An Online Book Club, hosted by author Lucie Benton

📖 Love books, great conversations, and connecting with people who love stories as much as you do?

Booked & Connected is more than a book club. It’s an online community where readers, writers, and book lovers come together to discover new stories, meet authors, and make genuine connections.

Hosted by contemporary romance author Lucie Benton, our monthly meetings are relaxed, welcoming, and designed to feel less like a formal book club and more like spending an evening talking about books with friends.

For those of you who already know Lucie, you know you’re in for an authentic experience. :) It’s not unusual for us to start by discussing a book and somehow end up dissecting a traumatic breakup, analyzing the newest hot guy someone met at Trader Joe’s, debating whether a fictional man has permanently ruined our standards, or collectively solving a life crisis that absolutely was not on the agenda.

We do eventually come back to the book.

Usually. 📚😂.

💻 All meetings are currently held online via Zoom, which means you can join us from anywhere.

A new book is selected each month, and Lucie will email attendees with the current selection and meeting details.

This month, we’re reading “Beyond,” a short story by William Faulkner.

Normally, we don't go this dark but it is Halloween season.

A copy of the story is available to read for free online. If you have trouble finding it, Lucie can also provide a copy upon request.

And don’t worry if you haven’t finished reading. Or started it. We’re not checking. 😉

We spend part of the evening discussing our featured read, but Booked & Connected is really about the conversation that happens around books: the characters we love, the stories that stay with us, writing, publishing, life, and everything in between.

Some months also feature guest authors, giving readers the opportunity to hear directly from the people behind the stories and ask questions about their books and writing process.

Lucie Benton is a contemporary romance author, publishing consultant, and founder of a San Diego publishing company. She has written three romance novels, most recently King of AI, a contemporary billionaire romance about revenge & forbidden attraction & finding love that changes you.

Along with talking about books, Lucie loves helping aspiring and independent authors navigate the world of writing, publishing, and book marketing.

If you’re working on a book of your own, stick around after book club. Lucie is happy to answer questions and share publishing advice.

• 📚 Monthly featured books and lively discussions
• 💻 Online Zoom meetings you can join from anywhere
• ✍️ Conversations about writing and publishing
• 🎤 Guest author appearances
• 💬 Meaningful conversations beyond the featured book
• 🤝 A welcoming community of readers and writers
• 💕 Plenty of laughter and new connections
• ✍️ Complimentary writer and publishing Q&A

❤️ Come for the books. Stay for the conversation and the people.

Whether you read every page or simply want to spend an evening with other book lovers, you’re welcome here.

We can’t wait to meet you!