Loved everything about this book! Miller did a great job weaving magical realism with mystery without making either too overpowering. I loved all of the characters, each woman brought something different to the table, and even the writing of secondary characters was superb. My only wish was that I didn't take so much time reading this because I felt like I got lost a little bit and forgot what was going on. Recommend if you love celebrating the badass-ery of women & have the greatest friends that you wish you could solve crime with!

An interesting read, not an absolute favorite, was not an “I can’t put this down” but drawn in enough to finish. I’ll have to read more of this author. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC opportunity!

This book was just ok for me and I think that was because I am just not the targeted audience for this. I was initially drawn in to the story because it takes place on Long Island. However, I just couldn't get on with any of the women or their beliefs. I think a feminist might really enjoy this book, however there are some holes in the plot. The story could have used some additional editing, 500 pages for this book was not necessary.

"Don't think about making women fit the world think about making the world fit Women."
Gloria Steinam
Reading this while also reading Woman, Race, and Color and shortly after Great Circle set me up for Badass Woman month Murders.
Seriel killers.
Feminist witches.
What a story. It was fun and entertaining. think where went wrong was listening, only because have a hard time listening and keeping track when there are multiple narrators/back stories. Had read the physical book think would have had a stronger grasp on each character allowing me to connect more.
Do you have types of books you just can't do on audio?

Kirsten MIller’s The Change is an interesting book. When I started reading it I thought it would be a DNF but it turned into a book I just couldn’t put down! Three powerful yet very different women form a sisterhood that pulls you into this murder mystery and so much more.
Remember to give it a chance and I believe you won’t be sorry👍

While I hate to compare books to others, I will say that this has been the most enjoyable witchy read I’ve had since Practical Magic.

The Change by Kirsten Miller is the story of three women who come together to face the evils that hide in plain sight within our society. Harriet, Nessa, and Jo could not be more different from one another if they tried. Each one brings to get to the table her own unique power and each is as integral to the story as the other.

In a small beach town an hour outside of New York City, little happens once some of the wealthiest men of the world leave their summer homes for the season. The most excitement can usually be found at HOA meetings, where an overgrown lawn can incite a riot. When Harriet decides that she is done conforming to other’s expectations, an overgrown garden brings becomes a source of constant gossip, three local women unexpectedly come together. Jo, Nessa, and Harriet find their own unique powers work better together.
With an unfortunately modern twist, this novel shines a light on the sisterhood of witchcraft and it’s long standing battle against patriarchal tyranny.

Even though the story has a lot of your typical feminist tropes, most characters were evolved enough to make it feel like something new.

I personally think the world would be significantly better off if we had more Harriets.

A solid 4.627 out of 5.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and William Morrow for the ARC, and the opportunity to read and review.

Wow- power to the women in this book! They have all been treated horribly by men, as so many are, and they are determined to even the scales. Their individual powers are unique and very interesting. I enjoyed this book although I felt like it dragged on a bit too long.

This book was perfectly twisted and kept me thinking until the last page. Found via @jordys_book_club and read it in 24 hours. Always love a book that keeps your brain working in the best way possible.

I LOVED The Change! I love books that embody female empowerment and this one did just that perfectly. This book is raw and emotional and exposes some of the many hardships of being a woman in today’s society. In the novel, three women come together to seek justice for a woman whom the justice system has failed. This one is a must read for 2022.

The book is a vibe, and I am so here for it! I just finished and want to rage scream, but like, in a good way. My summer mood is women taking back the power and getting revenge. Just, YES. Yes to this entire book! I loved the premise, the setting, the characters, the writing. Everyone must read this!

THE CHANGE :: Kristen Miller

Kristen Miller's The Change is not a book that would normally be on my radar, but I joined an Instagram buddy read group and this was their selection. I could have skipped it, but it sounded like it could be a bit of fun. I was so wrong - this book was SO MUCH FUCKING FUN! I understand some readers felt it was heavy-handed on the feminist front, but first, why the hell not? We certainly have plenty of heavy-handed books with women as the forever victim. Second, the heavy-handedness is, from my perspective, done intentionally and very well by Miller.

At its base level, The Change is about three women "of a certain age" taking their power back. They discover each other at the right time in their lives where they are ready to take control and take charge. While the plot is serious (young girls have been murdered), large parts of the goings-on are underpinned by fantasy and social commentary.

Harriett is a former advertising exec who is responsible for her husband's success while he gets the credit. She left the corporate world and is now divorced, tending to her outlandish garden (that breaks every HOA rule to hilarious end) and "helping" people with her plant-based potions. No surprise she's known as a witch. She is the embodiment of a strong woman who does what she wants, takes no prisoners and suffers no fools ("That’s why I choose vengeance. She’s the only mistress I serve.").

Jo used to work in the hospitality industry, but now runs an all-women's gym where she can rage-run to her heart's content. When she gets angry, her power manifests in extreme strength and heaven help those who piss her off.

Nessa is a former nurse who inherited the family legacy of being able to hear and see the dead. Her gift is what sets off the action, as the women discover a dead body surrounded by more dead young women and are bound and determined to figure out what's going on in their neighborhood.

The book was not without its flaws, and at one point I thought it was over, but it still had quite a few pages left. Some of the characters' intentions and true colors were telegraphed, but honestly, it just didn't matter. These issues didn't detract enough to keep me from finding this a fantastically enjoyable trip.

I'm a sucker for good character work and Miller's is stellar. Each of the women is multi-faceted and fascinating in her own right, with backgrounds and issues that kept the narrative fluid and on point rather than dragging it down. I wanted to know more about these women, especially Harriett, who is someone I would want to hang out with any day.

I'm so glad I was convinced to read The Change and will definitely seek out more work by Miller. It was by turns moving, hilarious, serious, outlandish, educational, motivational, and fun. A definite E-ticket ride.

This book was so fun! There were a lot of characters to keep track of but it was manageable! Will for sure be reading more Kirsten Miller books in the future!

Bravo–5 big shiny stars

I love my thrillers with a side of social commentary so this was right in my wheelhouse, and I loved it so much I ordered a copy for permanent residence on my shelf.

This book not only questions society’s perspective of women over 40 but levels up and shifts that view to consider–what if women of a certain age were able to tap into their own gifts/powers? How magical would that be if aging was an empowering experience and not something to “fix” with diet culture and beauty standards?

The story introduces us to three women from disparate backgrounds and circumstances and we learn about their gifts they may have had all along, but are now only recognizing to their full potential due to experiencing ‘the change’ and shaped due to their own personal experiences with misogyny. These women come together and use their newly evolved powers to not only solve a crime but take down those responsible.

I am certain this book will be a top read for 2022 for me, and I urge you to check it out. I had no idea when I picked it up what it was even about, except that the cover was gorgeous and I plucked it off NetGalley when it was recommended to me a few days before pub date, based almost entirely on blind faith that they know me by now and it said something about Big Little Lies meets Witches of Eastwick. When I got far enough in and found out how it got its title I went OOOH THAT CHANGE! How clever.

Clever for sure, but what’s more it really makes you think about society’s expectations of women and perception on aging. The events in the book seemed especially timely in light of recent women’s rights being taken away, and how women don’t always support each other but rather work against one another at times. I think it speaks to women of all ages and it has been my go to recommendation for a book club read over the past month.

Thanks to William Morrow, Netgalley and Kristin Miller for the early electronic copy in exchange for my review of this book.

This was so different than anything I’ve read lately and drew me in from the start. I loved the strong female characters, the elements of magical realism, and the depth of storytelling! Can’t wait for more from this author.

Menopause — the change has three women find themselves in mid-life and unexpected experiences that cause them to get together to solve a dead teenage girl body on a remote beach. Nessa’s husband has died and her two daughters leave for college, she begins to hear voices. she Remembers she got the gift from her grandmother. The gift is hearing the voices of the dead. Harriet has just experienced the loss of her husband and career. She also experiences a special power unknown to her. Jo has spent thirty years at war with her body. She finds a power that was hers but unknown — now she knows and control it. What are their powers. The police when they found the teenager’s body write it off as a drug addiction. The ladies don’t agree. Nessa, Harriet and Jo are going to solve the girl’s death. They discover that there are more deaths and they appear to be related to the wealthy where rules don’t apply.

.The author has written a suspenseful, story with perfect pacing and an engaging voice. It is a page turner! I consider this being partially crime fiction and a satire about sexism and ageism mixed together giving the reader a read that I enjoyed reading.

I loved this book. It was so refreshing to read a book where the women were over a certain age. As a mid forty year old I can appreciate a book that gives power to women that the rest of society ignores. My favorite character was Harriet. To have her zen for life but also fearlessness....wow

🌟 🌟 BOOK REVIEW🌟 🌟 💫

A huge thank you to NetGalley, William Morrow and Kirsten Miller for an Arc of The Change.

A magical realism, fantasy or a women's fiction- leave it up to you to choose the genre- what Kirsten Miller delivers is an absorbing cracker of a book with 3 strong female characters at its core who are bound to question everything around you.

“They live alongside us, she thought. Some work with us. Some fuck us. And some do both. And yet they seem to know absolutely nothing about us”

The setting is an oceanfront town of Mattauk where Nessa James, with her secret gift, uncovers a string of murders of young girls belonging to less well-to-do backgrounds. She finds able accomplices in Harriett Osborne (I don’t think I will find a better character written this year) and Jo Levison, each undergoing metamorphosis of sorts after similar experiences in a male-dominated corporate world.

“Hoodoo belongs to the people down here. But there are women all over the world who can do what you and I do. They’ve got different names for it in other countries, but we all share the gift.”

While Jo channels her rage into her entrepreneurial role, Harriett uncovers the secret powers of nature while being amidst it and surrendering to its magic. What follows is 3 women who uncover the truth behind the murders and a major syndicate in the town and in the process, destroy the barriers set by the society in this come-of-age women empowerment thriller come drama.

The thriller/mystery aspect though pretty great in its own right, it’s the voice of each of the ladies, especially Harriett which made this book stand out for me. I can’t believe I took this long to pick it up but once I started, this was a start-to-finish fun ride. Highly recommended.

“The species wasn’t entirely corrupt, Harriett observed. Once in a while, one of them would surprise you. Such actions never redeemed them completely, of course, but it did make Harriett wonder if they really deserved to be wiped off the planet”

This book is all over social media. Some of the biggest accounts are raving about this one. Sadly I couldn't get into it. I think its just the timing of the book. I am a total mood reader and if it doesn't feel right I can't finish.. So I am setting aside to come back to at a different time when it fits my mood.

I will update with new review when read fully.

Thank you NetGalley and Kristen Miller for giving me the opportunity to read this book. I really do look forward to reading it.

The star rating is not my final rating. NetGalley makes you put a start rating. I will rate this honestly after I read it.

I couldn't plod through this cesspool of a story. I was only a few chapters in when it became blatantly obvious the author has clearly been wronged by one too many men, and has spilled all her vitriol into a vengeful diatribe that has not a single male character with any redeeming value whatsoever. And I'm saying this as an old dyke who's been called a 'man-hater' many, many times over the course of my life.

This stereotypical mess of a book is the epitome of what is apparently a trend since the #metoo movement. It's a valid topic that could have been handled way better with a better writer and more believable characterizations, tossing a few atta-girl moments in to make a point. Not every man (or woman) is an a@@hole, but they are in this fantasy world. Slush pile.

Wow, what a breath of fresh air. Kirsten Miller's The Change is a modern day take on a witch story and full of female empowerment. Harriet, Jo and Nessa are all women of a certain age who have just later in life come in to some special powers. Nessa, a widow, has inherited a special gift from her grandmother to hear the dead calling. Harriet has become the neighborhood witch and can use her powers to punish. Jo, who owns a gym for women, has been able to harness her hot flashes into something much more powerful and protect others. The three women come together to find the body of a young woman that Nessa could hear calling for her. This is such a fun story and the description of a "feminist revenge fantasy" is spot on!