Books By Experts

A book recommendation app that turns the reading lists of world-leading experts into your next great read.

Project Overview

Millions of books, one nagging question: which one deserves your next month of evenings. Books By Experts answers it with a book recommendation app built on a simple promise: read what the sharpest minds actually recommend. The app curates reading lists from world-leading experts, so instead of scrolling anonymous ratings, users browse the virtual bookshelves of people they already trust.

Discovery is only half the product. Books By Experts doubles as a reading companion: users organize what they find, log their progress, capture notes, and share their lists with fellow readers. The goal was a clean, focused experience for curious minds and lifelong learners on both iOS and Android.

We ran it as a textbook MVP development sprint: three weeks from idea to a monetized product live on both stores, and later a clean exit when the app was sold on Flippa.

Key Features

• Expert-curated reading lists: browse the bookshelves of world-leading thinkers by field.
• Instant search: Algolia-powered search surfaces any book or expert as you type.
• Reading log: organize every title by To-Read, Reading, or Finished status.
• Notes and reviews: capture takeaways while reading and rate books when done.
• Progress tracking: see reading habits at a glance and stay motivated to finish.
• Social sharing: post a reading list, notes, or wishlist to social media with a tap.
• Buy where you live: geo-targeted Amazon links send each reader to their local store.

Tech Stack & Integrations

• FlutterFlow: one codebase powering both the iOS and Android apps.
• Firebase: authentication, book data, and storage behind every screen.
• Algolia: the search engine that makes a large catalog feel instant.
• Geniuslink: geo-targeted Amazon affiliate links matched to each reader’s country.
• AdMob and RevenueCat: the free-with-ads model and its monetization plumbing.
• Google Analytics: usage insight that guided updates after launch.

Challenges & Solutions

There was no public API that could supply the book data the product needed with full ownership and speed. We built a custom web scraper that collected the catalog into Firebase, which kept the data under our control and the app fast.

FlutterFlow was still young at the time, and some advanced behavior simply was not available out of the box. We closed the gaps with custom actions and pragmatic UI workarounds, keeping the experience smooth without fighting the platform.

Monetizing a global audience through one affiliate program was the third puzzle. A single Amazon link earns nothing from a reader in the wrong country, so we integrated Geniuslink to route every purchase to the reader’s local Amazon store automatically.

Development Time

Three weeks from idea to full production launch on iOS and Android, covering design, development, integrations, and store publishing.

Impact or Outcome

The app shipped to both stores, picked up early traction through organic installs, and earned revenue from day one through ads and geo-targeted affiliate links. When other ventures demanded the founder’s time, the product was sold on Flippa and now runs under its new owner, which made the three-week build a complete cycle: shipped, monetized, exited.

My Role & Value

We owned the entire cycle: concept, UX/UI design, development, integrations, monetization setup, and deployment to both stores. The value was compression without corner-cutting: a feature-rich reading companion app, complete with search, affiliate revenue, and analytics, live in three weeks.

Planning a content-driven app of your own? This is what our cross-platform app development looks like when it ships in weeks, not months. Book a free call below and we will map out yours.