Yesteryear: A GMA Book Club Pick: A Novel

A GMA BOOK CLUB PICK • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A traditional American woman, a “tradwife” influencer, suddenly awakens in the brutal reality of 1855—where she must unravel whether this living nightmare is an elaborate hoax, a twisted reality show, or something far more sinister in this sensational debut novel.

"A bold and biting satire, Yesteryear…will have you cackling and gasping right to the final page."
—Nita Prose, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid series


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.

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Published Apr 7, 2026

400 pages

Average rating: 8.14

51 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

Larry Burns
Apr 21, 2026
8/10 stars
A very strange journey!
DarS
Apr 14, 2026
4/10 stars
4.5 stars Previously published on Peeking Between the Pages (https://peekingbetweenthepages.com/2026/04/yesteryear-by-caro-claire-burke-audiobook.html) The first thing that caught my attention with this novel was the title, but the description pulled me in immediately. A traditional wife with millions of social media followers, sharing her family life on a ranch, wakes up one morning and finds herself in the 1800’s. I was hooked from the very first chapter and flew through it. Natalie presents herself as the perfect traditional wife to her followers—the farmhouse, the six kids, and the very handsome, rugged husband—but no one sees what’s really going on behind the scenes. If they did, they’d see the nannies, the production crew, and all the help that keeps things running. Natalie also has a constant internal commentary, and a lot of it is sharp and unkind—directed at the people around her as well as the women who leave hateful comments online. It doesn’t seem to bother her though. She has everything she’s ever wanted… until suddenly she doesn’t. When she wakes up one morning, she finds herself in a life that is familiar, but definitely not hers. Her home, her husband, and her children are familiar—but something is off. Instead of modern conveniences, she’s expected to haul firewood to heat the house and wash clothes by hand. At first, she wonders if she’s somehow part of a crazy reality show or if she has time travelled somehow, but it quickly becomes clear that this is very real. She desperately needs to find a way back. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Rebecca Lowman, who is one of my favorites. She really brought Natalie to life and captured her personality perfectly. It’s a great audio production. This story delivers an interesting twist that I didn’t see coming, and it was a good one. I really enjoyed the inside look at the life of a tradwife and influencer, and just how big that world can become. At the same time, it also shows how quickly things can unravel. A fantastic read—highly recommended! Review copy provided by the publisher for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Stef01
Apr 12, 2026
3/10 stars
I was really looking forward to reading this book, the premise sounded so interesting. What happened? I'm giving it a higher rating than it actually deserved as the writing itself was decent and the story was well paced and interesting. Without putting any spoilers here, I feel it wrapped up in a very unsatisfactory way. There is some value in the many good talking points present for a book club discussion, however the more I think about it overall, the more I dislike it.

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