Earlier this year, our team decided to start a quarterly book club. Each quarter, we’re tasked with reading a new book within a new genre before getting together to discuss. Not only has this been a welcomed mid-day work break when it comes around, but it’s also given each of us an opportunity to excel in our reading goals for the year. Plus, having an excuse to spend quality time as coworkers discussing something besides our daily tasks has been a great bonding experience.
Having been a part of our Everymom team book club (and several others), I can’t recommend it enough. Nothing really compares to finishing a book and wanting to discuss every little detail about it with the people around you. What’s even better is when they’ve also read it and are equally as excited to discuss it.
If you’ve been considering starting a book club or have participated in one for a while, you may need some fresh book suggestions. That’s why we polled our editors to compile a list of the best book club books to consider for your own gathering. These suggestions span several genres, but have one very important thing in common: they are unputdownable and demand to be discussed. Read on for 11 of our best book club book recommendations.
11 of the Best Book Club Books
A recent Everymom book club pick that did not disappoint—especially when it came time to discuss! We love a novel that makes us wonder: What would I do in this situation? Emma was lucky enough to have two great loves of her life: Sam, her adoring, ever-supportive fiancé, and her late husband, Jesse, who was lost at sea three years ago. As she's beginning to plan a new life with Sam, Jesse is found alive. Now she must choose between the two people she loves most.
"For me, this book was the ultimate page-turner as it is reminiscent of an infamous unsolved true crime case: the Austin yogurt shop murders. Anyone interested in true crime, or thriller novels in general, ought to suggest this as their next book club pick!" —Brett Hayden, Editorial Assistant
On New Year’s Eve in 1999, some are expecting the end of the world—others, not so much. But no one could have predicted that four Blockbuster workers in New Jersey would be attacked, leaving only one alive. As the years go by, the case remains unsolved. Now, 15 years later, teenage employees are attacked at a local ice cream shop and, again, only one remains. The lives of those involved are changed forever, and one brave FBI Agent takes it upon herself to solve both cases once and for all.
"You’ve probably seen this book everywhere—and for good reason! Evelyn’s story will keep you hooked until the very last page." —Julia Poulter, Senior Managing Editor
Movie star and icon Evelyn Hugo is no stranger to the spotlight—but no one truly knows her story. When she finally decides to open up through a memoir, she brings in a budding author to detail her life, career, her seven marriages, and her true love.
"No need to schedule your book club meeting months in advance with this one. It’s so good, everyone will breeze through it!" —Brett Hayden, Editorial Assistant
The most enjoyable thrillers leave you guessing until the bitter end—and this is totally the case with this masterpiece by Mary Kubica. Eleven years ago, Shelby Tebow went missing. A short time after, Meredith Dickey and her young daughter, Delilah, also go missing from just a few blocks away. The cases go cold until Delilah surprisingly returns. As the town begins to seek answers, they could never prepare themselves for what they find out.
As one of the most highly-anticipated books of 2023 and a Reese’s Book Club pick, this book is sure to not disappoint.
From the author who brought us Babel comes this sharp tale of secrets, lies, and consequences. Author June Hayward isn't seeing the success she expected, but when her biggest competitor, Athena Liu, unexpectedly passes away, June sees an opportunity. She steals Athena's latest novel about the Chinese laborers' efforts in World War I. She even takes on a new name and look of a writer with an ambiguous ethnic background. How long can June keep her secret, and what exactly is the price of her success?
True Crime enthusiasts know the name Paul Holes well. The celebrated detective who helped bring the Golden State Killer to justice shares stories of his life and career in this one-of-a-kind memoir. Read about how the world of solving true crime cases takes a toll on an individual and his family in this tell-it-all true-life tale.
"The women in my family used to do a book club, which made for a lot of varying interests and reading tastes. In the year that we did it, this was far and away the favorite and most crowd-pleasing book pick. We read the first book together, but almost everyone continued on with the series and we just kept talking about it. It’s a fantasy book that is very fast paced, so there weren’t any people losing interest throughout the month. This is a great pick for fantasy lovers and fantasy newcomers alike." —Jessica Welsh, Commerce Editor
"This is a great first book club book pick if you’re just starting to get your feet wet. It's a heartfelt, quick, and easy read by well-known author Rebecca Serle that everyone is sure to have their own opinions on." —Brett Hayden, Editorial Assistant
In perhaps the most unexpected love story ever, we’re posed with the question: where do you see yourself in five years? For Dannie Kohan, the answer is simple. She’ll have a happy marriage with her now fiancé, be working a straightforward job, and she will be content with each and every day being highly predictable. That is, until one day she goes to sleep and wakes up to find herself in someone else’s bed, a different man beside her, and five years in the future. After one hour spent in the future, she’s thrown back into the present with questions, confusion, and guilt.
"I flew through this book (couldn’t put it down!) and was so captivated by the plot. I’ve recommended it to so many friends since reading it!" —Julia Poulter, Senior Managing Editor
Somewhere between life and death is a library that houses endless possibilities. One book details life as you know it, but every other is full of endless possibilities. When Nora Seed finds herself in the library, she must figure out what truly matters in life.
We’ve all faced our fair share of ‘what ifs’ in our lives. In this book, author Alisha Fernandez Miranda is determined to not be haunted by hers. Instead, she takes time off of her demanding consulting job and leaves her home in London to spend a year exploring the dream jobs she once had. Follow along as she tries things many of us may only ever dream of, and start dreaming about your very own ‘what if’s’ along the way.
Fantasy and history fans, rejoice! Another recent Everymom editor book club pick is this tale filled with magic and fierce women. The year is 1893 and the once-celebrated practice of magic has been outlawed and almost forgotten in New Salem. That is, until three sister witches join the suffrage movement. What begins as a war for women's rights turns into a fight for the return of magic.
