WOW! It has been a VERY long time since I have read a book cover to cover in one day. I started this book in the morning and read it straight through to early evening.

We meet Julia and her friends during a transformative time in their lives - midlife. There is a life changing loss the friends feel every day but it doesn't define them. These women are AMAZING! Julia's family caused me to laugh out loud multiple times. The honesty, love, and strength of Julia's friendship group had me crying more than once (one time while I was still in the office).

This book is a guide I didn't know I needed. The grace, the love, the comradery the 4 main characters showed for each other was breathtaking. I saw a little bit of myself in each of the women & their stories.

Most importantly, as an almost 53 year old woman, I felt seen. I felt validated. I felt energized & invigorated.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book. I will NEVER forget this book & I can say with certainty that when it is released, I will be buying copies for my circle of friends.

I absolutely devoured this book faster than I wanted to! I wanted more. It was like being with my besties. I had the best time reading and relating to the cast of characters. The writing was smart and witty. I found myself laughing and nodding my head so often. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Oh gosh! This is so funny and oh so relatable in many ways! I recommend all people going through menopause read this for the laugh and so you don’t feel alone

“Are You There God? It’s Me, Menopause” odd dedicated to Judy Blume. The dedication comes from author Heather Bartos WHO INCLUDES ME in the dedication, too! She actually includes all of us- we Gen Xers who are stepping into the sandwich generation, peri/menopause, reimagining, rethinking, reorganizing, etc!

With this investment in the book I was worried that it would not hold up. Dear potential reader- it did! I loved each one of the TWATS, sent screenshots to my own version of this group, and just generally enjoyed feeling seen and heard as I read.

Snuggle up with this book, be prepared to ride the end with a note of permission (there is an unfortunate “Second Spring” fete) and enjoy! Full disclosure: I am now considering a fainting goat. IYKYK!

This book was superb I couldn’t recommend it enough as a woman going through menopause this gem of a book helped me tremendously . The main character of Julia was amazing and in many questions I was nodding along to her, truly brilliant book

Heather Bartos brings warmth, humor, and honesty to a topic that many women experience but often feel unprepared for. She discusses menopause with compassion while balancing medical information with real-life experiences, making the book feel like advice from a knowledgeable friend.

The explanations of hormonal changes, symptoms, treatment options, and emotional well-being are informative without becoming overwhelming. I especially appreciated the reassuring tone that validates many common experiences while encouraging readers to advocate for their own health.

This is an empowering and accessible resource for anyone navigating perimenopause or menopause.

Incredible!! I couldn’t put this book down. The interesting characters and descriptive scenes grabbed my attention from the very beginning.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel.

I devoured this book!

From the dedication, which was for all women, myself included, who have stepped into or are stepping into this natural transition of life and to the very last page, this story had me. I laughed, I cried, I nodded in recognition, and most of all, I felt seen.

As a woman who has been living this stage of life, it was so refreshing to finally see these stories and conversations brought into the light. Menopause is something so many of us experience, yet it’s rarely talked about with this much honesty, humor, and heart.

If you’re in this stage of life and don’t see yourself in one of these women (Julia, Gem, CiCi, or Kim) either you’re not there yet, or you’ve found the perfect balance of HRT.

I immediately connected with everything Julia was going through: the challenges of everyday life, insomnia, hot flashes, the dreaded “soft-focus” vision, and trying to rediscover yourself while refusing to stay small.

Each of these women faced their own unique struggles while navigating hot flashes, incontinence, brain fog, and all the other nuances of menopause. But at the end of the day, what carried them through was their friendship. Their unwavering support for one another reminded me just how important it is to have women in your corner who truly understand what you’re going through.

While I would’ve loved even more time with each character individually to deepen those connections, there was still enough on every page to make me relate to them again and again.

My hope is that Julia finds the right HRT and continues to fully step into the woman she’s becoming.

Whether you’re just entering menopause, deep in the middle of it, or supporting someone who is, this is a story that deserves to be read. It reminds us that while menopause may be a shared experience, none of us has to go through it alone.

This book made me laugh, cry, and feel completely understood. That’s a rare gift, and this book has already stayed with me and will continue to do so.

You know that warm, slightly bittersweet feeling when a song, smell, or memory instantly transports you back in time, making you miss how things used to be? Well, that is exactly what hit me the second I saw the title of this book: Are You There God? It’s Me, Menopause.
I was instantly triggered right back to reading iconic Judy Blume and found myself chanting, “I must, I must, I must increase my bust!”
Honestly, this book was everything I had hoped it would be and then some.
First off, the author pays a wonderful homage to Judy Blume, which I absolutely loved. But more than that, this book delivered so much validation that I desperately needed for my own sanity. As an almost 51-year-old postmenopausal woman without a circle of women in my life to dissect the daily woes of "the change" with, reading this made me feel just a little less alone.
Did it make me bawl my eyes out because of pure friendship envy? Absolutely. I ran the absolute gamut of emotions while reading this—but mostly, I laughed so hard I almost peed myself (if you know, you know 😅).
We need so many more books for women like us! If you are menopause-adjacent or even just menopause-curious, I cannot recommend this enough. It may technically be a work of fiction, but you honestly cannot get any closer to the truth.

I loved this book!! So funny, and the friend group is GOALS! We should all be so lucky to go through life with ladies like these. I devoured this one in a day, pausing only to wipe away tears of laughter! ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MENOPAUSE (best title ever!!) hits shelves October 6th, and I highly recommend you grab a copy!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.All opinions expressed are solely my own.

As a woman of a certain age, you know I had to read this book. It follows 4 close friends through their middle-aged lives with humor, authenticity and loyalty. Honestly? It felt like spending time with some of my best friends (we already talk like this, laugh like this, and show up for each other like this). It reminded me how lucky I am to have such friends since childhood, and reminds me to keep showing up as who I am, and more imporantly, who I'm becoming.

What I didn't expect was how SEEN I felt. More books about middle-aged women like this please!

This is a fast paced, engaging and poignant read. Using truth and reality splashed with humor throughout, this book tackles what was once a taboo subject and brings it to the forefront, shining a spotlight on all that girls and women go through with our many changing seasons. It reminds us to use our voice and be uniquely and wonderfully ourselves.
Thank you Empress Editions for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

For those of us from the generation of “Are you there God? It’s me, Margaret” by Judy Blume, I am confident you will love this book. Menopause, oh the joys ….. what a hellscape it can be. But this book applies humor, truth, love and the beauty of female friendship into what can only be described as one of the most tumultuous times in a woman’s life. And this book is bold! It’s honest, pulls no punches and kept me laughing throughout.

And let me tell you the author does not shy away from any of the realities – grey pubic hair, sagging skin, loss of relationships, health issues, changing marital relationship, loss of libido, incontinence. Seriously ladies, it’s all in this book. LOL.

But what I loved the most about is the core group of female friends. They were amaziing! And it made me feel so grateful for the amazing women I have in my life who support me through thick and thin, warts and all. The book is truly an ode to female friendship, our bonkers hormones and what happens when we, as women, can no longer hold it all together. So many of us have been there and continue to navigate these waters - all made easier through our girlfriends who hold us up, challenge us and call us out as needed. And make us laugh until we pee our pants …. sometimes.

This story spoke to my soul - perfect for Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants meets Gilmore Girls but heavy on menopause and focusing on the women in the story.

thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this book. It was the book I did not know I needed. This book is a must read for anyone. If you are not in menopause, finished with menopause or headed toward menopause then you have a woman in your life that is. This book sums up exactly how it feels to not be seen, to be ignored by the medical community. To be gaslit and told oh well that's just what happens. Read this book.

The girls who read Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret overcame that great hormonal life-changing period (pun intended) and are now finding that there is another dramatic hormonal wave to conquer as they reach peri-menopause and menopause. Another period that was not discussed or mentioned, but Gen-X are not quiet about these things, they discuss with friends, they support each other.

Written by an OB/GYN in a fabulous nod to the Judy Blume novel, my childhood was full of Margaret, Sheila, Sally, Deenie etc, unusual as they were not available in the UK at the time, this is an up to date tale of friendship and hormones. Full of humour, kindness and rediscovery, it was funny, if you don't laugh you'd cry at this time of life, a refreshingly age appropriate book.

Julia Levy, navigating the changing world of being 50+ with the support of her friend's chat group the "TWATS", such genuinely relatable conversations from women of an age. Her change from the capable people pleaser into a mature woman who has lost the ability to give a flying F anymore to life's trivialities and stresses.

It brilliantly captures the sudden surprising change of midlife, with the reality of brain fog, emotional rollercoasters, and sudden hot flushes and ties it into friends supporting each other to rediscovering themselves. This is a book written from knowledge and experience, it is validating and thoroughly entertaining. If you are a lady if a certain age I would definitely recommend this

The story follows Jules as she navigates her life as a mother, wife, and friend, while going through the turmoil of menopause. At the same time, her preteen daughter is also going through a monumental hormonal change. Jules is trying to keep her household happy, be the breadwinner, and hold everything together. Luckily, she has the support of her three friends, who are all going through the same hormonal turmoil and life challenges.

Written by an OB/GYN, this novel is stunningly witty, with writing reminiscent of Catherine Newman’s. A story of sisterhood and finding a sense of self, the novel is ultimately about rediscovering who we are when we start living for ourselves.

Thank you NetGalley and Empress Editions for the ARC!