HERE TO HELP YOU GET MORE OUT OF YOUR READING

JOIN BOOK CLUB
EXPLORE THE PUBLICATION

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PATREON AND SUBSTACK?

The Book Club

Book of the Month

This is the main event each month! We vote on these quarterly from a shortlist, and then I usually host two meetings at 11am and 6pm GMT/BST on the last Sunday of the month to discuss. I do a full list of discussion questions for these, and as often as possible some further reading materials, too!

Current pick: The Unicorn by Iris Murdoch

  • November: Thérèse Raquin by Émile Zola

    December: The Ice Palace by Tarjei Vesaas, translated by Elizabeth Rokkan

    January: Butcher’s Crossing by John Williams

Our latest addition! This is open to everyone with priority booking for Book Club Members. Every month I host a screening and discussion for a book adaptation at the Chiswick Cinema in London.

The next event is being held on 15th October at 7:45pm (but please come from 6:30pm to discuss the book) to discuss/watch Under the Skin by Michel Faber.

Books on Film

    • 19th November - Silence (2016) / Silence by Shusaku Endo

    • 10th December - Small Things Like These (2024) / Small Things Like These by Clare Keegan

Buddy Reads

Member-led read-alongs to discuss at your own pace on our Discord server. Here are some of the current ones running.

EXPLORE PAST PICKS
BOOK TICKETS
JOIN BOOK CLUB

The Review

An informal monthly meet up where we each bring a book—or two!—to share with the group. Can be an old favourite, or whatever you’re currently reading.

Book Club Tiers

This is the all-access experience. You get all the benefits of the previous tiers, plus links to our monthly Zoom meetings to discuss the book club pick, and all extra materials.

    • Monthly book club meetings! Like your favourite English literature seminar, only without the deadlines.

    • The Review—share what you're reading with us!

    • Exclusive Video Series: Reading Books I'm Nervous to Read

    • Chat with us on our Discord server filled with your fellow readers!

    • Weekly Monday Posts with reading updates and tbr updates.

    • Early and ad-free access to book videos

    • Vote for the book club picks with us!

The community begins here: with this tier you have access to the patron-only feed and Discord server, and early access to videos too. 

    • Weekly Monday Posts with reading updates and updated TBR.

    • Early and ad-free access to book videos

    • Vote for the book club picks with us!

    • Chat with us on our Discord server filled with your fellow readers!

The Publication

Hosted on Substack, the aim of The Unseen Review is to highlight what books are worth your precious reading hours. I’m always scouring the literary world for great new releases and undiscovered backlist gems, and I hope that you’ll be able to find some new favourites through my recommendations.

It’s also my intention to help readers get more out of their books, and to share some of what I’ve learnt in my 10+ years reviewing and analysing novels. I’ll be running courses and slow reads alongside my work as a reviewer.

EXPLORE THE SUBSTACK

A weekly newsletter. Free to read for everyone, but paid members have access to the full archive.

The Minutiae

READ NOW

A monthly series where I cover what I’ve been reading.

Monthly Reading

READ NOW

How to Read and Analyse a Novel

THE COURSE

This is a course I designed to help you understand and practise some analysation techniques so that you can get the most out of your reading—English student style!

A slow read entails reading just a few pages a day together of a longer work or series, meaning we can get the most out of our reading. Weekly podcast episodes so you can get deeper into the experience.

Current slow read is: Paradise by Toni Morrison

Slow Reads

SLOW READS

  • I've always loved Jessie's online book content, so it was a natural decision to join The Unseen Review Book Club once it launched. What really makes me excited to be a part of it, is the community aspect, which I didn't expect to be as lovely, enriching and engaging as it is. Talking books with other like-minded folks from all over the world is an experience I cherish a lot. Particularly our online meetings and passionate Discord discussions made me less anxious to talk about my reading and sharing thoughts with others. Coming from someone who never spoke up in class, this should be viewed as a true testament to the kind of comfort Jess has created in the Book Club.

    Patrycja

  • Joining “The Unseen Review” has been one of the best decisions that I have made in the last 5 years. I have always been a reader. Reading has been a constant in my life. Different hobbies have come and gone over the years, but reading has always stuck around. In 2022, I reached a point where I was reading less and less, and the books that I was reading lacked any sort of impact,,When I came across Jess on Youtube, I was thrilled to finally come across some books that I had never heard of, and to finally find a creative and imaginative outlet that I was craving in my reading. After joining the Patreon, I read. I read and read and read again. The most surprising gift from the Unseen Review has been the gift of reading in friendship and community. Before the Unseen Review, I often found myself wanting to share thoughts about books with others, and had been in many in person book clubs, but the experience always seemed to fall short somehow. I would highly encourage anyone with a love of reading to join the Unseen Review, it is truly my favourite place on the internet.

    Martina

  • I joined the Unseen Review in order to find and read new books I may not have heard of or not taken the plunge to read before, but I stayed because of how impressed I was by the offering. Jess doesn't only host the book club with a one-off meeting, it's genuinely a deep-reading experience with thoughtful analysis and questions (without removing the casual, lovely environment brought on by everyone). There's also extra meetings to allow for other book discoveries and discussions, it's a lot in the best way! The community is also so nice, there's never an air of pretension or judgement during meetings, and I've found some genuinely close friends through it.

    Natalia