Your Last Five Books

1.
Kelly Meding - As Lie The Dead
Kelly Meding - Another Kind Of Dead
Brent Weeks - The Black Prism
Kelly Meding - Wrong Side Of Dead
RA Salvatore - Neverwinter

2.
The Kelly Medings were because I'd read her first and enjoyed it, the Brent Weeks was because I'd read other work by him, and the RA Salvatore was the latest in a series I love.

3.
All were ebooks bought on Kindle.


4.
None were bought due to advertising. I almost never buy a book based on an ad, and can't remember the last time I did.

Currently: Jennifer Egan, A Visit From The Goon Squad. Reading group selection. Kindle download.

Previously: Patrick deWitt, The Sisters Brothers. Reading group selection. Kindle download.

Previously: Vanessa Gebbie, The Coward's Tale. I know the author. Owned in hardback but read as a Kindle download.

Previously: Greg Bear, Hull Three Zero. Saw it in Waterstones. Kindle download.

Previously: Gabriel Garcia Marquez, No-one Writes To The Colonel. Familiar with the author's work. Purchased in paperback from Waterstones (several years ago, just got around to it).

I don't recall ever buying a book because of an advertisement.

1.

Never Suck a Dead Man's Hand, by Dana Kollman
Most Evil: Avenger, Zodiac, and the further serial murders of Dr. George Hill Hodel, by Steve Hodel
Storm Front, by Jim Butcher
Beyond the Body Farm, by Dr. Bill Bass
The Art of Deception, by William L. Simon and Kevin D. Mitnik

2.

The Art of Deception, because it caught my eye. The three forensic/serial killer ones, for story/character research. Storm Front, because I hadn't read the Dresden Files books yet and craved Urban Fantasy on non-game days (currently playing a World of Darkness Mage game on Fridays).

3.
I got them all out of the library. It's where I work, so that makes it very easy to acquire books.

4.
No, I don't think that an advertisement is ever what made me buy a book. Look into one, yes, but I buy books that I can't put down after the first few paragraphs, and then pages.

1

Currently reading Fated by Benedict Jacka.
Moon Over Soho, Ben Aaronovitch
Babylon Steel, Gaie Sebold (Our own Broadswordbabe)
Devil You Know, Mike Carey
Beowulf, the bilingual edition.

2 + 3

I asked for Beowulf for Christmas (always loved the story, wanted to see it in the original), and got that and the Mike Carey - it had been on my wishlist a while (I've got a British UF in mind so I'm kind of on a kick of that at the moment, to get a feel for what's been done etc). I bought Babylon Steel from Gaie (we are in the same writer's group) at a signing she did <--supporting my fellow writer, plus she's good. Moon Over Soho - I loved the first in the series, bought this (Waterstone's) and didn't let myself read it till I'd got Ben to sign it Fated I bought (waterstone's again) because, well actually, not only because I'm on a UK UF jag at the mo, but because I met him not long ago and he was a very nice chap and had lots of interesting stuff to say about the genre so figured I'd give it a whirl. It's good too.

4 - Not that I recall, no. The ad may make me remember it if I come across it while browsing, so I'll look at the blurb etc.

I'm in the midst of working my way through all 38 JD Robb novels. Some from the library, some bought new, some bought used.

I picked those because it less than a month (26 days, but who's counting?) till the end of tax season. They are fast reads for me and don't require deep thought.

I don't recall seeing any advertising for books, other than an occasional commercial by James Patterson.

MM

1. Raymond Fiest, At The Gates of Darkness; George R.R. Martin, A Dance With Dragons; Steven Erikson, Dust of Dreams; Stephen Donaldson, Against All Things Ending; Thersa Matsuura, A Robe of Feathers.

2. Terrie's a friend and great writer. The rest because I love fantasy.

3. Purchased from a variety of sources.

4. I sometimes buy books recommended to me by Amazon.

1. What are the last five books you read?
The Tombs of Atuan, Ursula K. Le Guin
Storey's Guide to Raising Rabbits, Bob Bennett
Enticed by his Forgotten Lover, Maya Banks
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
Une exécution ordinaire, Marc Dugain

2. Why did you choose those books? (Recommended by a friend, saw it on a shelf, familiar with the the author's work, liked the cover art and copy, read a review, saw an ad . . .)
Tombs - I read A Wizard of Earthsea quite some time ago and enjoyed it; it simply took me this long to get around to fetching the second book in the series.
Storey's - I am interested in raising rabbits and this was recommended to me as the absolute best guide I could ever turn to.
Forgotten Lover - Harlequin has a group called Harlequin Ambassadors that I'm a member of; I qualified through this survey on their website, and now they send me free books and I tell them what I think about them. This was the most recent book from them.
Mockingbird - I re-read for a refresher before my 8th graders start reading it in April.
Exécution - Currently reading this one; I missed French and this was the first French-language novel I pulled off my shelf. I originally bought it because of the blurb.

3. Did you borrow from a library, download and purchased an ebook, borrowed from a friend, bought a print copy online, bought a used copy, bought it at a book store, bought it at a chain . . .)
Tombs - library
Storey's - library, but will be buying a print copy soon
Forgotten Lover - from Harlequin
Mockingbird - school copy
Exécution - bought at a chain while on vacation in France

4. Do you recall ever buying a book because of an advertisement? If so, what book, and where was the ad?
I've never gone to buy a book specifically because of an ad I've seen, but I have bought books while browsing that had advertising on them, like those paper sleeves that say "Winner of Such-and-such Award". Though I suppose that's not entirely true either, as I did once buy a novel in a train station because of the cool poster I was staring at the entire time I was waiting in line for tickets. (I really want to say that was Le Troisième Secret by Steve Berry, but if I'm right, it must have been an old poster, as this was 2009 and Secret came out in 2006.) I primarily pay attention to those kinds of ads when I'm abroad, since I don't have nearly as good of a grasp on the foreign literary scene and need all the hints I can get!

1. What are the last five books you read?
a. Cosmopolis by Don Delillo
b. The Human Stain by Philip Roth
c. Because it is Bitter and Because it is My Heart by Joyce Carol Oates
d. Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
e. Point Omega by Don Delillo

2. Why did you choose those books?
-familiar with the the author's work-

3. Type of book and acquisition method:
a. Tray Ed. Paperback - Christmas Present - new - prolly B&N
b. Tray Ed. Paperback - Used Book Store
c. Hardback - Used - Gift
d. Tray Ed. Paperback - Used Book Store
e. Gift - Hardback - new - prolly B&N store.

4. Do you recall ever buying a book because of an advertisement? If so, what book, and where was the ad?
I can't remember ever purchasing a book because of an advertisement. - Typically - books that are advertised are not the kind of books I like to read.

Medievalist said:

1. What are the last five books you read?

Four by Bernard Cornwell, all Historical Fiction and very well done.

From the King Arthur series...
The Winter King,
Enemy of God,
Excalibur, (current read)

From the Archer series...
Heretic

I also read a GRR Martin short novel,
The Ice Dragon.


2. Why did you choose those books? (Recommended by a friend, saw it on a shelf, familiar with the the author's work, liked the cover art and copy, read a review, saw an ad . . .)

For Cornwell, it was an interview by GRR Martin of Bernard Cornwell. For the Martin book, I got it because I have read his Fire and Ice Series and wanted to see what this book was about. My Grand daughter might like this one...

3. Did you borrow from a library, download and purchased an ebook, borrowed from a friend, bought a print copy online, bought a used copy, bought it at a book store, bought it at a chain . . .)

Downloaded all for my Kindle Fire because the price of $9.99 per book was easier on my wallet than the hardback price of near $30. Still, I am planning on picking up the hardbacks just to keep in my home library.

4. Do you recall ever buying a book because of an advertisement? If so, what book, and where was the ad?

NO...interviews and recommendations because I generally ignore advertisements.

Click to expand...

Are we compiling an informal survey? All good questions, well done.

1. What are the last five books you read?

The Woods by Harlan Coben
Under the Dome by Stephen King
Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell
The Burning Wire by Jeffery Deaver
I Am Legend by Richard Matheson

2. Why did you choose those books? (Recommended by a friend, saw it on a shelf, familiar with the the author's work, liked the cover art and copy, read a review, saw an ad . . .)

My sister and my girlfriend recommended The Woods. I will read anything by Stephen King. I saw the movie Winter's Bone, liked it and wanted to read the novel. I also love Jeffery Deaver's work and have read most of his novels. Saw the movie I Am Legend and wanted to read the novel.

3. Did you borrow from a library, download and purchased an ebook, borrowed from a friend, bought a print copy online, bought a used copy, bought it at a book store, bought it at a chain . . .)


I borrowed the hardcover The Woods from a friend. My sisters and I chipped in to buy the hardcover of Under the Dome. I bought the other three in paperback at the bookstore.

4. Do you recall ever buying a book because of an advertisement? If so, what book, and where was the ad?

I'll have to think about that one.

1. What are the last five books you read?


1-9 Coaches waiting - Mary Stewart
2 - Thornyhold - Mary Stewart
3 - Hunters Find - June Kramin
4 - Phantom of the Opera - Gaston Leroux
5 - Alice Through the Looking Glass


2. Why did you choose those books? (Recommended by a friend, saw it on a shelf, familiar with the the author's work, liked the cover art and copy, read a review, saw an ad . . .)


1 & 2 - Messing about on Goodreads, Mary Stewart was recommended. These books are essentially stories about houses that are characters (or so it seemed by the blurbs.) I am obsessed with houses.

3 - an AW connection!

4 - saw the 25th anniversary musical celebration on PBS, hadn't read the book since high school

5 - Free Amazon book - I love classic literature - couldn't believe I'd never read this, or Alice in Wonderland

3. Did you borrow from a library, download and purchased an ebook, borrowed from a friend, bought a print copy online, bought a used copy, bought it at a book store, bought it at a chain . . .)


1 & 2 - library books (physical library books)

3 - bought on Amazon Kindle

4 & 5 - free out of copyright books - actually got from manybooks.net


4. Do you recall ever buying a book because of an advertisement? If so, what book, and where was the ad?

Hard to say - my usual book buying is now trolling Amazon suggestions and Goodreads lists.... before that, I used to go to the actual real-for-true bookstore. I don't know that I ever saw an ad and thought, I must read that book now. But isn't Amazon one great big book ad?

I would just like to add this is an excellant thread to see all the different types of books our members are reading...

Thanks Medi...

Last 5 read:

(Current) Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Dracula by Bram Stoker
Fateful by AW's Claudia Gray
A Good And Happy Child (I've forgotten who wrote it)
Pyramids by Terry Pratchett

Why I bought them:

Dracula I bought for an English class at Uni. Jane Eyre I re-read because of the same class, but actually bought it over a year ago to see if I liked classics. Fateful was curiosity about Claudia Gray's new work - I'd read her previous 4, which I found from the sudden onslaught of UF in the bookstores. Good And Happy Child seemed interesting at a book sale (I think it cost me $3.) Pyramids because, well, Pratchett is awesome.

Where bought?

Jane Eyre came from BigW (paperback). Dracula came from the Uni bookstore (paperback). Fateful came from KMart (paperback). Good and Happy Child came from a once-a-year book sale at the Adelaide Showgrounds (paperback). Pyramids came from a chain book store near where I was working over the Christmas period (paperback).

Ads?

Well, I'm blushing to admit this, but I bought Twilight because there was a big in-store display for it when my local chain bookstore was in business. Although it was a good thing in the end (wherever you stand on Twilight) because along with the Twilight stand, there was a stand full of various UF novels which I otherwise wouldn't have realised existed. So I bought about 4 or 5 UFs from that display over the course of a month or so, plus the Twilight books. Not sure if that's really an ad... But there you go.

rhymegirl said:

1. What are the last five books you read?

The Woods by Harlan Coben
Under the Dome by Stephen King
Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell
The Burning Wire by Jeffery Deaver
I Am Legend by Richard Matheson

2. Why did you choose those books? (Recommended by a friend, saw it on a shelf, familiar with the the author's work, liked the cover art and copy, read a review, saw an ad . . .)

My sister and my girlfriend recommended The Woods. I will read anything by Stephen King. I saw the movie Winter's Bone, liked it and wanted to read the novel. I also love Jeffery Deaver's work and have read most of his novels. Saw the movie I Am Legend and wanted to read the novel.

3. Did you borrow from a library, download and purchased an ebook, borrowed from a friend, bought a print copy online, bought a used copy, bought it at a book store, bought it at a chain . . .)


I borrowed the hardcover The Woods from a friend. My sisters and I chipped in to buy the hardcover of Under the Dome. I bought the other three in paperback at the bookstore.

4. Do you recall ever buying a book because of an advertisement? If so, what book, and where was the ad?

I'll have to think about that one.

Click to expand...

Under the Dome was cool.

1. What are the last five books you read?

- The Road, Cormac McCarthy
-- Perfume: The Story of a Murderer, Patrick Suskind
--- A Rope of Thorns, Gemma Files
---- Ready Player One, Ernest Cline
----- On Stranger Tides, Tim Powers

2. Why did you choose those books? (Recommended by a friend, saw it on a shelf, familiar with the the author's work, liked the cover art and copy, read a review, saw an ad . . .)

- People talked about it a lot (media)
-- People talked about it a lot (online)
--- I read some of it in the bookstore and liked the writing
---- People talked about it a lot (online)
----- I've liked some of the writer's other books, plus they made a movie with Captain Jack Sparrow in it out of this one

3. Did you borrow from a library, download and purchased an ebook, borrowed from a friend, bought a print copy online, bought a used copy, bought it at a book store, bought it at a chain . . .)

- It was abandoned in the building's laundry room
-- It was abandoned in the building's laundry room
--- I bought it from a chain bookstore
---- I bought it at a chain bookstore
----- I bought it at a chain bookstore

4. Do you recall ever buying a book because of an advertisement? If so, what book, and where was the ad?

No.

Abandoned in the laundry room? Awesome!

I should go check the laundromat for abandoned books.

Cliff Face said:

Abandoned in the laundry room? Awesome!

I should go check the laundromat for abandoned books.

Click to expand...

There's a whole shelf in my building's laundry room. People dump the books they don't want anymore there and every few months I pilfer everything worth pilfering (and return it when I'm done.)

One of my cousin's used to live in a building that had a "free" shelf for residents where they could put useable items they didn't want anymore. It's a great idea and too bad more places don't implement it.

That is a good idea.

I've been re-reading, mostly.

The last five books I've bought are:
Plus One, Scarlet Parrish; e-book bought online
Singing Neanderthals (non-fiction) regular book bought through Chapters online
Chronicles #3, Mercedes Lackey, regular book bought at a brick & mortar
Unnatural Issue, Mercedes Lackey, audio book bought online
House of Silk (Sherlock Holmes), audio book bought online

Scarlet and Mercedes I bought because I like their work. Singing Neanderthals and House of Silk sounded interesting. I can't recall ever having being influenced one way or the other by an ad. I am influenced by literary prizes and best-seller lists. The chances are very good if a book qualifies for either of those, I won't like it.

Last five:

1. The Ermine of Czernopol by Gregor von Rezzori - impulse check-out at the local library.

2. There But For The by Ali Smith - it was on a list of book award finalists and looked interesting. Found it at the local library.

3. The Night Swimmer by Matt Bondurant - impulse check-out at the local library.

4. The Fathers by Allen Tate - recommended to me. Bought it on Half.com.

5. The Odds by Stewart O'Nan - recommended by neighbor. Found it at the local library.

Right now I'm scrabbling around looking for copies of books by Brit experimental writer Christine Brooke-Rose after reading obits to her all over the Internet. I have copies of her Thru and The ZBC of Ezra Pound somewhere but can't find them. I usually look out for books recommended by friends or reviewed by people I respect.

1. What are the last five books you read?
Rereading Leon Edel's biography of Henry James because I love James' work and bought the copy in a secondhand London bookshop on Charing Cross Road some years ago. And I finished Elaine Pagels on Revelation yesterday, read Tea Obreht's The Tiger's Wife a while back, Teju Cole's Open City, Congolese author Alain Mabanckou's Black Bazar.

2. Why did you choose those books? (Recommended by a friend, saw it on a shelf, familiar with the the author's work, liked the cover art and copy, read a review, saw an ad . . .)

I actively search out non-mainstream writers because they are more cutting edge, so I look for blog recommendations, follow certain writers and wait for their new books

3. Did you borrow from a library, download and purchased an ebook, borrowed from a friend, bought a print copy online, bought a used copy, bought it at a book store, bought it at a chain . . .)

I do buy secondhand copies -- libraries out here are not good, I order from Amazon, swop with friends

4. Do you recall ever buying a book because of an advertisement? If so, what book, and where was the ad?

No I can't recall ever looking twice at an ad -- perhaps if I knew the author already?

1. What are the last five books you read?
-The Hunger Games
-Catching Fire
-Mocking Jay
-The Lords of Discipline
- Ender's Game
2. Why did you choose those books? (Recommended by a friend, saw it on a shelf, familiar with the the author's work, liked the cover art and copy, read a review, saw an ad . . .)
The Hunger Games trilogy- because I started them awhile ago and put them down because I don't like to read first person present tense, picked them back up because of the movie trailers.
Lords of discilpine- was cleaning out boxes of books and always loved this one- wanted to re-read it.
Enders Game-pretty much the same as Hunger games- put it down after first chapter - wanted to give it another try- hate not finishing books I start-

3. Did you borrow from a library, download and purchased an ebook, borrowed from a friend, bought a print copy online, bought a used copy, bought it at a book store, bought it at a chain . . .)
A little of all of the above except borrow from library- I bought The hunger games and a friend let me borrow the other two in the series- already owned the other two.

4. Do you recall ever buying a book because of an advertisement? If so, what book, and where was the ad?
-No never- I browse and see what catches my eye- although I DID finish the Hunger Games because of the movie promo- but not an add for the book.
_____________