Book recommendations

How I Decide to Read a Book

/ Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy / 14 Comments
Photo by Rob Tolomei (CC BY-NC 2.0)

Last week I listed the ways a book can get my attention. I looked at how things like awards, recommendations and online lists can help a novel to stand out from the crowd for me. However, once a book has my attention, it usually still needs to jump a few extra hurdles before it becomes something I want to buy and read.

So this week I thought I’d analyse all the little factors that come into play when I’m investigating a book to see if it’ll go onto the “to-read” list, or even straight into the shopping basket.  Continue reading →

Why You Should Join Goodreads

/ Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy / 2 Comments
Home page of the social media site Goodreads

Okay, so I’ll get it out there first off: I love Goodreads. I am a Goodreads fangirl. Excepting perhaps Facebook, Goodreads is my favourite social media network. Like so many book-related things these days, it is owned by Amazon (sigh)… but I overlook that because it has instigated such a positive change in my reading life and behaviour.

If you’ve never tried it, and one (or all) of the below statements applies to you, there’s a good chance you’d enjoy using it too: Continue reading →

A Few Tips on Buying Books as Gifts

/ Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy / 4 Comments
Photo by Wilbert de Groot (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

A friend or acquaintance starts to tell you about a book – a wonderful book that you absolutely must read. They describe how this book changed their world, how they can’t recommend it enough. You see the sparkle in their eye as they reflect on the memory of reading it. So surely, you think, you really must go out and read this book?

Well, if you’re like me, that all depends.

Continue reading →