Anyone care to share what it is that draws them to read a particular book ie: blurb? cover? reviews? etc…
Anyone care to share what it is that draws them to read a particular book ie: blurb? cover? reviews? etc…
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Blurb. Then the Look Inside to see if it’s full of errors.
These days mostly recommendations from authors. And if friends have read them as well, mostly person to person or social media
Blurb, cover and recommendations help and the decide. Don’t read reviews until after I’ve read it as sometimes it can spoil it for you.
The blurb of course…..person to person
I look for something fresh. Covers and titles can be quite generic, and not always down to the author, but many are clever. If the blurb highlights a fresh angle or idea, it’s that that makes me click.
Blurb sometimes. Seldom the cover. Luckily, I get books from authors I haven’t read before to review, so I do get diamonds given to me. But I also get some ?
I’ve just been listening to thriller writer, Mark Dawson’s podcast – http://www.selfpublishingformula.com/episode-51/ – where he details the responses to a readers’ survey on his mailing list (60,000 on his list!) The results are fascinating, and definitely worth considering.
I do his surveys & read his new books.
All of the above. Cover might catch my eye, then read the blurb and then check out reviews on Goodreads & Amazon.
Cover usually, then blurb. Or if a table of books in a shop I just pick up 1 by 1 & see what looks tasty. Recommendations from book clubs. Not reviews, some just horrible coz they can be.
I have to agree about reviews not always being reliable, Terry. Someone once gave one of my books 1* simply because she had downloaded the wrong book!
Honestly when I’ve seen authors saying about the reviews for no reason what so ever! I would luv to delete them! Book was late, wrong book, cover was different, didn’t read! I mean really, how stupid can you get! So unfair on you authors. Gets me annoyed can you tell haha
@Theresa I think we’ve all experienced that kind of stuff. Some people can be so nasty!
We get so many of those reviews @Theresa, but for the life of me what I can’t understand is someone that hates the first in the series (fair enough) but then requests all rest of the books in the same series from Netgalley and slates them too. If I hated the first book in the series I’d never go back and ask for more. Life’s too short. Read what you love, I say 😉 x
That’s just insane @Caroline!
It is 😉
Cover and then blurb. I can be quite specific in things that attract me, or indeed out me off.
Cover, blurb and if the typing is small inside, big letters put me of reading it
Big letters?
Meaning the type is big not small, like the words to be wrote in small letters
If the cover looks appealing, then I read the blurb.
I know, as the saying goes, don’t judge the book by the cover. But I do or at least that’s what I notice first when looking for something new to read. I then look at the blurb and sometimes I look at the star ratings, then a few reviews.
I read the blurb. Very seldom read reviews. A lot of great recommendations from members and bloggers. Quite often new authors.
Cover, blurb, then I always take a peek at the ‘look inside’ and read a couple of pages. I don’t tend to look at the reviews, but will take note of recommendations from people I know.
I’ve found that some book simply lure me into picking them up, often leaving me cold at the idea that I might have otherwise missed them. John Lawton, Ajay Close and Peter Temple all come into this category, leading to a couple of dozen more books on my shelf. But I often read and decide yay or nay from the first para.
Sometimes it is the author’s name itself. I will read anything by Anthony Horowitz (even his shopping list). The cover design can either turn me on to a book or off depending on my mood. Having heard a BBC drama of ‘Rosanna’ by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo made.me buy and enjoy all of the Martin Beck thrillers.
I am a man of eclectic tastes.
I’m right with you on Anthony Horowitz, Ron. He makes it look easy to churn out so many brilliant best-sellers and tv scripts.
Cover then blurb or author
Especially Chris Carter?
Yep lol
Not long for his new one!
If I am unfamiliar with the author, I read the first page and I usually know if their writing style is for me. If I like the author, I usually purchase their books on release.
Blurb is first for me. Then reviews then the cover.
Author first and foremost- then blurb on the back or recommendations from others
@Angie, @Caroline, Elizabeth Haynes, Elly Griffiths and Val McDermid I’ll buy “sight unseen” as it were
Thanks @Jo, much appreciated! X
Thank you, lovely xx
I like to read about the author. I find often their life experience and passion leads to good writing. Reviews are unreliable and covers are often not great, so I will try a sample.
So many of the covers look the same now – silhouette of someone looking away, deserted street, desolate landscape. Yawn… i have authors I will always look out for, like David Mark, @Sarah, @Sharon, Val McDermid and Jeffery Deaver, otherwise I’ll take pot luck if the blurb sounds interesting. I like to think my reviews on http://crimefictionlover.com/ are reliable though, @Rosemary x
Thanks, I shall take a look x
I’m DeathBecomesHer!
??
Cover, reviews
Initially, a striking cover and great tagline
First chapter.
Cover & tag line, that’s the start
The cover first. Then dig further – the blurb and then it’s dive in! ?
First sentence is usually a good indicator for me if it’s an unfamiliar author.
I know the genre I like. I started from scratch…. free kindle book offers. Noted the names of the authors of the books I enjoyed and simply went from there. Now and again, I read a review or read a commendation by my friend’s on this site and download…… thank you. Xx
The characters and the way they are portrayed
Authors that I have read before… and reviews on Amazon.
Cover makes me pick it up, if blurb is interesting, I check inside. If an actual book in a store, still cover first, then the back side, then a random chapter in the middle. If that can hold my attention and make me read further, then book goes in the basket.
Cover and title first, then blurb (a brief one that contains no spoilers – as some do!). But the clincher is always first page. If that does not catch me it stays on the shelf.
reviews can be misleading these days
The cover and then the plot line on the inside cover, I prefer a mystery with several suspects all who have a motive and trying to work who did the deed. I quite enjoy murder mystery of yesteryear before computers DNA testing etc. I love mysteries set in the winter months some how they appear more atmospheric dark evenings, fog, snow etc
I’m not a lover of books written in the first person, otherwise if the blurb looks good I’ll buy it.
Firstly it is often the author, I have been a sucker in recent years for Scandinavian names….secondly it is the reviews….very rarely if ever to I pay attentionto the cover art…..the blurb is read only as an afterthought really!