her wedding dress, she reflects on her dating life. She’s determined to find out why they go into a committed relationship soon after breaking up with her. Will and Alex have known each other since they were teens and have a tumultuous relationship. When he learns about Alex’s quest, he decides to tag along with her and her two friends, Lana and Jane.

Neither Alex nor Will have had role models that had lasting relationships. Alex is a great attorney but has moments of vulnerability. Her insecurities seemed too embedded as the book progressed. Will is shrewd, but hates the publicity required by his job. Can they find the answers they seek and find happiness? The secondary characters are diverse and significantly add to the enjoyment of the novel.

The author provides a look at how past events and actions can affect one’s personality. There is a lot of introspection by both main characters that resulted in more telling than showing. This also slowed the pace of the story. The book focuses on relationships and how trust affects them.

Overall, this was an entertaining and charming novel with some humor and laugh out-loud moments as well as some pivotal emotional times.

Berkley Publishing Group and Andie J. Christopher provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. This is my honest review. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way. Publication date is currently set for June 14, 2022.

Single divorce attorney Alex is fed up with guys she dates finding the love of their lives right after they break up, so with the help of her quirky friends and her childhood crush and famous chef Will, she goes on a quest to find out what happened in all of those relationships to be a better her. I adored the concept of Thank You, Next. Second chance/childhood crush romances are some of my favorites, so I’m all in for the tropes used here, but I didn’t love this book. The characters didn’t feel consistent—Alex is a powerhouse in the beginning and set against marriage and I feel like she shifts to a little too insecure. But I did love her journey to find herself—I just felt like so much of the fault of the breakups fell on her, whereas she felt like she was super clear about what she wanted. She also lacks a lot of self awareness it feels. And in terms of chemistry, I felt like there was a lot more telling than showing in a way that didn’t let Will and Alex feel that natural or connected. I wanted more vulnerability and moments with them because it felt like a lot of repetitive introspection instead of honesty between them. I did like Will a lot, there felt like some more growth with him and I liked his gentle alpha vibes. And I loved Alex’s quirky grandmother, Lexi. She was outlandish and original. It felt like there was just so much potential in these characters and the story. The concept is so fun and I loved having her go after these exes to ask what happened, I just wanted more for Alex overall.

I really liked the story, I love the enemies to lovers trope!! The first could of chapters and a bit slow and very repetitive but it get better trust and there is some 🌶. Overall a solid 3.5

This was my first book by Andie J. Christopher, and best and believe this will not be my last book by her. I love the diversity in the characters as well as the premise of this book.

Thank You, Next makes you wonder what would you do if all your exes got engaged right after you broke up? Well, divorce attorney Alex goes to find out why that is the case with her.

Alex finds herself questioning why all of her exes got engaged or married after their relationships flamed out. She alongside her friends set out to find out where those relationships went wrong. Not because she wants to get married, but she just wants to get a better understanding of the issue.

Alex is a tough-as-nails divorce attorney, she doesn’t believe in love due to her parent's and grandma's past relationships.

Will, the only man to turn Alex down, sets out to join her on this journey of self-discovery. Fresh from his divorce, the last thing Will wants to do is fall in love. But he is not going to allow Alex to go alone. Along the way Will is determined to learn what went wrong so that it can go right with him and Alex.

Throughout the whole book, I wanted to yell at Alex to open her eyes and to get over the past rejection from Will because all that man wanted to do was love her. When they finally get together I am soooo happy because I want Will for myself.

Thank You, Next features dual POV, enemies-to-lovers romance, open door romance, and BIPOC representation. It is a standalone novel that I am so thankful for having had the chance to read! Cannot wait to read other books by Andie! Thank you, Berkley and Netgalley for the ARC of Thank You, Next.

I love Andie J Christopher and was so excited to be approved to read an arc of her new book, unfortunately, I didn’t like this book as much as I enjoyed her previous works. The premise was awesome but I didn't feel like it lived up to what it could be. There were some technical issues which I hope will be corrected before publication: Alex and Lexie are mixed up and used incorrectly multiple times in the book and the author also changes the name Lana’s husband more than once in the story. The misunderstanding between Alex and Will wasn't that compelling and it wasn't intense enough to feel like a genuine enemies-to-lovers. I found the main characters, Alex and Will, to be real and authentic: I liked that they each had real issues to work through, but I wish we had more flashback scenes with them from the past & scenes in the present and a bit less inner dialogue which was the same thoughts over and over again. I think having more scenes between the 2 of them would have amped up the romance angle for me more and I would have felt more of a connection between them.

The supporting cast in this book are phenomenal. Alex's grandmother Lexie's presence brings so much humor, and Jane and Lana are wonderful friends. Everyone should have friends like them. There is great representation (Alex is African-American, Jane is pansexual, and Will's friend Charlee is non-binary) which is incredibly refreshing. I did love Alex’s growth throughout the story as she learned more about herself and why she was afraid and uninterested in commitment. She knows what she wants in every aspect of her life but even though she’s successful in most aspects of her life, the one place she keeps failing at are relationships. It’s totally understandable though because she never had the best childhood and her parents were hardly there for her emotionally and physically. So Alex has some things to work through. I felt that the ending was very abrupt and an epilogue would have really rounded out the book. Andie is still one of my favorite romance authors, and I look forward to reading her next book. Thanks to Andie J Christopher, Berkeley Publishing Group and Netgalley for the e-arc in exchange for my thoughts.

I LOVE THIS BOOK!!!! Omg I just want experience it again as if I never did. I relate to Alex so much! While I never cared what my ex's did after I was done and moved on, I love how the whole time Alex has some firm ideas of why marriage isn't for her. Will is adorable and I love everything about them together. He is her step-uncle (I guess) and she had once made a move on him when they were teenagers and he turned her down causing the two to feud into adulthood. Now in present time Alex is on the journey of why she is never the one but the on before with all of her ex's and Will is not so ok with this arrangement to Alex possibly getting close to an ex. That when they confront their (never gone away) feelings for one another!!!! AHHHH!!! I loved this book and I just can't wait for more from this author.

There aren't adequate words to describe how much I love this book about a heroine who's sworn off marriage but still wants to know why all of her exes have gone on to find "The One" immediately after dating her. Alex is so relatable, with her pragmatic and jaded outlook on love, and I fell so hard for her teenage crush turned maybe current crush Will. I loved seeing their dynamic, and learning more about their histories together. But the entire cast of characters was really stupendous; I loved Alex's grandmother and her friends, and I even loved meeting all of her exes. This book was an absolutely hilarious ride, but it was also deeply heartfelt and insightful about modern love and dating. Because of their romantic histories, Alex and Will both bring a maturity to their relationship as it slowly unfolds into something more. There is kindness and patience and grace, and it was just so lovely to read about. Reading this book felt like receiving a comforting hug, with the added bonus of heat and chemistry you'd expect in one of Christopher's books.

Content Warning: Parental Neglect

This has so much potential but it fell short for me.

One thing I loved about the story was Alex is a very successful young woman. She knows what she wants in every aspect of her life but even though she’s successful in most aspects of her life, the one place she keeps failing at are relationships. It’s totally understandable though because she never had the best childhood and her parents were hardly there for her emotionally and physically. So Alex has some things to work through. She tries to contact a few of her ex’s to ask them what was it about her that made them find someone so soon (and settle down) after dating her.

Will is Alex’s grandmother’s, step-son…yeah so it kind of weirdly makes him her step-uncle but they are NOT related by blood at all. For me, that’s still family and I wouldn’t even think about it haha, but in this story Will and Alex are pretty much the same age and very attracted to one another. They’ve kept their hands off one another for awhile – Will got married and divorced, and Alex has been dating. Will has now sworn off marrying again and concentrating on opening his own restaurant.

I love the diversity in this book. Alex is African American, her best friend Jane is pansexual, Charlee – who is Will’s friend is transgendered. I loved the scenes when Alex was with her friends, they are a fun group. I like the sparks between Will and Alex.

My issues with the story came with the writing but I had to remind myself this is an arc. There were lots of technical mistakes, like names changing: Lexi and Alex were interchanged which was awkward because Lexi is Alex’s grandmother, and Lana’s husband name changed as well. Hopefully those are fixed. Also we are in Alex and Will’s head a lot, mostly Alex’s and sometimes it slowed down the story. The story felt clunky at times, it didn’t have an easy flow to it.


Why you should read it:
*great diversity of characters, fun friend group
*enemies to lovers
*Alex character growth

Why you might not want to read it:
*lots of typos that hopefully will be corrected before publication
*story didn’t flow easily, slow in the middle of the story

My Thoughts:

Overall I thought this one has so much potential. I like that Alex is a very successful female but she’s having problems in her love life. It’s an eye-opening journey for her and she has to find some of her relationship attachment issues. I enjoyed the enemies to lovers trope and thought she and Will had lots of sparks. I mostly enjoyed Alex’s friends who were a fun group when they were together. There were a bunch of typos that need to be fixed and the middle of the story dragged a bit but I still was rooting for an Alex and Will happy ending. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Um, hello, I would like to report to any interested reader that Andie J. Christopher has LEVELED UP with her latest release.

I’m gobsmacked at how good Thank You, Next is and I can’t wait for everyone to read it.

Alex is a successful divorce lawyer who has many reasons to distrust love. But after finding out that her ex got engaged shortly after their breakup by seeing his new fiancée on Say Yes to the Dress, and then learning that ALL of her exes got married to the partners they met directly after her, Alex embarks on a journey to figure out what it is about her that makes her exes want to commit to the next person they date…and never her.

Throw in a blast from the past in the form of The One That Got Away, and you have a recipe for a very great read.

The supporting characters are strong as heck, the emotional journey was well done, and I cared SO MUCH about these characters long after I was done reading. Such a good book — Andie’s best work yet.

I feel like every Andie J. Christopher novel I've read thus far has been well thought out characters with a really great plot. The start of this one was on par with the others, but I feel like it dragged on for a bit in the middle. I don't know exactly what it was that felt a little off about this one, but I still enjoyed it!

I have enjoyed a prior Andie Christopher read, so I when I saw the book blurb and title I was excited to try this one. The premise felt fresh for a romance read – finding a pattern that each of your exes has gone on to find ‘the one’ right after you? And I’m always up for an enemies to lovers trope. (Sidenote, of course the title grabbed me, every time I see or think it it’s to the Ariana song).

I found the secondary characters interesting and wanted more of them – Lexie (Alex’s grandmother), Jane and Lana, and Charlee all made for intriguing characters who I wished we got to spend more time with. I thought the story itself was cute – the beginning of the book had me, pacing in the middle dragged a bit (I was expecting more ex visit / interactions / shenanigans), and then I felt like the pace and storyline picked up again towards the end. I found the mains, Alex and Will, to be real and authentic – I liked that they each had real issues to work through, though I wish we had more scenes past / present with them and a bit less inner dialogue – I felt like that would have amped up the romance angle for me more and I would have felt more connection between them.

I will definitely try more from the author in the future. Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing for the opportunity to read and review an early copy. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and freely given.

I really really do want to like Andie J. Christopher's books. But they continue to just be fine for me. This one was cute but it wasn't great. The writing dragged a little, and I found myself just not caring that much. It wasn't satisfying. The storylines are good and I'm definitely going to keep trying her books, though.

From the first paragraph, I knew this book would be a good one. I immersed myself into the book from the first chapter and I cannot say enough good things about this book! Honestly amazing! The writing is incredible and the plot is just one to die for. I am absolutely obsessed with this book. My favorite part would have to be the character development throughout the book. Character development is something I look forward to and this book did not disappoint.

I love Andie Christopher and this book was no different! Great characters, interesting premise, quick read. I recommend it!