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Book Club Confidential: A Novel
Once upon a time, friends Tessa, Kate, and Hallie dreamed big. Now they’re all that’s left of a once-thriving book club, meeting weekly to drink wine, talk novels, and quietly wonder how their lives got so small.
Tessa, a lifelong people pleaser, excels at a corporate job she hates, while influencer Kate grows weary of chasing false perfection and true love. Meanwhile, independent Hallie drifts toward a wedding she never really wanted—nursing feelings she’s too afraid to name.
But out of their growing regret comes a decisive For one month, they’ll make every choice boldly, like they’re the protagonists of their own stories. The results are immediate, transformative…and chaotic. Careers stumble. Relationships fumble. Carefully crafted images start to crack.
It turns out, having agency is easier said than done. But with their friendship intact, they each come to grips with their new character arc—and discover what they’ll risk to find their happy ending.
2026 by Julie Hatcher. ℗ 2026 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.
Tessa, a lifelong people pleaser, excels at a corporate job she hates, while influencer Kate grows weary of chasing false perfection and true love. Meanwhile, independent Hallie drifts toward a wedding she never really wanted—nursing feelings she’s too afraid to name.
But out of their growing regret comes a decisive For one month, they’ll make every choice boldly, like they’re the protagonists of their own stories. The results are immediate, transformative…and chaotic. Careers stumble. Relationships fumble. Carefully crafted images start to crack.
It turns out, having agency is easier said than done. But with their friendship intact, they each come to grips with their new character arc—and discover what they’ll risk to find their happy ending.
2026 by Julie Hatcher. ℗ 2026 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.
Audible Audio
Published October 1, 2026
About the author
Julie Hatcher
3 books178 followersJulie Hatcher is an award-winning and bestselling author of mystery and romantic suspense. She has published more than fifty novels under multiple pen names since her debut in 2013.
Writing as Julie Anne Lindsey, Hatcher has earned many accolades for her work, including the 2020 National Readers’ Choice Award for Romance Adventure and the 2019 Daphne du Maurier Award for Mystery/Suspense, among others.
When she’s not creating new worlds or fostering the epic love of fictional characters, Julie can be found in Kent, Ohio, enjoying her blessed Midwestern life—and probably plotting murder with her shamelessly enabling friends. Today she hopes to make someone smile. But one day she plans to change the world.
Writing as Julie Anne Lindsey, Hatcher has earned many accolades for her work, including the 2020 National Readers’ Choice Award for Romance Adventure and the 2019 Daphne du Maurier Award for Mystery/Suspense, among others.
When she’s not creating new worlds or fostering the epic love of fictional characters, Julie can be found in Kent, Ohio, enjoying her blessed Midwestern life—and probably plotting murder with her shamelessly enabling friends. Today she hopes to make someone smile. But one day she plans to change the world.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 453 reviews
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Between 4 and 5 stars!
I really enjoyed this story from beginning to end! It pulled me in so quickly, and I became invested in both the characters and everything happening in their lives. The cast felt incredibly well-developed, especially Tessa, whose personal growth and journey felt authentic and meaningful as she started making major changes in her life.
One thing I especially appreciated was how realistic the story felt. The characters didn’t suddenly have everything fall perfectly into place just because they decided to make changes, and that added so much depth and honesty to the book. Their struggles, setbacks, and growth made it easy to root for them the entire time.
The pacing was also done really well. There was always something happening, but it never felt overwhelming or unnecessary because every moment added something important to the story or the characters’ development.
Overall, this was such a heartfelt and satisfying read. I genuinely enjoyed following these characters and found myself deeply invested in seeing them find happiness and figure out where life would take them next!
** I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to the author and publisher! **
I really enjoyed this story from beginning to end! It pulled me in so quickly, and I became invested in both the characters and everything happening in their lives. The cast felt incredibly well-developed, especially Tessa, whose personal growth and journey felt authentic and meaningful as she started making major changes in her life.
One thing I especially appreciated was how realistic the story felt. The characters didn’t suddenly have everything fall perfectly into place just because they decided to make changes, and that added so much depth and honesty to the book. Their struggles, setbacks, and growth made it easy to root for them the entire time.
The pacing was also done really well. There was always something happening, but it never felt overwhelming or unnecessary because every moment added something important to the story or the characters’ development.
Overall, this was such a heartfelt and satisfying read. I genuinely enjoyed following these characters and found myself deeply invested in seeing them find happiness and figure out where life would take them next!
** I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to the author and publisher! **
Want to Read
September 16, 2026well, i rarely ever get interested in amazon first reads, but this caught my eye.
September 14, 2026
Woke fatigue
I thought this sounded really good. Then about 10 minutes in, the author referred to an individual as "they/them"... yeah, that's a hard no. I'd like my $1.99 back please!
I thought this sounded really good. Then about 10 minutes in, the author referred to an individual as "they/them"... yeah, that's a hard no. I'd like my $1.99 back please!
September 23, 2026
The author put all of the hallmark movies into a blender, added a pumpkin spice latte and a Gap commercial and then pressed frappe for 3 minutes. Then they served it in a mug that says "this girl runs on coffee and Jesus".
Highlight quote for me: "Her tan pants and matching wedges made her feel bold." 🤣🤣🤣
Plot and characters were very predictable and bland. I didn't feel any authenticity to the characters- they were really two dimensional stereotypes, down to the blustery egotistical "frat boy" bad guy. The "wild" girl
If you want something that feels very safe, boring, predictable, yet comfortable, give this book a shot.
Highlight quote for me: "Her tan pants and matching wedges made her feel bold." 🤣🤣🤣
Plot and characters were very predictable and bland. I didn't feel any authenticity to the characters- they were really two dimensional stereotypes, down to the blustery egotistical "frat boy" bad guy. The "wild" girl
If you want something that feels very safe, boring, predictable, yet comfortable, give this book a shot.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This is an uplifting and heart warming story. Three women, (Tessa, Hallie, and Kate) are the last remaining friends in their book club. The rest of the members have moved onto new things. They are not completely satisfied with where they are in their lives. They want to make meaningful changes. Tessa has a suggestion to live their lives as though they are the main characters in the books they are reading. This was such a unique premise. I loved how each character faced difficulties but still kept pursuing their actions to better themselves and become who they actually want to be. This book has some humor to it which was so enjoyable and I really liked the connection between these main characters as friends. I love books that revolve around books and female friendships. Very enjoyable.
Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own.
Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own.
November 11, 2026
i'm at my fucking limit.
Review of advance copy
There's a trend in books by Southern writers for the MFC to be over-worked, people pleasing, doormats who confuse assertiveness with aggressiveness (strictly forbidden) and dedicated to never stating what they want or asking even their closest friends for help. I am so over it. The MFC has had therapy to help with the loss of a parent years earlier, yet she obviously never learned about boundaries or assertiveness - she needs to get her money back. By churning out story after story of supposedly intelligent women in their mid-30s whose emotional development stopped in their late teens, these authors miss a valuable opportunity to explore genuine life tensions and challenges. Just because a women learns assertiveness does not mean her life becomes a cakewalk. But it does mean that she does not contribute to demeaning circumstances. Gee, what would THAT look like? Authors and editors need to level up.
3 stars for some good ideas although the execution deserved time in the freezer (excellent joke from the book).
3 stars for some good ideas although the execution deserved time in the freezer (excellent joke from the book).
September 9, 2026
Inspiring book about 3 strong women that wanted more out of life and made the tough changes to get what they deserved. I enjoyed their friendship, love of books, and courage to go after what they wanted.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 2, 2026
Great read
This was my Amazon September First Reads pick and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The characters and relationships are so relatable.
This was my Amazon September First Reads pick and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The characters and relationships are so relatable.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Julie Hatcher is back with another stellar women's fiction novel. Tessa is the protagonist, a marketing genius who has worked for a somewhat tyrannical boss for many years. Tessa and her friends, Kate and Hallie, go to a bar every month for their book club. They don't read the same book, but they all talk about the titles they're reading. With all three of them struggling in their daily lives, Tessa suggests a challenge: live as if they're the protagonists of their own books. After being snubbed for a promotion, Tessa prioritizes work-life balance. She also meets a handsome client, who becomes a tantalizing love interest. But it's not all sunshine and roses. Kate is losing followers from her influencer account, and Hallie is starting to realize she might need to leave her suffocating engagement. And when Tessa puts herself first, there are consequences at work.
Much like in NOT QUITE BY THE BOOK, Hatcher's characters get to live alternative lives, and their transformations result from those experiences. I wished Kate and Hallie could have had more page time, but Tessa was the main focus, so it was important that she shined. Tessa's confidence and determination are admirable, and her motivation propels the book into the page-turner it is. The title felt a bit off to me - "confidential" made it seem like they were sharing secrets or that there was something mysterious going on. The name of their book club, Main Character Energy, would have been a better title. This is a really fun and inspiring book, perfect for those moments when the patriarchy is exhausting.
Much like in NOT QUITE BY THE BOOK, Hatcher's characters get to live alternative lives, and their transformations result from those experiences. I wished Kate and Hallie could have had more page time, but Tessa was the main focus, so it was important that she shined. Tessa's confidence and determination are admirable, and her motivation propels the book into the page-turner it is. The title felt a bit off to me - "confidential" made it seem like they were sharing secrets or that there was something mysterious going on. The name of their book club, Main Character Energy, would have been a better title. This is a really fun and inspiring book, perfect for those moments when the patriarchy is exhausting.
October 1, 2026
The entire premise of this book is basically three best friends realizing they've accidentally become background characters in their own lives, and honestly? That realization hit harder than I expected. Not because their lives are disasters. Their lives are actually the much scarier thing. Fine. Everything is technically fine. Which is how you wake up one day and realize you've been quietly settling for years while telling yourself you're being realistic.
Tessa kicks this whole thing off, and thank God she does because this woman has spent so much time people-pleasing that I'm surprised she knows what her favorite color is. She works in a toxic corporate environment where everyone treats her competence like a natural resource they can mine indefinitely, and watching her slowly realize that being good at your job shouldn't require sacrificing your soul was deeply satisfying. Also stressful. Mostly because every woman reading this book is going to recognize at least one part of Tessa and immediately want to throw their laptop into a river.
Meanwhile Kate is out here living the influencer dream, which turns out to be significantly less dreamy when you're exhausted from performing a version of yourself that no longer exists. The older I get, the more fascinated I am by characters who wake up one morning and realize they've built an entire life around other people's expectations. Kate spends half this book staring directly into the existential void of personal branding and honestly? Good for her. That's growth.
And then Hallie. Sweet merciful chaos, Hallie. Hallie is planning a wedding with the energy of someone filling out tax paperwork. Every decision she makes feels like she's trying to convince herself she's happy while a tiny voice in the back of her head is waving a red flag and setting off fireworks. Spending time with her storyline felt exactly like watching your friend date a guy everyone knows she's going to break up with eventually. You're rooting for her. You're worried for her. You're also quietly preparing a support playlist.
What I loved most is that when these women decide to start living with "main character energy," their lives immediately get worse. As they should. Because every movie ever has lied to us. Reinvention is not cute. Reinvention is quitting things without a backup plan. It's disappointing people. It's making decisions that feel wildly irresponsible right up until they don't. These women start standing up for themselves and suddenly jobs are at risk, relationships get messy, carefully curated images start cracking, and everyone around them is weirdly upset that they've developed opinions.
The friendship absolutely carried this book for me. The romance is lovely, don't get me wrong, but these women are the real love story. They cheer each other on, call each other out, catch each other when things fall apart, and somehow survive all the terrible decisions involved in becoming a person again. There's a scene every few chapters where one of them makes a choice that causes immediate problems and the other two basically respond with, "I support you completely, but wow, this is going to be a nightmare." That's friendship. That's sisterhood.
There were a few moments where I wanted them to move faster, mostly because I was sitting there like, "Ladies, the answer is right there. Please stop taking the scenic route through your emotional baggage." But honestly, that's part of what made them feel real. Most people don't change overnight. Most people inch toward happiness while second-guessing themselves the entire way.
By the end, I was weirdly emotional about a book that essentially boils down to three women deciding they deserve better. Not because the message is groundbreaking, but because it's so easy to forget. Sometimes you need a reminder that you're allowed to rewrite the story. Sometimes you need friends who hand you a metaphorical flamethrower and say, "Burn down whatever isn't working."
A very easy 4 stars. Warm, funny, empowering, and just self-aware enough to keep the whole thing from turning into a motivational poster.
And thank you to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC. Nothing brings people together quite like wine, books, existential crises, and the sudden realization that maybe blowing up your life is actually the first step toward fixing it.
Tessa kicks this whole thing off, and thank God she does because this woman has spent so much time people-pleasing that I'm surprised she knows what her favorite color is. She works in a toxic corporate environment where everyone treats her competence like a natural resource they can mine indefinitely, and watching her slowly realize that being good at your job shouldn't require sacrificing your soul was deeply satisfying. Also stressful. Mostly because every woman reading this book is going to recognize at least one part of Tessa and immediately want to throw their laptop into a river.
Meanwhile Kate is out here living the influencer dream, which turns out to be significantly less dreamy when you're exhausted from performing a version of yourself that no longer exists. The older I get, the more fascinated I am by characters who wake up one morning and realize they've built an entire life around other people's expectations. Kate spends half this book staring directly into the existential void of personal branding and honestly? Good for her. That's growth.
And then Hallie. Sweet merciful chaos, Hallie. Hallie is planning a wedding with the energy of someone filling out tax paperwork. Every decision she makes feels like she's trying to convince herself she's happy while a tiny voice in the back of her head is waving a red flag and setting off fireworks. Spending time with her storyline felt exactly like watching your friend date a guy everyone knows she's going to break up with eventually. You're rooting for her. You're worried for her. You're also quietly preparing a support playlist.
What I loved most is that when these women decide to start living with "main character energy," their lives immediately get worse. As they should. Because every movie ever has lied to us. Reinvention is not cute. Reinvention is quitting things without a backup plan. It's disappointing people. It's making decisions that feel wildly irresponsible right up until they don't. These women start standing up for themselves and suddenly jobs are at risk, relationships get messy, carefully curated images start cracking, and everyone around them is weirdly upset that they've developed opinions.
The friendship absolutely carried this book for me. The romance is lovely, don't get me wrong, but these women are the real love story. They cheer each other on, call each other out, catch each other when things fall apart, and somehow survive all the terrible decisions involved in becoming a person again. There's a scene every few chapters where one of them makes a choice that causes immediate problems and the other two basically respond with, "I support you completely, but wow, this is going to be a nightmare." That's friendship. That's sisterhood.
There were a few moments where I wanted them to move faster, mostly because I was sitting there like, "Ladies, the answer is right there. Please stop taking the scenic route through your emotional baggage." But honestly, that's part of what made them feel real. Most people don't change overnight. Most people inch toward happiness while second-guessing themselves the entire way.
By the end, I was weirdly emotional about a book that essentially boils down to three women deciding they deserve better. Not because the message is groundbreaking, but because it's so easy to forget. Sometimes you need a reminder that you're allowed to rewrite the story. Sometimes you need friends who hand you a metaphorical flamethrower and say, "Burn down whatever isn't working."
A very easy 4 stars. Warm, funny, empowering, and just self-aware enough to keep the whole thing from turning into a motivational poster.
And thank you to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC. Nothing brings people together quite like wine, books, existential crises, and the sudden realization that maybe blowing up your life is actually the first step toward fixing it.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher (Oct. 2026) [reading in June]
328-page Kindle Ebook
295-page ADC courtesy of Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley
Genre: Women's Fiction, Contemporary Fiction
Rating as a movie: PG-15/R
Featuring: Bibliography for Julie Hatcher, Fictional Coastal Small-Town Virginia; University of Virginia Alumni, Tricenarians, Book Club, Corporate Administrator - VP at Marketing Firm, Social Media Influencer, Chef, Friendships, Divorcée, Unhappy Matron, Fiancée, Wedding Planning, Main Character Energy, Pact Trope, Self-Actualization, Raised by Single Father and Single Mother, Parental Expectations, Family Dynamics, Romantic Storylines, Toxic Workplaces
My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️½📚👭👩🍳👰🏼♀️
My thoughts: Page 206 of 295 Chapter Twenty-Three - I was wondering how this was women's fiction. It full sure is, but add in a drama disaster plot. These ladies will blow up their lives, then make them better. I would finish, but I'm just too tired to continue.
I typically go into novels blindly. In my youth, I learned that reading blurbs often gives away 25% to 50% of the story, and I’d spend the entire first act waiting for those moments to happen instead of actually enjoying the narrative. So, I usually choose books based solely on the covers and titles.
The cover of Book Club Confidential led me to suspect it would be a romantic suspense or a cozy mystery hybrid, but it was neither. It turned out to be women's fiction—a genre I didn't identify until I started drafting my review (which I always do before I actually begin reading).
To be honest, I was disappointed. I love stories about deep friendships and the self-actualization journeys that define good women's fiction, but this story featured three women I just couldn’t get behind. There was something "off" about each of them, mostly their overwhelming passivity. They were all semi-bosses who somehow were also underachievers, and their problems felt so minute. It took them forever to resolve anything, and I don't think we ever really watched them go on a genuine journey of discovery and empowerment. Instead, we watched them twiddle their thumbs, make their situations worse, and bite their tongues—only for someone else to swoop in and reluctantly solve their problems for them. We didn't even get to see the growth; it all happened off-camera, and overnight they were magically better.
It just didn’t feel realistic to me. For me to love a story, I have to feel it. Even if a premise is ridiculous, I need to feel like I’m on the journey with the characters, and I just didn't feel it here. Plus, Hallie absolutely irritated my soul.
Ultimately, this was a three-star read for me. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it, either. I liked the message it was trying to portray more than the actual story itself. Also, there really weren't enough books in it to justify having "Book Club" in the title!
Recommend to others: I don't know. This book wasn't for me, but I can name about seven book friends who would probably rate it five stars if they had the opportunity.
Songs for the soundtrack: "True Colors" by Cyndi Lauper, "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell, "Run the World (Girls)" by Beyoncé, "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield
Books and Authors mentioned: Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (aka Alice in Wonderland) by Lewis Carroll, Bridgerton by Chris Van Dusen [based on] Bridgerton series by Julia Quinn
328-page Kindle Ebook
295-page ADC courtesy of Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley
Genre: Women's Fiction, Contemporary Fiction
Rating as a movie: PG-15/R
Featuring: Bibliography for Julie Hatcher, Fictional Coastal Small-Town Virginia; University of Virginia Alumni, Tricenarians, Book Club, Corporate Administrator - VP at Marketing Firm, Social Media Influencer, Chef, Friendships, Divorcée, Unhappy Matron, Fiancée, Wedding Planning, Main Character Energy, Pact Trope, Self-Actualization, Raised by Single Father and Single Mother, Parental Expectations, Family Dynamics, Romantic Storylines, Toxic Workplaces
My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️½📚👭👩🍳👰🏼♀️
My thoughts: Page 206 of 295 Chapter Twenty-Three - I was wondering how this was women's fiction. It full sure is, but add in a drama disaster plot. These ladies will blow up their lives, then make them better. I would finish, but I'm just too tired to continue.
I typically go into novels blindly. In my youth, I learned that reading blurbs often gives away 25% to 50% of the story, and I’d spend the entire first act waiting for those moments to happen instead of actually enjoying the narrative. So, I usually choose books based solely on the covers and titles.
The cover of Book Club Confidential led me to suspect it would be a romantic suspense or a cozy mystery hybrid, but it was neither. It turned out to be women's fiction—a genre I didn't identify until I started drafting my review (which I always do before I actually begin reading).
To be honest, I was disappointed. I love stories about deep friendships and the self-actualization journeys that define good women's fiction, but this story featured three women I just couldn’t get behind. There was something "off" about each of them, mostly their overwhelming passivity. They were all semi-bosses who somehow were also underachievers, and their problems felt so minute. It took them forever to resolve anything, and I don't think we ever really watched them go on a genuine journey of discovery and empowerment. Instead, we watched them twiddle their thumbs, make their situations worse, and bite their tongues—only for someone else to swoop in and reluctantly solve their problems for them. We didn't even get to see the growth; it all happened off-camera, and overnight they were magically better.
It just didn’t feel realistic to me. For me to love a story, I have to feel it. Even if a premise is ridiculous, I need to feel like I’m on the journey with the characters, and I just didn't feel it here. Plus, Hallie absolutely irritated my soul.
Ultimately, this was a three-star read for me. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it, either. I liked the message it was trying to portray more than the actual story itself. Also, there really weren't enough books in it to justify having "Book Club" in the title!
Recommend to others: I don't know. This book wasn't for me, but I can name about seven book friends who would probably rate it five stars if they had the opportunity.
Songs for the soundtrack: "True Colors" by Cyndi Lauper, "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell, "Run the World (Girls)" by Beyoncé, "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield
Books and Authors mentioned: Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (aka Alice in Wonderland) by Lewis Carroll, Bridgerton by Chris Van Dusen [based on] Bridgerton series by Julia Quinn
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Boy, I really wanted to love this book. I mean, bookclubs + gushy romance novel: that seemed like a recipe for success. But alas, it was not to be. I can live with cliches all over the place. A predictable plot is forgiveable for this genre--after all, if you read enough romance novels, it kinda happens. And MCE--main character energy--also has the potential to be entertaining. What annoyed me about this book was how utterly dumb each of the 3 main characters seemed to be. There were an awful lot of welling eyes: at home, with the family, with each other, and at work. (Crying at work!) They were constantly paralyzed by indecision and insecure about their own choices, which I found puzzling for a group of women in their 30s who had each achieved at least some degree of personal success. Disappointing.
Review of advance copy
A cute premise and an easy read, but unfortunately this one just didn’t hold my attention. I found myself skimming through most of the book, which probably says it all. I liked the idea behind the story, but there just wasn’t enough there for me to stay fully engaged.
Review of advance copy
I made it to the 3rd chapter before deciding it wasn't worth my time. I couldn't take the references to the patriarchy and the woke nonsense phrases such as "experiencing homelessness." The characters seemed to be choosing victimhood. I also want bored with the detailed descriptions of apartment and office decor that seemed unnecessary.
October 2, 2026
Book Club Confidential is an uplifting and inspiring story about three best friends who have been in a book club together since college. Now, older and not as wiser, they are the only ones left. All three are at a crossroad in their lives whether it be job, romance or fame. At their last book club meeting which was at a new restaurant books were not the only item on the menu. They come up with a fascinating idea as to how to jump start themselves and uplift each other. It sounded good at the time. But what may you ask could possibly go wrong? Well, everything!
Tessa, Kate and Hallie have been best friends since college. As they mull over their lives at their latest book club meeting, they come up with a brilliant idea as to how to make more of their lives and force themselves to do things they never could imagine. The premise? When faced with an issue, they are to ask themselves what would one of their favorite heroines do? And just do that. They eagerly agree.
Tess is a corporate marketer at a firm she has worked for since college. Unfortunately, her boss dismisses her and never seems to see how she holds the company together. Her clients love her, her coworkers adore her and she is exhausted from trying to please everybody. Now she is up for a promotion she is sure she will finally receive. Or so she thought...
Kate is a social fashion media influencer. What she truly would loves to post on social media is all the books she enjoys as well as what her real style of clothes she would really love to wear. She dresses for millions and yet feels so uncomfortable. Kate decides to change her brand.
Hallie is a foodie who loves to create and cook meals. She is a barista at a coffee shop whose boss is constantly berating her. Preparing to marry her boyfriend from college and his very wealthy uppity family whom she knows does not like her, she continues to procrastinate the wedding plans. Tessa and Kate try to help her make a few life changing decisions. Can she though?
Book Club Confidential is a wonderful, thoughtful, funny read about three women who are at turning points in their lives. Do they have the courage to challenge themselves and each other as they move into unknown territory and as they realize the power of change.
Thank you #NewGalley #LakeUnionPublishibng #BookClubConfidential #JulieHatcher for the advanced copy.
Tessa, Kate and Hallie have been best friends since college. As they mull over their lives at their latest book club meeting, they come up with a brilliant idea as to how to make more of their lives and force themselves to do things they never could imagine. The premise? When faced with an issue, they are to ask themselves what would one of their favorite heroines do? And just do that. They eagerly agree.
Tess is a corporate marketer at a firm she has worked for since college. Unfortunately, her boss dismisses her and never seems to see how she holds the company together. Her clients love her, her coworkers adore her and she is exhausted from trying to please everybody. Now she is up for a promotion she is sure she will finally receive. Or so she thought...
Kate is a social fashion media influencer. What she truly would loves to post on social media is all the books she enjoys as well as what her real style of clothes she would really love to wear. She dresses for millions and yet feels so uncomfortable. Kate decides to change her brand.
Hallie is a foodie who loves to create and cook meals. She is a barista at a coffee shop whose boss is constantly berating her. Preparing to marry her boyfriend from college and his very wealthy uppity family whom she knows does not like her, she continues to procrastinate the wedding plans. Tessa and Kate try to help her make a few life changing decisions. Can she though?
Book Club Confidential is a wonderful, thoughtful, funny read about three women who are at turning points in their lives. Do they have the courage to challenge themselves and each other as they move into unknown territory and as they realize the power of change.
Thank you #NewGalley #LakeUnionPublishibng #BookClubConfidential #JulieHatcher for the advanced copy.
October 6, 2026
Cute but unoriginal. I thought I had read this book before, but it just has the same themes as countless other women’s fictions books but with much less use of the phrase “main character energy”. Three women, who are supposed to be smart, find themselves in situations they just can’t seem to get themselves out of: work sucks, relationships aren't working out the way they want, family is messy. But it all comes together in the end, all wrapped up with a nice little bow. There’s nothing wrong with all that, but it’s just been done before (and is still being done every week on the Hallmark channel). If the goal was a movie, then it won’t be long before that is achieved, I’m sure. I’ve loved the originality of Julie Hatcher’s mysteries and struggle to understand why it doesn’t translate to her women’s fiction novels.
Thank you to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing, and Brilliance Audio for the review copies.
Thank you to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing, and Brilliance Audio for the review copies.
Review of advance copy
abandoned read d/t lesbian content. Y'all really need to come up with a warning system for those of us who don't want to read this.
September 29, 2026
Light and somewhat predictable but a nice easy read which was exactly what I needed. It’s always nice to read about women empowering and supporting each other.
October 5, 2026
The promotion is announced at a museum gala. Tessa Michels has worked at the same boutique ad agency for thirteen years, most of them at eighty hours a week, and she is close enough to the stage to hear her boss describe the new vice president of accounts as a guru who has stunned him since the first interview. Then he says the name, and it belongs to a twenty-three-year-old who joined in the spring and spends his mornings on the golf course. Her friends steer her out by the elbows. A truck hits a pothole and soaks the hem of her dress. By the time they reach the car, she has a plan. Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher is the story of that plan: for thirty days, Tessa and her two oldest friends will make only the choices the heroines of their favorite novels would make.
The Woman Who Made the Coffee
The pact is the hook, but the first real pleasure of the book is how specific Hatcher is about the invisible work that was holding Tessa's office together. The morning after the gala she arrives at two minutes past eight instead of an hour early. The weekly meeting stalls because there is no coffee in the break room. Her boss asks who makes the coffee, and her new rival says her name as though she has dropped a ball, when fetching coffee was never in her job description. It is a tiny scene, and it does more to explain her than any amount of backstory.
From there Tessa starts drawing lines. She leaves at five. She stops apologizing in emails, or rather she recites the apology in her head and deletes it before sending, which Hatcher plays as both funny and painful. She refuses to join a pitch team for an all-female brand that has been handed to a man who keeps calling the founders "girls". And she sets a small trap for whoever has been lifting ideas from her brainstorm file, by moving it back onto the company network stuffed with deliberately ridiculous concepts. That payoff is one of the best laughs in Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher, and it lands because the book has taken the time to make office politics feel like weather.
What Hatcher gets right is that boundaries are not free. By the halfway point the pact has cost all three women something real, and the book lets that hurt for a while. Tessa's slide into a week on the couch is handled with a frankness that will be familiar to anyone who has tied their worth to their output, and the novel is clear that what she had been calling ambition was edging toward burnout.
Her friends get their own arcs. Hallie is a chef with a bullying boss and a fiancé from an old-money family. Kate is an influencer whose income rests on a debutante persona she outgrew years ago. Both are good company, and Hallie in particular gets the most satisfying turn in Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher.
The comedy is better than the premise suggests. Tessa thinks in campaigns, so when she spots her handsome client outside a historic storefront she drafts a tourism slogan and then a cologne voiceover in his name before tripping on a broken paving slab. Her sabotage fantasies about the golf-loving rival rarely go further than a wedgie. It keeps a book about real disappointments from tipping into self-pity.
What Book Club Confidential Knows About Brothers
The thread that surprised us, and the one that lifts the book above a breezy comfort read, is Tessa's family.
Her birth mother drank and drifted out of her life when she was small. Her father remarried when she was thirteen, and her stepmother died of breast cancer three years later, leaving him with a grieving twelve-year-old stepson and a daughter who decided, at sixteen, that the kindest thing she could do was need nothing. That stepbrother, Devin, has spent most of his adult life disappearing, crashing and coming home. Now he is back again, and her father wants a family dinner.
The dinner is the best extended scene in Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher. Rigatoni and fried chicken, her favorites. Tessa offers to open the wine, goes to the cabinet where bottles have always waited for family nights, and finds the shelves empty. Nobody has ever said the word addiction in that house before, and the empty cabinet says it for them. The mantra she uses to get through the evening, that she can love her brother and hate the way he has lived, is the closest thing the novel has to a thesis.
Hatcher is brave enough to let Tessa be wrong. Her suspicion of Devin is earned by years of disappointment, and it still misfires, and the book makes her own that. It builds toward a conversation with her father about which child got looked after when the family was grieving, and it is written with real restraint. If you take one thing from this novel to your own book club, take that scene.
Where Book Club Confidential Gives Ground
The antagonists are drawn in one shade. The young rival steals ideas, runs up the company card and condescends to clients; the boss turns from mentor to bully in a single meeting; a future mother-in-law exists to sneer. None of them is allowed a reason.
The office plot is explained rather than dramatized. The answers to why certain people were hired and why the boss has been behaving so strangely arrive late, in one sitting, as gossip over coffee. It is tidy and it is flat.
Grant has no flaws to speak of. The former client who becomes Tessa's love interest brings dinner, reads her business plan, offers money and waits patiently. He is lovely. He is also the least interesting person in the book, because there is nothing to resolve.
The ending pays everyone. A novel whose first half argues persuasively that change costs something spends its last fifty pages handing out rewards, and the two-years-later coda of Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher ties every remaining bow.
Content Notes
What Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher carries, briefly. An alcoholic mother who vanished. A stepbrother's addiction, rehab and recovery. A stepmother's death from cancer, in the past. A parent's medical emergency, on the page. Workplace sexism and intimidation. Intimate photos shared online without consent after a wardrobe malfunction. Heavy social drinking and frequent swearing. Heat level: closed door, kisses only.
The Last Word
The novel is dedicated to book clubs that have become lifelines, and that is exactly what it is about. The romance is pleasant, the career plot is fun when it is being specific and thin when it is being resolved, but the reason to read Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher is three women on a group call at midnight, telling each other the truth and then showing up anyway.
Read it with the friends who would tell you to quit. Then argue about whether they were right.
The Woman Who Made the Coffee
The pact is the hook, but the first real pleasure of the book is how specific Hatcher is about the invisible work that was holding Tessa's office together. The morning after the gala she arrives at two minutes past eight instead of an hour early. The weekly meeting stalls because there is no coffee in the break room. Her boss asks who makes the coffee, and her new rival says her name as though she has dropped a ball, when fetching coffee was never in her job description. It is a tiny scene, and it does more to explain her than any amount of backstory.
From there Tessa starts drawing lines. She leaves at five. She stops apologizing in emails, or rather she recites the apology in her head and deletes it before sending, which Hatcher plays as both funny and painful. She refuses to join a pitch team for an all-female brand that has been handed to a man who keeps calling the founders "girls". And she sets a small trap for whoever has been lifting ideas from her brainstorm file, by moving it back onto the company network stuffed with deliberately ridiculous concepts. That payoff is one of the best laughs in Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher, and it lands because the book has taken the time to make office politics feel like weather.
What Hatcher gets right is that boundaries are not free. By the halfway point the pact has cost all three women something real, and the book lets that hurt for a while. Tessa's slide into a week on the couch is handled with a frankness that will be familiar to anyone who has tied their worth to their output, and the novel is clear that what she had been calling ambition was edging toward burnout.
Her friends get their own arcs. Hallie is a chef with a bullying boss and a fiancé from an old-money family. Kate is an influencer whose income rests on a debutante persona she outgrew years ago. Both are good company, and Hallie in particular gets the most satisfying turn in Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher.
The comedy is better than the premise suggests. Tessa thinks in campaigns, so when she spots her handsome client outside a historic storefront she drafts a tourism slogan and then a cologne voiceover in his name before tripping on a broken paving slab. Her sabotage fantasies about the golf-loving rival rarely go further than a wedgie. It keeps a book about real disappointments from tipping into self-pity.
What Book Club Confidential Knows About Brothers
The thread that surprised us, and the one that lifts the book above a breezy comfort read, is Tessa's family.
Her birth mother drank and drifted out of her life when she was small. Her father remarried when she was thirteen, and her stepmother died of breast cancer three years later, leaving him with a grieving twelve-year-old stepson and a daughter who decided, at sixteen, that the kindest thing she could do was need nothing. That stepbrother, Devin, has spent most of his adult life disappearing, crashing and coming home. Now he is back again, and her father wants a family dinner.
The dinner is the best extended scene in Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher. Rigatoni and fried chicken, her favorites. Tessa offers to open the wine, goes to the cabinet where bottles have always waited for family nights, and finds the shelves empty. Nobody has ever said the word addiction in that house before, and the empty cabinet says it for them. The mantra she uses to get through the evening, that she can love her brother and hate the way he has lived, is the closest thing the novel has to a thesis.
Hatcher is brave enough to let Tessa be wrong. Her suspicion of Devin is earned by years of disappointment, and it still misfires, and the book makes her own that. It builds toward a conversation with her father about which child got looked after when the family was grieving, and it is written with real restraint. If you take one thing from this novel to your own book club, take that scene.
Where Book Club Confidential Gives Ground
The antagonists are drawn in one shade. The young rival steals ideas, runs up the company card and condescends to clients; the boss turns from mentor to bully in a single meeting; a future mother-in-law exists to sneer. None of them is allowed a reason.
The office plot is explained rather than dramatized. The answers to why certain people were hired and why the boss has been behaving so strangely arrive late, in one sitting, as gossip over coffee. It is tidy and it is flat.
Grant has no flaws to speak of. The former client who becomes Tessa's love interest brings dinner, reads her business plan, offers money and waits patiently. He is lovely. He is also the least interesting person in the book, because there is nothing to resolve.
The ending pays everyone. A novel whose first half argues persuasively that change costs something spends its last fifty pages handing out rewards, and the two-years-later coda of Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher ties every remaining bow.
Content Notes
What Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher carries, briefly. An alcoholic mother who vanished. A stepbrother's addiction, rehab and recovery. A stepmother's death from cancer, in the past. A parent's medical emergency, on the page. Workplace sexism and intimidation. Intimate photos shared online without consent after a wardrobe malfunction. Heavy social drinking and frequent swearing. Heat level: closed door, kisses only.
The Last Word
The novel is dedicated to book clubs that have become lifelines, and that is exactly what it is about. The romance is pleasant, the career plot is fun when it is being specific and thin when it is being resolved, but the reason to read Book Club Confidential by Julie Hatcher is three women on a group call at midnight, telling each other the truth and then showing up anyway.
Read it with the friends who would tell you to quit. Then argue about whether they were right.
October 23, 2026
“Book Club Confidential” by Julie Hatcher
🎧 Format: Audiobook
🎙️ Narrator: Jorjeana Marie
📚 Pub Date: 10.01.26
⭐️ Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Stars
“Book Club Confidential” by Julie Hatcher is a fabulous story of female empowerment, deep friendships, comedic drama and romance.
Tessa, Kate & Hallie are the last 3 ladies left in a decade old Book Club, where each woman reads their own choice of book, then they get together to discuss the books that they’ve independently read. During a book club discussion, the three best friends realize that they are feeling unhappy with their own lives. Tessa urges their friend group to challenge the status quo in each of their lives.
They resolve to become the heroines of their own stories and they call it “Main Character Energy”. They decide that for 30 days they each will make the choices that the Main Characters in their books would make. Big, bold, and life-changing decisions. Together they participate in this challenge in order to help hold each other accountable.
But living life with “Main Character Energy” is surprisingly more complicated than any of them realize. As their lives are shaken up by the choices that they’ve made with their newfound determination and confidence, they could never have imagined the fallout. At many times throughout this story, I alternated between laughing out loud and feeling my heart ache for each of these ladies. I so loved their friendship circle and the deep commitment these three ladies felt to each other.
I listened to this book by audiobook and I loved the narrator, Jorjeana Marie, tremendously. I highly recommend reading this book by audiobook!
Thank you to Julie Hatcher, NetGalley & Brilliance Publishing for the Advance Review Copy. All opinions are my own.
#BookClubConfidential
#JulieHatcher
#JorjeanaMarie
#NetGalley
#BrilliancePublishing
🎧 Format: Audiobook
🎙️ Narrator: Jorjeana Marie
📚 Pub Date: 10.01.26
⭐️ Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Stars
“Book Club Confidential” by Julie Hatcher is a fabulous story of female empowerment, deep friendships, comedic drama and romance.
Tessa, Kate & Hallie are the last 3 ladies left in a decade old Book Club, where each woman reads their own choice of book, then they get together to discuss the books that they’ve independently read. During a book club discussion, the three best friends realize that they are feeling unhappy with their own lives. Tessa urges their friend group to challenge the status quo in each of their lives.
They resolve to become the heroines of their own stories and they call it “Main Character Energy”. They decide that for 30 days they each will make the choices that the Main Characters in their books would make. Big, bold, and life-changing decisions. Together they participate in this challenge in order to help hold each other accountable.
But living life with “Main Character Energy” is surprisingly more complicated than any of them realize. As their lives are shaken up by the choices that they’ve made with their newfound determination and confidence, they could never have imagined the fallout. At many times throughout this story, I alternated between laughing out loud and feeling my heart ache for each of these ladies. I so loved their friendship circle and the deep commitment these three ladies felt to each other.
I listened to this book by audiobook and I loved the narrator, Jorjeana Marie, tremendously. I highly recommend reading this book by audiobook!
Thank you to Julie Hatcher, NetGalley & Brilliance Publishing for the Advance Review Copy. All opinions are my own.
#BookClubConfidential
#JulieHatcher
#JorjeanaMarie
#NetGalley
#BrilliancePublishing
October 7, 2026
I picked up Book Club Confidential through Amazon First Reads and really loved it. Maybe it’s my mood right now, or maybe empowered women just make me happy—either way, this one hit the spot.
I loved their friendships, their trials, and their persistence. There’s something so satisfying about women finding their strength and showing up for each other while navigating their own messy lives.
A super easy read that felt warm and cozy. Exactly what I needed right now. 📚👯♀️💪☕️
I loved their friendships, their trials, and their persistence. There’s something so satisfying about women finding their strength and showing up for each other while navigating their own messy lives.
A super easy read that felt warm and cozy. Exactly what I needed right now. 📚👯♀️💪☕️
September 16, 2026
3.5 rounding down. This was a free prime first read for September. I loved the premise of the book. Three friends in their thirtys meet weekly for Book club. Each are unhappy in either their professional careers or their relationships so they decide that for the next 30 days they will live life as the courageous heroines in their books. What ensues is an entertaining read of standing up to patriarchy and bullies with at first unfortunate and sometimes hilarious results. I also loved the friendship between the 3 friends as they supported each other through the process. What turned me off a bit, was the author's tendency to over-explain the inner workings of their minds. A conversation between two people took forever because you had to read what one of them was thinking about before each response. Once one of the girls gets 5 text messages from her dad and we had to read half a page of all the wild things going through her head that these texts could be about before she finally opens the texts to read! I also found that one of the girl's situations seemed rather unbelievable as to why she was planning a wedding with someone who she spoke about so negatively and who treated her with such disdain. Overall, a quick entertaining read for something in between heavier reads.
October 13, 2026
2026 page turners book club pick #29
a very millennial-ly written book with some good themes / moments interspersed
a very millennial-ly written book with some good themes / moments interspersed
Review of advance copy
This was such a fantastic read. At so many points it made me think of my own path, an I living as my own main character. I was in tears for the journey of these women and the happiness and growth they experienced.
October 13, 2026
I feel like I should know better than to fall for the “bookish” gimmick by now — because this book has almost nothing to do with a book club or books in general. This book was a big nothing burger, full of women who let people walk all over them, and who fumble their way to barely a modicum of self empowerment. I wanted to DNF before the halfway point, but kept thinking maybe it would get better. Sadly, it’s just not enjoyable to read about women in their thirties with the self-esteem of awkward teenagers. They struggle with problems that have obvious solutions, but the writing makes it seem like those solutions never even occur to them until they reach a breaking point. It’s hard to cheer on a character for finally making the right decision when she acts like a complete idiot in the long lead-uo. A frustrating read, to say the least!
Many thanks to Brilliance Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC and share my honest feedback!
Many thanks to Brilliance Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC and share my honest feedback!
September 11, 2026
3 ladies who have known each other since college still
Meet up once a week for their Bookclub.
One member decides to be the heroine of her own story the others join in. Let’s if bad and then good things happen during their month.
Lighthearted read.
I got the book as the author was my
Mothers name
Meet up once a week for their Bookclub.
One member decides to be the heroine of her own story the others join in. Let’s if bad and then good things happen during their month.
Lighthearted read.
I got the book as the author was my
Mothers name
September 29, 2026
I really wanted to like this book, and especially Hallie, but yikes on the ChatGPT thing. Immediate DNF.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Julie Hatcher, the Author of “Book Club Confidential” has written a thought-provoking, heartfelt, and memorable novel. Have you ever heard the expression, “What goes on in Book Club Stays in Book Club?” Three close friends meet for drinks, discussions, and books at their small book club. Kate, is an influencer with a huge following, and is tired of pretending, and wants more, especially love for her life. Tessa, is the people pleaser, and goes the extra mile to make everything perfect for everyone else. When she feels betrayed and overlooked at work, she is frustrated. Hallie, loves preparing food, and is also preparing for a wedding in a few weeks,and is ambivalent. The three women make a pact for 30 days to become the “heroine” in their own books, and change the script. Of course, what follows is an emotional, and difficult transition with certain problems.
Julie Hatcher vividly describes the characters, the plot, and scenery in this well written, delightful and enjoyable novel. She writes with wit, empathy and compassion. This is truly a wonderful book about women friendship. This also is a book that can make one think about their lives, and they do have the chance to try and change their expectations, and circumstances. I highly recommend this entertaining novel.
Julie Hatcher vividly describes the characters, the plot, and scenery in this well written, delightful and enjoyable novel. She writes with wit, empathy and compassion. This is truly a wonderful book about women friendship. This also is a book that can make one think about their lives, and they do have the chance to try and change their expectations, and circumstances. I highly recommend this entertaining novel.
October 14, 2026
Tessa, Kate, and Hallie are the last remaining members of their book club, yet they are all facing troubles in their lives. So they decide to take a page from the books they read and bring 𝘔𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘌𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘺 into their lives, at least for a month.
As readers, it's not a stretch to wonder how one of our main characters might handle a situation, right? Here, these ladies made decisions on jobs, perfectionism, and even relationships based on what a main character from their books might do. They found it harder than they first thought.
This cute book shows the importance of female friendships and having people who support you. I enjoyed their conversations and listening to the advice they imparted to one another. While I sometimes wanted to shake these ladies as I questioned their choices, I ultimately think they ended up where they needed to be.
Thank you @suzyapprovedbooktours and @julieannehatcher for this gifted book.
As readers, it's not a stretch to wonder how one of our main characters might handle a situation, right? Here, these ladies made decisions on jobs, perfectionism, and even relationships based on what a main character from their books might do. They found it harder than they first thought.
This cute book shows the importance of female friendships and having people who support you. I enjoyed their conversations and listening to the advice they imparted to one another. While I sometimes wanted to shake these ladies as I questioned their choices, I ultimately think they ended up where they needed to be.
Thank you @suzyapprovedbooktours and @julieannehatcher for this gifted book.
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