Connie Reece

This weekend I read a pre-release galley copy of James Patterson’s new thriller, Postcard Killers, thanks to Twitter influence measurement company Klout.com.

The opening scenes, written from the viewpoint of the killers, was so raunchy and graphic that I nearly quit reading, but I’m glad I kept going. As expected from James Patterson (and his co-author Liza Marklund), the writing is taut and the pacing is lightning fast. In short, it’s a page-turner.

I’m not a professional critic and this is not an actual review. However, if you like crime thrillers, Postcard Killers would be a great weekend or vacation read. It will be available in bookstores tomorrow.

This is the third influencer campaign from Klout I’ve participated in. I’ve been impressed with the way they handle outreach on behalf of clients. Each time I’ve gotten an email (with an easy opt-out for any future emails) that explains the campaign clearly and stresses that there is no obligation. Each time, you must opt in to the offer.

I especially like the clear statement that accompanies the offer:

Klout Perks Code of Ethics

• Klout will never sell or give away your contact info.
• Participating (or not participating) will not change your Klout Score.
• If you accept the offer you are not required to do anything. We do not want to “buy” your tweets. You are receiving the product because you are influential and have authority on topics related to the product. This is a more targeted form of receiving a sample while shopping at the grocery store. You are welcome to tell the world you love the product, you hate the product or say nothing at all. 
• If you decide to talk about the product we will ask you to disclose that you received a sample (http://cmp.ly/2/va). We will send you more information about this when we ship the product. 

Well done, Klout. And well done, James Patterson and Liza Marklund.