Thank you, NetGalley and Harper Muse, for this ARC!

I really wanted to love this book, but unfortunately, it fell short for me. The pacing felt too slow, and I struggled to stay engaged. While I appreciate the writing and concept, it just didn’t pique my interest the way I had hoped.

I absolutely loved this novel. I enjoyed the time period (beginning in the early 1960’s) and following these wonderful characters during this period in time. Book clubs will surely enjoy discussing this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for the early ARC!

“From those whom much has been given, much is expected.” And boy do I get more than I was expecting. I devoured this book and the characters were so well flushed out. I loved Bitsy, Charlotte, Margaret and Viv and their Betty book club. “They make the best martinis- four parts vodka, two parts atmosphere, and an olive.”


Get me a truth serum ASAP and add this to your TBR! Loved the Jackie Cameo!

A story of four very different women who come together with the purpose of hopefully being friends through starting a book club. The first book was a very controversial for that time, The Feminine Mystique. As the women get to know each other better and bond between them develops they each realize that they do have other hopes and dreams than just being a housewife and mother. Some believe that reading the book has opened their eyes to other possibilities.
The story is set in 1963 and really opened my eyes. I was only 8 years old and never realized how hard it must have been for my mom at that time. She worked and raised 4 kids, but couldn’t open a bank account in her name? I was very interested in that part of the story. The actual plot did seem to drag on a bit, I just think it could have been shorter.

"The Book Club for Troublesome Women" is such a timely read, even though (or maybe because) it's set in 1963. Following four suburban housewives who start a book club and end up sparking their own quiet revolution, this story perfectly captures both how far we've come and how frustratingly far we still have to go. The historical details are fascinating and often infuriating - imagine needing your husband's permission just to open a bank account! - but what really shines is the friendship between these women as they support each other through their individual journeys of self-discovery.

While the pacing occasionally meanders and some might find it a bit light on plot, the rich character development more than makes up for it. Each of the "Bettys" feels distinct and fully realized, from aspiring writer Margaret to free-spirited Charlotte. Their growing friendship and determination to carve out lives beyond what society expects of them will have you alternately cheering and reaching for tissues. This is perfect for anyone who needs a reminder of the power of female friendship and the importance of fighting for what you believe in.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a story of friendship, feminism, and self-discovery. Set in a suburban Virginia neighborhood in the 1960s, it follows four women—Margaret, Charlotte, Viv, and Bitsy—who come together for a book club formed on a whim. Their first selection, The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan, sparks a realization that the idealized role of the suburban housewife may not be as fulfilling as they once believed.

As they explore the book’s themes, the women, affectionately known as “The Bettys”, begin to have candid conversations that will challenge their marriages, identities, and ambitions. What starts as a simple book club soon becomes a catalyst for change, pushing them toward a newfound sense of purpose and freedom. The Book Club for Troublesome Women speaks to the strength of female friendship and the bravery it takes to redefine yourself.

I found the characters to be well developed and a setting that illustrated the struggle between tradition and change. I would recommend this book for fans of historical fiction and feminist literature.

This was like a 1950s desperate housewives and I loved it! Not at all what I was expecting but different. A bookclub I could join! Loved the characters. And the narrator is one of my very favorites!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you NetGalley, Harper Muse and Marie Bostwick for the advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

You know it’s a good book when you forget that its story is fictional. The way that I connected with Charlotte, Margaret, Viv and Bitsy felt seamless, like if I were to show up to their book club to talk about The Feminine Mystique I would be welcomed without a bat of an eyelash. Finding yourself as a woman in 2025 can be hard - finding yourself in 1960 as a woman that can’t even open their own bank account without their husband’s permission… just puts in perspective how far we have come in the last 60 years, but the work is also far from done.

This book was about navigating life, breaking social norms and finding empowerment within yourself. If Concordia, Virginia were a real place - sign me up to be a new resident, just so I could join the “Betty’s” and their book club.

Also, thank you for adding the part about Charlotte having power windows in her car, because I would have never googled when they became a thing - and would have never known they were invented in the 1940s.

I LOVED this book, The Book Club for Troublesome Women, by Marie Bostwick.

Women of the 60s, with all the rules and stereotypes set out for women then, live in a neighborhood. One decides to start a book club. They start out with The Feminine Mystique That book, cocktails provided by one of the more eccentric women, start the truths flowing.

While they have different lives and backgrounds, they all show up for one another in the best ways.

The books takes us through time changing, with all the turbulence that came with that decade.

I'll reiterate that I LOVED this book. I lost a lot of sleep, and I was a bit sad when I finished it.

I highly recommend this book.

Thank you to Harper Collins Focus and Net Galley for a digital ARC of this title in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

#TheBookClubforTroublesomeWomen #MarieBostwick #NetGalley #HarperCollinsFocus

The Book Club for Troublesome Women will resonate with many women, especially in today’s climate, where women’s rights and expectations seem to be moving backward instead of forward.
Set in 1963 (I was four years old, FYI), the novel is set in a new NE Virgina subdivision called Concordia, with cookie cutter houses and perfectly manicured lawns. It’s a time where the woman stayed home with the kids, cleaned and cooked, and basically, attended to her husband’s demands. But there are rumblings across the country that cultural change is coming, albeit not as quickly as it should.
Margaret has a husband and three kids. Her husband likes to lord it over her that he works hard every day to provide for them. He gives Margaret a subscription to a women’s magazine (she is not thrilled) for Christmas; a wannabe writer, she enters an essay-writing contest sponsored by the magazine and ends up getting a gig writing a humorous housewife column for $25 a month. She gets her first check, but is frustrated when the bank will noy let her open her own checking account without her husband’s approval.
Charlotte, a flaming redhead who wears designer clothes, chain smokes and is a heavy drinker, is in a loveless marriage arranged by her millionaire father. Her father dotes on his son-in-law more than his daughter; she would love to get a divorce, but she is afraid her father will cut her off financially. She is a mother to three, an aspiring artist and serious shopper. She also has had serious mental health and addiction issues. Her daughter, Denise, desperately wants to go to Oxford University after graduation to get away from Concordia, but she also is afraid what will happen to her mother if she leaves.
Bitsy works in a stable, and is married to an older man, a vet. Bitsy did well in college and wanted to become a vet, but none of her professors would write her a recommendation to vet school, because they were afraid she would take a man’s spot (heaven forbid that happen).
Viv is the only one with an encouraging, loving husband, Tony. The problem is, they have six children and she wants to go back to work as a nurse. She goes to the doctor, who refuses to write her a prescription for birth control pills unless her husband comes to the office and signs a form granting her permission. And guess what? Shortly after that, Viv discovers she is pregnant with child #7.
Margaret starts a small book club with the other three women and planned to choose A Tree Grows in Brooklyn as the first book club pick, but Charlotte complained that everyone has already read that. Why not pick something worth discussing – Betty Friedan’s new book, The Feminine Mystique?
Thus begins a long friendship among four very different personalities. But they share more than they thought, and their growth and relationships are what make this book so interesting. Fittingly, they named their club “The Bettys” after Betty Friedan. And there are some clever celebrity cameos in the book, which actually added to the narrative.
Perfect for book clubs. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and Harper Collins/Harper Muse for the eARC and the opportunity to read and review this novel.

This is a really glossy take on a pivotal moment in the women's movement.
It’s simple, leans heavily on clichés, and is self-aware to the point of absurdity.
They’ve all got passions too—one’s a writer, one’s an artist, one’s an animal lover, one’s a nurse. It’s giving Career Barbie. I would have loved for at least one of them to just be fed up but not quite know what to do about it. Confused Barbie. Instead, we get mink coats, daytime cocktails, and characters who feel more like caricatures than real women on the cusp of change.

I tend to like my historical fiction to have more heft than this, and YET despite my abovementioned critique I actually didn't hate it.
I enjoyed it in the same way I do those glossy American dramas with feisty gals and perfectly styled outfits. It’s entertaining, escapist, and fun when you need something light and undemanding. Just don’t expect it to set your soul on fire with a renewed passion for the women’s movement. I predict there will be a big audience for this book, especially among The Lessons in Chemistry crowd.

Thank you to Harper muse for the digital proof in exchange for an honest review.

I thought the premise of this book was good, but I felt underwhelmed reading it. It was a little slow getting into it, although I did enjoy learning about our characters. I liked how they resolved all their struggles, I just wish there was more drama with the struggles and the resolving of them. Overall it was a good book, slower paced but still worth a read!

I loved this one! Especially in today’s climate, I think it’s an important reminder about the importance of female friendships. I hope for all women, that they find their own group of “Betty’s”. While the book was a little predictable in terms of the final outcomes, I loved how the stories intertwined! I would definitely recommend this to friends and book clubs alike!

The Book Club for Troublesome Women by Marie Bostwick, was a great women's historical fiction look. It is about how a group of women form a Book Club, starting with reading the Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan and other books with "troublesome" them, examining the roles women fill on our society, that allow the group image a new trajectory for their lives, breaking the bonds of the cultural expectations for women of the 1960's. Through the book club and the exploration of their lives, these women develop strong bonds and support each other in achieving their own agency.

This book paints the historical events of the time including the civil rights movement. I am sure some people will be upset that the book did not address some of the other politics around race at the time, I appreciated that this book only focused on the characters in the book and their experience, instead of trying to be all things for all audiences.

Written in the spirit of The Women by Kristin Hannah and Mona Lisa Smile by Deborah Chiel, it demonstrates the importance of women's friendships and the need to support each other. I hope that this book inspires a new generation of women to read the classics mentioned in this book.

I want to thank HarperCollins Focus | Harper Muse and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. My Opinions are my own.

A WITTY, INSIGHTFUL, AND NOSTALGIC JOURNEY

Margaret Ryan was living every woman’s dream in the 1960s. She had a loving husband, three beautiful children, and a station wagon. She lived in Concordia, North Carolina, an exclusive and picturesque suburb. Yet, like many women of this age, Margaret felt restless.

Upon meeting the newest neighbor, Charlotte Gustafson, Margaret is intrigued and wants to know her better. She devises a Book Club get-together and invites two other neighbor women, Bitsy and Viv. The thing I love about this group is that these four have nothing in common except they are neighbors! Margaret is pretty happily married with three children. Viv is married to a career Navy man with six children. She served as a nurse during the War, too. Bitsy is still a newlywed and married to the local veterinarian, who is much older than her. Charlotte is the Wild Card. She has moved from New York and dresses in Designer Fashions every day! She is an aspiring painter and quite liberal in her thinking compared to the other three women. For the Book Club’s first Book, they chose “The Feminine Mystique.” As they share cocktails, they also share secrets and goals, and friendships start to form. They realize they all feel like they are missing out on something. They decide to name themselves the Bettys after Betty Friedan.

The Book Club, which started without much thought, soon became a lifeline for the Bettys. They become a type of family, and each will need it in one way or another before the year is out. I like how the author gives each character a part of the story. It makes for a much more interesting book. They learned so much about each other and even more about themselves that year. They understand that each of them is smarter than they thought, loves deeply, will step in to help one another immediately, and is wise beyond her years.

Harper Muse and NetGalley provided me with a complimentary copy of this book. However, my opinions are entirely my own and uninfluenced.

I loved this book. I loved how it made me laugh, think, cry, and more. I loved how the women became friends because of a book/book club. I loved the characters and the message that women can have dreams outside of being a mother or housewife. I loved how Margaret’s marriage was a side plot and how they evolved as characters and as a couple. Will recommend this book! Thank you very much for the advanced copy!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. That being said, I loved it! It was so relatable. The book is set in the 1960s and shares the stories of a group of women. And despite the time that’s passed, their struggles (and triumphs) are still the same as what women deal with today. As a stay at home mom, I felt so seen but I think any woman would feel the same (maybe relating to a different character more). While it started a tad slow, i was hooked by the end and in tears through the last chapter. This is a definite must read!

I personally DNFd this book, it is not my cup of tea, so please count my rating as nothing due to the fact that I didn't finish it due to personal reasons

The Book Club for Troublesome Women is delightful and important, a historical novel just as vital today as the timeline it takes place in. Set in 1963, the story follows Margaret, Viv, Bitsy, and Charlotte as they start a book club, beginning with Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique. Filled with the cultural references of the time, Marie Bostwick manages to capture an era with wistful details and likeable characters you can't help root for. Having been a young child in 1963, this book both brings back so many forgotten memories and also sheds a precautionary light when viewed in these precarious times. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Muse for the opportunity to read this heartwarming book. 3.5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Wow, this was my first book by this author and I would for sure read one. What a ride! I enjoy the triumphant ride and the pacing throughout.