The Change: the must read debut feminist fiction novel and crime thriller of 2023!

The Change by Kirsten Miller is a unique paranormal story. I wish there had been a warning on the book regarding some of the items in it. I was looking forwarding to reading this paranormal thriller (and then I started reading The Change and was shocked). I had trouble with the significant amount of foul language, nudity, graphic details on menstruation, and the intimate situations. There is also a great deal of man hating. I am a feminist, but I do not believe that feminism should involve bashing men (continually). The villains in the story were a little overdone. I could envision that cartoon villain in the tuxedo with the top hat and cape who twirled his groomed mustache (the type with the curled ends). I liked seeing the three witchy women came together to find a killer. Jo, Harriett, and Nessa unite to get justice for the girls being murdered in their town, Mattuak. I like how their magical powers complemented each other. Each of the women gained their powers upon reaching menopause. I liked that the protagonist were my age. The story is more of a paranormal thriller than a mystery which disappointed me because I love solving whodunits (and the blurb made is sound like a paranormal mystery). The pacing varied throughout the book. The beginning is slow as each of the characters are introduced. It takes a little while to get to the killings. I felt the story was overlong (almost 500 pages) and the author is overly descriptive. There were so many extra characters along with the backstories that were unneeded. I thought the second half was long with a predictable ending. I had a hard time getting through The Change. I am not a fan of books that make me cringe and grimace. While The Change was not my cup of tea, I suggest you obtain a sample to judge it for yourself. The Change is a not so bewitching tale with post-menopausal powers, a nefarious garden, murdered women, a distressed mother, an evil villain, and crucial justice.