Whether you’re looking to start or continue a reading addiction this year, the Belletrist Book Club will give you top-rated picks. Founded by actress Emma Roberts and TV producer Karah Preiss, let’s see what these ladies are reading this January, and a few from the archives.
By Jayne Turner – Staff Writer
Brief History of the Belletrist
The pair launched Belletrist in 2017 with the goal of simply sharing their current reads. Now, the book club has spun out into a production company, producing two popular television series: First Kill and Tell Me Lies. They have plans to produce more films and TV shows.
Read more about celebrity book club-suggestions-turned-screen-productions here.
In addition to their fabulous book-to-screen adaptations, they have multiple collaborations. One of these is a book subscription service, where subscribers can receive the monthly pick at their doorstep. No visit to the bookstore needed!
January 2026 Book of the Month
The pick of the month is Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash. This is the debut novel for this author, who is also the co-editor of Forever Magazine. It follows the dysfunctional Flynn family, whose lives are upturned when they become involved in a criminal conspiracy.
Belletrist reviews the book as “irreverent and addictive.” While focused on the complex topic of family dysfunction, it maintains its charm with humor and warmth. It is “a family saga for the twenty-first century.”
Is this book not quite your style? Let’s dig back into the archives to see what other books Belletrist suggests to kick off your year.
January 2025
In 2025, Belletrist suggested The Motherload by Sarah Hoover. This is an honest book about learning to forgive yourself. It is a rejection of the cultural idea of the mother as a perfect being. It is honest, containing layers of humor, depression, and picking yourself up again.
This book is a great read for any woman who has imagined a perfect life for herself, only to have it fall apart with age. Bearing a child is often represented as the best thing that a woman can do, so why does this character feel… nothing? Find out and learn the many ways that things are not always as you expect them to be.
January 2023
2023’s suggestion was All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Matthews. This book was from a new author and tells the story of a young immigrant building a life for herself in twenty-first-century America. It tells of queer love, work, friendship, and uncertainty.
Set in Milwaukee, Indian immigrant Sneha has snagged an entry-level job that becomes the key that opens a myriad of new doors. New friends, sending money to her family, and her first crush on a woman. When trouble arrives, every task seems too much to bear. It is a beautiful example of how the world doesn’t stop for anyone, but great friends will carry you through.
Love these suggestions? Check out more celebrity-founded book clubs here.
January 2020
This year, another debut work is suggested: Creatures by Crissy Van Meters. Set in Southern California, this book jumps back and forth in protagonist Evie’s life. Between the present day, her wedding eve, and her complicated childhood, this book paints a picture of her whole life, giving a glimpse into how the past shapes the present.
A neglectful father, absent mother, (possibly) lost at sea fiancé, and wild-child best friend make up the characters of Evie’s life, which, much to her dismay, all seem to be haunting her before what should be the happiest day of her life.
Here is the link to the full archive list, containing March 2017 to September 2023.
