The Next by Stephanie Gangi

Joanna DeAngelis dies wrong. Consumed by breast cancer, betrayals, disappointments, and a blind lust to avenge a badly broken heart, she turns away from her devoted daughters and dog on her deathbed, and finds herself alone in a darkness of her own making. With no light to guide her to death’s promised land of peace, Joanna’s ghost plots a course for revenge on her much-younger ex, Ned McGowan, the man who abandoned her to take up — and trade up — with another woman.

Joanna’s desperate needs — when she was alive, and now, while she’s trying to die properly — inspire a deep descent into the seat of the soul, an unflinching look at choices and consequences, at the last gasps of lust and love, and the wisdom to know how to go.@goodreads 

MY REVIEW:

2 STARS 

 
I'm sorry, there are a lot of people that seemed to like this book, but I did not! I gave it two stars for the dog, Tom and for the idea of revenge and ghosts. And yes, I can do that, it's my review.

The thing that pulled me into wanting to read this book was the idea of a vengeful ghost. But it really wasn't what I was thinking.

Joanna is dying of cancer. She has her daughters taking turns taking care of her, this would be Anna and Laney. And of course, Tom, the dog.

What I had trouble with was Joanna is on her deathbed, literally, and all she is thinking about is this stupid Ned she has a fling thing with at one time. Okay so they ended up living together but it was supposed to just be a fling. He left her when she got sicker and ended up with a younger, rich woman.

I forgot to mention that Joanna was 15 years older than Ned and had cancer. I'm sorry but what did you think he was going to do? So she lays on her death bed in and out of the morphine world thinking about having sex with Ned. I mean I don't know if people really do that because we don't know what people think when they are that far gone, but ew okay.

Some of the fun parts were when Joanna was a ghost and was messing with Ned on and off. But it just never really took off for me. I wanted to dnf the book but I pushed on because a lot of books get better later on. For me, this one did not.

I'm really happy for those that could get more out of the book than I did because I love the love of books. Obviously no one wants to not like a book but it happens. I always say this when I don't like a book. I feel bad for the book. lol. I'm weird.

*I would like to thank Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.* 

GOODREADS REVIEW:

 https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1749056151

AMAZON LINK TO THE BOOK:

https://www.amazon.com/Next-novel-love-revenge-ghost/dp/1250110564/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1473081474&sr=8-2&keywords=the+next+by+stephanie