4.5 stars

“‘What your body is doing right now is more powerful than all of the wars ever fought, any feat of strength ever performed.’ She looked at Jessica, whose eyes were dutifully closed. ‘Women,’ Sam said, ‘are the fiercest creatures.’”

Full of feminism and body positivity, Women are the Fiercest Creatures is a quick, propulsive read. Each character was fully developed with just the right amount of flaws to keep them real. The through line of the tech company felt fresh and relevant while allowing each character’s story to unfold on its own.

Read if you like:
Dual POVs
Feminist literature
Rich people behaving badly

Thank you to Zibby Books for access to a digital ARC through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

To me, the best stories are the ones with layered characters and no heroes or villains--just people who are doing the best they know at the time. You might assume that a book with a cast of characters such as this one--the current wife, the ex-wife, and the ex-girlfriend of a tech mogul in a rich suburb of Seattle, might take sides or portray the women as catty or self-absorbed. But Dunlop gifts all the women with grace and kindness. Anna and Sam both take steps to comfort new mom Jessica, who is clearly struggling after the birth of her daughter. Sarah and Padma both provide counsel to Anna and Sam, respectively, showing that female friendship is at the heart of this novel.

When I read the description, I worried the women would be insipid or two-dimensional, with emphasis on a twisty plot over characterization. Yes, there are a few twists, a few of which we see coming (like the identity of Lola's father), but the women drive the plot, not the other way around. The mothers are lawyers and coders and involved parents; even the social media influencer is allowed to be complex and sympathetic. Any time I thought the novel might take a turn for the salacious or controversial (such as one mother's impressionable son parroting her in-laws' racist beliefs), Dunlop surprises by allowing her characters nuance and empathy. I underestimated her and this novel. I finished it in less than 24 hours.

In the same vein as Big Little Lies and Little Fires Everywhere is this tale of secrets and intrigue between women who are intertwined in more ways than they realize. I really enjoyed this book! It was an engrossing read (and quick at only ~250 pages) and I can easily see it being turned into a movie or miniseries. The characters were all unique and complex and smart, savvy women. This was a great release by new publisher Zibby Books!!

I loved this book! Inhaled over just a couple of days, the flawed and fierce characters had me hooked. Perfect title!

Told from multiple points-of-view, Andrea Dunlop manages to create a range of totally believable characters that you feel you could meet at your local yoga studio, when chatting at school pick up or within the corporate world. I loved the way she unpacked the challenges very different women face navigating our post-me-too world. I also appreciated the examination of blended family dynamics layered with societal expectations and, ultimately, what choices these fierce women feel empowered to make – for themselves and each other.

Engaging, fast paced and unputdownable, I would recommend this novel go straight to the top of your TBR pile!!

Unfortunately, I have to agree with the reviewer who had a hard time with the typos in this copy. This seems like a great book, but there were so many missing letters I was unable to get very far before giving up. I look forward to reading it when it comes out!

Dunlop, an already accomplished and well-liked author, is at the height of her powers, with Women are the Fiercest Creatures. This is a razor sharp, fast-moving and nuanced portrait of several women who orbit around a "founder" - all of whom had a role to play in the founding of a successful and lucrative start up, but none of whom are being credited as they deserve. Each woman must reckon with the "why" - Why did she let this charming man take credit for their role? Why did she let this charming man entice her to act in dishonorable ways" Why did she let this charming man convince her of his fidelity and trust? With a large supporting cast of women - some of whom are allies, some of whom are not, Dunlop ropes us into this story from the opening pages and does not let us go till the very end (of which I won't say more, given that Dunlop had a few additional surprises up her sleeve).

This novel had me at the title and kept me reading because of the women at its core, particularly Sam and Anna. Yes, we are fierce, and let’s not forget about it. Women are the Fiercest Creatures follows the lives of three different women, all connected to a tech CEO named Jake. Anna, his discarded wife, watches as he trades her in for a newer, much younger model named Jessica. Sam is a woman from Jake’s past returned and resentful.

Though this may feel like a set-up for a traditional love triangle…well, love rectangle?…please don’t be fooled. Anna, Sam, and Jessica are not women whose lives orbit a man’s more interesting one. No, they have brains and feelings and lives all their own, even if it would be more convenient to Jake if they didn’t.

Kudos to Dunlap for creating honestly rich and interesting lives for the women. Their parenting and professional struggles are not hollow plot devices to slow down a central love story. They got to be the story, whether it was Sam’s studio expansion or Anna’s struggles with parenting her teenagers while also branching into angel investing. As a result, the narratives felt authentic, and I was able to more deeply connect to the characters.

There are so many great lines in this novel, but this one really captures it: “…As she opened her eyes to the reality of this man and all the chaos he brought to the women in his life…she knew in her heart it all came down to choices. That was what being a grown-up meant. If you didn’t choose a person when it counted, calling them the love of your life meant nothing.”

Wow and yes.

4 stars for Women Are The Fiercest Creatures

Engaging from the start, the story centers around 3 women with different stories, that all entangle around one self-centered and manipulative man.

Anna is the most recent wife and mother of two of his children. A woman tossed to the side, as he pursued a relationship with his newest wife. Jake was dismissive of her contributions to his tech business and of their marriage, but he somehow keeps her close, not willing to completely let her go.

Sam is a single mother and college girlfriend who helped Jake at the onset of his career and development of his company. Also a mother to one of his children, she too is manipulated back into the fold, and been made to question his intentions.

Jessica, the newest wife is Instagram famous and on top of her game, until the birth of her first child. Coming to terms with the fact that her husband is absent in parental duties and devotion to their new family, Jessica starts to go down the post-partum spiral into losing herself.

What I loved about this book it that each woman had a relatable plight, and their interactions with each other began to fuel their search for the truth in their relationships and reality of their own situations. Jake is a deplorable character who seemed so self serving at times, it made me wonder if he knew the damage he was causing, or if he was was that detached that it didn't even register with him. The author held a balance between the two that made you second guess yourself throughout.

I highly recommend this one.

while i know these are uncorrected proofs, I couldn't get through this. perhaps its how the file transferred to my kindle but there are so many missing words, letters, etc. that it took me half as long trying to piece it together whilst trying to read the plot. i look forward to purchasing it when its published in march 2023.

You know those stories where you see slices of yourself in more than one character, yet the characters are so distinctly written? That was my experience reading Women are the Fiercest Creatures by Andrea Dunlop. Dunlop deftly unfolds the stories of three different women as they journey through adulthood, womanhood, and motherhood in a story that feels "ripped from the headlines" (pardon the Law & Order phrase here!).

I saw myself in the sleep-deprived, lonely new mother desperate to make a connection and feel human again. I saw myself in the entrepreneurial mother trying to be everything to everyone. I saw myself in the mom of two teenage children, navigating this brave new world of parenting in the digital arena. There was a validation I felt in knowing there was someone out there who was writing my stories in her own story.

Additionally, this book gave me an opportunity to better understand the inequities women often face working in the tech start-up world and it has me rethinking the oversimplified narratives granted to tech superstar darlings. Who are the people behind the every good man? What's their story?

Women are the Fiercest Creatures explores these ideas in the rich setting of the Pacific Northwest. Fast paced and engaging, I'm excited for readers to discover this book!

Special thank you to Zibby Books for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

Women are the fiercest creatures because in the midst of adversity, they remain powerful and protective of those they love. The.underlying connection of Anna, Sam and Jessica may be Jake but heir selflessness especially in terms of their children overrode his selfishness and complete devotion to himself and his company. Stating that the IPO will lead him to be able to devote more time to his family is a complete farce. Strangers was everything to him and no credit was given to those whom helped him such as Sai, Anna and Sam. With the fortitude of these women, anything was possible and what no longer served them, was left behind. Strong read.

Women really are the fiercest creatures! Great title. This story revolves around three women who all have a relationship with Jake Sarno, a charismatic, ambitious CEO who is ready to take his tech company public. Anna, his ex-wife, Samanta, his ex-girlfriend, and Jessica, his current wife, find their lives braided together because of their relationship with Jake. But the theme of these women's stories isn't about their connection with him as much as it's about their journey toward self-discovery. Each woman is forced to answer the question of what is most important in achieving satisfaction with life. The strong feminist overtones were almost too strong for me--at times I felt like the author was trying to teach me a lesson about what it means to be a satisfied, truly self-aware woman. And, though I am certain there are men like Jake Sarno, I wished I could have seen another side to this character. I was told too many times that he was selfish rather than learning that about him strictly through his actions. My favorite part of the book were the themes of motherhood, friendship, acceptance, and personal responsibility in living a well-rounded life. It was well-paced and well-written, and I'm now curious about the author's other novels.

I really enjoyed this engaging and fast-paced novel about two strong women who decide to take revenge.

Women are the Fiercest Creatures introduces us to Anna and Samantha, two women living in very different circumstances, but with a common. background involving tech CEO Jake.

I particularly enjoyed the author's take on motherhood as she explored what women are willing to do for their children, and how that might evolve over time.

The writing style is elegant, and the pace moves at a nice clip, which keeps the reader turning the pages.

This is a really engaging novel about several women surrounding Tech Giant, Jake Sarno, set in Seattle. As his company is awaiting an IPO, several women find this moment to unintentionally support each other and question decisions he has made. So many of his foibles and machinations are revealed during these critical months.

His current wife, his ex-wife and the mother of his child are all involved in uncovering his secrets and lies. They didn’t plan on colluding, but the author cleverly entwines their lives in a small suburban enclave outside of Seattle. The catalyst is the possible kidnapping of his infant daughter.

I found all these women sympathetic and I loved the fast pace of the book. Since this was the first novel I’ve read from this author, this was a wonderful surprise. It’s a perfect beach read that I will recommend to my book groups.

Thank you Netgalley for this wonderful, fun book! It really left me wanting more!

Women are the Fiercest Creatures is a fast paced, intriguing story centering around the lives of Anna and Sam, two women living in very different circumstances but yet with so much in common. Both women have a history with the charismatic tech CEO Jake, and as the book unfolds you see how this connection shapes each of their lives. This is not your typical story of two women vying for the love interest of a man, but a story of the resilience each women possess, and the circumstances that have lead to their strength. I very much enjoyed watching each characters story unfold, and would highly recommend this book.

Fast moving contemporary fiction!
Anna Sarnoff was discarded by her charismatic CEO husband and is recovering a few miles away with their two boys. CEO Jake is already remarried with a much younger wife and a baby on the way. All could still work out as his IPO goes public but a reporter has heard a tip and reaches out to Jake's long time previous girlfriend Samanta Is it too late for justice for these women? If you like a fast paced revenge story, Women Are The Fiercest Creatures is for you! #Zibby