Category: Bookish Question

Where do you share book reviews and recommendations?

Bookish Question #285 | Where do you share book reviews and/or recommendations?

The four main places I share book reviews and recommendations are:

  • 1. Here on my blog (I have a new book review every Monday)
  • 2. On Goodreads
  • 3. On BookBub
  • 4. On Amazon (US and UK … if Amazon accept my posts).

I have been keeping up with my Monday blog posts, but have fallen behind in posting those reviews to Goodreads, BookBub, and Amazon. But I’m working on it!

I also try and review books on ChristianBook.com and Koorong.com, although those sides only permit reviews for books they stock, and they typically only stock traditionally published books.

I also share my reviews to my main social media profiles:

Those shares are via an app which takes my blog posts and shares them automatically. Most are shared more than once.

So I guess that means I share my reviews in up to ten locations! (Which is a surprise even to me: I honestly hadn’t counted).

What about you? Where to you share book reviews and recommendations?

How are you progressing against your 2023 reading goal?

Bookish Question #284 | How are you progressing against your 2023 reading goal?

Ha ha ha ha ha ha … I’m not.

Well, that’s not quite fair. I did almost no reading in May because I was focused on the final edits for my book (so I read that ten times. Does that count as ten books?). I also visited my daughter and mother for ten days, which meant I spent that time with them rather than reading.

I’m now playing catchup work and life, but have been trying (!) to read a bit more. My “books finished” was accidentally helped by a couple of very short novellas (one finished at 65% of the Kindle copy, which left me frustrated as I was really enjoying it and wasn’t expecting it to end so quickly. It turned out to be only 55 pages, which is waaaayyyyy to short for a paid “book”).

Here’s what I said I was going to read:

  • Read 150+ books
  • Read 48+ books from my to-read pile
  • Read 40+ books from debut or new-to-me authors
  • Read 40+ books from non-US authors
  • Read 12+ books from BIPOC authors
  • Read 18+ nonfiction books

Here are my current Goodreads numbers:

  • 42 books read (which sounds okay until you realise it’s 29 books behind schedule. I may have to be reasonable and lower my target).
  • 6 books from my to-read pile
  • 10 books by debut or new-to-me authors
  • 6 books by non-US authors
  • No books from BIPOC authors (that I’m aware of … but I do have Toni Shiloh’s next book on my to-review pile)
  • No nonfiction 🙁

Yes, I’m way behind on everything.

I didn’t set a target, but I have read 24 books by indie authors, which is more than half. That’s a win!

I also seem to be buying more books than I’m reading (sorry, to-read pile. I blame the twice-weekly emails from Faith Books).

About FaithBooks https://www.faithbooksromance.com/

What about you? How are you progressing against your 2023 reading goal?

 

Do you prefer fiction or nonfiction?

Bookish Question #283 | Do you prefer fiction or nonfiction?

As anyone who has ever read my blog or follows me on Goodreads or BookBub knows, I prefer fiction.

I do read nonfiction, but that tends to be work-related, or books on writing (which includes editing and marketing). They are books I read to learn, not to entertain.

For me, reading is entertainment, and that means fiction. (I like my nonfiction to be entertaining if possible, but that’s a nice-to-have, not a must-have).

And the busier I am at work or home or life in general, the more I want my reading to be entertaining. That’s probably why I gravitate towards romance rather than historical or general fiction (which always feels more “serious” and more like work than pleasure).

There is a definite relationship between how I’m feeling and what I choose to read: the busier my mind, the more relaxing and low-key I want my reading.

What about you? Do you prefer fiction or nonfiction/? Why?

Have you read a Christian novel that features a character on a holiday?

Bookish Question #282 | Have you read a Christian novel that features a character on a holiday?

Several of the novels I’ve read recently have a character on a holiday (vacation for those of you in the USA) … as does my own novel. The first two are from the Trinity Lakes Romance series.

The Ocean Between Us by Meredith Resce

In The Ocean Between Us, Alanah is visiting Trinity Lakes to see her best friend from high school, and be in her wedding party. She also has plans to take a road trip around the USA and Canada. While the focus of the story is Alanah’s time in Trinity Lakes, we do also get to see a few fun aspects of her trip.

Here’s the book description:

Alanah, has set off on a trip of a lifetime.

Her best friend from high school, Sasha Kennedy, has invited her to Trinity Lakes, Washington State, to be part of her wedding party.
South Australia to Trinity Lakes is literally the other side of the world, so Alanah has a full schedule of adventure planned while she’s away. A summer camp counsellor; a trip to Canada; Sight-seeing in New York and Boston; and avoiding Sasha’s twin-brother, Caleb.

But a silly accident puts Sasha out of commission for all the planned adventures, and Caleb is sent to retrieve his former high school sweetheart from the airport. Eleven years should be enough time to have cooled the love Alanah and Caleb once shared. Should be, but apparently not. This is not a great thing to acknowledge considering Caleb has just announced his engagement to someone else.

Six months of avoiding Caleb—worse—avoiding feelings about Caleb—is going to be a long time.

Click here to find The Ocean Between Us on Amazon

Always By My Side by Iola Goulton

In Always By My Side, Logan has signed up to be a counsellor at Camp Trinity, but an injury means he arrives two months early for an enforced break … although he ends up spending a lot of time helping Tabitha at the Lakeview Inn.

Here’s the book description:

A hardworking introvert meets a handsome adventurer longing to settle down.

Tabitha Thomas longs to leave Trinity Lakes and travel the world in honor of the beloved grandmother who raised her and her siblings. But she’s needed at home—she’s the responsible triplet, the one who stayed home to run the family inn while her brother and sister left to live their dreams.

Kiwi Logan Wylde doesn’t call any place home. When an injury frustrates his travel plans, he accepts an invitation to return to Trinity Lakes and recuperate at the Lakeview Inn, where he hopes to rediscover his purpose in life.

When Tabby and Logan find a property deed while cleaning out Gran’s rooms, Tabby embraces a new challenge—to solve the mystery of the floodplain and renovate the old boatshed. Working with Logan reignites long-suppressed feelings, but will their differences drive them apart?

Click here to find Always By My Side on Amazon

And here’s one that isn’t part of the Trinity Lakes Romance series:

Imperfectly Proverbs 31 by Liwen Y Ho

Journalist Daniel Novak is on a forced vacation with just one assignment: interview blogger Samantha Rose, who is looking after her nieces while her sister is temporarily working overseas.

Here’s the book description:

She’s trying to be what she’s not. He’s where he doesn’t want to be.

To help her archeologist sister, geeky Samantha Rose agrees to swap her black T-shirts and diet of pizza and ice-cream for a pretty apron and a summer caring for her adorable twin nieces and their newfoundland dog in Huckleberry Lake, Idaho. How hard can it be?

When Perfectly Proverbs 31, the blog she starts to reassure her sister, goes viral and everyone believes she really is a wonderful homemaker, Sam reluctantly needs to keep up the pretense. If she doesn’t, she risks ruining everyone’s summer. The girls’ oh-so-capable and over-protective grandma will surely swoop in to take them away from her.

Forced by his boss to interview Sam then take a vacation, a month at the lake with nnothing to do but write a fluff piece is burned-out city crime journalist Daniel Novak’s worst nightmare. But he finds Samantha surprising and delightful, as her attempts to impress him with a picnic go horribly wrong. Time with her could restore his lost faith in people — and in God. Except, he has to write the truth in his article.

Can Ms Klutz-in-the-Kitchen transform herself to a Proverbs 31 woman in time to stop him revealing her blog is a fake? And what will happen to their growing love when he does.

Click here to find Imperfectly Proverbs 31 on Amazon

What about you? Have you read a Christian novel that features a character on a holiday or vacation?

Is there a book you enjoyed more than you expected?

Bookish Question #281 | Is there a book you enjoyed more than you expected?

Yes. Two, in fact:

All That Really Matters and All That It Takes by Nicole Deese.

I know a lot of people rave about Nicole Deese’s writing, but the first of her books that I bought I couldn’t even finish. I don’t remember what it was called, as I’ve long since given it away, but I tried to read it two or three times and never got beyond halfway. The plot was interesting, but the characters didn’t grab me.

Then I read another where I really liked the writing, but there was one aspect of the plot that really got to me. The book has around a gazillion five-star reviews on Amazon, so I’m obviously alone in this feeling.

I decided to give her books one more chance because I did like her writing in that second book. I bought All That Really Matters in a Kindle sale, and loved it so much I immediately bought the sequel, All that It Takes.

It was just as good, so now I’m a definite Nicole Deese fan.

(In fact, I’ve recently reviewed her latest release, The Words We Lost, which was excellent.)

I guess there are a few lessons here:

  • Not all books are for all readers.
  • If you don’t like one book by a writer, try another.
  • Writers improve as they write more books, so we especially shouldn’t judge a writer by their early titles.
(That might sound a little self-indulgent given I’ve just released my first novel, but think of it this way: would you really want to read a brilliant first novel from an author then find their subsequent novels didn’t live up to expectation? I wouldn’t. I want to see them get better in the craft of writing, and for each story to be better than the book before. That’s certainly what I’m aiming for.)

What about you? Is there a book you enjoyed more than you expected?

What's the most recent nonfiction book you've read that impacted you?

Bookish Question #280 | What’s the most recent nonfiction book you’ve read that has impacted you?

What’s the most recent nonfiction book you’ve read that has impacted you? How or why?

It’s been a while since I’ve read a nonfiction book (apart from the Bible, of course). It’s almost the end of May, and I don’t think I’ve read a single nonfiction book this year. Yes, there are a couple on my to-read pile, but I haven’t even cracked the cover.

So, back to 2022 we go …

Late last year, I read Present Over Perfect by Shauna Niequist.

This was one thing that influenced my 2023 words for the year: Less

Looking over my notes (yay for the Kindle’s ability to highlight!), I can see I’ve very quickly forgotten (or perhaps still haven’t learned some of the key points. Maybe I need to read it again (or at least read my notes and review).

Here are a few of the highlights I need to remind myself of:

Self-care was for the fragile, the special, the dainty. I was a linebacker, a utility player, a worker bee.

I certainly feel like this at times (and it’s also one of the issues my heroine, Tabby, faces in Always By My Side).

Maybe it’s about biting off more than I can chew professionally.

Oh, yes. I find it difficult to say “no”, yet every “yes” comes at a cost.

How many moments of connection I missed–to busy, too tired, too frantic, and strung out on the drug of efficiency.

That’s because I say “yes” when I should have said “no”. Because:

When you devote yourself to being known as the most responsible person anyone knows, more and more people call on you to be that highly responsible person.

I think I internalised this when writing about Tabby. It’s a shame I didn’t have time to write this blog post in my hurry to get Tabby’s story completed and off to the editor, then the formatter, and then uploaded on Amazon and Draft2Digital.

(And if you’ll forgive me for the self-promotion, Always By My Side releases today! It’s currently just 99 cents from Amazon or all your favourite online retailers this week only. Next week, the price will increase to $3.99, and it will be available exclusively on Amazon. It will also be enroled in Kindle Unlimited, so KU subscribers can read for free.)
Loving one’s work is a gift. And loving one’s work makes it really easy to neglect other parts of life.

True …

But you can’t say yes without no. Another way to say it: if you’re not careful with your yeses, you start to say no to some very important things.

Also true.

What you need along the way: a sense of God’s deep, unconditional love, and strong sense of your own purpose.

Tabby never doubts God’s love for her, but she doesn’t have a strong sense of her own purpose, of what God wants for her life. Instead, she has a tendency to let external factors guide her without stepping back to see if that’s what’s really right for her.

I’m sure no one else ever feels like that 😉

Of course we do.

You’ll give up on your larger purpose in order to fulfill smaller purposes or other people’s purposes.

Another one of Tabby’s issues …

I’ll leave you with one final thought:

God is asking me to be the thing he’s already created for me to be. And he’s asking you to be the thing he’s already created for you to be.

So I think I’ve explained why Present Over Perfect impacted me (and a lot of other people, as it’s apparently sold over 750,000 copies).

What about you? What’s the most recent nonfiction book you’ve read that has impacted you? How or why?

What's the most recent novel you've read that has impacted you, and why?

Bookish Question #279 | What’s the most recent novel you’ve read that has impacted you? How or why?

I’ve recently finished my advance reader copy of Indigo Isle by T I Lowe. It’s not due to release until 6 June, so my review will post then.

But I can give you a few hints …

Here’s the book description:

Sonny Bates left South Carolina fifteen years ago and never looked back.

Now she’s a successful Hollywood location scout who travels the world, finding perfect places for movie shoots. Home is wherever she lands, and between her busy schedule and dealing with her boss’s demands, she has little time to think about the past . . . until her latest gig lands her a stone’s throw from everything she left behind.

Searching off the coast of Charleston for a secluded site to film a key scene, Sonny wanders onto a private barrier island and encounters its reclusive owner, known by locals as the Monster of Indigo Isle. What she finds is a man much more complex than the myth.

Once a successful New York attorney, Hudson Renfrow’s grief has exiled him to his island for several years. He spends his days alone, tending his fields of indigo, then making indigo dye―and he has no interest in serving the intrusive needs of a film company or yielding to Sonny’s determined curiosity. But when a hurricane makes landfall on the Carolina coast, stranding them together, an unlikely friendship forms between the two damaged souls. Soon the gruff exterior Hudson has long hidden behind crumbles―exposing the tender part of him that’s desperate for forgiveness and a second chance.

A story of hanging on and letting go, of redemption and reconciliation, and of a love that heals the deepest wounds, from the author of the breakout Southern fiction bestseller Under the Magnolias.

Indigo Isle is a Beauty and the Beast trope (or grumpy sunshine, if you prefer).

Now, my introverted self is obviously always down for a library and no one around to interrupt me while I read all the books (do I hear an Amen?).

What impacted me was the way the novel subtly reminded me that people are not always what they seem. While the scarred Mr. Beast had obvious external scars that attested to some kind of troubled past, the Instagram-perfect Ms. Sunshine also had scars … scars she kept hidden under a sunny personality and more makeup than a high school prom.

It’s a good reminder that things are not always what they seem, and everyone has scars,

What about you? What’s the most recent novel you’ve read that has impacted you, and why?

What are the benefits of joining an author’s street team?

Bookish Question #278 | What are the benefits of joining an author’s street team?

What are the benefits for readers of joining an author’s street team?

As a reader, the biggest advantage of being on an author’s street team is that you get an advance copy of their book.

There are other advantages.

Most authors will set up a Facebook group exclusively for members of their street team. The author will share their book news and promotional material for group members to share.

They will also invite group members to share their reactions, reviews, and promotions.

Some may offer a prize to the person who shares the most, or to everyone who completes a defined list of simple tasks.

Authors may also share personal news (similar to what they do in their newsletter). The best try to cultivate a sense of community, where they invite prayer requests and answer reader questions.

Most will also offer their existing street team first option at joining their next street team.

The best street teams generate a feeling of excitement within the team as books are distributed, read, and reviewed.

As a reader, what do you see as the benefits of joining an author street team?

Have you ever been on an author's street team?

Bookish Question #277 | Have you ever been on an author’s street team?

A street team (in case you’re wondering) is a team of readers who get early access to an author’s new books in return for agreeing to review the book on sites like Amazon and Goodreads, and/or for sharing about the book on their websites or social media pages.

It may be called a street team, a review team, an influencer team, or something more personal, like Jane’s Reading Friends.

Yes, I’ve been on several author street teams.

As a reader, I most enjoy getting access to review copies, and having the opportunity to get to know the author a little better based on what they share in their group.

As a writer, I appreciate the opportunity to be in a street team as a way of seeing what other authors do and how I could apply that to my own upcoming book launch … (more on that tomorrow!)

What about you? Have you ever been on an author’s street team?

Have you read books where you disliked the cover?

Bookish Question #276 | Have you read books where you disliked the book cover?

I’m sure you’ve all heard the old saying:

You can’t judge a book by the cover.

And I’m equally sure we’ve all judged books by the cover. In fact, savvy authors and publishers go to a lot of effort to design covers that will appeal to their target reader. They know we judge books by the cover, and they expect us to do so.

(I suspect the old saying dates from the time when all books were hardcovers with nothing but the title and perhaps a little gold leaf around the edges.)

If the publisher and cover designer have done their jobs well, readers will look at a cover and want to buy the book. That works in a paper environment like a real-life bookstore where the book cover (or spine) is the first thing you see.

It doesn’t work so well in an online environment which places more emphasis (in terms of space) on the book description and reviews than on the cover.

The result is that yes, I have read books where I didn’t like the cover …

Perhaps because it was already an author I wanted to read, or because I’d already been drawn in by the book description.

The other reason I might read books where I don’t like the cover is when I’m reading an older book. Cover design has trends. The older the book, the less likely the cover will follow the latest design trends … which is why authors and publishers will often republish books with new covers, to capture new readers.

For example, Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers has been topping bestseller charts for close to thirty years. Here are some of the cover designs I found:

Cover images - Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers

The oldest cover does look somewhat dated. The newest cover is the movie tie-in version, and I have to say it’s my least favourite.

But it’s the same book.

So yes, I have (and do) read books where I dislike the book cover … but they are typically books by authors I already know and enjoy, books I find on an online store such as Amazon, or books recommended by a friend.

In these cases, the book description is more of a selling point than the cover.

What about you? Have you read books where you disliked the book cover?