Verve Romance, a Chicago startup that lets readers search for romance novels by subject and plotline, is expanding its platform by acquiring Boston-based recommendation engine Libboo Inc.
While the details of the acquisition were not disclosed, a recent round of financing was raised to help facilitate the acquisition. Notable Chicago investors in the financing include Jennifer Steans, Jai Shekhawat and Jermemie Bacon.
Libboo, better known as Prolific Works, is a book platform that offers sneak peaks and special giveaways to users. Prolific Works brings 1.8 million readers and more than 20,000 authors to Verve's platform.
"This acquisition made a lot of sense for us because both companies have similar missions: connecting authors and readers with a trusted intermediary," Tracey Suppo, Verve Romance co-founder and CEO, told Chicago Inno.
Former Prolific Works CEO Jason Freeman will join Verve's board of advisors.
Suppo, a Boston University graduate, first met Freeman through industry connections and thinks he provides a fresh perspective to Verve's team.
"He's deeply entrenched on the traditional publishing side and I'm entrenched on the indie publishing side so it just seemed like the perfect marriage," she said.
Suppo expects the acquisition to further fuel the growth of Verve's Book Club Connection, a data-driven matching service that connects authors and publishers to book clubs around the country. Suppo hopes it will provide a new outlet for backlist works, a term used to describe previously published titles.
