Thursday, June 19, 2014 | By: The Write Way Cafe

BookPerks, Book Clubs, and, well, Books! A story of obsession.

Author Tameri Etherton is on The Write Way Café challenging readers and writers to get out of their comfort zone and find new reading and writing pleasures.


I love books. To hold them, read them, or write them, books make me happy. But heres my dirty little secret: I tend to stay in my comfort zone of fantasy. Over the years Ive dabbled in other genres, especially historical fiction, often romantic suspense, and sometimes thrillers. Then one day I won a copy of Tessa Dares The Scandalous, Dissolute, No-good Mr. Wright and my love of Regency was born.

Who knew!

Since then, Ive bought Tessas entire collection and several other authors books in the genre. Im telling you, if you havent tried Regency, give it a go!

Tessa Dares a member of one of my writing groups and Im fortunate in the fact that I belong to many groups (most of them associated with Romance Writers of America) and hear about new books all the time. But what if youre not a writer? How do you find books? There are SO MANY to choose from! Where do you begin?

Word of mouth is great, but there are tons of places online readers can find new books. Goodreads is a fun place to start. Just search for the genre you like and hundreds of of choices will pop up. Scan the reviews, join some groups, interact with other readers, its a book lovers paradise. Be careful though, you might lose an entire day just to perusing the lovely book covers. Not that Ive ever done that, mind you. ;)

And then there are places that make it easy to find new books, like BookPerk. I discovered this gem a few years ago and Im hooked. http://www.bookperk.com

BookPerk is this cool site that sends E-book bargains, giveaways, exclusives, and moredelivered straight to your inbox. Most of the books are $1.99, but some are $2.99, and if you look at the list price, youre getting a great savings. The best part? Its totally legit! The deals are emailed to you, and you buy them through Amazon, B&N, Apple, Google, Kobo, or Indiebound.

What I love about BookPerk is it gets me to expand my reading beyond my comfort zone. Ive bought literary fiction, humor, biography, and even a paranormal book because of them.

Another way Im breaking out of my reading comfort zone is by joining a book club. A friend of mine started a monthly book club where reading the book is mandatory to coming to the meeting. We meet at a restaurant that serves the best cheese plate Ive ever had, so thats a compelling reason to read the damn book! Last month we read Hugh Howeys Wool, and this month were reading Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein.

Two totally opposite genres and I love it.

Im stretching my book tastes and delving into genres I didnt know Id enjoy. Its something I highly suggest everyone try. If you cant find a book club in your area, Goodreads has many online clubs. The discussions are lively and well-moderated, again, I say give it a go!

As an author, Im always curious how readers find books. As a reader, Im always looking for something that will grab me and not let go. Someone once asked me to name my top five favorite books. I couldnt do it. They change with the seasons of my life. I love them all. At one time or another, they are all my favorites.

What are some great books youve read lately that surprised you? Were they recommended to you, or did you happen upon them yourself? If you had to name your top five, what would they be?


Rocker of sparkly tiaras, friend of dragons, and lover of all things sexy, Tameri Etherton leaves a trail of glitter in her wake as she creates and conquers new worlds and the villains who inhabit them. When not masquerading as a mom and writer, rumor has it she travels to far off places, drinking tea and finding inspiration for her kickass heroines—and the rogues who steal their hearts—with her own Prince Charming by her side.

14 comments:

HiDee said...

Thanks for being with us today, Tameri. I subscribe to Bookbub but hadn't heard of BookPerk, so I'm going to check that out. Thanks for the suggestion!

Tameri Etherton said...

Thank YOU HiDee! It's such a pleasure to be on your blog today. I hope you enjoy BookPerk as much as I do. Just today I saw two books that I want to read, one from James Rollins, score! Again, stretching my comfort zone.

Now, I need to make time to read all these fabulous books.

Unknown said...

Tameri,
Thanks for the bookperk tip. I'd never heard of it, so went and signed up. I like to read everything. So, I'm doomed. LOL! I write RS and Paranormal, but an epic fantasy has been teasing me. I especially pay attention to debut authors as it gives me an idea of what is selling. Even better if they mention who their editor or agent is. =)

Tameri Etherton said...

Hey Jan!

Oooh, you are in trouble with BookPerk. Fortunately, they only send a few each day or I'd be broke! One of my beta readers suggested it to me, so I'm glad I can pay it forward.

I write mostly fantasy, with my first novel coming out in September, and I'm dipping my toes in the RW and Urban Fantasy worlds. We're a bit opposite in our writing genres! Go for the epic fantasy. I'm always looking for great new books to read, so get going!

Dawn C said...

I have favorite authors: Darynda Jones, Kim Harrison, Patricia Briggs, Jocelynn Drake, Karen Chance and Suzanne Johnson. I hear about new authors from my favorite authors (giveaways, interviews, guest spots, recommendations, etc) I recently read Donna Augustine's Alchemy series and it was very good!

Gayle Carline said...

Hi, there, Gal Pal!
You know, more than anyone, what genre I write - so glad you're willing to venture into uncharted territory and read my mysteries and memoirs.

As far as my favorite five books, jeepers. It might change from day to day, but these are the books I return to for inspiration and ideas:

The Count of Monte Cristo
Les Miserables
A Prayer for Owen Meany
The Thurber Carnival
A View from A Broad (Bette Midler)

Call me eclectic. Or don't.

RT Wolfe said...

Great post! Best wishes. :)
-R.T. Wolfe

Coleen Patrick said...

Book perk is new to me also! Thanks for the rec, Tameri. :)

Tameri Etherton said...

Dawn, you listed several of my favorites, too. Darynda is amazing. And Suzanne Johnson, so fun! I haven't heard of Donna Augustine, but that sounds like a great series, I'll have to check it out.

I love reading that you hear of authors through other authors. Paying it forward is important to me, and the more we can promote each other, the better!

Thanks for your comment and the great suggestions.

Tameri Etherton said...

Gayle, you are certainly eclectic! And I love that about you. I'm also glad I took a chance and stretched my comfort zone on your memoirs and mysteries. The bad news? Now I'm hooked. Love them!

Stay eclectic, my friend. It's part of what makes you so damn incredible.

Tameri Etherton said...

Thanks, R.T.!

Tameri Etherton said...

You're welcome, Coleen! Just be ready to get loads of fabulous books and then think, when am I going to read all these? It's kind of addictive. :)

Enjoy!

Anonymous said...

Some books have been recommended, others I just stumble on. If a cover catches my attention, I'll read the blurb ... and then a few reviews.

Favorite five? I have to choose FIVE? That sucks, lol. Alas, Babylon (how a Florida community survives and thrives after a worldwide nuclear war in the 1950s) has been a favorite forever, as has Mrs. Mike (adventures of a young American woman in the Canadian wilderness in the early 1900s). Hmm. An Angel For Emily (a guardian angle comes to earth to save the life of the woman he loves), The Monster at the End of this Book (gotta love Grover), and Perfect (woman hijacked by an innocent man escaping prison - gasp! - falls in love with him).

Anonymous said...

I need to read outside the paranormal genre more. You've tempted me to give Regency a go.