Online Book Clubs etc

Do you like book clubs but can't commit to a particular day to gather and discuss a book?  

There are many options online anymore, available 24/7 so you can immerse yourself in discussing a book whenever you want.

You may loose the face-to-face interaction, but you gain convenience.

First there is the Book Forum that I stumbled across.  It is divided into main categories which include Mystery and also Thriller (among several others.)  They pick several books each month to read.  You read which ones grab your interest and you enter the online forums to "discuss" that book.  I believe this idea is still catching on but I think it definitely has great potential.  They do have a variety of books they pick which keeps the ideas fresh.

I stumbled across BookTalk.org.  It claims it "is a free book discussion group, book club or online reading group with thousands of members and hundreds of forums. We read and discuss fiction, non-fiction, short stories, and poetry and host live chats and interviews with leading authors."

Of course there is Goodreads.com, which although it isn't a book club in a traditional sense, you can join the mystery groups and start a discussion about a book you have enjoyed.  There are many groups to get involved with and follow what others think of books they have finished.

LibraryThing.com has been around for a bit also.  You can "friend" those who have read similar books, join groups involving your literary interests and follow message threads.

I stumbled across this bookclub after posting this, but I am posting it after-the-fact for any readers.  It is called The Women's Nest.  Geared towards women it has a book club section that picks one book a month and discuss in the forum.  You get the book but the rest is free.

A different twist on the idea is Dear Reader.  Sign up for what category books you like (I signed up for Mystery, Thriller and Author Buzz) and receive an email M-F mornings with a short 5-minute excerpt from the book-of-the-week for that category.  You can enjoy the daily excerpts with your morning cup of coffee and this way you have test drove the author and beginning of the book to see if you like it.  For those with little kiddos, they have a kids book section too.  There are also giveaways in the emails and specials.  

The last one I will mention is the social networking site CrimeSpace - "a place for readers and writers of crime fiction to meet. Find new authors to delve into and discuss the latest in crime fiction. Share photos, videos and make some friends."  This is still being perfected in some of its bells-and-whistles, but it is growing and should be a great place to network with other crime fiction readers.  Join the groups and discuss books. 

There are many others out there, and it can be easy to spend endless hours on these.  But the point is, if you don't have time for a face-to-face book club and have wanted to have those dynamic discussions over books - these might give you a convenient option on your terms.

What book club or similar online venues do you know of?  Please share!




Today I just had to share this book - it has nothing to do with crime fiction.  I just think it is funny and I hope you get a chuckle from it too.