This page explains what WhatIsThatBook (whatisthatbook.com) collects when you use the site, why we collect it, who we share it with, and the choices you have. It's in plain English on purpose.
01 What we keep on file
Searches. The book descriptions, plot details, and follow-up refinements you type into our search tools, along with the results we found for them.
Account information. If you create an account, we store your email address and name, either from Google sign-in or from the email you use with a magic link. We never see or store passwords.
Email subscriptions. If you subscribe to the daily puzzle or other emails, we store your email address and your verification status.
Payments. If you buy a Membership, payment is handled by Stripe. We store your subscription status and a reference to your billing history. Your card details never touch our servers.
Usage data. Pages visited, buttons clicked, device and browser type, approximate location (country/region derived from IP), and how you found us. We collect these through PostHog analytics.
02 How we use it
To find your book, run your account, send emails you asked for, process payments, fix bugs, understand which features people actually use, and improve the results our search gives you. We also use aggregate search data to build public content, like pages about commonly searched books.
03 Your searches & AI
Identifying a book from a half-remembered plot takes AI. When you search, your description is sent to third-party AI model providers (via OpenRouter, currently including Google and Anthropic models) to generate results. These providers process your search text to return an answer; we don't send them your name or email.
Searches may also be displayed publicly and anonymously on our recent-searches pages and individual search result pages, which can be indexed by search engines. They're never publicly linked to your identity. Even so, please don't include personal information in a search description.
04 Services we rely on
- PostHog handles analytics and product usage.
- Google powers optional sign-in with your Google account.
- Stripe processes Membership payments.
- Resend sends our transactional and subscription emails.
- OpenRouter routes search descriptions to AI models.
- Journey by Mediavine (Grow) serves the ads (more on that below).
Each processes data on our behalf under its own privacy policy. We don't sell your personal information to anyone.
05 Advertising
We display ads through Journey by Mediavine. Journey and its advertising partners may use cookies and similar technologies to serve ads, measure their performance, and, where you've agreed to it, personalize them. Where required by law, you'll see a consent banner letting you accept or decline personalized advertising.
Mediavine's required advertising disclosures appear below this policy on this page.
06 Affiliate links
Book links on this site may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate and a Bookshop.org affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. It costs you nothing extra; the bookseller just shares a small commission with us. Affiliate partners may set their own cookies when you follow a link to their site.
08 Your rights
Depending on where you live (including the EU/EEA, UK, and California), you may have the right to access, correct, export, or delete your personal information, and to object to or restrict certain processing. We honor these requests for everyone, not just where the law requires it. Email justin@whatisthatbook.com and we'll take care of it. No forms.
09 Retention & deletion
We keep account data for as long as your account exists, and billing records for as long as tax law makes us. Delete your account and we delete the personal information tied to it; anonymized searches and aggregate analytics may be retained. To delete your account, email us at the address above.
10 Children
The site isn't directed at children under 13, and we don't knowingly collect personal information from them. If you believe a child has given us personal information, email us and we'll delete it.
11 Changes
When we change this policy, we'll update the date at the top. If a change meaningfully affects how we handle your personal information, we'll say so prominently on the site or by email.
12 Contact
Questions, requests, complaints: justin@whatisthatbook.com. A human reads every email.