This book was written really well. I was surprised to find out that it wasn’t just about banned books or a book club, but the true nature of human beings and how it takes courage to close the door to some of the things you’ve only ever known in life. The heavy topics in this book were touched on with sensitivity and understanding, which I appreciated. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book!

4 stars / This review will be posted on BookwormishMe.com and goodreads.com today.


I love Brenda Novak’s books. They are fun, engaging, and usually have a relevance to today’s world. Banned books have reached the forefront of our country again. So the fact that this book not only tackles the subject of banning books, but also sexual impropriety, I feel like it has a lot of relevance to our current world.

Gia left home after high school. When college wasn’t where she wanted to be, she escaped to Alaska to work on fishing vessels. The money was good, and it gave her the space and nature she needed to put her life back together.

But now Gia is back home in Iowa. Her mother is dying, and her sister had pleaded for help where her parents were concerned. Only Gia doesn’t want to be here. Too many bad memories. Too much scandal and drama. Too much.

Back in high school, Gia divided the town when she accused her Honors English teacher of sexual misconduct. She’s barely been home since, and when she has been home, she’s been in and out like the wind. But now she’s going to be home for an extended length of time. She’s the villain as far as Mr. Hart’s family is concerned. She’s not even sure how most of the rest of the town feels. And it’s weighing on her.

This book really tackles the tough stuff. Facing up to your past. Facing up to bullies and demons. Standing up for yourself and your integrity. Learning to forgive and learning to love again. It’s a wonderfully written novel that was easy to breeze through. Perfect for the upcoming fall days and nights. Enjoy.

The Banned Books Club by Brenda Novak is a powerful and emotionally charged novel that dives deep into the complexities of family, forgiveness, and the search for truth. Gia Rossi's return to her hometown is a compelling mix of confrontation and healing, making for an engrossing read that keeps you hooked. Novak's portrayal of Gia's struggle—dealing with past trauma, family dynamics, and community conflict—feels incredibly real and raw. The tension between Gia and her former teacher, Mr. Hart, adds a layer of intense drama that will have you flipping pages to see how it all unfolds. The Banned Books Club itself serves as a poignant backdrop, symbolizing the clash between censorship and the right to speak out. If you're drawn to stories about personal redemption and the power of standing up for what's right, this book is a must-read. Novak's writing is sharp and gripping, making this novel both a heartfelt and thought-provoking experience.

Main Characters:

-- Gia – 35 years old, started a Banned Books Club during high school, accused her high school English teacher of sexual misconduct, left home at 18, owns a helicopter sightseeing business in Idaho
-- Margot – Gia’s younger sister, married to Sheldon, stay-at-home mom to two sons who are 8 and 6, asked Gia to come home to help with their mother who is dying from cancer
-- Cormac – local veterinarian, went to high school with Gia and Margot, his father is the teacher Gia accused, he has always stood by his father and thinks Gia lied about his father
-- Luisa and Edith – Cormac’s younger sisters, Luisa works with Cormac at the veterinary clinic, they also think Gia lied about their father
-- Sheldon – Margot’s husband, owns a local construction business that he inherited from his parents, verbally and emotionally abusive, seems to be having an affair with his high school girlfriend

Trigger warning: emotional/verbal abuse, molestation

I really wanted to like this book. Based on the description, I thought it would have a whole lot more to do with the book club, but it feels like the author worked in the “banned books” part just to make it more tantalizing.

Gia’s favorite high school teacher, Evan Hart, taught English and helped her start up the Banned Books Club. The basis of the club was that the book selected each month had been banned in the past—for example, The Catcher in the Rye, To Kill a Mockingbird. During her senior year, Gia received a D on a paper. She reported Mr. Hart for sexual misconduct, claiming that he offered to change her grade in exchange for sex.

When the case went to trial, Mr. Hart claimed that Gia came on to him to better her grade. He was found guilty, went to prison, lost his job, and his wife divorced him. Seventeen years later, he rarely shows up for work and drinks his day away. Cormac, Luisa, and Edith never believed Gia and have bad-mouthed her for years for ruining their dad’s life.

Because of all the animosity toward her, Gia dropped out of college and left town shortly after she turned 18 and never looked back. She visits occasionally, only staying for a few days at a time. She still runs the book club from high school with her friends Sammie and Ruth, meeting virtually once a week with a handful of the remaining active members.

Margot pretends her marriage is happy, but she is plotting to leave Sheldon. He’s planning a hunting trip, and she convinces Gia that their mom and dad need her because her mother doesn’t have much time left. This part is true. But the other part of it is that Margot secretly plans to disappear, so she needs Gia to come home.

First, let’s talk about the fact that the story has nothing to do with the book club. The only reason it seems to be a plot point is so that the club can have an in-person reunion while Gia is in town, and it’s the scene for a confrontation. It could just as easily have been a dinner with friends. Wakefield, Iowa, is apparently a very small town, and word gets around about everything, so we don’t really need the book club reunion. It could have been a Halloween party, an early holiday party, anything really.

In terms of storylines, Gia’s story is the division in the town over who believes her and who doesn’t and everyone coming to terms with the truth. Margot’s story revolves around her plan to leave her husband. Usually books with intertwined stories go back and forth between the two throughout. While we get pieces of Margot’s preparation to leave early on, her story really doesn’t kick into gear until after Gia’s story is nearly resolved. It almost felt like two books of a series put together into a single book.

From a characterization perspective, the people in this town still act like teenagers…seriously. Gia left 17 years ago, and people still ostracize her. And the gossip…good lord, the gossip. Did you hear? Did you see? Did she tell you? Did you know? I have heard that word gets around in small towns, but these people act like they are still in high school trying to get someone they don’t like in trouble.

***SPOILERS*** SPOILERS***SPOILERS***

There are also a couple of critical things that I find hard to believe, but I have to reveal more of the plot in order to share them.

Gia’s parents are friendly with the Harts in the present day. Cormac lives in the house behind theirs, and they regularly talk to Luisa and Edith. Once Gia is back in town, the Harts want to force Gia to retract her accusations. Gia’s parents don’t try to convince her to make a retraction, but they don’t come to her defense either. And the fact that they are friendly with the same people who are bad-mouthing her just rubs me the wrong way. When Gia confronts her mom about whether she believed her when she was in high school, her mom tells her she didn’t want to believe it could happen. So she just pretends like it didn’t?!?

After 17 years, Cormac asks his mom why she divorced his father because he starts to wonder if they made a mistake all those years ago in calling Gia a liar. Could they have been continuing to victimize her all this time? His mom says she didn’t have any proof, but she had her suspicions and gives Cormac a laundry list of things that didn’t sit right with her.

I understand not sharing her suspicions with her kids when they were teenagers, but they have been bad-mouthing Gia for years. There should have come a time when she pulled her kids aside and said, “Hey, I don’t think your dad is who you think he is and here’s why.” At least let them make an educated choice to hate Gia. When Cormac asks her why she never said anything before, her response was that none of them asked.

Finally, once everything comes out and Evan basically admits what he did, Gia just seems to forgive and forget what everyone else in town said about her. Everyone is town suddenly sees the error of their ways. Gia sells her business, moves back to Wakefield, and opens a bookstore called Banned Books Shoppe. She and Cormac fell in love while she was staying with her parents.

Margot’s husband goes to jail for breaking into her parents’ home and attacking Gia, so she’s able to get a divorce pretty easily. While she was in L.A. (where she disappeared to), she met someone and has a budding relationship by the end of the book.

And I guess they all lived happily ever after?

DNF at chapter 4.

This book was literally so boring and so difficult to get into. I like dual POV but I do not need the POVs to be changing in every paragraph.

I wasn't grabbed at all by any of the characters and there are just way too many books for me to waste my time.

Thanks netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

2.5 stars
The title was a bit misleading. The “banned books club” part made up about 3 % of the book; the other 97% was family drama, with some romance thrown in.

Trigger Warnings:
Sexual harassment by a teacher of a minor child; spousal abuse

Steaminess Rating:
❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥
(Check my profile for my “Steaminess Rating” chart!)

*I received a digital copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are strictly my own.*

I have to say, I went into this book blindly after its title intrigued me. Unfortunately, the title was a little misleading and it turned out to be a mix of a mystery and a little bit of romance.

I liked that it was fast paced and managed to finish it in a day. However, the multiple POVs were a little bit confusing at times (although that may be because of the page layout of the ARC). I also thought the storylines were rushed and the plot felt underdeveloped.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, I did not finish this book. I tried on several occasions to get into this story but it did not happen and at 40% I decided to stop trying. The title is very misleading. It has little to do with banned books. I also couldn’t connect to any of the characters and the two story lines did not interest me. However I do appreciate NetGalley for the opportunity to try this book. Just because it wasn’t for me doesn’t mean that someone else won’t love it!

Wow..
This book is 5/5! I haven't given a 5 in a while it feels!
Thankful for the opportunity to read this before it's release from HarperCollins Publishing and to the Author Brenda Novak
I loved the story of this book, the meaning behind it. The turns had me on the edge of my seat at times. I felt like I could connect to multiple characters, understanding their battles and how they all come together in the end. The dual POV was interesting but I enjoyed how they all worked together. It really felt like a TV show switching to each character. I fully agree with reading banned books and plan to read those and encourage my kids to ask well!

Let me start by saying this: the cover is very deceiving compared to what you are about to dive into. This book had me on the edge of my seat once Gia went back home to see her sick mother. I had to know how everything would play out. I did predict some things as the story went on, but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It evoked strong emotions, leaving me heartbroken and angry as I read more about Margot’s story with her husband and her plan to free herself from her situation, as well as her sister Gia’s situation with her old school teacher. Both women were strong and went through so much throughout this book, and they both even have a HEA. I couldn’t put this book down, and this is my first read by this author. If you love suspenseful and emotional reads, this is the one.

Thank you, NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing, for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you @NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the Advanced Readers Copy of The Banned Books Club.

This is my first read by @authorBrendaNovak and The Banned Books Club certainly will not be my last. Definitely a new auto-buy author for me.

Set in Wakefield, Iowa, Gia, head-strong and anything but soft spoken returns home after leaving town promptly at 18. Margot appears to be leading the “perfect” life. Both sisters, come together to care for their ailing mother.

Upon Gia’s return to the small town, she thought it would be a good idea to reunite with the Banned Books Club members from her time in high school until she quickly realizes the town is still upset from a past scandal that involved her and her former teacher, Mr. Hart who was also a member of the previously formed book club. Over time, the Banded Books Club members take sides between Gia and Mr. Hart. True colors begin to show in the town of Wakefield. Is everything as it always appears?

What I liked: The Banned Books Club flowed with ease. I was able to easily distinguish between many well-developed characters. I enjoyed the controversy within the town of Wakefield. There were twists and turns that kept me engaged and wanting to read more—a bit of mystery between the pages. I liked that the book touched upon more difficult issues that are relevant to today’s society such as: sexual misconduct, domestic violence, verbal abuse, harassment, and bullying to name a few. I could definitely see a possible sequel to The Banned Books Club narrating further what sisters Gia and Margot are up to. Phenomenal read.


What I didn’t like: The title was a bit misleading. Although, it did set the premise to the story. The story was so much more than about a banned books club.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

You should read if you like:
✨Family drama
✨Small town scandals
✨Small town life
✨Relationships

The Banned Books Club
Brenda Novak
September 17, 2024

Gia Rossi was counting on getting a scholarship when she graduated. In her senior year when she handed in her final English project. Her instructor gave her a D. It caused her grade average to drop but being a straight A student she could not understand the score. Her teacher said her paper was not up to par. She argued with the man about possibly giving her a C but nothing persuaded him. She made an appointment with him to discuss it, do revisions. He set up a time for him to meet with her at his home. Aside from feeling it improper, she felt it was the only way to get her grade lifted.
This set the beginning of Novak’s story of two family's history.
The Banned Books Club will be published by MIra of Harlequin, Inc on September 17, 2024. I was able to read the ARC of Brenda Novak’s latest novel via NetGalley. It was an excellent selection. She gave us a complete journey of Gia’s life after leaving her home in Wakefield, Iowa. She returned to help with her mother who was dying of cancer. Her sister, Margot needed her help with this family misfortune but no one knew that she struggled with her husband and hoped to leave him for her protection as well as that her two young sons.
The story was well written and gave us the background of Gia’s high school assault. It had been years since she returned home but with her mom’s illness she needed to be there. She didn’t feel she could not be there to say final goodbyes and share her love.
Another stand alone from Novak that hits home with her readers. Enjoy!

Thanks to NetGalley for this advance reader copy.
I have to let it out. It never left my mind that the title of this book is so wrong. As a librarian, I feel like every third book coming out has the keywords Library or Librarian or Books or Banned Books, or Book Club etc in the title just to get us to read there book. I get what the author was trying to do here, as it was explained on the very last page - kinda. But to be honest, I would have much more enjoyed the book if my expectations were in check about the banned book club thing. I spent every page until 75% looking for more about the book club and it was distracting to me. Ugh.
It felt icky to me how the two characters fell into a relationship and I spent all of the time in the book more interested in Margot's story so I am sad to say I can't recommend this book.
2* but I'll round up to 3.

I absolutely loved this book. I went in blind so the title was slightly misleading but other than that this book was perfect.

Two different sisters going thru two completely different life events. One who was running away from her past and one who needed to escape from the present all while going thru a major family event.

This book has a little bit of mystery and romance. Everything you would expect from a Brenda Novak title.

This book is emotionally loaded with several sensitive subjects. Gia left her small town 17 years ago after a scandal that divided the town. Now she’s back because her mother is ill and her family needs her. She has to face the demos she left behind. The story was interesting, yet to me didn’t really match the title. There is a banned books club but it doesn’t get much mention.

I went into this book thinking it would be a light, easy read about a book club. It was so much more than that.

Sisters Margot and Gia are in very different stages of life; with Margot dealing with serious marital issues, and Gia carving her own path away from her hometown and her past trauma. They’re brought back together because of their sick mother who may not make it past the winter.

While Gia’s back in town, she decides to plan a reunion for her Banned Books Club from high school, but a former club member has her feeling uneasy because of their shared history; both of their families had to deal with the aftermath of a scandal. In the midst of it all, an unexpected romance blooms, and it shakes up the whole town.

The story is complex and told from three points of view, and dealt with many tough topics. The writing was done in a way that made you really feel for the characters and how they’re navigating through it all. It was a bit repetitive in the first half while they try to decide who’s telling the truth, but when things start to unfold, I found myself fully immersed and wanting to know more.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper 360 for the ARC of this book.

This book was compelling, I had to finish it find out what happens to sisters Gia and Margot and their mother who are all dealing with traumatic issues. However, it is only tangentially related to a Banned Bookclub so the title is misleading. I cannot say it exactly recommends small town life.

Gia and Margot are sisters who love one another, but they have some issues. Margot has been in their hometown for years, with the responsibility of taking care of their elderly mother. Gia left town years ago, shortly after she accused one of her teachers, Mr. Hart, of sexual misconduct, which got him fired. She also started a Banned Books Club. Now, all these years later, Margot asks Gia to come back and help her with mom's care. She does, but it seems that no one in town has forgotten or forgiven her youthful misadventures. A great sister's story with lots to say about current social issues!

I like to go into books blindly, and I had this one in my possession a bit before I got to it so when I started reading I didn’t know what the book was about and I was pleasantly surprised by the ride it took me on. The title is what caught my attention originally because so many books that I read at school and that I still about to this day are banned books now! And I feel like this books is one of those books I’ll still think about 5, 10, 20 years from now. It was such a good story filled with dealing with anger, compassion, grief, the past, strength, hardships, family love, rivals, trials and tribulations of life. I think I was about 20% into the book when I was hooked and NEEDED to finish this book and find out how it ended. Definitely recommend people give this book a read!

Gia has a wonderful life in Idaho with a thriving business, so when her sister Margot asks her to come home to Iowa to help with their mother's illness, Gia reluctantly agrees. She comes back home to the members of the "Banned Book Club", to the teacher she accused of molesting her -- an event that had repercussions for Gia and the whole town -- and to her sister who is dealing with an abusive marriage.

There is a LOT going on in this novel. The "banned books club" piece is a small, almost insignificant piece, so people picking up this book based on the title might be disappointed, but the book is well worth the time. The characters are well written and compelling. I was so sympathetic to Gia and her sister, Margot. They are both dealing with issues that are relatable and their reactions are realistic and believable. I really liked the character of Cormac (yes, named after the author) and his dilemma over his feelings for Gia and his loyalty to his family. This could have been a sappy story about redemption and forgiveness, but instead it's a story about real people trying to deal with and overcome issues. While it's not the best book I've read, it is well done and worth reading. The characters react with realistic emotions and actions and the ending is believable and still touching. A good book!