It’s always interesting to see which books become favored among book clubs. You can predict some by looking at bestseller lists, and others just by author name—and of course, these two things aren’t mutually exclusive. Then there are some books that just have all the makings of a “book club book.” They are emotionally meaty, take on some timely topic, or have maybe even secured a place for themselves on BookTok.
The books below have some mix of all of these things. There’s the latest by Ann Patchett, Tia Williams, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, and Maggie O’Farrell; as well as a unique sci-fi look at immigration and a Fourth Wing-esque romantasy based in Chinese mythology. I think Kin by Tayari Jones will continue its reign (it’s already one of my It Books of the entire year), but I’ve left it off this main list since I mentioned it in another list just a few weeks ago. The rest of the books are about to be mentioned everywhere, just like Jones’s latest.
Whistler by Ann Patchett
The official release date for this book is today, and it already has 940 ratings on Goodreads. The award-winning Patchett is no stranger to book clubs, so best believe her latest will be making the rounds. It follows Daphne Fuller, who, during an art museum visit with her husband, notices an older man following them. She learns the man is Eddie Triplette, her ex-stepfather, whom she hasn’t seen since he was still married to her mother when she was nine. Now that she is 53, she welcomes the man back into her life, and through their reunification, we see how profound special connections can be, no matter how seemingly short-lived they are. —Erica Ezeifedi
The Missed Connection by Tia Williams
As the most adventurous traveler of the zodiac, Sagittarius will love globetrotting romance The Missed Connection by bestselling author Tia Williams. Sasha doesn’t have the time and energy for relationships with her fast-paced career as a casting agent. But there’s something about the handsome Italian man she sits next to on a flight to Paris that she just can’t shake. The trouble is, they didn’t exchange contact info, and Sasha has no clue how to find him. When an email she meant to send to a work friend accidentally goes out to her entire company, Sasha’s search for Mr. Seat F turns into a global affair. —Susie Dumond
Land by Maggie O’Farrell
O’Farrell’s 2020 release, Hamnet, had a moment years ago, and I’d argue that it’s having a moment again since its film adaptation became an award-show darling. In Land, it’s 1865 when Tomás and his 10-year-old son Liam are working for the Ordnance Survey project to map Ireland. While Tomás hopes the work will mean recording the depth of the tragedy of the Great Hunger, an unpleasant experience he has in the bush steers his entire life trajectory off track. Now, the British soldiers in charge of the survey project are set to arrive at any time, and the change in his father means young Liam will have to finish the work and get them home. —Erica Ezeifedi
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The Intrigue by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Silvia Moreno-Garcia could write a guide on knitting sweaters for earthworms, and I’d be out here cheering, “Yesss, clothe the tiny invertebrates!” She has, of course, crafted an irresistible plot in a noir tale of desire, greed, and seduction. In 1940s Mexico, a handsome grifter charms women into giving him their money through letters. Intent on securing a bigger, more reliable bag when the letter scheme runs its course, he sets his sights on the owner of a boardinghouse in a small town in Veracruz. There are two holes in this plan: his intended victim’s niece clocks him right away and wants in on the scheme as a means to escape this small town, and his victim is not the gullible mark he thinks she is… —Vanessa Diaz
John of John by Douglas Stuart
Booker Prize winner Douglas Stuart delivers John of John, one of the most highly anticipated novels of the year, about a young man who returns to his home in the Hebrides islands to reckon with the tension between his family’s expectations and his own desires. —Rebecca Schinsky
Dominion by Jean Kwok
Rubi Morningtail has scant power, no homeland, and a bleak future as an Azure refugee ribbon dancer. Then she wounds a battle tyger, attracting the attention of the leader of the royal tyger warriors and supreme metal mage, Blake Axefire. For wounding the creature, Rubi is sentenced to the Bonding: a trial where tygers select their riders and the unselected die. Against all odds, she survives and becomes part of Blake’s team, resealing the demon realm. Now she has to discover the truth behind her magic and avoid her attraction to Blake before power or love destroys her life. I cannot wait to be enthralled by Kwok’s Chinese-inspired romantasy. —R. Nassor
Sublimation by Isabel J. Kim
This sci-fi look at immigration is sure to give many a book club much to discuss, because here, borders cut you in two. When you leave a country, a copy of you gets left behind, which is called “an instance.” You go on to your new life in the new country, but your instance remains in your home country, trapped. There are some people who stay in contact with their instances, and others who never see them again. For our protagonist, Soyoung Rose Kang, the first time she speaks to her instance since leaving for the US years ago is when her other self calls her to tell her of her grandfather’s death in Korea. The thing is, her instance has other plans for her once she gets back. —Erica Ezeifedi
The Heirs by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
For fans of family drama, YA mysteries, and a dead billionaire mystery!
Billionaire Leontes Button adopted five children from around the world in order to prove his theories about prodigies and nature vs. nurture. When he’s murdered at his annual ball, his five 17-year-old children and all the guests become suspects and must remain in his manor. —Jamie Canaves
This is just a small sampling of the new books I think will be lighting up book clubs this summer. To keep abreast of other books that may join their ranks, make sure to watch our bestseller lists and listen to the BR Podcast.
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