Finding an online book club is easier than ever. It may not offer physical kinship over a shared book, but it makes up for it with sheer variety—and there are heaps of ways to find the perfect online book club in 2025.
Social media continues to be a gathering place for book lovers. You don’t have to search too hard—type “book club,” your favorite genre, and the social platform you want to be on.
Facebook has both private and public book clubs for reading suggestions and discussions. Dedicated groups discuss specific genres and regularly host reading sessions. For instance, I stumbled upon a vibrant science fiction community on Facebook where we read and discussed classics like Dune alongside its movie adaptation.
Instagram, too, has bookish communities. Once you start searching, they will appear on your feed. You will come across the globally popular Reese Witherspoon book club and more specialized ones like Emma Watson’s book club for feminist literature.
As a bonus, I always enjoy participating in “Insta Book Club Live” sessions, where authors occasionally join to chat about their work.
Always read through the posting etiquette rules followed by each community. They can be different in each group.
2
Explore Niche Reading Apps
The popularity of reading apps contradicts the myth that people no longer read. Fable has become my favorite hunting ground for virtual book clubs and recommendations. It has taken over from Goodreads, which is still great for social book reading challenges, like the yearly Goodreads book challenge and joining book discussions.
Here are a few more reading apps for finding online book clubs:
There are plenty more niche book clubs, too.
3
Dive Into Genre-Specific Forums
Forums aren’t as flashy as apps or even as trending like Instagram and TikTok. But they remain a staple for book lovers. Think of your favorite genre, and you will find a forum that works like a book club.
Reddit can be your first port of call for finding them. So, Reddit’s r/books and r/suggestmeabook continue to be excellent resources for finding book clubs and recommendations. For book clubs, try a subreddit like r/bookclub. The community-driven nature of these subreddits and their crowdsourced wisdom will help you find interesting suggestions quickly.
I found BookTalk via Reddit. Genre-specific forums like SFFFWorld for science fiction have different subgenres or themes. Goodreads also has a variety of discussion boards on niche topics, such as the Catch-Up Book Club.
You can always do a regular search for book forums. My results with alternative search engines have been mixed, though Forum Scout returned good results.
Use Reddit search filters to narrow down the results. To cast a wider net, select Relevance and All Time.
4
Join Discord Servers
You will come across many Goodreads fan clubs on Discord. Instant messaging apps like Discord can host a large number of participants, and Admins can create separate channels as reading groups for specific books. Voice and audio calls are a plus for impromptu chats. A few public libraries even have Discord channels!
Follow these steps to search Discord for book clubs:
- Open Discord > Discover > Servers.
- Search with keywords like “book club,” “reading group,” or a specific genre.
- Browse through the results and join servers that interest you.
You can use Disboard.org to search public Discord servers tagged with “bookclub.” If you don’t find what you want on Disboard, try Discord.me instead and search for book-related servers. My tip is to start with a smaller Discord book club and see if it suits you.
Lost your reading habit? Try a Discord channel like booksandtea for a nudge.
5
Subscribe to Newsletters
Curated newsletters have become an excellent way to discover new book clubs and reading communities. Services like BookBrowse, BookRiot, and LitHub now offer specialized newsletters that recommend books and highlight active online book clubs.
You can subscribe to the authors’ newsletters discussed in your book club. Through these newsletters, I’ve found some of my favorite books, which are often works by underrepresented authors who get lost in the “bestselling” crowd.
I subscribe to two or three newsletters at a time, so they don’t clog my inbox. I prefer newsletters with monthly reading lists and discussion questions, which make it easy to participate in a book club without the commitment of daily interactions.
6
Use AI Recommendations
Did you know that ChatGPT can deliver better recommendations than Goodreads? A custom GPT like Books can search the web and return answers to your query. While its main job is to recommend books, you can also use it to find book clubs.
The Storygraph app uses artificial intelligence to track your reading habits and recommend books. Its Buddy Read feature is just what it sounds like—a mini-book club where you can read with friends. AI can suggest community members with whom to pair up.
Your favorite AI chatbot can even act as an intelligent reading partner. I try to understand difficult books (like Ulysses by James Joyce) with the help of ChatGPT. As ChatGPT is now interactive with voice, I can chit-chat with it. It’s nice to ask for help when you come across a challenging read.
Use AI’s help critically. While they can analyze and suggest, they cannot fully engage in deep discussions like a human-led book club.
7
Attend Virtual Literary Events
Many book festivals and literary events now offer an online face. They often encourage book club-style open discussions. Famous authors usually participate in such festivals, so it’s an excellent opportunity to chat with them.
Many online components of literary events may not follow the idea of a book club. Instead, they can be live Q&A sessions, workshops, networking events, or even an author-led training webinar. These events are an excellent way to find like-minded readers and (fellow) writers.
For instance, the Epigraph Literary Festival is a free biannual virtual event.
You can enjoy the Brooklyn Book Festival at their Virtual Festival Day from anywhere worldwide (though this is yet to be confirmed for 2025).
The National Book Festival, held by the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., focuses mainly on author talks. However, the festival offers video resources if you can’t attend in person.
So, finding the perfect online book club in 2025 is easier than ever. Social media discussions, AI-driven recommendations, or virtual book club platforms can meet diverse needs. Even if you are into niche genres (Biopunk, anyone?), there’s a digital community waiting for you.
