#allthebookreviews: Those Other Women by Nicola Moriarty @NikkiM3 @wmmorrowbooks

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Those Other Women

by Nicola Moriarty

Thanks so much to William Morrow for these copies - we absolutely LOVE this story!

Publisher: William Morrow
Publish Date: June 26, 2018
Hardcover
400 Pages
Standalone

Genres: Contemporary, Chick Lit

'The group did though. The group was exactly what I needed. The group was my saviour. Even if technically speaking - I didn't qualify. Even if I was an imposter.'

Poppy and Carise are frustrated. They're tired of watching the same old cycle: women in their office fall pregnant, leave early and take months off only to eventually return, requesting 'more flexibility'. All with smug smiles on their faces.

That's why they create the 'No Baby Club' - a Facebook group dedicated to women like themselves who don't have children, who don't want children and who simply want to vent about the 'annoying mummies' in their lives. They create challenges designed to make sure that childless women reap the benefits, like leaving early for a fake appointment and making one of them pick up the slack for a change. Memberships soar.

But as the group's tasks get more extreme, Carise starts to worry that they're taking things too far. On top of that, it seems that not all the new members are being honest and it's not long before things start to slide disastrously out of control . . .

My Review:

How refreshing it is to read a book where there are women who don't want children, never wanted children and don't feel the need to apologize for it. But also gives you a full circle look at women who do have children and the struggles each side goes through. Yes, each side. Although, we all are women and should be supporting each other (and I hope that we do), I'm never going to fully know what a mother goes through and (some) mothers will never understand that I can be completely fulfilled without having children in my life.

I admit I've been irritated at children who run amok, are rude, who kick the back of my chair on a flight and their parents do absolutely nothing about it. Then I have friends who are mothers and I understand that sometimes it's just all TOO MUCH.

What I found best about this book was not necessarily these issues, but the friendships between women and each one's struggle to find balance. No one's life is perfect and we could all take a step back before judging someone based on an isolated incident or something we see out of the corner of our eye. Let's be real though, we all judge, well all assume.. it's human nature. It's how to act on what you think or feel that makes a difference. And dealing with a devastating break up is NEVER easy and we don't (usually) make the best decisions afterwards. Poppy is a strong character and I love her HUMAN-ness.

Mothers, don't assume that a woman who doesn't have children, whether she ever wanted to or not, is less fulfilled, jealous or "missing out". And non-mothers, don't assume you know half of what a mother's life is about.

This book was so cute - MOP/NOP... the intricacies of relationships, friendships... how social media is really taking over our worlds.. but how it also helps to bring together communities. Thoroughly enjoyed this read.

★★★★

Jessica's Review:

This book is one of those books that seems to span over a couple genres – I’d definitely say that it falls into the women’s literature but it also has some drama and mystery to it as well. THOSE OTHER WOMEN by Nicola Moriarty covers a topic that is very prevalent in society – whether or not women want to have children.

Poppy’s world completely changes when she comes home to find her husband and best friend waiting for her. They ambush her with the news that they are in love and have been seeing each other behind her back for 4 months, the worst part? Karleen insists that Garrett actually wants children. Poppy had been adamant from the beginning of their marriage that she never wanted children and Garrett had always supported that, until now.

After the divorce, Poppy befriends a woman at work, Annalise. Together they create a private Facebook group for all of the women in their area that do not want children. Since there are exclusive groups for mothers only, they figured they could make their own. It started out as a place for women to find support and vent about how all the mothers in their lives seem to get preferential treatment – especially when it came to work and using their kids as excuses to leave early.

The story alternates between three different perspectives: Poppy, Annalise, and an Imposter in the group (a woman that is pretending to be a single woman without children). It was so interesting bouncing back and forth and seeing the struggles that each woman faces and the stigma around not wanting children. It’s always assumed that when a woman doesn’t have kids it’s because she hasn’t found the right man, is having issues conceiving, or is looking into fertility options. It doesn’t even cross someone’s mind that a woman might not want children.

The drama that ensues when women from the Mums of Parra (MOP) hear about the Non-Mums of Parra (NOP) and how they complain about poor parenting, screaming children, and mothers getting out of work because of their kids. You get to see both sides of the argument in this novel. From the point of view of the women that don’t want children and from the point of view of the mothers struggling to balance work and home life.

Overall, if you’re looking for a nice summer read with plenty of drama, then THOSE OTHER WOMEN will be the next book for you!

I give this 5/5 stars!