Amazon brings AI-powered book Recaps feature to Kindle: How it works and other details

Amazon Kindle

Amazon is adding a handy new feature to Kindle that should make life easier for anyone reading a long book series: AI-generated recaps. Coming later this year, the new tool will summarize previous entries in a series so you can jump back into the next book without needing to reread—or remember—everything.

If you’ve ever returned to a fantasy series after a year and forgotten half the characters and all of the plot twists, this one’s for you. The idea is simple: Amazon’s AI will automatically generate a clear, spoiler-light summary of earlier books to help you get up to speed. It’s designed to be helpful whether you took a short break or a multi-year detour between volumes.

According to Amazon, customers can begin accessing Recaps by getting the latest software. Otherwise, they will receive the latest software through an over-the-air update within the next several weeks. To determine whether a series has Recaps available, look for the “View Recaps” button in the series page in your Kindle Library or the “View Recaps” item within the series grouping three-dot menu, said Amazon in a blog post. The Recaps feature is now available on all Kindle devices in the US and will soon be available on the Kindle app for iOS. It's not clear when the feature will roll out in other countries.

Amazon says the AI behind these recaps will focus on clarity and coherence, capturing key characters, events, and plot threads without ruining the experience. It’s another step in Amazon’s ongoing push to use artificial intelligence to improve Kindle’s reading experience.

“By adding a new level of convenience to series reading, the Recaps feature enables readers to dive deeper into complex worlds and characters without losing the joy of discovery, all while ensuring an uninterrupted reading experience across every genre,” Amazon noted in the blog post.

The feature also taps into a broader trend: AI tools being used to assist creativity rather than drive it.