Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: Books I Discovered on Social Media

It’s time again for the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. Today’s topic is: Books I Discovered on Social Media
Okay, I’m amending my topic a bit so I can actually complete this post. My slightly amended topic is: “books I discovered because Goddess Fish Promotions toured them and I discovered them via that venue”, which is sort of like social media, right?
These are all books I bought ONLY because I either loved the author’s voice on their interviews/posts, or because I was intrigued by reviews our other hosts posted or because the book just sounded so dang good. In the past ten years of running Goddess Fish, I’ve bought many dozens of books, but these are some which stood out for me when I started thinking about the post. The links are to Goodreads, in case you wanted to check them out further.
Drasmyr by Matthew Ryan — I will tell you that I got this book when we were touring it because it was free. I wasn’t a huge fan of the cover, and the blurb didn’t intrigue me THAT much (it’s a genre I like so I was interested). And then I read it. And I LOVED this book. I have no idea if it’s still free (you should definitely check), but it’s worth buying, IMHO. I recommend this book to all my friends who enjoy fantasy/paranormal books.
Avant Nation by CD Verhoff, which I’ve discovered has been renamed and recovered (I honestly like the old cover better, but no one asked me, lol). It’s now called: Resist the Machine: Dystopian Suspense (Avant Nation Book 1) — my daughter got me hooked on dystopian young adult books and this one sounded interesting. So I grabbed it and I read it and it’s another one that I really, really enjoyed. I waited and waited and waited for the sequel which never seemed to come. I’d since forgotten that I was waiting. But just now, as I was checking for the link to this book, I’ve discovered book two is out! Woo hoo!!
Dead Handsome by Laura Strickland — Truth? While I do really like steampunk, it was the cover (and the cover alone) that really sold me on getting this book. I love this cover so much, and I am an utter cover whore (I have books that sound amazing that I can’t bring myself to buy because I despise the cover so much, and I know that’s not fair, but it’s the God’s truth). I have read this book, and I liked it quite a bit. What a GREAT premise!!
The End of Ordinary by Edward Ashton — This book I bought on the strength of the author’s interviews and blogs while he was on tour. They were well written, interesting and entertaining and I decided if the book was half as well written as the interviews and guest posts were, it would be worth every penny. I’ve not read it yet, though, but I think about it all the time. It’ll definitely get read in the future.
Defragmenting Daniel by Jason Werbeloff, which I’ve discovered has been renamed and recovered (and I like this new cover better, even though no one asked me this time either). It’s now called: The Organ Scrubber (The Defragmenting Daniel Trilogy #1). — This book was on sale when we toured it as I recall (maybe 99c?) and it sounded just warped enough to intrigue. I got it. I read it. I completely enjoyed it. But, be warned: it is exceptionally warped and it’s remarkable to me that I sympathized with a main character who was going around murdering people.
Soulless by Jacinta Maree — this is another book I bought almost completely on the strength of the cover. I love this cover, and the covers of the books in the rest of the series (which I also own). I’ve read about half this book, but haven’t had a chance to finish it. It’s well written and interesting and the fact I haven’t finished it isn’t a statement on the book, it’s a statement on how utterly crazy my life is.
Tar by Taylor Houlin — I bought this book because the author was a lot of fun on his tour. We tell people you can build a fan following by writing interesting posts and interviews, and it’s not a lie. This is another book I started, got about 2/3 through and haven’t finished yet. AGAIN, I’m absolutely enjoying it (if I don’t like a book, I’ll stop reading at the first chapter without the slightest qualm), but life… it is crazy.
End of the Road by Karen Michelle Nutt — This book I bought solely based on the rave reviews the hosts on the tour were giving it. One after another after another. And I liked the premise. So… it’s in my library. I haven’t read it yet, but (as always) I absolutely plan on doing so.
What about you? How do YOU find new-to-you authors and why do you buy books?