The video background was a large bookshelf, with a handsome man and a beautiful woman sitting at a table, quite a pleasing sight.
Jiang Ye felt a sense of sudden realization. With just the looks of these two, a million followers would be easily within reach.
"Our program was originally intended to introduce the latest award-winning short stories of the Golden Keyboard Awards, but we've decided to change the content on the fly!" the handsome man announced.
"The reason for the sudden change is that we accidentally discovered a niche novel of god-tier quality! That word is absolutely not an exaggeration, god-tier!" the beautiful woman chimed in. "Our long-time fans know we have a habit of following newly published books. A few days ago, while browsing new releases at the bookstore, we found this book tucked away in a corner. We didn't realize what we were in for until we started reading; once we did, we couldn't stop, staying up all night to finish it in one go."
"While reading, you'll feel like you've been injected with stimulants, constantly on edge. Time seems to vanish, your soul's vessel soaring through the words. I unknowingly stayed up all night. And after closing the book, you'll find that human society has completely changed in your eyes!" The handsome man's expression was excited. "This book currently has very low sales because bookstores have done almost no promotion, and it's also a work by an unknown newcomer."
"But I dare to bet," the beautiful woman added, "that this unknown author will quickly rise to the ranks of top-tier writers, and this book will sweep the entire galactic book market within the next ten years!"
"This book has a hardcover edition, which is quite expensive, 666 per copy. We genuinely spent our own money to buy twenty copies, because good books of this quality, especially the first hardcover editions, will surely see a tenfold price increase in the future!"
As the handsome man spoke, he laboriously brought up several stacks of bright red hardcover books from under the table, even displaying the shopping receipt to the camera.
"This is the novel we're introducing today, 'Jiang Ye Star No War' by new author Isabella!" the handsome man and beautiful woman said in unison.
What followed was a five-minute detailed introduction, spoiler-free, but full of teasers and hints.
The video creators' skill was truly remarkable. After watching, Jiang Ye himself felt the urge to buy the book!
No wonder the sales had increased so much!
From Monday to Wednesday, Isabella's new book's sales remained stable at two thousand copies per day.
On Thursday, sales suddenly surged again, reaching 8,650 copies!
On Friday, the surge continued, selling 21,043 copies in a single day!
Bookstores became busy, moving 'Jiang Ye Star No War' from its corner placement to the most prominent positions. Some bookstores, sensing the trend, even set up dedicated counters with bright red promotional posters.
The printing press was also preparing for reprints. Following this trend, a more explosive sales surge was highly likely.
Jiang Ye took advantage of his free time to understand the reason behind the sales boom.
It turned out that book review websites had started posting their scores.
Book Mountain website score: 9.7!
Burning Books website score: 9.8!
Knowledge Socket website score: 9.6!
There were also some smaller websites, all with scores above nine, almost reaching perfect marks.
Reader comments were consistently of the same tone:
"I bought it to make up the order total, I never expected this book to be so good! It's the best book I've read this year!"
"Awesome! I declare this a masterpiece. I started reading at ten at night, intending to read for half an hour and then sleep, but I couldn't resist reading until four in the morning!"
"Such a complex book, my head itches, I feel like my brain is growing."
"I have a premonition that this book will sweep the literary awards for the next two years! Its readability and depth are both top-notch!"
"It's been a long time since I've cried while reading a book. I will continue to follow this author and buy every book they release. Some fellow readers say the plot of this book can continue, but I don't think so; this one is already shocking enough, a sequel would only dilute its impact."
"A heavyweight bomb in the literary world, the mushroom cloud is about to rise. I predict sales of ten million copies within the year, and this comment serves as proof!"
Jiang Ye was very surprised by the book reviews. He had expected it to be well-received, but not this well, with almost no negative feedback!
On Saturday, sales reached forty-five thousand copies!
On Sunday, sales reached one hundred and twenty-seven thousand copies!
The printing press began reprinting without hesitation. Workers worked in four shifts, monitoring the assembly line, the printing machines roaring, consuming tons of offset paper and spitting out tons of novels. Trucks waited outside the printing plant, delivering batches of hot new books to bookstores. Bookstore staff placed the new books on the shelves, but within minutes of being displayed, they were snatched up by passing customers.
Major bookstores were calling to rush orders. Customers were already going to bookstores solely to buy this book, and their numbers were increasing. The foot traffic in some remote bookstores was even boosted by this book!
However, this was just the beginning.
For the first three days of the second week, daily sales remained above one hundred thousand copies.
Concurrently, online information was spreading.
More and more book bloggers were recommending Isabella's new book, and their recommendations were filled with uncontrollable excitement. Tens of millions of people watched recommendation videos or read recommendation articles on public accounts.
At six o'clock on Wednesday evening, the Bi Rong Star Morning City hosted the Bi Rong Film Festival, attended by numerous A-list celebrities.
A film emperor with over a hundred million followers, Wu Dong'er, attended the film festival in formal attire, carrying a bright red novel.
While other celebrities were chatting and watching performances, film emperor Wu Dong'er was engrossed in reading the novel.
The cameras at the scene gave Wu Dong'er several close-ups. Her unusual behavior sparked attention online, and by that night, it had become a trending topic.
"Film Emperor Wu Dong'er Reads a Novel at the Film Festival"
"What Book is Wu Dong'er Reading?"
These two trending topics occupied the first and third positions.
Soon, netizens began searching for the novel Wu Dong'er was reading based on the close-up footage. Since she held it on her lap and looked down, the cameras did not capture the book title, only a corner of the red cover. Therefore, netizens listed all books that matched the appearance, totaling over a dozen.
By midnight, Wu Dong'er posted an update on social media. There was no caption, just a simple photo, a close-up of a novel, which was unmistakably Isabella's 'Jiang Ye Star No War'.
On Thursday, sales completely exploded, with a daily sale of 480,000 copies!
The first batch of books from the initial print run was completely sold out, and major bookstores collectively experienced stock shortages!
The number one trending topic changed to "Where to Buy 'Jiang Ye Star No War'?"
Bookstore websites across various regions posted pre-orders, with orders placed now expected to ship in half a month.
On Friday, pre-order sales exceeded four hundred thousand copies. The first twenty thousand copies of the reprinted edition were snapped up in offline bookstores, and people began selling them on second-hand book websites at triple the price.
Major book review websites saw over three hundred thousand new reviews, with scores largely unchanged and consistently above nine.
Jiang Ye breathed a sigh of relief. He had initially worried that the book wouldn't sell, but now it seemed his concerns were entirely unfounded.
Given this development trend, Isabella's novel could easily be included in student recommended reading lists.
Some chapters could even be selected for middle school textbooks.