What Happens Next

Written by Christina Suzann Nelson

Narrated by Rebecca Quinn Robertson

Everyone has a story, and maybe everyone needs a little help toward healing.

Popular podcaster and ex-reporter Faith Byrne made a name for herself telling stories of greatness after tragedy—but her real life does not mirror the stories she tells. While her daughters spend the summer in Hawaii with her ex-husband and
his new wife, she must manage life on her own. All of that changes when she’s asked to spotlight her childhood best friend’s missing person case on her podcast.

Dora Crane has never accepted that her younger daughter could be dead, keeping her home looking the same as when her daughter disappeared. But when her husband leaves her and her older daughter intervenes, she agrees to counseling
and to pack up her missing daughter’s belongings under one condition: Faith Byrne comes to Deep Valley and sheds light on the cold case.

As the long-abandoned investigation moves forward, old wounds and long-buried secrets are exposed. Will these two women, whose lives have never been the same, finally get the answers they need to reconcile the past and the future?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jan 17, 2023
• ISBN: 9781705084120

Reviews for What Happens Next

[TAMMY OBERLIN · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

5 stars!
I have the paperback but I also listened to the audiobook on Scribd. It just worked better for me to listen to some of it due to some travel. The narrator is quite good.

I first read this author at the very start of 2022 with The Way it Should Be. It was a five star read. This one was as well. I’m not going to re-tell the story in my review because that’s the kind of review I avoid. I want to know how people reacted to the book and why, so that’s what I will do.

This story is told by three different people (Faith, Heather, & Dora) but it all weaves together so smoothly, even between the past (summer of 1987) and present day.

The reader seemingly understands the title for the book upon learning that’s it’s the title of Faith’s podcast. However, it becomes *much* more than that as the book goes on. Life hands us circumstances & consequences, minor & major changes, triumphs & tragedies, and more. Often we wonder, “What happens next?” Sometimes our guesses or expectations prove to be true. Sometimes life can also hand us the unexpected. They may be small or gargantuan and each one has ripples that go further than we realize, perhaps in ways we will never know. It is wonderful when a title is meaningful.

This novel goes far beyond what the reader expects. Divorce, friendship, faith, childhood innocence, a 36 year-old missing child case, the many faces of grief, deception and evil, family issues, mystery, and more.

The book takes a few twists and turns that all end up becoming clear in the end. There were many times I smiled to myself as I was reminded of many good moments with friends during my childhood. Then there were times I was frantically fighting tears. I was driving for the last 3 hours of the audiobook so that was no easy task! My favourite line was this from chapter 43:

“I do love the way you go into battle. I always have. I’d just like to be part of your army and not your enemy.”

I loved this book and I strongly recommend it. It resonated in me like a good song that keeps playing long after the music stops. The novel was a journey of joy, anguish, sorrow, resolution, grief, renewal, and growth.
——————————

ADDED LATER:
My review above was written in March 2023. I later discovered that I hadn’t pressed DONE. I had gotten a phone call that evening that changed the course of my night. One of my best guy friends from my twenties passed away suddenly and unexpectedly tonight. He was my age. (May I say that I really hated changing “is” to “was” in that last sentence.)

I didn’t know how to process a good friend dying so young and unexpectedly. Maybe that’s why I finished this book that day. God was preparing me for that very question, what happens next? I didn’t know the answer then. I was numb and hurting. However, I’m beyond grateful for a God who carried me through it. I know that I will see him again one day in our heavenly home. Cherish your friends every day. Live and love each day to the fullest.

[Renee' Scott · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book! It’s so rare to find a book that doesn’t have pieces that are inappropriate. This is a beauty from ashes book and an image of how God can turn ALL things around for His good.

[Mary Ptacek · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book was so good, I would have listened to it in one sitting if I could have. Great story and very well done audio!

[lifeofliterature · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A powerful tale of women’s fiction, this novel is an emotional journey full of great character depth and development. There were hard topics discussed, including broken relationships and hurtful pasts, but there was also a thread of hope in the story. There are themes of forgiveness, redemption, and finding hope despite grief. The writing is engaging and raw and it easily brought forth emotions for me as the reader. I also liked the mystery woven in the novel and thought the plot was unpredictable; despite a slow start, I liked the how the pieces in the different times periods came together near the end of the novel. My favorite part was the present day interactions of Faith and Dora. If you are looking for great women’s fiction, definitely check out this novel!I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

[alekee_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love books by this author and this did not disappoint. From beginning to end the pages flew as I looked for answers.A read that is told from several points of view and is melded together beautifully.One glorious summer three young kids, one boy and two girls, spend as much time as possible together. Faith is visiting her Grandmother for the summer, and becomes best friends with Heather, but shortly after Faith has gone to her new home, Heather turns up missing.Thirty six years later a mother is unable to move on, she can't keep hoping her daughter is out there.When Heather's sister asks Faith, now a pod caster, for help, we hope that bringing this case back into the news will turn up answers.What a journey, and I kept hoping they would find Heather alive, but after 36 years!Was I right in my assumptions? Well, partly, but there are answers coming, along with big surprises!This was such a great read, and wished I could continue on in the lives of these people, I now cared about, but the story does wrap up with a lot of answers!I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Bethany House, and was not required to give a positive review.