From the back of the audio case: Ordinarily, a coming-of-age novel is about a young person on the brink of adulthood. Nancy Thayer has written a coming-of-age novel about four women on the brink of menopause – the “Hot Flash Club.” These women have skills, smarts, and secrets, but they’re all feeling over the hill and generally in a bad way. By chance, however, they meet, and not only do they find themselves discussing the end of their reproductive lives, but they also have much to share on the topics of motherhood, sex, and men. Chocolate cake is their preferred social stimulant, and double helpings are the rule. Forks firmly in hand, they create a world for themselves in which their age becomes one of possibilities, and in which they can help each other and themselves.
Read by: Carrington McDuffie
My thoughts: I’ve read/listened to a few of Nancy Thayer’s books so far and have really come to like her style. When I was looking for a new audio, I came across The Hot Flash Club and thought I would give it a try. I’m so glad I did! Even though I am not quite at the point these women are, I still enjoyed the book.
The Hot Flash Club is a fun, quirky story of four women who happen to meet by chance at a retirement party. They are all quite different – there’s a science professor, a personnel director, a massage therapist and an artist. What ensues after this initial meeting is plans for the four women to help each other out with the problems they have right now in their lives. Some of this involves some pretty crazy schemes, but seems to work out for them in the end. There are even some touching moments throughout all the hilarity of the story.
I’m looking forward to picking up the rest of the books in this series and I hope they all prove to be as humorous as the first one. Have you read any of this series? Have you read any of Nancy Thayer’s other books?
Audio Notes: I found this to be a great book to listen to – the humor kept the story moving along and the narrator, Carrington McDuffie, did a great job distinguishing each of the four main characters.
(I borrowed this audio book from the library.)
Books in this series:
- The Hot Flash Club
- The Hot Flash Club Strikes Again
- Hot Flash Holidays
- The Hot Flash Club Chills Out
This does sound like a lot of fun! Carrington McDuffie did a great job narrating The Paris Wife, so I'd happily listen to her again. Thanks for the recommendation.
I've listened to her before – she also did The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker and Knit the Season by Kate Jacobs.
Oh, I loved Carrington McDuffie in THE LITTLE GIANT OF ABERDEEN COUNTY, this sounds like a fun listen.
I liked her reading of The Paris Wife so I'll definitely look for this audiobook (I am in the right demographic *grin*). I didn't know it was part of a series!