This is a modern women's fiction book which is really about a mom, her daughter, and two of the mom's coworkers (one the mom's age and the other around her daughter's age). The title is misleading, imo. There's a line in the book about them having a friendship club but other than that, they get together for one girl's night and one dinner and that's about it for the "club." However, the women's stories are interesting and two of them start doing amazing things for charity.

Here's what the publisher had to say:
"A brand-new novel from the #1 bestselling author of VIRGIN RIVER

Four women come together at a tumultuous time in their lives, forging an unbreakable bond that will leave them all forever changed.

Celebrity cooking show host Marni McGuire has seen it all. She’s been married—twice—and widowed and divorced. Now in her mid-fifties, she’s single. Happily so. She just needs to convince her pregnant daughter, Bella, of this fact. And maybe convince herself, too. Especially after Marni’s efforts to humor her determined daughter result in a series of disastrous dates that somehow prompt Marni to wonder if maybe the right man for her is still out there after all.

Similarly single, Marni’s best friend and colleague is confident she’s content without a man, but both older women soon find themselves leading by example as the young intern on their show appears caught in a toxic relationship—and Bella reveals her own marriage maybe isn’t built to withstand the stresses of the baby on the way.

Suddenly, all four women find themselves at a crossroads, each navigating the challenges of dating, marriage, loneliness and love. Thankfully, they have each other to lean on. The realities of modern love are far from easy, but there’s no better group to have in your corner than friends who will lift you up, no matter what, and hold fast in the face of any storm."

Leading with the Virgin River series is misleading because this book does not compare to those in that series. The Virgin River series is a lot more action packed. This book has a lot more telling (vs showing).

People who like women's fiction, women-centered stories, and inter generational stories.

The growth arcs of the two characters who got involved with charity work. The romance between the main character (Marnie) and, well, I don't want to spoil it. At the beginning there are a few options.

The lack of agency in the younger coworker. The extreme amount of telling (there could have been a lot more showing and it would have made for a better read, imo).

Read something more exciting.

SPOILER ALERT - skip this section if you plan to read the book.

I was scared for the younger coworker. I couldn't believe that she stayed with the guy after he pushed her down a hiking hill though. And, I should have added this to thinks I didn't like, above, but she should have mentioned that when she finally made a police report. Instead she said he had never been violent and that wasn't true. I didn't like that she lied to all the other women in the beginning either.

About the author of this book, Robyn Carr:

"Robyn Carr is a RITA® Award-winning, eleven-time #1 New York Times bestselling romance and women's fiction author of over 60 novels, including the critically acclaimed Virgin River and Sullivan's Crossing series. Robyn is a recipient of the 2016 Romance Writers of America Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2017, VIRGIN RIVER was named one of the HarperCollins 200 Iconic Books of the past 200 years. Netflix has taken notice of Robyn’s success and produced a series based on her bestselling 21-book Virgin River Series. Netflix released season 3 of the Virgin River Series in July 2021 and the series held the #1 spot in the US and in numerous countries around the world for over 2 weeks. Season 4 releases July 20, 2022 and season 5 is in production. A Sullivan's Crossing TV series based on Robyn's fan-favorite book series of the same name is also in production. Robyn lives in Las Vegas, Nevada. You can visit Robyn Carr's website at www.RobynCarr.com." per Amazon

Well, I don't really recommend it, unless you specifically like this kind of thing. I borrowed it from my local library expecting something more interesting, like the Virgin River series. But if you really don't mind a lot of telling, the stories of three of the four women are interesting, at least to me.

It was kind of boring, at least for the first 50% or so.

I borrowed a copy of this book from my local library.

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Created Feb 13, 2024 at 3:46pm • Submit your own review...