Review by HMB Book Reviewer Christine Norfleet
“What happens when we die? Where do we go? What do we do?” These questions and more are answered by Maureen Hancock in her new book The Medium Next Door. As I finished the last page of this book, the feelings that resonated within me were of inspiration and hope; and the last sentence of this profound read is, “If something resonates in your heart from this story, please share it with family and friends.” So, I am here to share.
Many of us struggle with the life after death question, especially if confronted with a tragic loss of a loved one, and through books like The Medium Next Door, seek to answer this question. But how does a rational mind know if something or someone is credible enough to believe? My rational mind looks to the person and the life they have created. Maureen is undeniably a remarkable woman. She is the cofounder of two non-profit organizations, Seeds of Hope and Mission for the Missing. All the work she performs through these organizations is pro-bono. Hancock is a certified energy healer as well as a Medium. She has performed as a stand-up comic and has become known as the “Comedian Medium.” She is a mother, wife, daughter, sister, aunt, and friend and details her experiences in these roles. Maureen’s life is filled with love and loved ones in this world and the next. You come to learn that she has not escaped life threatening illness, an earth shattering diagnosis of sterility, or the horrifying pain of losing a close loved one; and it is in this journey that the reader realizes that having a gift of spirit communication does not spare one the travails of life. It’s in this journey that Maureen shows the reader the meaning of grace. How can you not be touched by grace when you are present with the mother that held her dying infant daughter and nursed her so that her daughter would “…have a part of me with her…when she goes to heaven.”
The undeniable facts are we were born and we will die…the rest of life is made up of choices and how we respond or react to fated occurrences that determine our destiny. Maureen does something unique in her autobiography and shares techniques at the end of each chapter to help the reader make the best choices through building their intuition; reconnecting with their own spirit; building a stronger emotional base; and incenting us to identify ways to celebrate our lives and live with joy. The Medium Next Dooris chock full of the people Maureen has helped in her mediumship. Their stories are emotionally moving such as the parents who lost a teenage daughter and then several years later their teenage son; a mother who lost her son to a serial killer; parents who lost their son in a Boston nightclub fire; and a mother, dying of cancer, leaving behind two teenage daughters; these are just a few of the heartbreaking, touching stories contained within her book. But rather than being depressing, these stories are full of hope. Maureen shows the connections to these spirits and the messages they have for us all.
By reading this book you will open a portal. A portal to a different perspective on life and death and maybe, if the reader is so inclined, and you follow Maureen’s suggestions at the end of each chapter, a transformation will occur…a transformation to a life that is once again full of hope and joy because truly life does not end, it just transforms from one state to the next.
In her new book“The Medium Next Door,”Maureen Hancock details the adventures of a real life ghost whisperer. “It’s basically part memoir about my life as a medium, yet I’m just like your next door neighbor…only I hear and see dead people,”Hancock explains. “I write about my work with the sick and dying, helping people pass, assisting detectives to help find missing children and adults, and some profound readings that have changed families’ lives.” Ian Sander and Kim Moses (producers of The Ghost Whisperer) have been signed by Disney ABC to be the executive producers of the reality show based on Maureen’s life.
Spirit medium Maureen Hancock discovered her psychic abilities to communicate with the dead when she was only 5 years old, but she kept the otherworldly messages to herself eventually suppressing them almost completely. Maureen wouldn’t open herself up to the spirits again until she was in a near fatal car crash. Soon after, she had hundreds of voices trying to speak with her, many of them helping her crack cases and expose fraud in her role as a litigation paralegal at Logan Airport. Accepting her gift but still keeping it mostly under wraps, she married and had two children.
It was not until tragedy struck on September 11 that Maureen was so bombarded with messages from the spirits that she realized she had to put her ability to its best use. Maureen left her job at Logan Airport and opened the holistic healing center Pathways to Healing and launched the cancer foundation Manifest a Miracle.