The Change by Kirsten Miller Published by HarperCollins on May 3, 2022
Genres: Fiction / Fantasy / Contemporary, Fiction / Feminist, Fiction / Friendship, Fiction / Ghost, Fiction / Horror, Fiction / Magical Realism, Fiction / Mystery & Detective / Women Sleuths, Fiction / Occult & Supernatural, Fiction / Thrillers / Suspense, Fiction / Women
Pages: 480
Format: Hardcover
Source: Book of the Month
GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK
"The Change is like a guttural rage scream (and somehow a soft, tearful hug) of a book, and I couldn't have loved it any more." --Emily Henry
Big Little Lies meets The Witches of Eastwick—a gloriously entertaining and knife-sharp revenge fantasy about three women whose midlife crisis brings unexpected new powers—putting them on a collision course with the evil that lurks in their wealthy beach town.
"A roar of rage, a pacy page-turner, I loved it with all my broken heart. Read it. You’ll love it."--New York Times bestselling author Marian Keyes
"Miller triumphs...THE CHANGE is that rare treat: a suspenseful story with great pacing, memorable characters, and an engaging voice. Fantastic in every way, this fierce anthem against misogyny is a smash."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A pointed, punchy, and potent thriller...wry and clever, serious and exacting, and masterfully suspenseful."--Booklist (starred review)
In the Long Island oceanfront community of Mattauk, three different women discover that midlife changes bring a whole new type of empowerment…
After Nessa James’s husband dies and her twin daughters leave for college, she’s left all alone in a trim white house not far from the ocean. In the quiet of her late forties, the former nurse begins to hear voices. It doesn’t take long for Nessa to realize that the voices calling out to her belong to the dead—a gift she’s inherited from her grandmother, which comes with special responsibilities.
On the cusp of 50, suave advertising director Harriett Osborne has just witnessed the implosion of her lucrative career and her marriage. She hasn’t left her house in months, and from the outside, it appears as if she and her garden have both gone to seed. But Harriett’s life is far from over—in fact, she’s undergone a stunning and very welcome metamorphosis.
Ambitious former executive Jo Levison has spent thirty long years at war with her body. The free-floating rage and hot flashes that arrive with the beginning of menopause feel like the very last straw—until she realizes she has the ability to channel them, and finally comes into her power.
Guided by voices only Nessa can hear, the trio of women discover a teenage girl whose body was abandoned beside a remote beach. The police have written the victim off as a drug-addicted sex worker, but the women refuse to buy into the official narrative. Their investigation into the girl’s murder leads to more bodies, and to the town’s most exclusive and isolated enclave, a world of stupendous wealth where the rules don’t apply. With their newfound powers, Jo, Nessa, and Harriett will take matters into their own hands…
My Review
I have had this book on my shelf for a long time now, and I finally decided to give it a go. I am not disappointed that I did. The Change is a book that I will revisit in the future. It is not often that you see the main female characters in their forties and fifties owning who they are and saying screw it to the rest of the world, but I have to admit it was something I enjoyed very much about this book. We are following three different women in this story who, in the past, have all had pretty impressive jobs and now have changed directions in their lives.
Harriet is a woman of many talents. She was once married and a high-ranking advertising executive who is now divorced and, let’s just say, works from home. She gives off a witchy vibe and is known in her town as a witch. Think Practical Magic and the towns folk visiting the sisters for remedies. Harriet has a similar vibe going on. She has decided to stop living her life based on rules and regulations and has let her lawn go to seed, one might say. Harriet has turned her perfectly manicured lawn into a witchy gardener’s dream full of plants to heal, poison, and kill.
Nessa is a mom of twin girls and a widower whose husband used to work on the police force. At one time, she was a nurse, and in fact, that is how she met her husband. Nessa comes from a line of women who are able to see and hear the dead, and Nessa is no different. She was told as a girl that her gift would come to her when she was at a point in her life where she would have time for it. Now that Nessa’s children are grown and she is in her late forties, maybe fifty, the time has come to help these ghosts rest in peace.
Jo is a mom and wife who was a former hotel executive until one day, when her rage took over, and she almost killed a VIP guest at the hotel she worked at. It was not long after this that Jo decided to open a female-focused gym in her area that would allow her to channel her rage into workouts and do the same for other women in the area.
“Nessa was the light in the darkness. Harriett was the punishment that fit the crime. She was the rage that would burn it all to the ground.”
Each of these women has a special gift, and it isn’t long before they find each other and create a friendship. They have such respect for one another and always support each other. Not to mention, when they come together, they are like the best badass female team ever. I mean, they are pretty badass on their own, but together, they are unstoppable. They are the good versus the bad in the world, and there are a lot of bad things that happen in this story. With that being said, readers should know that this story has some seriously heavy topics, but I think that the writer did a good job handling them. She has woven humor, love, friendship, and female empowerment throughout the story, which I found really helped when it came to reading the tougher parts. The writer has taken into account the harsh realities some women face in the workplace and out and about in their everyday lives, with sexual harassment, gender norms, adhering to social norms, and so much more.
Reader, if you are looking for a book full of female friendship and empowerment, then give this one a go. If you want a story where the main female characters are all above the age of forty, then this book is for you. I also just want to say that if you are looking for a book that would work great for the spooky or witchy season, then give this one a go because I do not think you will be disappointed. As I have said, there are some serious hitting topics in this story, but there are so many heartwarming things as well, and I am so glad that I have read it. Have you read anything by this author? If so, please let me know because I am always looking for great new reads. Until Next Time, Reader, Happy Reading.
Trigger Warnings:
- Murder
- Sexual Harassment
- Suicide Attempt
- Suicide
- Grief
- Infidelity
- Adult/Minor Relationship
- Pedophilia
- Trafficking
- Rape
- Drug Abuse
- Alcohol Abuse
- Mental Health Struggles
- Death of Parent
- Death of Child
- Death of Husband
- Death of Grandparents
- Violence Against Girls/Women