Three women in Mattauk experience some significant changes as they go through midlife changes. Nessa James begins to hear voices, Harriett Osborn can manipulate growing things and has an encyclopedic knowledge of what those things can do. Jo Levison is able to channel her anger into a power that would blow anyone away. The three women end up teaming up in this novel, to find the bodies of young women who have been killed and unlock the mystery of who was behind their deaths, as the police are not doing anything to bring peace to the families and allow these young women to be put to rest.

This book was part feminist literature, part thriller, and part supernatural. It was an interesting take on women going through menopause and changes in their lives and how they get their power back... or in this case literally get their power to begin with. I found myself very much into the story of these women. I did not love the character of Harriett Osborn, but the other two women were endearing and more likeable. As the story switches between the points of view of each of these women, you learned more about their history and how they came to be the badass women they were in the story. I found this book to be quite original and I loved these badass women taking on the corrupt and evil men in their world. I highly recommend this novel!

Thank you to Netgalley and William Morrow for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you @netgalley @kirstenmillerbooks @williammorrowbooks for a free copy of The Change. Yes, I am late, as this came out over two years ago, but I’ll tell you it was also a right on time read for me!

Amanda @wellreadwyvern and I decided to buddy up for this one a few weeks back, and it felt really good pulling it off of my shelf. I had a feeling it would give women empowerment and witchy vibes, but what I didn’t expect was the missing girls/thriller element. Sometimes going in without reading the synopses pays off with a little surprise and delight 😅🤣

I had gotten the impression that this was mostly about women going through menopause. I don’t know if that’s because the little tagline says, “it’s not over. It’s time,” or what. It actually is a story of three women and stories of womanhood at all ages and perspectives, but definitely does lean into using your age and wisdom as power in your second half of life. As someone who is rapidly approaching 40, still feeling connected to who I once was and with my sights on who I will still become, I found all of this very beautiful and relevant. With the missing girls’ stories, we see that women’s experiences aren’t only impacted by gender, but by ethnicity and economic class, too.

I really liked this a lot. I think it got a touch long for me in last 15% of the book, but I was really very impressed with it overall. It definitely has some eerie fall vibes if you’re still looking for a book to wrap up October reading with! 🍁 🍂PS Kirsten Miller is a good follow on IG IMO

🖤 What’s your go-to fall footwear?
I’m trying to be better to my feet, but I can’t quit my knock off doc marten’s once the weather cools 😭

🏷️
#kirstenmiller #thechange #perimenopause #womanhood #witchaesthetic #carrie #fallvibes #autumnreads #fallreading #womensliterature #bookreview #booksilike #whatimreading #bookstagrammer #plussizeblogger #itsfrickinbats

I have tried to read this one several times but it's just not for me. The writing is great though and I hope that one day I might want to pick it up and finish it!

The Change by Kirsten Miller

352 Pages
Publisher: William Morrow
Release Date: May 3, 2022

Fiction, Mystery, Sci Fi, Fantasy, Women, Relationships

This book shows how women become invisible in the dominate fields of finance. Women are seen as objects without intelligence. They have no value. Rich white powerful men are running the world in Culling Pointe. The women have no say except for keeping house. When Nessa, a nurse practitioner finds the dead body of a young woman, her world changes. Now two other dead girls are showing themselves to her. Nessa works with Harriet and Jo to find their bodies so they can prove there is a serial killer in their midst.

The book has a steady pace, the characters are developed, and it is written in the third person point of view. This book shows the importance of friendships between women. They rely on each other and the their strengths. If you like stories with strong women characters and a hint of magic, you will enjoy reading this book.

A powerful and compelling novel that is filled with magical realism, friendship and empowerment. This is one book that you will want to read. A strong 4 stars.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the free copy of The Change by Kirsten Miller in exchange for my honest review.

In this entertaining thriller, menopause becomes a catalyst for newfound powers and empowerment for three women. Harriett Osborne embraces her botanical talents after ditching her career and husband, while Jo Levison channels her fiery rage into a successful fitness business. Nessa James grapples with her gift of communicating with the dead in their quaint beach town of Mattauk, where a shocking discovery leads them to confront deep-seated corruption. As they uncover layers of injustice echoing real-world scandals, the novel balances serious themes with mordant humor and brisk pacing, offering a satisfying blend of crime fiction, superpower fantasy, and sharp social satire.

Thank you for allowing me to read this book. I enjoyed the characters and their arcs, and found the plot interesting. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Beyond amazing. Highly recommend. Story and character development is crazy good. Can’t wait for her next novel 10/5 stars!!

When I heard this was on net galley, I ran to get it after the initial buzz on Instagram. To be honest, the length of the book prevented me from picking it up for some time since I knew I wouldn’t want to put it down.

It was certainly worth the wait. The character backstories were incredibly well down and I was kept on the edge of my seat for pretty much the whole time. Know it’s a twist of an old tale but super original and loved it!

I adored this book. Kirsten Miller created unique characters that are lovable and relatable. I could not put this book down. I was so happy to have a book where grown adult women were finding out new things about themselves and developing magic. It's so wonderful so see the amazing change in women of ALL ages, not just teens in YA books. I would love to see another book in this world or something similar from this author.

This fun book is a mix between Big Little Lies and The Witches of Eastwick! It was a hit with 2 of my book clubs as well.

I found The Change to be a little convoluted for my taste. I wasn’t a fan of the characters or the ending.

This was hands down my favorite book I read last year. Miller’s characters are so complex and layered and REAL. I had no idea what to expect when I picked this up, but it surely wasn’t what I got. I loved every second of this book. Amazing.

A trio of women come into supernatural powers while transitioning through menopause and use said powers for feminist revenge. That's a pretty interesting concept, I'll give you that. The mystery and pacing of this novel kept me turning pages, but I found that the feminism found in these pages was a bit too one-note for me. It was also unnecessarily long at almost 500 pages! I have seen many more books since this one focus on feminine rage and revenge, and I think the popularity of this book helped others succeed. It definitely created discourse and I appreciate that.

This book was everywhere, so I downloaded it from here. It ended up not being for me and I DNF'd it.

This book was such a fun one to read.

Harriet, Jo, and Nessa are all middle-aged women who have very little in common, except their slightly supernatural gifts. Jo has lots of energy to burn, and if she doesn’t, her body can create heat so intense it melts metal. Nessa can see the dead and makes it her duty to figure out what happened to them so they can move in. Harriet knows about plants and has the ability to know things about the future that others don’t. These three women team up when Nessa finds the body of a young woman who needs closure.

This book was a perfect mix of funny and heartbreaking. I loved how outrageous Harriet had become, and there were little quips and scenarios in the book that made me laugh. At the same time, the mystery of who killed the girl unfolds, and that part of the story was sad to read about.

This had a great balance between the humorous and the serious, and I loved the reading experience.

A deeply layered and propulsive story that explores everything from murder mysteries to female empowerment. It’s a story I can picture myself revisiting to discover what I may have missed in a previous reading. I believe it would lend itself to lively conversations within book clubs.

Quick read. Reminder of upscale fast food. A satisfying read, but not overwhelming. While the situation isn't normal, we know the characters. When completed, I was glad to go on the journey. The writing flowed, easy to read. Looking forward to the next book. #KIRSTENMILLER. #THECHANGE. #NETGALLEY

Finally, a story about women superheroes! THE CHANGE was like a maze; hard to predict where the story would go. Not a typical ordinary fiction, it gave the readers a little bit of everything: magical realism, mystery, thriller, and the best part, women empowerment.

The story was set in a Long Island town called Mattauk (I am sure this is a satire of Montauk). Three ladies, Harriet, Jo, and Nessa, teamed up to find the mystery of a girl's dead body. The finding led them to more victims, so they wanted to discover the people responsible for killing these girls.

I loved everything about this book except the writing style. It was slightly hard to follow, and especially the timeline wasn't linear. It took me a couple of chapters to get used to it. However, the hiccup was worth it for the journey with these three badass women.

This book was perfect going into Fall. It was just what I needed. It had a paranormal vibe with woman power! All in all it’s a fabulous combination. The writing was great and I’m hoping to read another book by this author. I really liked The Change.