Looking for a new book to buzz? Check out Tess Thompson’s romance, Riversong:

When Lee Tucker’s husband commits suicide, he leaves her pregnant and one million dollars in debt to a loan shark. Out of options, she escapes to her deceased mother’s dilapidated house located in a small Oregon town that, like her, is financially ruined, heartbroken and in desperate need of a fresh start. Lee’s resilience leads to a plan for a destination restaurant named Riversong, to new chances for passion and love, and to danger from her dead husband’s debt as her business blooms. Author Tess Thompson (formerly known as Tess Hardwick) assembles a colorful cast of endearing small-town characters and takes you on a journey that will make you believe in the possibilities of life–even in the face of overwhelming adversity and unimaginable grief. Lee Tucker is the kind of woman you find yourself rooting for long after the last page is read. A surprising mix of romance, humor, friendship, intrigue and gourmet food , Riversong entertains while reminding you of life’s greatest gifts.

Featured Reward of the Week

This week’s featured reward is an autographed copy of Mary Rowen’s Living by Ear. So how can you snag this signed paperback for yourself? You have to be the top buzzer for Living by Ear and get at least 20 buzz hits before the end of the week. What are you waiting for? Get buzzing!

Keep on rockin’!
-Team Libboo

Dear Libboo Authors,

Throughout the month of May, Libboo will be offering a profesional subscription. We aim to provide the opportunity to leverage marketing via advocacy for a broader community of talented authors, whether traditionally published or independent.  With this subscription, Libboo’s Professional platform brings you:

• Automated and targeted weekly campaigns with the flexibility to choose how you reward your buzzers based on their specific motivations.

• Analytics about your advocates, bringing back insights into how and why buzzers share and drive new visitors to your book.

• The platform to connect with your top advocates in order to build community around your book and you as an author.

• Friendly, human, and personalized support.

We understand that everyone’s marketing budgets are different and we want to be inclusive to all talented authors. You will always have the option to enjoy certain features of the platform for free. Check out our comparison chart below:

If you have specific questions, comments or concerns, please reach out to Fernando at fernando@libboo.com and we will work with you to find the right solution on the Libboo platform, no matter your individual budget.

-Team Libboo

This week we have more new books from The Writer’s Coffee Shop! Here are just a couple of our favorites:

The Last Keeper by Michelle Birbeck
Fifteen hundred years ago, Serenity Cardea took the life of the only vampire she ever regretted killing—Henry, her sister’s husband. With her sister brutally murdered, Serenity had little choice but to grant Henry the only request he had: death. Centuries later, Serenity is no closer to discovering who betrayed them or instigated the massacre of her brothers and sisters.

The vampires want dominance—over their food, the other races . . . the world. To get it, they’ve systematically hunted down and slaughtered the only ones standing in their way. The Keepers.

As a Keeper, Serenity is tasked with protecting the delicate balance between the creatures of the world: Vampire, Witch, Were, and Human. Her kind exists to ensure that no single race sways the balance, dooming the world to destruction.

They’re on the brink of extinction, with no sign of return. Now only two remain, and Serenity’s last brother is facing death, leaving her standing alone against a never-ending tide of vampires, all wanting one thing: power.

Then she meets Ray Synclair, a history professor in training with a passion for centuries past, and the harsh reality of her limited time comes crashing down on her. He is her weakness. His mortality is the countdown on Serenity’s life, and with each passing second, it comes closer to the end, for both of them.

She must uncover the secrets of her people’s past and find out who betrayed them—and who is still doing so—before it’s too late.

Serenity’s days are numbered, and Ray will be drawn into a world of myth and legend, where just being alive is enough to get him hunted down.

Because the only way to kill a Keeper is to kill their partner . . .

My Only by NK Smith
Adam James’s life is far from perfect. A talented drummer from a small suburb of Chicago, he keeps to himself, downplaying his abilities, thinking that he is less than all those around him, including his popular twin brother, Aaron.

When a free-spirited new girl with a troubled past moves in across the street, Adam’s eyes are opened to a new world of possibilities. Olivia Cartwright’s philosophies on life give her a deeper understanding of the world. An instant connection between Adam and Olivia draws them closer, but he wonders why anyone would choose him when a better version exists, particularly when Aaron also takes an interest in her.

Will the friendship with Olivia change Adam, or will he continue to close himself off in his own world?

Adam has a choice to make: risk his friendship with Olivia or fight for something more.

It seems Adam has a lot to learn about love….and life.

Revisited by Lindsey Gray
As the Redemption series continues, everyone’s path leads into one in Revisited.

Lily Edwards, the last remaining female vampire, is facing a daunting task. She has to find Liam Caldwell, the vampire she was forced to create, and change him back to his human state.

But Lily’s task will not be an easy one as fellow remaining vampires, Filipp and Debir, have been secretly plotting her demise for decades and were the ones responsible for Liam being turned.

While Liam is grateful for Filipp and Debir’s guidance during his transformation into the vampire he felt destined to be, he’s having second thoughts as he learns their whole plan is not what it seems. A handpicked army of humans waits for Liam to change them into vampires at Filipp’s instruction. Adding to the mix is Valentina Pavel, the last member of a Romanian witch coven, who brings forth new challenges of her own. Together, they all have Liam doing the unthinkable, pleading for a way out.

Lily’s adopted daughter, Becca, is also preoccupied with a few dilemmas of her own. Discovering that the angel, Sam Fleming, is her biological father presents her with a choice to accept the powers of her birthright, or continue her human existence. She must find the answer while continuing to fight the feelings she has for fellow angel, Abe North, and her missing new love, Ian Holt.

Ian’s world has been turned upside down now that the body-stealing demon, Gideon, is controlling him. Ian struggles as Gideon’s decisions cause them both mental and physical pain. The only thing they agree on is their insatiable need to be with Becca at all costs.

Friends-now-turned-enemies struggle for their eternity, while enemies-turned-friends fight side by side. Will Lily’s past give her the answers she needs to reach the future?

Immortal by Gene Doucette
Surviving sixty thousand years takes cunning and more than a little luck. But in the twenty-first century, Adam confronts new dangers—someone has found out what he is, a demon is after him, and he has run out of places to hide. Worst of all, he has had entirely too much to drink.

Immortal is a first person confessional penned by a man who is immortal, but not invincible. In an artful blending of sci-fi, adventure, fantasy, and humor, Immortal introduces us to a world with vampires, demons and other “magical” creatures, yet a world without actual magic.

At the center of the book is Adam.

Adam is a sixty thousand year old man. (Approximately.) He doesn’t age or get sick, but is otherwise entirely capable of being killed. His survival has hinged on an innate ability to adapt, his wits, and a fairly large dollop of luck. He makes for an excellent guide through history . . . when he’s sober.

Immortal is a contemporary fantasy for non-fantasy readers and fantasy enthusiasts alike.

Check out the Discover page for more new books!

-Team Libboo

We added thirteen new books to Libboo today, including six from LeRue Press. It’s an exciting moment for us since Janice Hermsen of LeRue has long been one of our most active buzzers! We’re very happy to add her authors to our community. Here are a few of the books that you can look forward to reading on Libboo:

Inked In by Karlyn Simone
Vampires are not the only thing that have come to Sly, a small town coffee house frequented by the teenagers of Brookdale Academy. When Eve Ashbury meets the alluring Zaire and his group, Ink, everything changes. Eve and Zaire connect instantly, but the elusive Demetrio kidnaps her in the night. Now Zaire must make a choice that may change his life forever. The journey is one that cannot be reversed…and one that must end with death.

Wicked Tides by Sean Kinsley
An area of the world that has not seen major conflict is about to erupt. Run by powerful politicians, kings, warriors, spherists, assassins and underground networks, chances for personal gain are rife. Spherists, creatures who are able to draw upon and control the energy of ethereal realms, are utilized in everything from encrypting information, communicating long distance to spying and contract killing.

Synaptic Traffic by Benjamin Arnold
These poems frame a narrative of desperation, of people looking for something in the bleached, wide-open desert. The characters have one thing in common: they need more than they can possibly give and so their lives cough and bounce from heyday to low rent emptiness. A stutter of combustion and the trail of dust behind them. These people may make you ache with recognition.

You can check out all our new books by going to the Discover page (look for the orange “New” banners!).

-Team Libboo

Some of our most active buzzers are also authors, but in the case of Janice, she’s also a publisher! In fact, today we added six books from LeRue Press. Janice has earned an impressive 269 freebies to date and is always buzzing.

How did you hear about Libboo?
Brian T. Shirley, Author of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Club buzzed his book and others. I saw the site, liked it and decided to join and see what you do.

What do you love most about Libboo?
I enjoy reading about the authors and seeing a different selection of books.

What books are you currently buzzing?
White House Games, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Club (of course), Courtiing Kathleen Hannigan, Cook Like a Native Italian and many, many more.

Favorite social network:
Don’t really have one.

What’s your favorite non-bookish thing to do in your spare time?
Spend time with my husband, John and my family, including my grandchildren.

Ice cream or cake?
Ice cream….definitely ice cream.

Finish this sentence: “Bacon…”
Bacon, potatoes and milk; don’t knock it till you’ve tried it.

Anything else you’d like to tell us? Particularly frightening nightmares? Memorable dreams? What you had for breakfast?
Special advice from Mom: “You can do anything you want to do!”

We hope that you guys enjoy the new books from LeRue!
-Team Libboo

We recently sent out an anonymous survey to our buzzers and authors asking them to give us some feedback about Libboo. We wanted to know what we’re doing right, and what we could do better. Thanks to our awesome community, we’ve put together a list of the most common suggestions and what we’re doing about them.

1) The limited book selection

It’s awesome that you all want more books. So do we! We are constantly working to add more books to the platform, and to make the process faster. We won’t bore you with the details, but know we are working hard to get you great content to buzz.

What you can do:

If you have a favorite author or book you’d like to see on Libboo, let them know! Most authors have fan pages or Goodreads accounts where you can contact them, and the process tends to move faster when authors and publishers know it’s something their fans want.

2) I don’t understand buzzing or it’s too difficult

While we have our Beginner’s Guide to Buzzing, we’re also working on some changes to our homepage that will help to better explain buzzing and how it works.

What you can do:

Saying “I don’t get buzzing” is great for us to hear–but we’d like to know what you’re getting stuck on. Send us some specifics so we can improve those areas and make buzzing better for everyone.

3) I want to be able to automatically share my freebie links instead of copying and pasting them

Woohoo! You guys read our minds. Look for this feature, coming soon!

4) I want to be able to log in using Goodreads and/or Facebook

Are you sure you’re not psychic? We’re also working on this (and other ways of incorporating Goodreads and Libboo!).

5) I want rewards other than free books

Also coming soon. We love hearing that the features we’re working on are things that you guys want!

Although all of the feedback we received is extremely helpful and important to us, we’re unable to address everything individually. If you feel strongly about another issue that was not included here, shoot us an email at help@libboo.com and let us know why. We’ll be happy to do whatever we can to help!

Happy Buzzing!

-Team Libboo

It’s the big news of the week, and if you’re a reader, author, or publisher, your Twitter stream has probably been blowing up with tweets like these:

Exciting news! Goodreads is joining the Amazon family to bring more book discussion to readers everywhere. bit.ly/YMjqVV

— goodreads (@goodreads) March 28, 2013

Amazon Buys Goodreads, Agenda of World Conquest Marches On: slate.me/14Bbmys

— Slate (@Slate) March 29, 2013

Why Amazon’s Purchase of Goodreads Is A Good Thing wp.me/p1u2u2-GO

— David Gaughran (@DavidGaughran) March 29, 2013

Still, you may be asking yourself, “What does this mean for me?”

If you’re a Kindle fan, the good news is that the acquisition will likely lead to some awesome Goodreads integration on your favorite reading device. The bad news is, well, what if you don’t own a Kindle? Or what if you don’t want your purchasing options to be limited to Amazon? At the moment, Goodreads displays a list of storefronts where you can buy the books you are interested in, a feature that will doubtfully remain for much longer. For some users, this is a very real concern.

In the more than 1,500 comments that have been left on Goodreads’s announcement of the merger, amongst the congratulations, feature requests, and Amazon bashing, another issue becomes apparent: what about reviews? Amazon caused a stir last year by deleting book reviews without offering an explanation or warning reviewers. Because of this, Goodreads users have expressed concern that they will not be able to give honest reviews.

Authors, as well, are afraid that they will no longer be able to post reviews on Goodreads.

While Amazon and Goodreads will surely make some sexy data babies that will be used for book recommendations, the idea that one bookseller may have such control over book discovery is scary. If Amazon has control of all that data, they will surely make it work in their favor by recommending only books that are available to buy on their platform. That benefits no one (apart from, of course, Amazon). It does not benefit authors to have to lock out potential fans (especially in the ebook space) because of a need to cater to Amazon. It does not benefit publishers, some of whom are already at odds with Amazon, to have the conglomerate gain more power in the publishing industry. It does not benefit readers to have one single seller telling them what to read.

Part of what made Goodreads so appealing to users was its neutrality, something that it is now destined to lose.

We’re back from our road trip to South by Southwest, and we’ve brought some presents with us! Three new books were added to Libboo today:

Endless Night by R.M. Gilmore

The bitch is back in this second installment of the Dylan Hart Odyssey of the Occult series. The irreverent Dylan Hart, once again, graces us with her presence, this time from down in New Orleans. She has drug along her band of misfit vampires, but this time blood drinkers are the least of her worries. Dylan finds herself entangled in the underground world of blood and lust when she encounters a new, and much more frightening, villain. Voodoo. Who do?

Silenced by RaeBeth McGee Buda

Amber Brown spent her entire existence believing Dave was her father. When her mother reveals this is untrue, she goes down an emotional spiral. It’s hard for her to believe her mother had lied to her all this time, and a move to a new town causes Amber to be consumed by her darkness. She reverts to cutting to free herself from her pain. When Casey enters her life, Amber is introduced to partying, drugs, and Landon. The secret of cutting begins to take effect on Amber as she tries to hide it from her friends and family. In the midst of everything, Amber has the desire to find out who her biological father is. Follow Amber through her trials of depression and cutting, along with the discovery of love.

Your Best Just Got Better by Jason Womack

In Your Best Just Got Better, productivity expert Jason Womack teaches readers that working longer hours doesn’t make up for a flawed approach to productivity and performance. Workers need to clarify their habits, build mindset-based strategies, and be proactive. Womack’s signature “workplace performance” techniques offer specific strategies to consistently and incrementally improve performance.

We actually had a chance to meet Jason at SXSW and chat about his book and how he got into writing:

If you missed our journey to Austin, you can still view all the videos on our YouTube channel.

Happy buzzing!
-Team Libboo

Buzzer Man was kidnapped at the TechStars party last night. We would really like him back, because we need our Superhero in Residence in case, you know, anything needs saving. If you have any leads on where he may be, make sure to tweet at us!