Its very easy to like the four main characters - Margaret, Bitsy, Viv and Charlotte. Representing different kind of interests, the four women intersect in a gentle suburbia with controlled color coordination and clean lawns. Everyone has husband, a male figure dictating everyday life, children to look after and errands to run. The novel setting starts with the four women reading <i>The feminine mystique</i> for their book club and the way their lives start to deviate from the carefully paved paths for women in the 60s.

While the setting of the era, everyday expectation and discrimination makes the content relatable with the time, the story as such wavers on its foundation and breaks off to tangential plots that essentially could be ignored. While each women exhibit a strength of their own, the plot struggles to persist for a good chunk in the middle. It ends quite positively, which is lovely, but it can seem a bit disoriented, given the way first quarter of the book is written.

Engaging, thought provoking moments aside, <i>The book club for troublesome women</i> leaves you with an yearning for a tighter knit story and a wider discourse.

<i>Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins Focus for providing me with a free copy of this e-book in exchange for an honest review.</i>

The author Marie Bostwick has written over twenty "uplifting" historical and contemporary novels. This is one of them that frankly had the opposite effect. A group of women form a book club in a suburb with the first selection being The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan. This is the sixties where women cannot get a bank account without their husband's signature. Timely in its look non at women's rights for the current political arena, choices limited in all eras. The first half is a bit on the boring side but things start happening after that. Love the book references.

Copy provided by the publisher and NetGalley

Margaret is a suburban housewife in the 1960s. She has everything she is supposed to want - three children, a single family home in the suburbs, and a husband who is successful enough to buy her the latest appliances. But when a new woman moves to town and their book club reads The Feminine Mystique, Margaret realizes that her persistent feeling of discontent is shared by others. Spurred on by Betty Friedan’s words and her friends' support, first Margaret (and then the other Bettys, as the book club women call themselves) start taking a deeper look at their lives and working towards finding fulfillment.

This book took a surface-level look at difficulties that women of a specific class faced in the 1960s, but it did not tread any new ground. The reader really has to suspend their disbelief in order to believe that these Bettys would have all really been able to find the fulfillment they were looking for, but if you are able to take this book for what it is (a breezy historical novel about friendship) it can be enjoyable. While the novel is overly sentimental for my taste, the characters are worth rooting for so I can see why this book has been popular. For a book with similar themes that I found more enjoyable, I’d recommend Karma Brown’s Recipe for a Perfect Wife.

Read this if you like: light historical fiction and/or Lisa Wingate’s novels.

Skip this if: you prefer a book to grapple deeply with its themes.

Oh boy. I really had to commit and push through this book. Perhaps, it’s a “me” problem, but the first half of it was slow and a struggle to get through. I stopped and started several times. The last ~40% was an excellent read. I hope I’m not giving anything away, but I really enjoyed the character development of each character. Especially when one of them finally recognizes their privilege of being white middle class women. I absolutely love the sisterhood that connects these 4 very different women. That in itself was a joy to read.

Thank you NetGalley, Harper Muse, Uplit Reads and the author for the arc!

I really, REALLY enjoyed this book. Maybe I found it relevant because my mother was also a stay at home housewife in the 60’s & 70’s & she would have fit seamlessly into this group without missing a beat … right down to the bright Avon lipstick, the “odd” recipes clipped from magazines & the Newport cigarettes! These women could easily have been her besties!

I felt the writing was absolutely magical, raw, real & true to the life of this era & I had no problem plopping myself right into the circle of “Betty’s” & connecting with each woman & their individual story. It’s humorous, frustrating, sad, inspiring & entertaining & I was rooting for these incredible gals & the pursuit of their dreams all the way!

I love books where I feel like I’m part of the journey & this one did just that for me! I think this would make a fantastic book club choice for those trying to find something that will spur engaging discussion! A very nostalgic story that pulled on all of my heartstrings!

It’s the 1960’s and four unhappy housewives decide to form a book club. Their first book discussion is The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan. Although they were hesitant to read it, they do, and each wife is very much affected by this book.

Margaret, Viv, Bitsy and Charlotte all embark on their own journey to happiness. It’s not easy and it takes more than reading a book to do it. Fortunately, they have each other to lean on during the tough times.

The 1960’s were a turbulent time, and women didn’t get many opportunities to succeed, but these four women are determined. They each hit many bumps along the way, but they have every intention of reaching their goals.

I have always enjoyed books set in this timeframe and this book is no exception. I loved every minute of it. I felt as if I was right by their side, cheering them along. It, also, reminded me that women have come a long way, but we still have a long way to go.

The author did an excellent job of bringing each character to life. They are realistic people placed in real life situations. It’s both a heartbreaking and inspirational read. Sometimes a book just resonates with you and this one did for me. My eyes filled with tears at the end. I’m already missing these characters. It truly touched my heart.

This is my first Marie Bostwick book but definitely won’t be my last.







FTC Disclosure: I voluntarily reviewed a free Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Set against the tumultuous social and political landscape of 1960s America, The Book Club for Troublesome Women tells the story of an unlikely friendship formed between four suburban housewives, united by their complex and often contradictory desire for ‘more’.
They form a book club of sorts, choosing as their first read Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique - a work that compels them to confront the cultural norms they had previously accepted without question. Friedan’s novel acts as the catalyst for these women to begin questioning the domestic ideals and limitations imposed on women, and begin to embark on their own quiet revolutions.

Bostwick effectively captures what Betty Friedan coined ‘The Problem That Has No Name’ - the unhappiness and dissatisfaction experienced by women in the 1950s and 60s, rooted in society’s insistence that fulfilment could only be found through domesticity, motherhood, and being a good wife. The guilt and confusion that arises from this internal conflict between societal expectations and personal desire is what brings the “Bettys” together, as they navigate personal troughs and triumphs, and dare to want more for themselves.

While the novel offers a thoughtful discussion of women’s roles in the face of second-wave feminism, the novel doesn’t do anything groundbreaking. Much of it can be described as “feel-good fluff’, and although each character faces personal hardships, their arcs resolve a bit too neatly, with endings that feel unrealistically optimistic and overly tidy. The focus on the cushy lives of four middle class white women does little to reflect the struggles of most women during this time, glossing over the broader and more complex realities faced by women of colour and working-class women, many of whom lacked the privilege to defy societal norms in the same way. Additionally, ‘troublesome’ as a label for these women seems a stretch - aside from Charlotte, the archetypal eccentric, ‘unruly’ woman, the women are far from ‘troublesome’. Their rebellions are mild, the character growth modest, and their interpersonal conflicts often resolved with quick forgiveness or polite silence. While the premise is good, the novel is twice the length it needed to be, and a lot of the dialogue made me physically cringe.

That said, the novel is still an enjoyable, thought-provoking read, an easy foray into feminist history with the empowering sisterhood of Sex and the City, which most readers will enjoy and relate to.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for the ARC.

Unexpectedly engrossing, but once the story got its hooks into me I couldn't put this down until I reached the end. Really made me wish my late grandmother (who would have been a contemporary of these characters) were still alive so we could talk about her experiences during this time. Also made me want to pick up The Feminine Mystique. Can't wait to start my own Betty group, with this as our first read.

Feature four housewives each in unique circumstances and drop them in 1960's Washington, DC suburbia. Add a big dash of book club bonding, and then you have the recipe for lives transforming during an era in which the country is on the brink of civil rights activism.

The book club starts with reading The Feminine Mystique. This books awakens a dormant spot within each woman that will spark self-awareness and change.

I appreciated the authenticity of the 1960's setting and the growth of the characters.

I received this book for free from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The 1960s weren't exactly kind to women, and "The Book Club for Troublesome Women" doesn't shy away from showing us how claustrophobic life in a "perfect" planned community could be. Margaret, Viv, and Bitsy are suburban wives with well-manicured lawns and deep-rooted dissatisfaction, but no one dares say the quiet part out loud - until Charlotte moves in.

Charlotte is the kind of character who might feel a little too on the nose at first: artsy, bold, single, and straight out of Manhattan. But she serves her purpose well—she's the catalyst. When the women crack open "The Feminine Mystique" in their newly formed book club, they question everything. And I mean everything.

Yes, the story can feel a little too neatly packaged at times. And yes, you might see the emotional beats coming a mile away. But there's something compelling about watching these women push back against the roles they were handed. Their frustrations feel real. Their growth, while occasionally heavy-handed, is still satisfying.

Marie Bostwick does what she does best: creates characters who are imperfect, earnest, and trying their best. This isn't a story of instant transformation - it's about inching forward, even when the world is dragging you back. It's also a reminder that change, especially in an environment built to prevent it, is never just personal - it's political.

"The Book Club for Troublesome Women" hits all the right notes. If you're in the mood for historical fiction that explores female friendship and simmering rage with a side of mid-century malaise, give it a read!

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Focus for an advanced reader's copy; all opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I absolutely loved this book. I loved how it looked at the lives of women in the 60s and how unfair things were. Each woman in this book had a different story to tell and have their own struggles. Margaret helped bring them all together by forming The Book Club (The Betty’s) and The Feminine Mystique started it all.

The character development in this book was great. It really helped me relate to the characters and it made them seem real. While this book did focus mainly on the women characters, I love how it brought Walt into it and showed that he grew as well. At the beginning of the book, I wasn’t sure about him but as time went on, he saw how talented Margaret really was and that helped encourage him I think.

This book is very relevant to some things that are going on in our world today and it is definitely worth the read!

I was not grabbed in by this. The first part of the book especially I had a hard time keeping the characters straight. I didn’t find the plot especially gripping.

I absolutely loved this one. The 1960s time period is one of my favorites and Marie Bostwick totally transported to that era. I loved the message of female power and am in awe of strong female friendships in this one.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

(I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

First and foremost, thank you to NetGalley and the author and publisher for my copy of this book!

I like consuming media about the early 1960s, and I especially like consuming media about strong women. This book had both, so the description caught my eye from the beginning! This book makes me wish my grandma was still alive so we could have read it and talked about it together. This is the kind of book we could have talked a lot about, especially given that she would have been around the same age as Margaret during the same era.

Ultimately, while I enjoyed this book and liked getting to know the characters and the era, this book landed a little flat for me. I felt like I was waiting for more, even amongst the few dramatic moments for each of the characters. It felt like the story was written to be turned into a movie or TV series — and it would work well as such. I appreciated the strength, resilience, and tenacity of each of the Betty’s, and the flash forward in time at the end was a great way to wrap things up. Overall, I enjoyed it, it just wasn’t as groundbreaking as I was hoping it would be.

Another reviewer described this book as "the perfect antidote to tradwife nonsense" and I think it perfectly sums it up as a retort to recent noise about returning to "traditional" gender roles, and a reminder of how far women have come and how far we have yet to go.

It's a little... I don't know, emotionally simplistic or lightly emotionally manipulative, because it's obvious Bostwick had an agenda here and I think she successfully fulfilled it. The lives of these women, their trials, their relationships to the men in their lives feel stifling and frustrating, and they're supposed to. It's not so much "don't we have it so much better now" but more "this is what we don't want to go back to".

I suppose that, by the narrow definition of their time, the Bettys were "troublesome" but I wanted them to be more disruptive. I wanted Margaret to shuck her housewife mantle and really stand up to Walt when he was being particularly dismissive. I wanted Viv to take her fertility into her own hands. I wanted Bitsy to make a choice rather than have the choice made for her. Perhaps it could be argued that the women did what they could within the parameters of their lives and what was available to them, but I wanted more good trouble!

Charlotte was the most troublesome character, but I actually liked Margaret the most. She seemed most realistic in her struggle to balance her family, whom she loved and cherished, and her need for something more in her life.

The pacing was great and Bostwick's voice is clear, casual, and forthright. I could see the crisp lawns of Concordia and feel the frustrations of the Bettys. Most of the book feels like a 'slice of life' glimpse into the worlds of these women, as they read feminist authors, watched historic events on television, and baked cakes for book club meetings. The one thing I didn't really love was the ending - it felt a little too neatly wrapped up with a tidy bow - somehow too satisfying in its eagerness to wish everyone a happily ever after. The Bettys deserved it, but it would have been perhaps just as satisfying, if not more, to leave something to the imagination.

Marie Bostwick did a phenomenal job of hooking the reader instantly. By giving us multiple perspectives of unhappy housewives in the 60s, we were able to gain insight into the feminist struggles that plague us to this day. As too many women romanticize the era before women could open bank accounts or have a say over their bodies, this book felt timely and impactful. I was enthralled and found each of the women’s stories to be poignant and detailed.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Focus for an advanced copy of this book. I consumed this as both an audio and ebook. Either way, the story is engaging and emotional. The reader truly connects with these four women: Margaret, Bitsy, Viv, and Charlotte as they discover who they are as individuals in 1960s America. After forming a book club and reading a book on female empowerment, these ladies each decided they owed themselves to discover who they are beyond the typical housewife. I found myself wanting the best for all of these characters and rooting them on in each endeavor.

My biggest gripes with the book are as follows:
1. It dragged at times! The story could have been shorter and removed the monotony, namely in the middle. I also did not see a need for the final chapter. If you are one who likes your stories wrapped up in a nice bow, the final chapter is for you! Personally, I didn’t find it necessary.
2. I needed to know more about Walt, Margaret’s husband, before his transformation for it to be more believable for me. I didn’t know enough about him as an individual prior to his “change” for it to really make that big of a difference to me.

Overall, if you are a historical fiction fan, I do believe you will enjoy both the audio and print of this book.

Thank you to netgalley for the arc of “The bookclub for troublesome women” in exchange for my honest review. Unfortunately I did not get to read this book prior to the release date but luckily it was available on hoopla and I was able to listen to it for free. The audio is very well done and if you enjoy listening to books then I would suggest picking up that version of this story. This book is about four women in the 1960s who are all going through very different situations but are all in a way looking for more. They gather together and read the feminine mystique which encourages them to change their lives. Recommending this one for those who like period books about womens lives. Well written and enjoyable.

I found The Book Club for Troublesome Women to be a fun, easy read overall—enjoyable in parts but not particularly memorable for me personally. The premise is charming, and the themes of friendship, resilience, and reinvention are well-intentioned and heartwarming. Bostwick does a solid job of developing the characters, and readers who enjoy stories about strong women coming together to support each other will likely find it uplifting. I think what was hard for me was the length of the book, mixed with it being slow at some parts.

3.5 -4.0 Stars
The Book Club for Troublesome Women
Marie Bostwick

I enjoyed this historical fiction novel that focused on "The Betty's" remarkable decades-long friendship. I felt that these empowering and supportive relationships were the strongest part of this novel. I found the pacing to be uneven at times and I did not care for the title. I believe "The Betty's" were pioneers, but not troubesome. . The progression of the women from timid housewifes to independent women who decided to question the status quo and find a balance between the families that lthey loved and a purpose for their own lives was a hopeful, humorous and a revolutionary story.

I would like to Thank NetGalley and Harper Muse for the eARC of The Book of Troublesome Women by Marie Bostwick. My opinions are my own.