The Devil is a Marquess, published in 2016, is part of a 10.5 book series. Therefore, if something about a book triggers one of my alarms, I do not buy it. I am a consumer I purchase my books, so I do have concerns as to the money going out of my pocket. In the rush to make money, be a best seller, and make that exclusive author list, character development suffers. Maybe the editing is sloppy, or the author’s best friends are her/his critique group. Unless those books were laying under a bed for years, the swiftness of writing that many books in that short time period suggests to me that, something, somewhere has been overlooked. I do not always trust them, especially when I see an author who has published 10 books in five years. I am leery of good reviews… tons of good reviews. A good cover should say to me that someone has spent time, and thought constructing artwork, which echoes what is inside. What a bad cover says to me is that someone does not care. However, when one is looking at a cover which is badly drawn, has mediocre clip-art, or in the case of historical romance: a modern wedding dress/prom dress which does not in any way look historically accurate. I am aware of the old adage: never judge a book by its cover, blah, blah, blah. Here are a number of things I have grown leery of. There are certain “ flags” I am on the lookout for, when selecting a “ new” author to read. It all boils down to what I like and more importantly, what I do not like.

So, what do I look for? Well, I will tell you my little Petunias. While I have easy access to the library, I am more of an owner than a borrower. While I rejoice that everyone is tipping their toes into the writer pool, there are only so many books one can buy… and I buy mine. However, here is the problem as I see it. Well, now we have self-publishing, and everyone can be an author… if that is what they want. Maybe some authors did not have an agent, the right editor, the right cover letter…whatever the reason they were never published. It was hard to break into the publishing business. I realize in the glory days of publishing, numerous promising authors were lost in the shuffle to the top. There have been many changes to the publishing world in the last few years. I can no longer depend on my old sources…cause they are not there!!!!! That is why I am always on the lookout for new authors. Of course, you must understand, that list of auto-buys have changed over the years.

First, I have a rather large group of auto-buy authors from which to select.

I go through a number of different thought processes. How do I/me/myself select which books I read? I am about to do my digressing right away.

The Devil Is a Marquess by Elisa Braden