- Small things:
- Under TBR, add a sorting option to sort your books from oldest to newest published (and vice versa).
- Under My Log, add a log-type filter to the My Log page so readers can filter to see only the books they didn’t finish, reread, etc.
- Everywhere, add an optional ISBN/ASIN field to the “add missing book” function. A lot of testers wanted this, and it helps our team, so it's a win-win.
- Everywhere, switch the disliked icon to a thumbs-down icon, as that made much more sense to testers. And swap the emojis everywhere to a style to match our motif.
- Bigger things:
- Under My Log, add a crowned book page showing only crowned books.
- Under TBR, add a Smart TBR page that shows books in your TBR you have already read and want to reread.
- Under TBR, add Smart TBR pages for Fiction and Nonfiction so you can easily see your TBR list with those two splits.
- Under TBR, swap the star icon we use for the read next queue to a bookmark icon. The star icon caused a lot of confusion with testers.
- On the ratings process, we are fixing the stats on page two after you rate a book. And if you rate a book as loved/crowned, we are adding an optional field so you can recommend it to another reader who also loved it (this data also feeds our recommendation engine, icon, as that made much so we can make better personalized recommendations once we start working on that later this year).
Timeline
A timeline of major features and events since our birth on April 19th, 2021.
We will make it easy to sort your TBR by genre (as well as your reading log).
And a filter to sort by your most frequently read authors, and the authors with the most books on your TBR.
This still uses the genre system publishers provide, but it is a good starting point. Long-term, we want to build our own genre system, as the BISAC publishing system lacks many features.
Want to help us test the beta? Apply for early access to the beta here.
We will add a dedicated page to show what you are currently reading or listening to. This was under the My Log page, but during user testing (and my usage) we found that was a bit confusing.
We will also add some basic starting stats so you can see how many books you have read this year and your rating of each.
We will always work to improve the quality of our book database and the way search works in the app. This is merely the first batch based on responses from beta testers 😀.
What did we do in this batch?
- Adding support for book series (and listing those correctly)
- Elevating exact match on book titles (some of the weightings were off)
- Improvements to which books show up first, and better weights for authors/books that are famous.
- Connect this system to our backend system to pull in book data and have our small team check everything over for quality.
- And a lot of general improvements to the database and search system.
Want to help us test the beta? Apply for early access to the beta here.
This is a perk for our members and a small thank you for funding us.
We show your new book in every "new book" section that matches its genre, topic, or age group on our 3,000+ bookshelves. As well as the all-time best and trending sections. For example, if your book is crime fiction, we show it on our new crime fiction section of that bookshelf.
We consider any book new if it was published in the last 3 years. We picked that number after talking with many readers, and it is what we use on all our "new book" pages.
And this will also show up in your reading log:
Want to help us test the beta? Apply for early access to the beta here.
One of the things I’ve been struggling with is finding the right vibe for the design. We finally found some time to devote to this and came up with something we are happy with. We are going for a very minimal, calm feel, with illustrated 2D drawings.
The beta is launched!
This is the first version of the app, with enough core features to get started, but not much else. Some family and friends, I, and some early testers are now using this to actively log all their 2026 reading data.
Want to help us test the beta?
Apply for early access to the beta here.
What features are in this early beta?
This is limited to core features only. We want to get this up and running with users, so we can evolve it based on feedback and usage.
- Your TBR (to-be-read) list, where you can manage what you are thinking about reading and what you want to read next.
- Your reading log, where you can see what you are currently reading as well as what you have finished.
- A global book search where you can find books to add to your TBR or reading log.
- A private note function so you can leave your thoughts on books you are considering reading or have read.
- The book rating process, where you log books into your log once you finish them.
Here is an early mockup of the TBR page.
Here is an early mockup of the Reading Log page...
On Tuesday, January 27th, we moved from Shepherd.com to BookDNA.com. The site itself is not changing. Your account, data, and experience will remain exactly the same. Only the name and URL are changing.
Why the change?
I’ve been thinking about this shift for most of 2025. After talking with readers about our full app, I decided that "Book DNA" better reflects what we have built and are continuing to build.
You can download the new logo to use on your website here:
Every year, we ask thousands of readers (and authors) to share their 3 favorite reads of the year. Now you can enter a book/author you love and see what books readers loved who also loved that book/author.
Try it here: https://bookdna.com/bboy/2025
This is a fun way to get book recommendations from people who love the same books or authors you love.
In November 2024, I removed all the ugly display ads from the website. This is a somewhat risky move, as the ads cover a portion of our costs. However, I am confident we can replace them with book ads and deliver a better experience for both readers and authors in one go.
The ultimate goal is to provide authors with a “one-click” way to get their book in front of the most likely readers, based on similar authors, books, and genres (and filter for the age focus for children's books). And do that in an authentic way that drives interest in the author and their book(s).
Interested in trying paid ads?
Email forauthors@bookdna.com to get pricing and details. I am currently testing it with ~5 authors to ensure everything is working properly (during this test period, authors get a 50% discount), and I work with them every step of the way to improve targeting and performance.
After three months of testing, I'll make pricing public. And I'll continue to share data and details on our author newsletter.
What did we add?
One of the perks our members receive is Book Boost ads for their book(s). We show their book to 100-200 of the most likely readers to thank them for supporting our mission to build this platform.
We added automated stats so that authors can see how many readers saw their ad, the clicks they got, and their click-through-rate. We send the email on the 15th and 1st of every month.
This is a massive upgrade for our 3,000+ bookshelves.
Bookshelves are groupings of books by genres, topics, or age groups, such as Science fiction, World War 1, or Kids' books.
What did we add?
Best of All-Time Books
This section shows the most recommended books within that bookshelf. Plus, you can dive into the most recommended books by year, decade, age group, and more (depending on the book grouping).
Try the best science fiction books of all time.
Trending Books
This page will update monthly and show you the books mentioned the most in the last month. It is a cool way to identify up-and-coming books and authors.
Try the top trending science fiction books (updated monthly).
New Books
This section shows the most recommended books published in the last 3 years. We want to help readers spot the newest books being discussed.
Try the best new science fiction books.
By Book DNA
This page allows you to filter through our database of recommended books by genre, topic, and more.
Explore science fiction books by their Book DNA.
Lists by Experts/Fans
This will show off book recommendation lists that authors and experts have created that match that bookshelf. For example, Dave's list of the best science fiction books with an everyman hero under the sci-fi bookshelf.
Explore all our science fiction book lists by authors.
We have a personalized book newsletter where readers can input up to 6 favorite books, authors, genres, or topics. Then we email them book ideas based on their desired frequency (weekly to every 4 weeks).
What did we add?
- Readers can change the frequency from weekly to every 2, 3, or 4 weeks.
- Readers can change the variables that go into the selection (so you can update the books, genres, authors, etc, that it is built on).
We created the concept of book series within our system and started publishing those pages on the frontend (it creates books-like pages for that series and shows book lists related to it).
Try this one for the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, books like Dungeon Crawler Carl, and book lists with DCC.
I want to make it easier for readers to see all the books in a series and celebrate the author's work. Both readers and authors highly requested this. I am working to add a notification system so readers get alerts when a new book is out in their favorite series.
We improved the accuracy of the book lists we recommend on search pages.
The lists we recommend are now much better matched to the genre and topic. Try this one for Space Opera under “book lists connected to space opera.”
We launched the Book Boost perk for Founding Authors a year ago! We have learned a lot and upgraded it in the following ways:
- As a special holiday gift, we are switching all the website ad inventory to Founding Authors for December, January, and February (I removed all the ugly display ads on the website and will launch a paid book ad program in March).
- We are moving from a 60-day burst of advertising for Founding Authors to persistent exposure every month. We will get each Founding Author in front of 100 to 200 of the most likely readers for their book (depending on their membership plan).
- We are improving where the ad goes on the pages.
- We are rolling out new ad designs.
We added a referral program for authors, online communities, and readers. How does that help them?
- For authors - If you refer a reader who shares their 3 favorite reads of 2024, your book will be featured at the bottom of their list in a promoted spot. I thought this would be a cool reward for authors who encourage their fan base to share as part of our Readers’ Favorite Books of 2024.
- For online book communities and fan bases, we can build a custom setup for their communities to vote on their favorite reads of the year. This year, we partnered with Subreddits like LitRPG and Truelit on this, as well as authors like Michael J. Sullivan. I have a lot more plans for this feature in the coming years.
We launched the 3 Favorite Reads of the Year program in 2023, but we did everything manually, and authors submitted their picks via a Word document. Now, readers and authors can submit everything online!
Try it here and share your 3 favorite reads (here are mine,)! This uses our new Book DNA review format that I have been testing. It is designed to help understand why you liked a book so that as we grow, we can help you find readers who share your Book DNA and deliver better recommendations.
It has been a long time coming, but we finally have user accounts in place. This will power every feature we build for readers and authors in the coming years. The first feature it will power is the upcoming 3 favorite reads of the year event!
Do you want amazing book recommendations from readers like you?
Readers can pick three of their favorite authors/books and three of their favorite genres/topics and get personalized book recommendations each week. This is in beta as we work to fine-tune and gather feedback.
We upgraded our front page to make it easier to navigate and pretty 😄.
This puts the focus on search, as that is the most efficient way for readers to start using Book DNA. Especially with the improvements we have made to that system.
We made massive improvements to our search feature. We now return search result pages that help readers start exploring the website. They can search for an author, book, genre, topic, or age-group.
Try our page on Stephen King, the book Tom Swan and the Head of St. George, a topic like pandemics, a genre like fantasy, or an age group like young adult (we also have specific ages and grades).
We launched a big perk for our Founding Authors to help their books get a little extra publicity. As long as they are members we put them in front of 100 to 200 of the most likely readers for their book every month with Book Boost Ads.
We've got more perks coming for members!
Every year, we ask readers for their 3 favorite reads of the year. This combines all that data to show which books are the most favored. Plus, you can dive deep into genres, topics, and age groups.
Our goal here it to delight readers with great books and give authors more publicity who have a book with that “magic spark.”
Authors can now share their 3 favorite reads of the year, and we promote one of their books alongside their list. Check out author Ingrid Ricks’ favorite 3 reads of 2023. It is a great way to engage your fan base and remind them about your book, and Shepherd also promotes this list to our visitors.
We added genre, topic, and age filters to all our bookshelves to help you discover the type of book you want! Plus, you can sort the results by serendipity, most-recommended, newest books, and oldest books.
Try our bookshelf on science fiction and use the filters to zoom in on only science fiction books with artificial intelligence.
We added genre and age data to the backend and many tools to manage those. This is the culmination of many months of work and research, and it will power many future features.
Previous to this, we did everything manually. Now, we only need to find an ISBN/ASIN, check for errors, and find a high-definition book cover image.
We also added some protections to help us identify duplicate books and authors. In the long term, I hope to create direct access for authors to fix data and our own "librarian program" for readers who want to help improve data (the data is so messy).
We added book explore points across Shepherd so that you can easily dive into individual books and see:
- The book description (from the publisher)
- How many recommendations it has on Shepherd (and click to read those)
- A link to view books similar to that one
- A link to view book lists that include that book
- Links to jump to bookshelves on topics or genres that book contains
Just click “What is this book about?” to try it!
