Yesteryear

Name: Yesteryear
Author: Caro Claire Burke

Caro Claire Burke

Want to read

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Reveal characters and locations as you read

3.8

Rating

400

Pages

Apr 7

Published

Mystery, Thriller & Horror

Genre

Good Morning America Book Club Pick

Mystery, Thriller & Horror · Literary Fiction

My name was Natalie Heller Mills, and I was perfect at being alive. Natalie lives a traditional lifestyle. Her charming farmhouse is rustic, her husband a handsome cowboy, her six children each more delightful than the last. So what if there are nannies and producers behind the scenes, her kitchen hiding industrial-grade fridges and ovens, her husband the heir to a political dynasty? What Natalie’s followers—all 8 million of them—don’t know won’t hurt them. And The Angry Women? The privileged, Ivy League, coastal elite haters who call her an antifeminist iconoclast? They’re sick with jealousy. Because Natalie isn’t simply living the good life, she’s living the ideal—and just so happens to be building an empire from it. Until one morning she wakes up in a life that isn’t hers. Her home, her husband, her children—they’re all familiar, but something’s off. Her kitchen is warmed by a sputtering fire rather than electricity, her children are dirty and strange, and her soft-handed husband is suddenly a competent farmer. Just yesterday Natalie was curating photos of homemade jam for her Instagram, and now she’s expected to haul firewood and handwash clothes until her fingers bleed. Has she become the unwitting star of a ruthless reality show? Could it really be time travel? Is she being tested by God? By Satan? When Natalie suffers a brutal injury in the woods, she realizes two things: This is not her beautiful life, and she must escape by any means possible. A gripping, electrifying novel that is as darkly funny as it is frightening, Yesteryear is a gimlet-eyed look at tradition, fame, faith, and the grand performance of womanhood.

Characters

Who you envision for each role

Reader-picked casting for Natalie Heller Mills

Natalie Heller MillsProtagonistAnne Hathaway

Caleb MillsMain characterWyatt Russell

Reader-picked casting for Clementine Mills

Clementine MillsMain characterSadie Sink

Amelia MillsSupportingAllison Janney

Meet six more characters once you start reading.

Locations

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Two more places open once you start reading.

Mood

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Three more photos open once you start reading.

Reviews

3.8 average· 1 review

Novelust user

Apr 12, 2026

4.0

Danggggg okay I get the hype. This book was WILD. Totally understandable how controversial it is, given it must trigger at least 80% of the US population. Thankfully since I have zero identity overlap with the main character, I was able to enjoy this book as pure entertainment (which oh boy, was it). Looks like it’s already in production at Amazon which is no surprise - this story completely jumps off the page and nails a half dozen different pop culture obsessions.