If Books are one of your favourite things, you are in the right place! Me too. When you read the right one, at the right time it can feel magical. Have a look at these 6 books I have been reading/ listening to over the last 12 months (and before), that may help to whatever you are feeling right now.

Whether its fiction and you want to escape, factual or self help, when you get a good book there is nothing better.

Each one offers something different. Clarity, action, understanding, or cosy story to relax to. Together, they may help you make sense of change and move through it with more ease.

I have linked some of the books below to make things easy if one calls to you. (Some of these are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you decide to buy (at no extra cost to you, and you will be supporting independent bookshops to stay open). I only ever share books I truly love and come back to.

1. Wise Women by Sharon Blackie

This first book is amazing especially if you love folklore, myth, and traditional fairytales. Sharon Blackie places women back at the centre of stories that have long shaped our childhoods and how we see ourselves.

Across these tales, female figures appear as elders, healers, wild women, protectors, and truth-speakers. The book reclaims characters often reduced to the “wicked witch” and restores their depth, intelligence, and purpose. These women hold knowledge of nature, cycles, boundaries, and transformation. They take back control of themselves and they choose solitude when needed.

I have a love of fairytales, mythology and folklore and this book explores in more depth the old archetypes such the wicked witch, the evil stepmother, and explains them in a more three dimensional way.

These stories carry patterns that still play out in modern life, especially for women moving through midlife. It feels like many of the stories, albeit written in an old fashioned style, will resonate very much with todays audience, particularly with us midlife women. Themes of leaving behind old identities, stepping into autonomy, and reclaiming your voice run all the way through this lovely book.

Being able to read the tales and then see the authors point of view and explanation after each, opens up a whole new world in how we may, in future, retell these stories and view the women in them.

This book offers a clear and steady message to women to hold their wisdom. That wisdom is earned and deserves to be lived openly, fully, and without apology.

I read this book a little at a time, and the way it is structured is perfect to dip in and out of. If this sounds like you would love it, then you can find it at most good bookshops or you can listen on audible.

2. Your Mind, Your Rules by Marisa Peer.

   
   

I'm currently listening to this book on audible.

It's a focused guide to reclaiming

authority over your thoughts and emotional patterns. It centres on the idea that the mind responds to the language you give it, and that repetition and belief, can change your experience.

I have followed Marisa Peer for a while, and love her approach to the mind.

She introduces practical techniques from her Rapid Transformational Therapy approach. She emphasises the power of precise self-talk, encouraging statements to be used consistently until they feel embedded rather than aspirational.

The book explores how the brain accepts repeated messages as truth, and how changing those messages reshapes confidence, habits, and self-worth. There is a clear thread through the book, that states, the mind listens, absorbs, and acts on what it is told.

This is not just simply a book about affirmations though.

A unique strength of this book is its simplicity in application. Exercises are short, direct, and easy to return to daily. Visualisation is used as a tool for solidifying these new beliefs, and there is a strong focus on linking words with emotion so the mind registers them more deeply.

Marisa Peer also touches on how early conditioning basically forms who we see ourselves as, our identity, and how consciously rewriting that identity creates lasting change.

This book is uplifting, and although is not dismissive of how complex some people's issues can be, I do enjoy the simple routines and practices that are offered so we can take transformation into our own hands. Really great for midlife when we are looking to make some changes and feel mentally more positive.

3) Rise Sister Rise by Rebecca Campbell

The book centres on awakening feminine energy through creativity, spiritual practice, and self-trust, with a strong focus on reclaiming parts of yourself that have been pushed aside due to life experience.

The author tells personal stories, combining grounded spiritual ideas, and practical exercises.

She explores themes like intuitive development, working with energy, and honouring your life cycles instead of trying to change them. This is something that we in midlife tend to forget at times. Our hormones can be so out of whack that we think cycles don't apply to us anymore, but they really do.

There are guided visualisations, journaling prompts, and rituals that feel accessible rather than just another thing to do. The tone feels like a conversation, almost a chat with a cup of tea, with someone who understands both the want for change and the uncertainty that can come with it.

What stands out is how the book reframes everyday moments as opportunities for connection. That could be connection to yourself or to the people and the world around.

Lighting a candle, pulling an oracle card, or spending time in stillness becomes a way to return to yourself. This aligns naturally with the ideas we have here at Black Cat Wellbeing, where small, intentional practices create a sense of magic in ordinary life.

This book also talks about recognising the moment when life no longer fits in the same way and invites you to listen instead of override that feeling. That is such an important message to hear in midlife, and reading this was extremely affirming.

There is an emphasis on trusting your inner voice and allowing your path to evolve, which supports the idea of rebuilding wellbeing from a place of genuinely finding what works for you, rather than expectation of what others think you should be doing. This book is such a gentle beautiful read, it's like a hug in a book, with a nudge to action.

4) Just F*cking Do It by Noor Hibbert

So If Rise Sister Rise is like a hug in a book, Just F*cking Do it is a massive kick up the arse! There is a time and place for both of those, and right now, I'm feeling the need for this. I read this book a year or so ago, and have come back to it again. It goes much deeper than just surface motivation, it’s a full reset of how you think, feel, and act.

For Black Cat wellbeing, I completely and fully resonate with Noor as she talks about not choosing between logic and magic, that there is place for both. Psychology and spirituality join hands and and help you move through the self doubt, in every sweary page.

She writes this book with a good helping of personal experience shining through. She has lived the life and experienced all of the practices she offers in the book.

Through the book she encourages readers to set intentions across multiple areas of life, spiritual, emotional, physical, financial etc. For me, this was an obvious thing to do, yet I hadn't done it. I had got to my age and just tried to keep on going. Don't get me wrong, many of us have tried here and there, to implement different strategies, and if you are reading this review, I'm sure you've tried more than once. Bur somehow, Noor makes it do-able, and practical and exciting, and that is the great value of this book.

The spiritual side runs all the way through the book and she leans into the Law of Attraction, energy, and what she calls “vibrational alignment”, but these ideas are always tied to taking some action. You’re encouraged to test it, ask for signs, raise your emotional state through gratitude, and trust that the “how” doesn’t need to be controlled.

There are also practical tools woven in, like EFT tapping which I love, journaling prompts that dig into uncomfortable truths, and exercises that push you to stop procrastinating and move immediately.

In case you didn't notice, I really like this book. Now just one caveat, if swearing and straight talking is not your vibe, you might want to swerve it, but I can say, that it works because its more conversational, and adds emphasis naturally to the concepts Noor is trying to speak about. Midlife can be a slow down, and that is absolutely OK, we all need that. This book, might just come to you at a time when you need to pick up the energy and get going. Enjoy!

If this sounds like something you would love to get your teeth into, then don't hesitate. The audible version is read by Noor and is fantastic as well.

5) The Menopause Brain by Dr Lisa Mosconi

Now this book definitely leans more into the medical and practical side of menopause. But instead of just focusing on the ovaries, Mosconi describes it as a process where the brain takes centre stage.

In order to combine the spiritual and the practical, it is so helpful to know the emerging science when trying to navigate yourself through this transition.

Mosconi, who has spent the best part of two decades researching and asking questions about womens brains, says the brain is packed with oestrogen receptors, so when oestrogen starts its decline in perimenopause, your brain notices before anything else. You feel the hot flushes, insomnia, brain fog and anxiety and she describes the as neurological events.

This matters a lot as we have traditionally been pushing on through without much validation and support from the medical profession.

This book covers not only the science, but the practical approaches like diet, HRT, exercise, sleep, in supporting brain health at this time.

What resonates with me is that Mosconi just gives us the information. There are no diet plans to follow no checklists, she gives you the information and lets you make informed decisions about what feels right for you.

She really aligns with our Black Cat Wellbeing vision, that menopause is not a deterioration, that if we understand what is happening we can support ourselves through it and come through it more "ourselves" than ever before.

Obviously, this is not a spiritual book, its firmly in the science camp, but I firmly believe there is room for both.

If you are looking for a book to explain the science behind Perimenopause and Menopause then this is definitely one of the better ones out there.

6) The Three Witches by Elena Collins

So the final book in this review, is this lovely fiction novel, with an obvious witchy theme. Its such a cosy and atmospheric dual time line story. If you want something to curl up with, a hot cup of tea and a cat on your lap, this is for you.

Let's start with the fact that delights me, Elena Collins, (the pen name behind this gorgeous novel) has three black cats! That's it, I'm sold !

"The Three Witches" weaves together two storylines separated by a thousand years. In the present day, a woman called Ruthie lands a role in a documentary, reimagining Shakespeare's Macbeth, playing one of the infamous Witches, and she goes to Scotland for some filming.

Meanwhile back in the 11th century Scotland, we meet Isobel and her two sisters, who are healers and have vast knowledge of plants remedies, making them an integral and respected part of their village. This knowledge, as we now know, made life very dangerous for them during that era, and vulnerable to be labeled a witch.

In the modern storyline, Ruthie is running away from a life that no longer fits her. There are expectations of relationships and work placed upon her and she doesn't want to feel like she is living for everyone else. She's at a crossroads.

The story unfolds as the past starts to reach out to Ruthie and the story of Isobel and her sisters demands to be told.

What I love about this story, apart from the atmosphere and the magical background, is that the theme is very much of women having been silenced, but somehow find their voice. The atrocities which were rained down on women over the centuries are well documented, and this book feels like it points to the importance of these stories being heard and protected, old wrongs being righted.

This is a genuinely wonderful read. If you are not used to dual timeline stories, then it can take a couple of chapters to settle into, but once you are there, well, I challenge you not to enjoy this lovely story.

So there you have it. Six books that are currently on rotation, which between them cover everything from the neuroscience of your changing brain, to the healing women who came before us, to the simple but radical act of finally putting yourself first. Whether you're a reach-for-the-science type or a curl-up-with-something-magical type, or, like most of us here, a glorious bit of both, there's something in this list for you.

Links to all six books are attached to the titles. Get yourself a brew, have a browse, and maybe treat yourself to something from the pile.

And if you enjoyed this, there's plenty more where it came from. Come and find me on Instagram for regular doses of menopause wisdom, a little bit of magic, and the occasional overshare. Have a wander around the rest of the site too, there are more blogs, more resources, and more things to make this chapter of life feel a little less chaotic and a lot more like yours.

Because that's what we're here for.

With love and a sprinkle of something witchy. Black Cat Wellbeing.

1) Wise Women - Sharon Blackie and Angharad Wynne

2)Your Mind, Your Rules - Marisa Peer

3) Rise Sister Rise - Rebecca Campbell

4) Just F*cking do it - Noor Hibbert

5) The Menopause Brain - Dr Lisa Mosconi

6) The Three Witches - Elena Collins