
First: the Net Galley Question:
I’m pretty new to Net Galley but I know that we’re supposed to read and review fairly quickly. At least 80% feedback being the goal. I’m always about 98% or more because, a) I’m a keener and b) I only review audio books in the Christian Fiction and Cozy Mystery genres. So, up until this summer it was easy to keep on top of things. Easy for me to listen and review efficiently. Usually the only lag time was because I had to wait for an opening for a blog post so it might be two weeks from the time I downloaded the book and then posted my reviews.
BUT everything changed the last week in July when I got approved for 10 books in quick succession. Ack, the organized bookish nerd in me had a mild panic attack. I don’t know which is more anxiety inducing – looking at my ‘start reading’ list or my ‘give feedback’ list. And some of the books don’t even release until October! So, I have questions, and you NG experts will hopefully have answers.
- How soon are you supposed to review books with release dates several months away? Review immediately where you can and add online retailer reviews on the release date? Or do you wait until closer to the release date? You can tell from last week and this coming week that I opted to review right away because…that ominous ‘start reading’ list had me hyperventilating! 🙂
- How promptly do you read and review Net Galley books? I tend to read them within a week but with ten books approved in two days that just wasn’t possible so I’m kinda panicking.
Which brings me to the reason we’re celebrating ‘Hello August’ on a Sunday. Literally every book I review this week (except for our Carol Awards day) is a Net Galley book. And I’ll still have two books left to carry over into the following week! Ack! So I decided to squeeze in our ‘Hello August’ here…I mean, it’s kinda conversational since we’ll be talking about what new releases we’re most excited about, right? For me it’s ‘Final Approach’ by Lynette Eason. I have that one preordered on Audible. Eeeppp! So excited! Anyway…
It’s Time for Hello August!

Because I recently discovered that a book’s success or failure is often determined by first month sales! (Though I bet preorders play into that as well.) Publishing houses look at those stats to determine whether they’ll add on to a series or accept the author’s next manuscript! All that literary goodness hanging in the balance but for a month’s worth of sales! (This was a cozy mystery author, but I imagine all traditional publishers use the same ‘system’.) So, I thought I should do my wee little bit to promote Christian Fiction.
By hosting a special “Hello — insert month” giveaway. It’s easy to play along. You just have to choose one of the August 2025 new releases on your TBR wishlist (must be Christian Fiction) and mention the title in a comment below (or email me at kavluvstoread AT yahoo DOT ca.) If your name is drawn, that July release is the book you will win and we’re one book count closer to keeping our fave authors in business.
GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY AVAILABLE TO:
ebook for anyone anywhere who has an Amazon.com kindle account
US – paperback or ebook copy — winner’s choice
Canada -paperback or ebook (in form of an Amazon gift card) or audible.ca audio book (if available) – winner’s choice
Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday August 9 2025.















