Author Nick Alexander
Narrated by Eilidh Beaton

Publishes April 23,2025

We have Wendy, who worked during the Covid pandemic as a nurse which left her with awful unresolved grief and so much stress. So to get away and take a sabbatical sort of rents a house in a very remote area south of France for six months. This house was off grid for the most part, solar panels and fire place style home. I feel for Wendy with what she went through being on the front lines but some of her coping strategies aren’t the healthiest.

I adored the local post woman Manon, not only did she deliver mail to went but she also would bring her groceries to! Maron also helped Wendy out of some very difficult situations multiple times. I loved Maron’s tough love she gave to Wendy and just how much support she gave her.

I feel Wendy is very relatable to many with her coping strategies for stress and unresolved grief and trauma. Her use of alcohol was the one thing that really struck a nerve with Wendy, because you can’t just drink away your troubles as so many think, they will still be there in the morning when you wake up likely with a lovely hangover. I know so many struggle with alcohol addiction and dependency and I was really glad that Wendy started her journey of personal recovery.


Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the ALC audiobook. All opinions are my own.

This starts as a story about an essential worker during COVID coping with the stress of her nursing job. She had to live apart from her family during the height of the pandemic and the two times she contracted the virus. Now it’s behind us (for now), yet problems in her personal life persist. She decides to take some time on her own to think things through, leaving behind her husband and their two nearly grown children.
The author peels back the layers as the MFC must acknowledge things about her and her past. It gets messy, and it reinforces the importance of having people in your life - even ones you’ve just met - who can hold up a mirror or just be there to listen without a lot of baggage and history. It’s a sensitive, occasionally funny (in the way someone can be funny when self-deluding), and long-ish story (because real change doesn’t happen overnight, though I got impatient with the novel’s length). Worth a read or a listen, especially if there’s someone in your life who might need a change or a slight push to change.
There were long bits of dialogue (phone call transcripts) where the person speaking was identified as M: or N: For the audiobook, I think this could have been handled with an additional narrator and would have been smoother and feel less abrupt or awkward when listening. Otherwise the novel was well narrated.
My thanks to the author, publisher, producer, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook for review purposes. Publication date: 23 April 2025.

Where Do We Go From Here? is a book which includes some surprisingly hard hitting issues. It’s about Wendy who takes a sabbatical of sorts and rents a house in a remote part of the south of France for six months. She is full of unresolved grief coupled with the enormous stress of being a front line nurse in a hospital during the COVID pandemic. Repression of her feelings mean that her relationships with her friends, her family and her colleagues are at breaking point.

It really was quite difficult to like Wendy at times. I had a lot of sympathy for her at the beginning but some of her behaviours were quite shocking. To use a cliché, she really does find herself in France: and finds she doesn’t like the person she’s become.

Wendy is of course a much nicer person by the end of the book. By working through so many issues and taking the time to involve her family and friends, she finds out a lot about herself and her family. Honesty with herself and with others becomes so very important to her.

The local post lady Manon is a wonderful character. As well as delivering the post, she often delivered the groceries and got Wendy out of difficult situations on more than one occasion. I did enjoy the smattering of French during the parts Wendy and Manon were together. Manon was wise beyond her years and after some tough love, such a support and encouragement to Wendy.

The narrator of the audiobook is one of my favourites, Eilidh Beaton. She was excellent as always bringing the story to life with her distinct voices for the various characters and great tone and pacing. I admit I was slightly surprised that she wasn’t using her Scottish accent that I am used to from her previous narrations!

Where Do We Go From Here? is a book I feel will resonate with many readers. I expect that many women of a similar age to Wendy whose family are reaching adulthood will have that feeling of wondering what life is all about and many may be dealing with those questions in the same unwise ways as Wendy. It’s a thought-provoking read with themes of friendship, second chances and finding strength to make a new start.

Thank you so much to Bookouture Audio and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this audiobook. The following review is my honest opinion.

In this novel we follow Wendy, a middle-aged nurse. After the height of the COVID pandemic she quits her job, because she is feeling burnt out. She is also going through a rough patch with her husband and daughter. Feeling rejected from her family, she decides to spend the next 6 months in the south of France to find herself again. On this journey she has to take a good look at herself if she wants to find the root of her problems, but will she manage to do so?

I liked the last 20 % of the book, however the rest felt a bit too long, as I couldn’t connect to our main character.
Also, even though the pandemic was a very formative period for a lot of people, I learned that I really dislike reading about it in books.

If you keep on reading you will eventually discover why Wendy is making the decisions she is making and why she is unlikable in the first part of the book. However, what I felt was missing was the inner conflict/self reflection. In order to connect and root for her I needed her to show some sort of remorse or sadness in her inner dialogue. Without this I only got the impression that she is selfish.

The highlight of this book was the narrator. She did a fantastic job incorporating the French accent. It was a very pleasant experience listening to this audiobook.

All in all I believe that this book was not for me, however I can see how others could find this story uplifting and inspiring.

This was a little long and the characters slightly unlikeable, yet the whole thing was relatable and readable. Strong narration.

For people who loved Where’d You Go Bernadette, Nora Goes Off Script, or Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, this novel is much more substantive than the fluffy romance vibes I got from the cover!

The sympathetic protagonist is doing her best as a wife and mother while also navigating the trauma and isolation from being a COVID-time nurse. As she spends time away, her relationships with her family, her best friend, anger and alcohol come more clearly into focus, and she has a lot to grapple with. It’s an honest exploration of what the line is between habit, coping and dependency; between acceptance and enabling.

Thanks to NetGalley for an opportunity to read this advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

I had read and enjoyed a few of the author's previous books so was looking forward to this one; I must admit, I wasn't at all sure at first. I strongly disliked the character of Jill, and wasn't keen on Wendy either.. As a long term non-drinker it was hard to empathise with these characters. However, as the story unfolded and developed far more depth than I had initially expected, I became far more invested in Wendy's story. Full of humanity with all its faults and flaws, this was in fact an excellent read / listen. Great narration too.
With grateful thanks to Nick Alexander, Bookouture Audio and NetGalley for an advance copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Net galley and Bookouture Audio for the advanced copy of this audiobook Where Do We Go From Here The is released on April 22,2025. I feel Eilidh Beaton the narrator keeps this book lighthearted despite the incredible heaviness of topics. First Covid and Wendy, the main character is an essential worker- a nurse and struggles with so many challenges with that at a time and then when life changes happened at home- children growing up- marriage changing- mother is sick/dying from cancer and relationship problems with her brother and best friend, Wendy gives up. She decides to take a break and go live in cabin in France to sort things out for six months. A tad extreme but to each their own. There were some moments of drag and uncomfortableness but the message of self care and finding themselves with a lot of denial was the primary story line. Triggers for some- death and alcoholism for sure.

This book was honest, moving, and quietly powerful. It explored love, loss, and the messy in-betweens of life in such a real way. The characters felt like people I knew, and their journey stuck with me long after I finished.

Things at home aren't great, life seems to be stuttering along. Wendy begins to question what she really wants from life so she books a remote cabin in France so that she can spend time alone and figure out her future.

The cutesy cover for Where Do We Go From Here? by Nick Alexander drew me in and the blurb had me believing this was going to be the story of an English person struggling with life in France; misunderstandings, new friendships, some personal growth, all leading to a magical epiphany. How wrong I was!

There is a serious note to the opening chapters. Wendy was a nurse during the worst of COVID. Desperate to protect her family she lived in an Airbnb during the peak of the pandemic. Isolated from her husband and two children Wendy didn't realise that the tight unit they formed got used to her not being around. COVID was a bump in the road for lots of relationships, but for Wendy, it became a mountain. Unsure if she wanted her marriage to survive, even if her family still wanted her around, she decided she needed some "me time" in the form of six months alone in southern France.

It's at this point that things begin to take a more humorous turn. The cabin Wendy has rented is more rustic than she expected, cue issues with heating and electricity. Wendy quickly realises that her schoolgirl French is distinctly lacking and winter in her remote location is just as bleak, if not worse, than winter at home.

A visit from her teenage daughter over Christmas, along with a comment from the postwoman who delivers her groceries, brings things to a head when Wendy is forced to acknowledge her drinking. Wendy reasons that lots of people enjoy a drink on holiday, but when she looks back at her first few months she realises that her drinking is out of control, and has been an issue for a long time.

Once Wendy accepts her reliance on alcohol is a problem she then has to address why. My heart went out to Wendy as we learned about some of the difficulties she had faced. For me, the harrowing impact of being on the front line during the pandemic would have been a good enough reason to use drink as an emotional crutch, but for Wendy, her reason is far more personal and heartbreaking. Brilliant narration from Eilidh Beaton allowed me to empathise fully with everything Wendy was going through.

As Wendy addresses her drinking problem she also has to address the relationships she has with friends and family. What really hit home for me here is that we can never fully know what people are dealing with in their everyday lives, particularly people who don't openly share information. It was also gratifying to see that the author didn't wave a magic wand and make the ending magical, with everything suddenly being perfect, this reminds us that relationships have to be nurtured and not taken for granted.

4.5 ⭐️
Wendy's story would not be an uncommon one. As a nurse who lived through the pandemic in London, she turned to alcohol to get through the day, although she's not aware of the effect it had had on herself and those around her.
I found this very well written with the conversations between characters as realistic as they could get. There was no over the top extreme situations. As a woman in her early 50s I can easily see how a lot of the situations would arise and the resolution/impact of those situations was also very realistic to me. A very good read.
Thank you to Netgalley for the audiobook arc of this book.

Nick Alexander delivers an emotional yet uplifting story in Where Do We Go From Here?, a novel that beautifully captures the turmoil of a woman at a crossroads. Wendy, a devoted wife, mother, and nurse, has spent years caring for others—often at the expense of her own well-being. Burned out from the trauma of nursing during COVID and struggling with the impact on her family, she makes the bold decision to rent a remote cabin in France for six months. With her children on the verge of adulthood and her marriage barely holding on, Wendy hopes that solitude will bring the clarity she desperately needs.

However, the reality of the cabin is far more challenging than she anticipated. Remote in every sense, it offers only intermittent power and a fireplace as the sole source of heat. As the days stretch into weeks, Wendy is forced to confront the truths she has long tried to suppress. Her isolation, coupled with the comforts she has relied on—like France’s renowned wine—only highlight the depth of her emotional struggles.

One of the novel’s most moving aspects is the friendship that develops between Wendy and the local postal delivery woman. Their bond is unexpected but profoundly life-changing, proving that help often comes from the most unlikely places. I especially loved that their connection continues even after Wendy returns home to England, reinforcing the novel’s message that healing and growth don’t happen in isolation.

Nick Alexander handles Wendy’s struggles with care and authenticity, making her journey deeply relatable. The depiction of PTSD, grief, and the emotional toll of caregiving is done with such respect that it’s impossible not to feel for Wendy. Her story is both heartbreaking and hopeful, reminding us that even when life feels like it’s falling apart, new beginnings are always possible.

The Narration:

I listened to the audiobook version, narrated by Eilidh Beaton, and her performance was outstanding. She brought Wendy’s voice to life with warmth and emotion, and her ability to convey the French characters with authenticity added an extra layer of depth to the story. Beaton’s narration elevated an already compelling book, making it an even more immersive experience.

Final Thoughts:

Where Do We Go From Here? is a powerful, beautifully written novel about love, loss, resilience, and the unexpected connections that help us find our way. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys deeply emotional, character-driven stories.

I received an ARC of this audiobook from the publisher but the thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.

4.5 stars (rounded up to 5).

“Where Do We Go From Here” by Nick Alexander and brilliantly narrated by Eilidh Beaton is the story of Wendy, a mother, wife, and nurse whose family life was imploding from personal trauma, the difficulty of the pandemic, and her family’s growing distance. She retreats to France, taking a six-month sabbatical to “find herself.” Living abroad isn’t as easy as she thought it would be, and she starts a decline that might be difficult for her to climb out of. But with the help of a young friend and an awful lot of self-reflection, she manages to return home and get her life back on track.

While I enjoyed this book a lot, I feel it might gloss over issues that in real life might not be so easy to fix—particularly alcoholism. (Since it is clear from the first chapter, I don’t think I’m giving away any of the plot). I also felt Wendy’s husband was a little too good to be true. In my opinion, the book should have ended before the long, long epilogue.

Many thanks to Net Galley and to the publisher for an advance audio copy of this book. My opinions are my own.

Wendy is stressed out by being a nurse during the pandemic, a distant marriage, and angry children. After hearing of a contest to live alone for six months, Wendy books an off-the-grid cabin in France to gain perspective. The distance allows Wendy to see the effect of alcohol on her life and relationships.


As a child of alcoholics, I appreciate the focus on the effects of alcoholism on a life and family. Hearing Wendy describe her days, it is easy for readers to see the growing problem and denial. Wendy is not a particularly likable main character, but I don't think her family is either. We are only getting it from Wendy's point of view, but from how it has been presented, it does not seem like the family has done much of a proper intervention before just asking her to leave. Therefore, it is a little off that the younger daughter is the one to tell Wendy that her 21-year-old son is getting married and that Wendy can only attend if she doesn't drink. That is an awful thing to do to a teenager. When Wendy confronts her estranged husband, he responds, "Oh, you heard about that?" It is hard to root for Wendy and her husband to reunite.

Also, the way the conversations were represented was a bit awkward, at least via audio. Using initials to differentiate the speakers was clunky.

Thank you, Netgalley and Bookouture Audio, for this advanced listening copy. All opinions are my own.

Where Do We Go From Here offers moments that are thought-provoking, insightful and inspiring.
Wendy has struggled immensely with the grief of her mother’s illness and death, plus the harrowing experience of working as a nurse during the COVID pandemic. Wendy is an example of how the combination of trauma, social isolation and alcohol addiction lead to a downward spiral.

The outcome for Wendy and her family leaves readers with a satisfying ending. However, this novel is quite slow paced at times and the dialogue has a very rambling, ‘waffling’ feel to it.

The audio narration kept me engaged with the story. Tone, expression, gender and accents of all characters are very well executed.

Thank you to the publisher, Bookouture, for an advance audio copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Although I appreciate what the author seemed to be trying to achieve with this story, it was a depressing and confusing slog for the vast majority of it. Simply put, it's a story about alcoholism (and COVID-19) destroying a middle class family, and although of course the book ends on a positive note, it took a lot of willpower to listen to the end. There was also the weird choice of using initials to denote speakers in most of the conversations, which was really confusing and unnecessary. The narrator did a good job despite having to read the characters' initials hundreds of times.

** Spoilers ahead **

Speaking of willpower, it felt like the MC's problems were solved through willpower alone, after a couple of uncomfortable conversations in which she seems shocked to discover for the first time that she's an alcoholic. Having known alcoholics in my lifetime, this felt really far from the reality of recognizing and overcoming addiction, and the ease with which Wendy just decides to quite drinking does a disservice to people suffering from alcoholism. There are plenty of people who think it's purely a lack of willpower that keeps people addicted, and this story seems to back up that flawed perspective. In short, the way the story played out didn't sit well with me, and I hope readers won't take Wendy as an example of the "right" way to stop drinking.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookoutre Audio for the complimentary ALC and the opportunity to provide an unbiased review.

This is a touching story of how Wendy, a burnt out nurse, retreats to France for space away from her job, family and life in general.
With the help of several supporting characters Wendy is forced to look at herself and reflect on the reasons behind some of her self-destructive coping strategies.
Covering themes of loss, grief, alcoholism, family dynamics and friendship the book will stay with you long after you finish it.
I am grateful to Netgalley and the publishers for an advanced listener copy of this well narrated and highly recommended audiobook.

I hate to say but I'm 30% in and I'm DNF-ing. I don't know if I'm not the correct audience but Where Do We Go From Here follows a nurse, Wendy, as she decides to quit her job and move away from her life to a french cottage for 6 months. I felt so much compassion for Wendy, she was a nurse who faced the unimaginable during the COVID pandemic but she just sat around her french cottage smoking and drinking, wishing she didn't invite her friend to visit. I cannot imagine the pressures she and her husband faced, and the toll it had on their marriage but I just found myself so uninterested.

I really enjoyed this audiobook. There were so many deeper meanings that were relatable. A fictional story with a splash of self help that I'm sure for many people can understand from their own lives or others around them. This book reveals various emotions and life changing events from the characters ranging from stress, loss, grief, alcohol abuse, to love, forgiveness, and happiness.

Wendy is a nurse during the pandemic and finds herself drinking more than usual. Her family have concerns that things are getting out of control as she isn't the same person she was, but who would be after nursing her sick mother to then having to accept her passing on in a difficult way whilst thereafter nursing many through a pandemic.

Wendy is then pushed aside by her family rather than supported as they simply don't know how to manage the ongoing issues after trying to communicate. Also, due to the pandemic it hust seems to make sense for Wendy to move out of the family home, which unfortunately isn't helpful for her emotional state at that time. During this time her brother is going through his own turmoil so he is of little support in caring for their mother however Wendy has no knowledge of his issues until later on in her recovery and only after her sabbatical trip to France where she more or less isolated herself does she begin to face herself and her problems.

When Wendy returns to the UK she works on mending her relationships with her husband Harry, her children and her brother due to her being able to accept and acknowledge her problems for herself she begins deep healing and recovery. The latter part of this story is where we see compassion, understanding, and forgiveness throughout all the family dynamics and various relationships and how important communication is. Although Wendy may have to accept the loss of friendships due to them being more based around her old self she accepts this may be a loss or just for now phase dependent on the others involved and how they move forward in life.

More so to know oneself and be able to move forward from old habits that may be used as coping strategies in order to have a happier, more fulfilling life really was a beautiful happy ending. Sometimes to get to a new better you, you have to be willing and able to let go of the old, release the past with grace, forgiveness and love and just get your feet back on the ground without outside influences.

This was well narrated so much so that at times I found certain characters irritating like why can't this be seen and understood etc so this shows how well delivered it was that the audio and writing style together had the required impact at each point. Absolutely fantastic overall and an easy, enjoyable listen about life, family dynamics, and so much more!

With thanks & gratitude to Netgalley & Bookouture Audio for the opportunity to listen to this ELC in return for an open, honest review. Best wishes for publication on 23rd April 2025. 📚🎧🙏🏼❤️

A book I never knew I needed 🫶

This book is a powerful tale of redemption. Heartbreaking, uplifting, and hopeful all at once. It took me on an emotional rollercoaster.

We follow Wendy, whose life has spiraled downward, made even worse by the pandemic. Long story short, she battles her demons and comes out the other side with the unwavering support of her family, which beautifully highlights how crucial it is to have the right support system when facing struggles like Wendy’s.

I deducted one star due to the use of initials in dialogues, which isn’t a format I personally enjoy on audio. Aside from that, the story was amazing, and Eilidh Beaton’s narration was beautiful. I can’t imagine anyone else as Wendy’s voice.

Thank you Bookouture Audio for the opportunity to review this ALC! 🎧