I pondered this book for a few days unsure how to review it. I thought the premise of understanding the desire of women would be insightful. Having just read Supper Club (a brilliant novel on a similar vein) I was keen to dig in. I found, instead, a highly descriptive book of three American women and the mess they made of their love lives. What it tells me of a woman's desire is that chasing after a married man and doing anything you can to keep him is not the best way to happiness. It reads more like a book on misery than desire even if much of it was akin to soft porn.

I was on the side of our three women - Maggie, Lena and Sloan - and, initially, wanted to see where their stories went. As the book progressed my interest turned to pity then out and out disgust. It's not about desire at all but, rather, choices and what happens when women ignore life lessons of right and wrong and fail to take responsibility. Even Maggie, as a 17 year old, knows the difference between right and wrong but, having chosen wrong, spent years ruminating over her lost love after she was spurned. We have all had our hearts broken and we get over it and move on. Yes, what happened to her should have never happen but she was a willing, eager party to it. I did finish the book because I wanted to see how her trial ended. It concluded much as you would expect when a teacher of high regard is accused by a young woman of wrong doing. 

I could not stomach Lena and the reek of desperation coming off her. Sloane was a more well rounded character but she didn't get to the crux of her issues until the end when she said she was simply doing what her husband wanted. 

What was solid and helped the book immensely was the writing style. It read easily, like a novel, and, though too floral, it's descriptive elements did go beyond the requirement. Everyday items were described to the Nth degree as was the copious amounts of sex. Lena was the worst offender by a country mile. Cadbury eggs... oh, dear.

I struggled with this book and the themes were not really something I enjoy reading about so I did not finish it.

Thanks for letting me review this book

This, I found, was not as promised and not a particularly satisfying read. I thought  this would be more entertaining instead of weird and Whiney. I felt like maybe the author had an agenda that I didn’t quite get. For large parts of this I was bored!

Sexual practices in various forms are the focus in this book as we follow the experiences and their consequences of the three featured women. It was hard to read as their times and histories are intermingled and sequences are juggled so that the reader has some readjustments to make in order  to comprehend which woman, when and why. There are many detailed sexual scenes which the reader needs to be comfortable with as content. 
It requires perseverance to read on to the end to achieve some understanding of the outcomes of the behaviour. Overall it is a unique and interesting read.

"Three Women” is a piece of non-fiction that reads like the most racy fiction - desire, illicit encounters, forbidden love. It is an extraordinary look at the existence of three women in contemporary America, delving into their lives over a decade, combining interviews, emails and various records. The advertising campaign intrigued me (and what a beautiful cover!) and I could not wait to read the book.

It reads like a good fiction, a page-turner. The narrative switches back and forth between three stories - but all three of them are equally compelling. You would be dying to find out what happens next. Sadly, or maybe as expected, as in real life - life just goes on.

Lisa Taddeo isn’t here to hold your hand through the narrative and make sure you understand the purpose of telling these stories. These reports stand on their own and what you take from them varies.

Interesting, but did not blow my socks off.

Although this book is non-fiction and it starts in a journalistic style, I was soon engrossed in the three women’s stories, which read like a novel and totally engaged me. Fortunately I was on holiday and could spend time with it. 
All three woman were so real, and were brave to share their stories. All so different but with similarities in the way their dreams and desires led to unhappiness and, at times, exploitation. 
Not always an easy read, Three Women is a book I will be recommending to all my female friends. It is enlightening and could even be seen as liberating. I see this as a potentially important book, and I hope it sells really well. 
Thank you so much for the opportunity to read and review #ThreeWomen #NetGalley I was impressed and touched.

My thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing U.K. for an eARC via NetGalley of Lisa Taddeo’s highly anticipated ‘Three Women’ in exchange for an honest review.

In her opening Author’s Note Lisa Taddeo outlines her approach to researching ‘Three Women’ and how she spent eight years meticulously documenting the lives of these three American women. 

High school student Maggie had been groomed by her married teacher. When he ends their relationship she is devastated. Five years later she brings the matter to the police and becomes a local pariah when the case comes to court.

Lina is in a loveless marriage though after she reconnects with an old flame she begins a passionate affair with him. Finally, Sloane has struggled with eating disorders and is married to a man who enjoys watching her having sex with other men. 

Taddeo moves between each of the women’s accounts which worked fine for me as it allowed some comparisons between their evolving situations.

The focus is almost exclusively on their sex lives. I can understand the fascination of such a frank examination but realised that my own experience of relationships and my sexuality has been quite different. 

Therefore, it was hard at times to feel much of a connection with them especially given the passivity exhibited by the women. Maybe it is due to being of a different generation or just my temperament and upbringing. 

It does flow well and reads more like a work of fiction to the point that I had to remind myself on occasion that these were real people. Of the three women I found that I was most drawn to Maggie due to her vulnerability.

It was an okay read but didn’t live up to the buzz. It was just too depressing contemplating the sense of how unfulfilling love proved to be for these women.

# Three Women # Netgalley 
I can’t say I particularly enjoyed this book, at first I read the synopsis and I actually thought it really would be interesting. To a certain degree it was. I just found it very hard going. It was a book that seemed to be a bit all over the place. Truthfully I did finish it, but only just. Sorry it’s how I perfect felt. Had it been written better without hopping here there and everywhere. It could have been a excellent book. Not in its present format. Would I recommend no

I really liked the idea of this book as an exploration of somewhat ordinary women's sex lives and Taddeo's investment in her subjects' lives. Unfortunately, I found her writing style to be infuriating. There were a lot of metaphors and similies and what I felt was over-written description. The tense switching I found disconcerting, especially the sections in second person. The stories of inequality and powerless were, to me, undermined by these stylistic decisions.

Whilst I do appreciate that this book is not fiction, it read like fiction to me. Not because of the details that the book covered but the way that the book was written. Not only did I find the style and tone of the book to be more like a story told by one person but found it challenging many times when, half a page further on, i noticed the book was now relating the story of a different one of those Three Women. The attempt to write down the modus vivendi for the women, in my eyes at least, failed. This is not a book that I would recommend to anyone. Whilst my view does fly in the face of the opinion of the many, to me it is a book trying too hard to be "clever".

As soon as I'd finished the first page of this incredible work of non-fiction, I knew I was about to embark on something special.  Lisa Taddeo spent a long time interviewing three women; Maggie - groomed by her school teacher in the cruelest of ways; Sloane - encouraged by her husband to have sex with other men and women, whilst he watches; and Lina - married to Ed for 10 years, but he has never even kissed her.  The book flits from one character to another, each chapter has its own mini cliff hanger which keeps you on the edge until that character's story comes round again.  It was brilliant, a real page turner and a complete eye opener into the lives of these very special women.  I was only sorry that it had to come to an end.

This book has been really well written and well researched. It is just not my cup of tea. Sorry.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

This book was absolute brilliance! Loved every minute of it. It's one of those non-fiction books that reads like fiction.
It's the story of 3 unrelated women over some years. Lina is in an unhappy marriage when she reconnects with her first love. Sloan, married with 2 kids looks for some sexual adventures outside her marital bed, sometimes even with her husband. And Sloan is in an affair with her teacher, which puts him in trouble. 

All these stories involve themes of love & sex, expectations from live and relationships. Of course, it's presented alongside the complexities of their lives, families, history, characters. It's a very well written non-fiction, very impactful, looking at these 3 modern women. Very sharp, unapologetic and interesting. I'd highly recommend it.

Thanks a lot to Netgalley and the publisher for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was dubious about starting this book as I wasnt sure the writing style or what it would bring to me however shortly after starting I realised how beautiful Taddeos writing style is and what the book is about - desire.
Each of the three womans stories are thought-provoking and insightful. They each speak so powerfully you cannot help but be moved by their tables. Taddeo lays these women bare and examines their every thought in such a non-judgemental and insightful way that I found this non fiction tale to be as gripping as any fiction I have read.

Loved this book and will be recommending to family and friends.

“Three Women” is an intense look at the lives of 3 women, delving into their lives over an 8 year period, where they have been interviewed in their home towns. It intrigued me as it was an intimate look at their thoughts and desires, rather like reading someone’s diary. 

The 3 women live in different areas, are different ages and social classes, yet they still have the same desires and hopes for the future.

I couldn’t help love Maggie, Sloanne and Lina and even though they chose paths that I wouldn’t have, you are totally drawn into their lives. The way these women act in relationships and how the author portrays it in a non judgemental way means you can relate to their stories in one way or another.

A compelling book that made me think about how I am in a relationship and how my past has influenced my present choices. 

This book will stay with me for a long time after reading it, as I think about the courage they had in revealing the true essence of themselves and hope wherever they are, they find contentment.

If you want something different this is the book for you. Beautifully written with its raw honesty, it made me laugh, cry and shout out in despair. Every woman should read this book!!

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for a review.

At times it was difficult to remember that these three women were real and that this was a work of fact not fiction.
After eight years of research, following these women, talking with them and recording their thoughts and aspirations, Lisa Taddeo has produced a truly inspiring book.  

Shocking at times but totally absorbing.

A fascinating, insightful, honest and visceral book.  A frank and forthright telling of three women's sexual lives and the role their formative years played in making them the women they are.

Not always an easy read but a book that needs to be read if only to pull you up on the judgements you make regarding other peoples lives and lifestyles.  I often found myself questioning my own position as reader and voyeur on these women lives but Maggie, Lina and Sloane's voices are so clear and well presented and with such compassion by Lisa that this book steers clear of being salacious.

Three Women is like nothing I've ever read before, a gripping, unflinching account that kept me riveted from start to finish. It is beautifully written and brutally honest. It forced me to think long and hard about my own relationship and the reactions i have had to other women and their choices. I related most closely to Lina but I believe Maggie's story is the most interesting because of the huge injustice at the heart of it. If I have any criticisms they would be just two. Firstly that the women are not fully rounded out as personalities; I understand this is because the focus is on desire and the impact it has had on their lives. Even so, I felt interested to know more about their characters. Secondly, there is not much closure and in particular I wondered for Maggie and Lina, what happened next? All in all, fantastic, original, thought-provoking work and highly recommended.

I absolutely adore this book. Moving, mesmerizing and totally devastating, I never wanted it to end. My non-fiction book of the year - more from Lisa Taddeo, please.

I did wonder if I was reading a different book to everyone else. All those glowing reviews, but it didn't do it for me.
This was the true stories of three women, one of whom was “groomed” by her teacher, another was in a sexless marriage and the third in a form of open marriage.
The link to all these was that they were coerced. 
I found that skipping between the three stories difficult. It would have been much easier to have told each one in full. You would start to get into the story when it changed and you had to remember them all as you were going along. It broke the rhythm for me.
The build up to each story took a long time and made for quite harrowing and distressing reading.
It was all very well written, but made for a truly depressing read.