I related very well to this "second half of life" book featuring these women. I have similar struggles so the storyline was compelling and made a great deal of sense to me. Definitely a book for older women looking for a fiction story.

Ellie, Alice, and Joan are all at a turning point in their lives. This follows each of them as they make decisions and discuss them with each other when they meet on Wednesdays. For fans of fiction featuring mature women.

I really liked this book. It focuses on a group in society that aren't written about enough. It feels like a step forward for books about women.

This is the story of three women moving from one phase to another in their life journeys, meeting for lunch to vent and learn and make decisions.

I would’ve liked more depth of character and personality in Joan, Ellie and Alice. I saw a lot of their behaviors but didn’t feel like I knew them very well. And because I didn’t know them, their behaviors annoyed me instead of endearing me, which is too bad because this could’ve been a terrific book.

Unfortunately, the book seemed more like a list of “sins” (in the characters’ eyes) — gambling, homosexuality, a woman making her own money — than a story of three authentic women.

I did like the title and the premise, but it just wasn't the book for me.

https://randombookmuses.com/2017/05/28/review-every-other-wednesday-by-susan-kietzman/

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2013086960

Three women, each facing an empty nest, come together to cheer and challenge one another in this insightful, poignant new novel from acclaimed author Susan Kietzman.
Hit home with me because I have 2 leaving the nest soon.
Loved this book.

A beautiful written story full of hope and inspiration. Have recommended it highly to my reading friends.

“Most mothers mourn when their children leave the house, but the smart ones also celebrate the freedom they now have to redefine themselves.”

This is a simplistic summary of Every Other Wednesday by Susan Kietzman. This is no sweet sappy story of three women waiting to be grandmas. It is about gun control, rape, addiction, school violence, friendship, sexuality, and finding yourself when what you based your identity on is gone. The women in the book do not follow the stereotypical paths and it is enjoyable to see them come in to their own in this well written book.

Thought provoking. Interesting to read about these issues relating to older women.

I absolutely loved this book. Many books are written in and set in this current time but this book was so well rooted in it. Odd comments about politics, current events especially the ongoing argument about gun control in the USA since Sandy Hook and other shootings etc made the story so much more relatable. I loved each woman for a different part of her personality and I think most people will identify with one or more of them. I wanted to read the book because of the school shooting mentioned in the 'blurb' but the book uses that as a catalyst and then doesn't refer to it more than once or twice. This is much more a coming of middle age story, women coping with their children leaving the nest and reevaluating their lives and their relationships with their husbands.
If you are a plot driven reader, wanting exciting things to happen every chapter then this book is possibly not for you. If however you like to live with characters, experience their lives and their feelings and opinions then you will love this. I even found myself looking forward to the author telling us what each woman ordered to eat on their fortnightly lunches!
The book ended, in my opinion, leaving the door nicely open for a sequel. I would love to know how Ellie's conversation with her mother went!
The book includes suggested reading group questions and I think the novel is a perfect choice for a book group. There is so much to discuss that the three women have raised, from gun control, sexuality, personal safety, whether young college kids are over protected by their parents or just better supported than their parents generation was. I wish I could join Ellie, Alice and Joan for a quesadilla and chat to them about it.

"Every Other Wednesday" is a beautiful, touching and very real contemporary story about three women who forge a friendship when brought together under sad circumstances- the circumstances being a school shooting in their small Connecticut town. Alice, Ellie and Joan had previously had a friendly acquaintance with each other when their kids were all in high school drama together. Now, with all three ladies being "empty nesters", they bond in a new way, as they each are trying to determine what their lives will look like. Each lady has different dynamics they are dealing with in their marriages as well. Joan would like to return to work but her husband's very wealthy families believe married women and mothers don't work. Ellie would like to expand her accounting practice, and also search within herself for a long held secret. Alice feels like she is at the bottom of her husband's priority list. However, when she is brutally attacked, will her husband finally place her as a priority once more? As these ladies work through each of their situations, they meet for lunch every other Wednesday to share their stories, their thoughts and hearts. It is beautiful and special to see how they care for and support each other, even in times of differences of opinion. i heartily recommend "Every Other Wednesday" as a well written piece of women's literature.

Brought together by a tragic event, three women, casual and fringe acquaintances, forge a situational friendship. Empty nesters, and women over the age of 45, these three women, Alice, Joan and Ellie, are each going through maturational and emotional changes in their lives.
From substance and gambling addiction to questioning their very sexuality identity, these three ladies meet, discuss their lives, and try to help one another through a year of change for each of them
Each character was fully developed and had an interesting storyline. While I didn't agree with a few topics and situations that came up, I did find the women all were able to stand up for themselves and their convictions. Their husbands played secondary roles in the story, but each husband had a profound effect on the characters.
I enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. I received an ARC from Netgalley for an honest opinion.

Alice is 55, Joan is 52, Ellie is 48. All find themselves with their children now in college so what do you do with your life now? How do you fill your days? Husbands have always been busy with their jobs. Old patterns of interaction no longer fit. You can't go back to your pre-children days, so what's next?

Every other Wednesday these 3 ladies meet to help each other figure out what they want to do with the next phase of their lives. The challenges each face is varied and unique to them yet they support each other in their quest during the one year time of this novel.

There seems to be a brash of empty nester novels lately and this one is very good in that it also comments on social issues.

Thank you for the sermon in the form of a book for our Second Amendment. While I do agree that everyone has a right to bear arms (just not in a government office), I really didn't need it shoved down my throat for basically the entire story.

What I loved: Ellie's story/journey was my favorite of the three. I think she grew the most as a person and had the most significant changes in her life now that she had successfully gotten her kids to the next level of college. Joan is a closet snob (seriously - this is a casino in CT - not Monte Carlo. Expect jeans and scruffy people.) and Alice is just annoying overall. Maybe its better their families weren't part of the story.

What I didn't love: I thought this was going to be more about their lives now that they all suffered from empty-nest syndrome but it was more focused on their own personal growth. There was little to no actual interaction with their families and I was disappointed. I was just expecting more.

What I learned: How not to be when my kid heads off to college in 18 months. The hobby search starts now!

Overall Grade: C+

Children leave for college
School shooting ...leads to thinking/talking about life
Ladies meet for lunch/companionship...begin talking about guns/gun control, marriage, husbands, children, coming out, working mothers/empty nest, gambling, gay rights....
Meet over 1 year from Oct to Sept.

I did not finish this book at the 50% mark. I just could not keep going. This story was getting unbelievable. Within half the book it had touched on school gun violence, gambling and alcohol addiction, attempted rape, gun control vs. the right to carry a gun, coming out of the closet as an adult and, when I gave up, being mugged at gunpoint - which I am sure would move the gun control/rights to forefront since TWO of the three main characters had now been involved with guns at some point.

Thank you for the chance to read this and I'm sorry I could not finish it.

I did not enjoy this book. The very premise that brings the three main characters together is never developed, although the reader is lead to believe it will be. All the characters are superficial and begin to blend together midway through the novel. There really is nothing holding the three main characters together. They float around in a drama-filled world where unrealistic events happen continuously. So many conflicts and twists are presented yet never fully explored and the reader is left hanging and wondering about the resolution. But even more annoying than the dangling plot lines are the political undertones. These were not at all subtle. I found myself frequently putting aside this book in frustration. This is not a book I would recommend.