With coffee and reading notes in hand, local book enthusiasts gathered at 1835 Coffee Company on Saturday morning for the latest meeting of The Page Turner Book Club. Hosted by downtown Mineola’s independent bookstore, the free monthly gathering featured a lively discussion of Ariel Lawhon’s 16th-century historical novel, “Pirate Queen.”
Owners Becky and Randy Osborne opened The Page Turner on South Johnson Street in April 2026 to bring a dedicated independent bookstore to downtown Mineola. To create a space where local readers could connect, they launched the store’s monthly book club, which has grown beyond their initial expectations.
“The club has really created its own community,” Randy Osborne said, recalling that at their first meeting, he and Becky knew only a couple of the attendees. Most members simply walked in after discovering the club through the store or social media, forming bonds over a shared love of reading.
To keep discussions fresh, the Osbornes intentionally cycle through different genres each month.
“It’s really about bringing people together to talk about books. It stretches you to read different genres; it makes you a better reader and opens your eyes to new stories,” Becky Osborne said.
The Osbornes run the club with an open-door philosophy. Participation is free, and readers are welcome regardless of where or how they get their books, whether purchasing hardcovers at the shop, checking out library copies or listening to audiobooks.
To accommodate the growing group, the club meets next door at 1835 Coffee Company, where owner Daniel Vasquez hosts members in an upstairs space accessed through a hidden door. Vasquez began placing coffee coupons inside The Page Turner’s shopping bags soon after the bookstore opened.
“Books and coffee just make sense. We like to support local, and we love having them every month,” Vasquez said.
At the most recent gathering, members tackled “Pirate Queen.” Randy Osborne said securing copies in advance so local readers could pick them up on the nationwide release date was an important milestone for the store as it filled a growing list of preorders.
During the meeting, the group discussed the novel’s strong female protagonist, its Celtic structural themes of maiden, mother and matriarch, and the historical context woven into the story. Osborne emphasized the value of reading the book from beginning to end, including the front matter, maps and author’s notes highlighting historical figure Grace O’Malley from an Irish perspective.
“I stayed up past my bedtime because I couldn’t put the author notes down,” Osborne said.
Becky Osborne added that the author’s historical note felt like a direct invitation to groups like theirs, pointing to where Lawhon wrote: “I hope you read it, and share it with your book club.”
For regular club member Claire Giovannitti, the historical details made the novel stand out.
“This is just a great story,” Giovannitti said, sharing how she enjoyed looking up historical vocabulary and connecting with the characters’ Irish roots.
Beyond the main monthly meeting, the shop is expanding its offerings with a Classics Book Club that will meet every other month. The new group will feature a “blind date with a book” format, in which members purchase mystery-wrapped books bundled with thematic extras to read and discuss together.
The Page Turner’s main book club will next gather Saturday, Nov. 7, at 10 a.m. at 1835 Coffee Company to discuss “Magic Like Fire” with Lindale author Hailey Huntington, who will join the group to share insights into her writing process.