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Define "completely unknown"? I mean, I've read loads of books by authors I've never heard of, even a few self published first time novels. Firstreads is good for that sort of thing. I've won a dozen or so books from there. Some were good, some were PAINFUL. At some point I was on a publisher's list for proof copies. Though they only ever sent me one book I was interested in reading, Don't Kill the Birthday Girl: Tales from an Allergic Life. I read that pre-release and really liked it. Sandra was not well known I don't think, may still not be, I'm not sure how to draw that distinction. I believe she was/is a poet primarily and I don't often read poetry, so maybe she's huge is some other circle I know not...

I'm adventurous. Plus, I have an aversion to "assigned reading". Don't think it hasn't come back to bite me in the arse a time or two. There were books on Firstreads so bad I couldn't finish reading them. But, there were a couple of gems in there as well.

I read reviews, and sometimes that makes me want to read a book, but "recommending" a book to me will likely just get deleted. Unless I know you read a genre I am particularly interested in, then I might look a little further, but doubtful. Richard is the only one I don't delete recommendations from, mainly because he doesn't recommend books to me because HE likes them, but rather because he believes I will like them.

That's what I love about short stories! I can give new authors a try without committing to a whole novel. Sofia Samatar's story "Selkie Stories Are For Losers" in Strange Horizons made me buy her first novel, A Stranger in Olondria, which came out this year.

I've discovered other "unknown" authors through Twitter and cons and reviews. I go out of my way to look for them. I'm definitely willing to give my exploratory tendencies a chance.

*knuckle bumps SP*

Blind date...love that. Yes.

I love trying something new, there's always a chance to be positively surprised.

Sahith wrote: "What if the book turns out to be terrible and you have inadvertently missed out on reading your "would-have-been" favorite book in that place? I mean, there are only so many books you can read."

I'm not afraid to stop part way through if I don't think a book is good enough to finish. Life is too short to get to everything, and too short to read books you don't like. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't take a chance.

Sahith wrote: "What if the book turns out to be terrible and you have inadvertently missed out on reading your "would-have-been" favorite book in that place? I mean, there are only so many books you can read."

so you paid for a book and couldn't finish it
did you like every movie you've paid for watching in cinema? I haven't, but I won't cry about that ;)

and if you won't try anything new you'll run out of books pretty fast

even books that someone recommended you might be uninteresting for you

not only that, even books by the same author might vary enough for you to put some of them down without finishing

there's always another book waiting patiently for you to pick it up, so why torture yourself to finish each and every one

not only that, even books by the same author might vary enough for you to put some of them down without finishing

This �

YES, I WOULD.

I try novels by first-time authors all the time. I give them about 50 pages to engage me.

Some of the most entertaining books I've read are from first-time, unknown authors...some of them could use a little work, but that did not make the stories unreadable. I've read works by some very well-known authors that made me wonder why I'd wasted my time. If you never take a gamble (and we're talking minimal risk here) you're bound to miss out on finding something extraordinary.

It depends, if it's cheap, I'll buy a book that peaks my interest/looks good, if it's a 30 dollar hardback I'll probably research a little more before deciding.

Also it helps if I sense that the text has been edited by a publisher or appeared in a magazine. Some of the self-published stuff is quite often really bad, and reads more like a 14 y old's school paper than a novel...

I love trying out new "unknown" (at least to me) authors. They expand my bookshelf horizons and offer new writing styles and maybe even genres to me. Sometimes I don't like them but I still give them a try anyway.

I rarely know who the author is. I pick by subject not author.

Isn't it part of what is so exciting about reading - you don't know if it is going to be good but you might find a real treasure. Besides, knowing an author is not a guarantee that the book will be good. And, of course, every author starts out as unknown but someone has to take the plunge and try them out. Yes, I have read some books whose blurb intrigued me but the actuality left me cold, but I have also discovered some great (to me) stories.

I agree Annette, there are so many aspiring authors out there, why put a limit on yourself with the same ol' same ol'.

I don't know who writes the blurb on the back of books, often it is quite misleading. Arrrrgh.

I generally avoid the blurbs, but I have favorably judged a book by its cover for choosing what to read. Working in a library makes that a bit easier.