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THE NEXT THING YOU KNOW
Jessica Strawser
St Martins Press
March 22, 2022
352 pages
I was excited to see that this author had a new book. I really enjoyed one by her I read last year, A Million Reasons Why.
The subject matter of this one is unique and new to many of us. It is about Death Doulas. They provide a comfortable path, mentally, practically and spiritually, to those that are terminally ill. Two women, Kelly and Nova, are partners in the service.
One of their younger clients passes away tragically and unexpectedly, all hell breaks loose. The deceased person’s mother wants the service investigated for encouraging death. The mother contacts the police. She contacts news media. It all blows wide open and sets up the “conflict” portion of the story.
There were also personal backstories about the 2 doulas.
I found the whole counselling process is interesting. In some ways, it was more “New Age-y” than I expected. I appreciated the practical aspect of it. I loved the relationships formed. It would take a very specific type of person to be able to provide this service.
It’s not an easy read, partly because of the subject matter. But, also because of the writing style. It jumps from one narrator to another for each chapter. Normally that does not bother me. The transitions did not seem smooth for me. The transitions often involved changes in timelines. To me, it felt somewhat disjointed. I was almost halfway through the book before I really felt vested in the story. Because of this, I am not giving 5 stars.
I loved the ending. Resolution and hope. What more does one need?
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advance Readers Copy.
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