#NextToHeaven #NetGalley

I as almost 70% through this before I learned of the controversies that surrounded the author. However, I was lucky enough to be given this as an Advanced Reader Copy, so I knew it was best for me to see it out and write my review as objectively as I could when the time came. As I primarily listened to this on audio book, I have to say nothing but positive things about the narrator, Gina Gershon, they had the perfect tone and I felt myself fully immersed by her voice and therefore immersed in the storyline. One note I do have about the story as a whole is the way the writer uses repetition, a lot, and I mean A LOT of sentences were not just full of detail but repetition of phrases and entire sentences. I know this was used to emphasis Freys Point, but to be honest it just got annoying.

The party that was mentioned in the synopsis was small part of the actual story, and didn’t have as nearly as much scandal as described, and the murder that was made to look as if it was the centre storyline, only played a minor part and didn’t even happen until almost 70% in, In that aspect, the official synopsis of the book doesn’t match the storyline described. Most of the book was all about the couples in New Bethlehem and the different peoples lives and how they came together, with the part being a small part, and a further 40% was life after the party before the murder even happened. I guess it was supposed to build suspense but to be honest it could easily have been condensed into a fraction of what it was. So much background and unnecessary extra information that really did feel totally irrelevant to the story, however, part of the controversy was that this book was written using AI, and I am unsure if this was because of this and perhaps why I felt so detached from the book? It just didn’t have that natural feel like a lot of books do, at first I thought it was because of the style of writing of the author and the types of characters within it, but now I am considering if this is because of the AI aspect? I am afraid that going forward I will be avoiding any further books by this author for the AI generated content alone.

I didn’t really care about any of the characters, aside from Katie, and to be honest before we found out who was murdered (I repeat, at almost 70%) I was starting to get that I didn’t even care who it was, or who done it, or what would happen to them – aside from Katie of course. And this storyline was the only part of the book that stood out to me – because it emphasised the narrative of those with money really can use it to do what they want with limited consequences, and they knew it.

However, I am grateful to be considered for Advanced Reader Copies, and I will strive to finish the book given to the best of my ability and provide a fair and unbiased opinion.

Next To Heaven by James Frey | Release Date 17th June 2025

1 🌟Edit to my original review - I just saw where this book was partially wrote using AI. That probably explains the parts that dragged on and was confusing. I still think Gena Gershon did amazing with the narration.

This was an enjoyable story but there were a few parts that felt a little drawn out and not really necessary. I feel like those sections would probably do better if this was made into a movie or show. In a book it made the story drag on and was easy to get a little confused about who was who and how everyone fit together. This story was a murder mystery but the murder didn’t happen until the book was almost over. I understand building up the murder and presenting a bunch of people so you don’t know who is going to be the victim but the build up could have been shorter. While I did enjoy the story it wasn’t super memorable. I will say Gina Gershon’s narration is a 10/10.

Tropes:
🖤Thriller
🖤Murder Mystery

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Audio for this ALC in exchange for an honest review.

A L C • R E V I E W ✨
Next to Heaven by James Frey
Narrated by: Gina Gershon
Publication Date: June 16, 2025

🎧 A L C • R E V I E W 🎧
Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

First, Gina has an amazing voice and did an amazing job narrating the book. The way it was read made me want to keep listening. I will definitely be on the lookout for more audiobooks narrated by Gina Gershon. 🤗


The writing style was not my favorite it felt very repetitious, and it was very hard for me to figure out who was who.

I’ve never read anything by James Frey, but I will definitely be trying more of his books. ✨

Overall, this book was very entertaining if you are looking for a good psychological thriller then this is for you! ✨

This book was not at all what I was expecting. The plot as described in the blurb is buried beneath chapters and chapters of information that is barely relevant (or not at all relevant) to the plot. The vast majority of the book is made up of background information, ranging from the history of the multiple characters to information and statistics about the town. The primary plot of the party didn't really get brough up until about 25% through, and even then it was painfully brief before jumping back into irrelevant background. The primary plot chapters honestly felt like interludes in compared to the breadth of the rest of the background. The overwriting and unnecessary details was a major detractor for me.

Despite the amount of information we were drowned in regarding the characters, none of them felt alive or well written. By the time we get to the murder (approximately 70% through), it was impossible to care.

I can't recommend this work at all. My thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The synopsis for Next to Heaven intrigued me. I thought it would be a super dramatic reality show in book format. There were a ton of one dimensional characters who were all extremely unlikable with forced drama and a lackluster plot.

I know the controversy surrounding James Frey and went in to this book just looking for an easy fiction read. I found the book to be rather boring. It didn’t work for me and I couldn’t wait to be finished with it.

Gina Gershon did an excellent job with the narration.

Thank you to NetGalley & AE Titles/Simon & Schuster Audio for letting me read this ARC.

I have read multiple Frey novels. Both under his name, and others. I loved his books, but I was disappointed when the drama surrounding them occurred. However, I wanted to give this new book a chance. I can't help but to think it missed its mark. Sigh. Thank you, though, net galley for the ARC!

This book just wasn’t for me. I really liked how they talked about smoking to relax and all the correct terms being used. I was confused some of the time because there are so many characters and I would get them mixed up. That’s probably a me issue.
I really liked how it ended and was shocked.

Absolute perfection.

A story about the upper echelons of the 0.1%, living in suburban Connecticut, and all of them are unhappy and cheating and breaking all kinds of laws (and also above the laws) and DTF each other. Also there’s a murder, but honestly it’s secondary to the narrative about these very wealthy people and their very wealthy lives.

The narrator on audio was FREAKING PHENOMENAL. She is exactly what I imagine every one of the women to sound like. And the prose with so much repetition? Exactly how I imagine them conversing with each other.

I’m in love with their lives, their secrets, their lifestyles, and this book.

Tried very hard to like this book. As a matter of fact, the best thing about this audiobook was the narrator. Took more than. 70% for there to be a murder. Every time I thought something suspenseful was going to happen...it didn't.
Very disappointed.

I’m going to DNF this book. I’m about 3 hours in but I still feel like nothing has happened. I love Gina Gershon but the book took 25% just to stop introducing all the characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and Actors Equity for this ARC. Not for me - nothing happens until 75% into the book. Way too much set up and not enough focus on the after. Also bothers me that the author admits to using AI.

Next to Heaven

The first chapter had me grinning, laughing, kicking my feet. LOVED the sass of Devon and their origin story. A book of the rich and privileged who just want to keep getting richer and more privileged.

Devon and Belle decide to throw a massive party to step into their next level of wealth. And it all goes downhill from there. Betrayal, chaos and of course murder !

After chapter 1, which I loved, I went to the reviews and was honestly shocked to find them so negative. Some reviews I read seem unfair for rating low because they don’t care about the rich, it doesn’t mean this wasn’t a fun story. Or maybe the low reviews are because he uses AI as a tool to write his books, my thought is at least he’s honest about it. If you take it for what it is and like messy, rich privilege tropes, you’ll have fun with this one- I did !

I will say I needed a note pad to keep track of all the changes and couples, was harder to track with audio. I honestly could’ve done without the murder mystery because the messiness of the rich was entertaining enough!!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ALC in exchange for an honest review. Release date 6/17/25.

2 ⭐️ The book is placed in a world of four wealthy families living in CT. On the outside they look picture perfect but of course there’s more going on behind the scenes. The beginning of the books takes you thru every person’s backstory and how they met their partner. Eventually, someone is murdered and so begins the who did it finger pointing.

There’s a LOT going on in this book. Nine POVs was a little much to deal with. At times it made it hard to follow along. Hard to remember who was tied to who. Honestly, if I was physically reading the book, it would most likely have been a DNF. With listening to it on audio, the narrator was great and it kept me pushing to finish it thru. Will I think about this book a week from now? Definitely not, but if this is your type of read, you’ll enjoy it.

I really didn't like this book. It's rich people behaving very badly and while sometimes I don't mind that, I really didn't enjoy the writing style so I couldn't get behind the premise either. I think Frey was attempting to be poetic (or something) but his redundant style just got on my nerves after awhile. There were so many characters who were basically all the same that it was hard to keep everyone straight and remember who was married to whom and who was cheating with whom. The audio book includes a little bonus interview at the end with Frey where he talks about who he would invite to his ideal swingers party and honestly it was so cringey I had to stop listening.

This book is so hard for me to rate. I got this book as an ARC after seeing that it was a book of the month pick. I was so excited and intrigued that it was a murder mystery that delt with a swinger society. But then one of my friends told me that there are no quotation marks in the book. I started to read the first few pages, and I couldn't do the format of this book. Therefore, if I was reading this book, it would've been a 1 star because I would've DNF'ed this one.

But I was given the idea to audio it and found that I could pick it as a listen now on NetGalley. Which I got super excited for and dove right into it. The narrator did a good job changing her voice to emphasize the different people talking. This is the only reason why this rating is a 2 star instead of a 1 because the narrator was good at getting me through this book.

Should I have DNF'ed this book or not have even picked it up- absolutely I was given the ick when a male part was called a yogurt cannon. Like EWWWWWWW. I really hate to give bad reviews, but this was not it at all.
A. There were no quotation Marks- my bad for not seeing that or know that was part of the format.
B. The murder mystery didn't happen until 70% into the book.
C. Yogurt cannon.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC and ALC in Exchange for my honest review

I received this audiobook arc from @netgalley!

Basically you have bored rich people, lots of sex, cheating, drugs and betrayal. Some of my favorite books when I was younger were written by James Frey so I figured this couldn't do me wrong. The first 20% book I had no clue what the heck was going on. I was getting information on four couples talking about a party. All the characters were horrible. Honestly only three people were kind of likeable. All the marriages were pretty awful. You had cheaters, liars, drugs, tax fraud and just crappy individuals. About 35% you find out what kind of party. About 73% in their is a murder. Did I enjoy this, actually kind of which surprised the hell out of me. Once the party was done and over things started picking up a bit and the murder is what I enjoyed. Well the who did it. I'm surprised by the person that was murdered, I figured it would be another person which was the worst one for me. I liked how this came together and what some of the people got.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC audiobook.

3-4 stars (wish there was half a star but in this case I rounded up)

I think narrator Gina Gerson really made the difference....she was great. I'm not sure if I'd read the actual book that I'd have given it as many stars.

This book is juicy and portrays rich people getting their kicks at a spicy party in their affluent CT town. What happens after is an unraveling of several relationships and even a murder. And I was here for it! Rich people behaving badly is one of my favorite tropes.

As an aside, some of the chapters (maybe 2 or 3) wouldn't actually play which was weird. But I don't feel like I missed out on too much.

This book was not for me. It was a lot of just people married to each other but hooking up with other people, which fine you do you, but there was no story for the majority of the book. I don't think the writing was that great in this one... Also, it bothered me a LOT as a Fairfield County resident that the author made up New Bethlehem but then used and described all the towns and cities around it and real places. Just say New Canaan at that point I don't understand.

Also, this is not a fault of the author, but the audio book was kind of a hot mess. There were multiple chapters that didn't play (yet I didn't feel like I was missing out even though it was a solid 5 chapters... that should tell you something) and then after the closing credits it went backwards and I don't know if it started over but it continued with the story? Just very jumbled.

Over all this was a big miss for me, but thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

** spoiler alert ** I received an ARC of this audio book from Net galley and was super excited about it at first but I think I had my hopes too high because it was not what I was expecting. I think the idea of the book was fun but the writing itself could have been more engaging. I found myself liking some of the characters but I think it did not actually provide a lot of information on the characters enough for me to make personal connections to them.. and the whole swingers thing barely even happened, it was more of a glimpse over it when I would have thought that was one of the main plots of the book. There just was not enough time on the swinger party when that clearly played a major role in other events that happened in this book. Additionally, the mystery was not suspenseful or engaging enough to keep me interested in that part of the story."

I have always thought that James Frey's "A Million Little Pieces" would have been received entirely differently if it was marketed as the fiction it truly is, and I was willing to accept that mistakes are sometimes made and everyone deserves another chance. This is my first time picking up his books since then, but unfortunately, "Next to Heaven" failed to deliver for me.

This is ultimately a story of the ultra-rich behaving badly, and I'll freely admit that it's always hard for me to appreciate that niche. That, coupled with an aggressive writing style, unlikable characters, and a questionable attitude towards women that seemed to be lurking in the background, and I just couldn't connect to this book. If you enjoy the comeuppance of rich people who have misbehaved, and plot twists with an edge of vulgarity, however, this may just be the perfect book for you — your mileage may vary.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster, NetGalley, and James Frey for an advance copy of this book for review. The audiobook production and narration was well done, and the cover art is certainly eye catching! 2.5 stars.