Another wonderfully written, well researched, well thought out book by Nick., his ability to transport you to the location of the story with his descriptive words is a great literary gift, The premise is addiction/loss/finding yourself/recovery, Not a complex storyline, easy to follow, no great plot twists, but an ultimately heartwarming novel that sometimes, is just what we need to read!

Such an emotional read that doesn't shy away from tough, real life experiences. It was well written and very enjoyable

This is an emotionally hard-hitting book that faces up to the impact of covid on frontline nurses and with Wendy, our main character, the devastating damage it did to her already fragile marriage.

Wendy doesn’t know it, but she is an alcoholic. For addicts, understanding and acknowledging their illness is a huge part of their recovery journey and it took Wendy a long time to recognise that she was dependant on alcohol. In fact, it took her taking off on an isolated sabbatical to a cabin in France to be able to see the truth of her situation.

I didn’t always like Wendy, I don’t think Wendy always liked Wendy either, but I did feel she was a well written and relatable character and my heart went out to her.

I love Nick Alexander’s writing; he has a skill of injecting some much needed and well-timed humour in his books, yet not trivialising the emotions his characters are experiencing. I enjoyed traversing Wendy’s journey along with her.

4 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Nick Alexander and Bookouture, for an ARC in return for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC.

Wendy is a nurse who has felt alienated from her husband Harry, a teacher, and children Todd and Fiona since the pandemic hit. So she quits her stressful job and rents a remote cabin in the French mountains for six months. How she does this after Brexit is not explained even though Brexit gets mentioned repeatedly.

I have to admit, from the blurb and the cute cover I was expecting a funnier, more light-hearted book, about a woman finding herself with the help of quirky locals and a handsome French guy. What we get is a story about a chain-smoking alcoholic who has not managed to get over the tragic death of her mother some years ago, and in the process has been alienating everyone around her. There are some quirky locals and a lovely stray cat though.

I'm afraid I did not get on with the writing style. It constantly changes between 1st and 3rd person POV, so it's all "She does this, she thinks that", with a lot of conversations, including entire therapy sessions, just written out like in a play, which feels lazy.

Wendy isn't a bad person but her addiction often makes her unlikeable, plus all the smoking and spending hundreds of Euros on wine, cigarettes and stale baguettes instead of proper food she could cook was grating on my nerves. This is written by a male author and it shows. Also, the mere mention of Tesla and Musk gave me the ick. I'm sorry but I didn't get on with this - there was just too much trauma, anger and grief for me, and Wendy's journey was hard to read.

Nick Alexander has written many novels and yet this is the first of his books I’ve ever read. What an introduction!

I loved this book, every page of it. Very believable characters, especially the main character Wendy. I imagine most women of Wendy’s age (middle aged, with grown up children) could relate to Wendy and her feelings of “what now?”, there surely must be more to life. Wendy is a fabulous character, portrayed so intuitively. I love the humour, but it’s her inner most thoughts, her hurt, her grief that she still feels after the loss of her mother and what seems to be the rejection she feels of those closest to her that makes this book so absorbing and relatable.

It’s fun too, there are many lighter moments. In fact, in parts, it’s down to Wendy’s need to put on a brave face, pull on her big girl pants and just get on with it that makes this a humorous read too, balancing out the deeper issues that lie behind the story.

I loved it and dragged out the last part of the book because I just wanted to carry on reading and not reach the end, an ending which was just as rewarding as the rest of the book. Fab, and I’ll definitely be trying some more of Nick Alexander’s previous work.

Wendy has just arrived at Nice airport after booking a six month stay in a cabin up in the mountains.
It soon becomes clear that there are reasons why Wendy has come alone and it was difficult at times to hear her story without feeling so much empathy for this person. Although Wendy has a husband, an eighteen year old daughter and a son at university, this is a separation that she needs to work through before she can move on with her life. Wendy has been through the traumatic death of her mother prior to the pandemic and then without time for pause or to properly grieve was thrown straight into working on the frontline as a nurse ministering to others in the Covid pandemic.
Wendy’s story which looks back over her relationship with her husband when they first met and the state of their marriage now is so sensitively told by the author. Having lost my own Mum just before Covid I could really relate to Wendy’s situation and how getting on with life in such an altered state with little time to grieve compounded to make her situation reach a very difficult point.
This might sound like depressing reading but how Wendy deals with her loss and anger was in the end very uplifting. This is a traumatic story so well told and it left me thinking about Wendy and the choices she made long after I finished the book. Thanks to the author and Netgalley for this ARC.

After I've read this book, I was left thinking about it for a long time. It was very intriguing and thought-provoking. The story is very unique and original. Wendy decides to rent a cabin in France where she can spend her days in nature, away from everything she has ever known, to try and answer the question: what next? She goes on a journey of finding herself, which is a very hard journey. She faces her own issues and deep-buried trauma. The book focuses on how it feels like going through hard times in life. How we sometimes think that we are the only ones going through hardships, but we often forget about the people even closest to us and are oblivious to their pain and suffering. The book opens your eyes to try and see your life from a different perspective and as a part of something bigger. It shows us that we are never alone and we can work through everything, if we find the courage to be honest and brave,

I really enjoyed the book and recommend it to everyone who wants to read a thought-provoking, unique book.

Wendy and Harrys marriage has hit a crisis point Wendy has got into some bad habits and quite angry from some past life evets. This is impacting her whole family and with all the stressful times of lockdown still with them Wendy's influence over the family has become very negative. She decides to take herself of to France on her own to face her demons.
Another brilliant story by Nick Alexander. He has fantastic insight into human emotions and the psyche. His writing style just makes his characters come off the page in three dimension. As a therapist I can also recognise that he has great understanding about addiction. I would thoroughly recommend this book as I would anything that he has written. Well done again Mr.Alexander!

Wendy is burned out. A wife, mother and nurse from a small town in southern Britain, she has emerged stressed and shell-shocked from the Covid period.

During a crisis period of long shifts at her hospital and fears of exposing her family to the virus, she lived apart from them. The problem is, she never truly learned to live with them again once life returned to normal - and she's unsure if her long marriage may be headed towards divorce.

A social media post offering a challenge of a year in a remote cottage in exchange for a monetary prize provides Wendy the push to create a DIY get-away, to a remote mountain cabin in southern France. The challenges of a solitary existence in a new country allow time for much-needed soul-searching, and an honest look at mistakes made along the way. This was an enjoyable read with good character development and dashes of humour.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy - all thoughts are my own.

I recently finished reading this book and I must say, it was a captivating and refreshing experience. From the moment I started the book, I was hooked by its grounded and relatable portrayal of romance.
The plot is incredibly realistic, which is something I truly appreciated. The love story unfolds at a pace that feels true to life—there are no unrealistic twists or melodramatic moments that often plague romantic novels. Instead, the characters face real-life challenges, personal growth, and emotional struggles that anyone can relate to. The story touches on themes of trust, vulnerability, and the importance of self-discovery before fully opening up to someone else.
What stood out most to me was the character development. The protagonist evolve throughout the book, and their emotional growth is depicted with such care. Their flaws, strengths, and vulnerabilities are portrayed in a way that makes them feel like real people, not just characters on a page. It’s rare to find a romance where the characters' emotional journeys are as important as their romantic connection, and [Book Title] does this beautifully. Their interactions felt authentic, and the relationship built naturally over time, making it all the more rewarding by the end.
This book made me reflect on my own experiences and left me with a sense of hope that love can grow in the most unexpected ways. It's a novel about finding love not just with someone else, but also with yourself. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a romance that feels real, with characters that are fully realized and a plot that keeps you invested from start to finish.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC. Wendy has left her family for an Air B&B an hour north of Nice. Her plan is to spend the next 6 months reflecting on her life and to help her decide what her next step is. After losing her mom and working the front lines as a nurse during the pandemic, she has lost herself in alcohol and doesn't even recognize what her family ha become. A good story of love, life, apologies and redemption and also a really good reminder that you have no idea what is going on in everyone's lives and to always give grace. #WhereDoWeGoFromHere #NickAlexander #Bookouture #April2025

This is the story of Wendy and Harry whose marriage was going through a tough time. Wendy was drinking too much and they were drifting apart. Wendy decided to go and live in France for 6 months to ‘find herself’. She did exactly that and after lots of soul searching things worked out for them. There were times when I felt I needed something more to happen, but the story got better in the last 40%

This was an emotional rollercoaster. It was a breath of fresh air to see the main character get some fresh air and to join her for her healing journey. This book also comes at a great time as so many people have struggled so much over the last few years and I think that this book can inspire others to start their healing journey as well. I definitely cried a few times during this book as well.

This was a wonderfully crafted book that touches on all the emotional layers of burnout. Wendy is not the greatest of characters, especially in the beginning, but she showed immense growth through the book.

Wendy is a devoted wife and mother who has spent years working as a nurse, helping those in need. But with Wendy’s children flying the nest and her marriage hanging by a thread, she realises that she’s never really asked herself what she wants.
So, she decides to rent a remote cabin in France where she can spend her days in nature, away from everything she has ever known, to try and answer the question: what next?
As always with this author, An absolute corker . . . totally engrossing and superbly written ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

An excellent read for any and all readers! Author comes at you with both barrels and knocks you out of your shoes! Great job fleshing out all the characters. I give this book FIVE stars! Definitely recommend!

It was heartbreaking and healing story at the same time. I love how author described that everyone always have second chance and it's not always some magic, sometimes we can help ourselves.
Main character Wendy had long way of dealing with trauma and her own demons. Let's be real, she didn't even acknowledge fact of self destruction and the moment she faced that actually her life wasn't perfect and she had way to improve it - she did it. At some pages that book break my heart and all I wanted was to hug Wendy and said that everything gonna be fine.
Anyway, that was a great story. Thanks author and NetGalley for opportunity to read that book

"You can’t really punish someone’s lack of interest in you. Specifically, you can’t starve people into missing you."

A very readable book with a thought provoking premise. A woman escapes into a rural cottage in the south of France. While there she comes to terms with the trauma she has experienced as she lost her mother, dealt with a rapidly deteriorating marriage, her older children becoming more distant, and the wounds as she worked as an emergency nurse during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Working in healthcare during the pandemic was like living in two different worlds- at the hospital you were seeing people die in front of you, you were protecting yourself and feeling helpless. Like a war nurse, it was easy to become overwhelmed by the unending supply of care. But instead, you would leave a shift, and enter a world where people were blind to the dangers, some of them fighting precautions, and terrified to pass the virus along.

So Wendy started staying at her friend Jill's AirBnb. It was empty anyway, she would rather not deal with worrying about the virus and her family's exposure, and it didn't seem like they wanted her around anyway. That's when she saw a photo on Facebook of a lakeside home with the challenge "could you live here with no internet, no people for a year for $100,000". I have seen that before, and when you are knee deep in the stress and pressure of the world, that really seems like a great idea. And Wendy had a small amount of inheritance from her mother, so she quit her job and went to France.

Today I am celebrating, by the grace of God, 14 years of sobriety thanks to AA. This book reminded me how lucky I am to have connection in my life, and how isolation plus trauma plus alcohol is a recipe for a rapidly deteriorating addiction.

Friends, you are not always going to like Wendy as you read this book. And you shouldn't. It is very easy to disconnect and think that numbing your pain is the best way to overcome it. But over time she journals, takes walks, and, apart from the real world, she learns who she is and how she needs to connect with her family and the broader world. I highlighted not only the touching lines but also those that made me laugh. Her relationship with her high school daughter and college son are very relatable.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC. Opinions are my own, I was not compensated for this review. Book to be published April 23, 2025.

I feel like the marketing description of "Where Do We Go From Here" by Nick Alexander doesn't do this novel justice. I expected a story of a woman who became fed up with the mental and physical load of caring for her family and patients and hence decided to go away for a while, to be by herself, but got something way more multi-layered and complex. Minor spoilers ahead.

"Where Do We Go From Here" is a well-crafted story of addiction, which at first is introduced almost in passing until it intensifies. Alexander, I want to believe that it's done intentionally, explores the addiction as a symptom and how it came about in Wendy's life seems highly probable. Other things worth mentioning that I very much enjoyed about this book were mixed narrative styles (3rd and 1st person perspective as well as play-like dialogues) that added depth to the story, well-crafted descriptions of the world surrounding the character, and the bad therapy scene that was just chef's kiss.

It wasn't an easy read in any way, considering the subject as well as events that the story touches on. Challenging and uplifting at times, it would be a great read for someone who likes a complex plot.

I love the idea of the story. Its a good vibes setting in France. Its about family, and finding the freedom after devoted all of lives for family (Thinking that Wendy actually facing a burnout issue due to yhe pack schedule and pack routine). Thanks for the arc,