Pagebound

Though readers have cultivated vibrant online communities through BookTok, Youtube, and Goodreads, these platforms aren’t meeting our basic needs. Goodreads (owned by Amazon since 2013) suffers from dated tech and an inflexible rating system. In response to this gap, indie creators and venture-backed startups alike have built apps with the features they wish existed. From a focus on reading stats and AI recommendations (Storygraph) to influencer-led book clubs (Fable), Goodreads alternatives largely focus on more robust book tracking and one-way communication between book influencers and their audience.

Meanwhile, fan-fiction platforms Wattpad and Archive of Our Own (AO3) see huge engagement with features like chapter comments, niche tagging, and emoji-reactions. They make the reading (and writing) experience fun! We have yet to see a platform bring the playfulness and community of fanfic to the world of published books, until now… Welcome to Pagebound

On Pagebound, every book has its own forum, so no more bouncing between Goodreads and Reddit. You'll find book recommendations sourced from the community, not AI (we have no features that are AI-driven). We also let you rate and review the way you've always wanted with half-stars, emojis, and sub-ratings.