Judge Books By Their Covers With New Richard And Judy Book Club App

LONDON, September 3, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Alongside this year's Autumn Book Club titles, Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan have launched an exclusive app which will see them return to our screens.

The Autumn Book Club, exclusive to WHSmith, has another ten fabulous titles and the new app will enable Richard and Judy's avid Book Club followers to view exclusive content by simply scanning the book cover.

Watch the covers in action here: http://youtu.be/-C03hksIUfQ

Since the Richard and Judy Book Club launched in 2010 there has been a growing popularity in not just its chosen books but also the breadth of bonus content which is available both online and in the back of the books - and this Autumn's Book Club takes it a step further with the launch of a wonderful new app for smartphone and tablet users - bringing Richard and Judy back to our screens!

The Richard and Judy Book Club App, created by Aurasma, uses ground-breaking, augmented reality technology to allow readers to see Richard and Judy appear on their screens reviewing each of the Autumn book titles. Users simply need to download the App which is free at the App Store and Google Play and scan the book cover. Not only will Richard and Judy pop up on users' screens reviewing each title but there will be links straight through from the app to buy the book there and then.

The Autumn Book Club, as with the Summer Club, sees ten titles released with one book launched every week in WHSmith stores nationwide. There is once again more excellent bonus content in the back of the books from WHSmith, as well as the hugely popular podcasts for each book.

There's a mix of debut and more established authors for the Club's third Autumn season, with the first reviewed title being Hannah Richell's Secrets of the Tides. The entire list continues with: Between a Mother & Her Child by Elizabeth Noble, The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey, The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz, The Seamstress by Maria Duenas, The Shoemaker's Wife by Adriana Trigiani, Fault Line by Robert Goddard, The Guilty One by Lisa Ballantyne, The Greatcoat by Helen Dunmore and Double Cross by Ben Macintyre.

With The Book Club now in its third successful year and a growing number of reading groups involved across the country, fans will be able to connect in discussion with each other via Richard and Judy's Facebook page. Fans can also keep up with the latest news on Richard and Judy's Book Club by subscribing to a weekly newsletter bringing information about the books and authors, exclusive bonus content, interviews, competitions and more.

Richard and Judy's podcast series will also return, to include exclusive interviews with each author and, through the customised digital content for each title, readers will be able to scan the QR code in the back of their book to immediately download the podcast of their chosen title. They can also read the first chapter of any of the other Autumn Book Club titles for free online by visiting www.whsmith.co.uk/bcchapters.

Richard Madeley said: "The development of the Book Club knows no bounds and we're delighted that once again we can offer something truly different to support our fantastic selection of authors. The Aurasma technology is quite something and we love being back together on people's screens."

Judy Finnegan added: "Our list of books this season is as strong as they've always been and to be able to release ten again after the success of the Summer Book Club is testimony to our authors. We hope readers are enjoying our selections as much as we have."

Rachel Russell, WHSmith Books Business Unit Director said: "The incredible success of the Book Club is not only down to our fantastic authors but of course to the popularity and trust in Richard and Judy. We've seen how successful the podcast has been and to be able to bring Richard and Judy back to people's screens via their new app is really exciting. We're delighted that we can continue to bring readers genuinely different and added value to their reading experience."

Tamara Roukaerts, Head of Marketing, Aurasma said: "Richard and Judy's Book Club has inspired millions of people to pick up new titles and read more. With the introduction of the new Book Club app, people will be able to watch Richard and Judy's reviews augmented on the books themselves – meaning you really can judge a book by its cover! It's a great combination of the printed books we love, the reviews we trust and the latest mobile technology."

All the Autumn Book Club titles are available in WHSmith stores across the country from Thursday 30 August 2012, with the podcast available alongside each title every week for free on iTunes. The new Richard and Judy app is available to download now.

Links to Editors:

Richard and Judy Autumn Book Club 2012
http://www.whsmith.co.uk/CatalogAndSearch/RichardAndJudyBookClub.aspx#applink

Richard and Judy Book Club (App Store):
http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/richard-and-judy-book-club/id555630532?mt=8

Richard and Judy Book Club (Google Play):
http://bit.ly/S5ej57

Notes to Editors

Book Club

The Richard and Judy Book Club launched in September 2010 with over 4.5 million copies of Richard and Judy WHSmith Book Club titles having been sold to date.

Following an overwhelming response from readers when it launched in Autumn 2010, the Richard and Judy Book Club, broke WHSmith records when it's first recommendation, Sister by Rosamund Lupton made Number 1 paperback and became the fastest-selling title by a debut author in WHSmith's 200-year history; while all eight of the review titles went into the top 12 paperbacks in their first week of sales with close to a million copies sold overall.

Since its launch in Summer 2011, the Richard and Judy podcast series has received more than half a million downloads.

For further information or to get involved in Britain's Biggest Book Club log on to whsmith.co.uk/richardandjudy. For interviews please contact Louise Plank at Plank PR on 020 8995 3936 or lou@plankpr.com

Aurasma

Aurasma is the world's leading augmented reality platform. Available as a free app for iPhones, iPads and high-powered Android devices or as a free kernel for developers, Aurasma uses advanced image and pattern recognition to blend the real-world with rich interactive content such as videos and animations called "Auras".

Auras can be created for printed images, product packaging, clothing, physical places and users can even use the app to create and share their own. Since its launch in June 2011, Aurasma has had more than four million downloads, 400 Aurasma-enabled apps and over 8,000 partners in markets including retail, fashion, sport, automotive, education, advertising and publishing are using the free technology in their campaigns, on their products or embedding the technology in their own applications. Aurasma was developed by and is part of software company Autonomy – an HP Company.

For further information please contact the Aurasma press office at Mischief on 0203 128 6600 or Aurasma@mischiefpr.com