I confess that I have never been good at reviewing books. Even my favourite books, the ones that I could gush about for days, didn’t move me to enter a review on a retailer’s site. Sure, there was a little bit of laziness in there, but until recently, I truly considered my own opinion unimportant. “What would others care about what ‘little old me’ has to say,” I’d ask.
But now, after launching my own book and understanding how online reviews work, I know how important it is to give reader feedback….especially if I love a book.
Your reader review is important
Your review helps books get noticed. Both the quality and quantity of a book’s reviews matters. The number of reviews a book has on a retailer’s website, can prompt the algorithm to show the book to more people. It can also catch the eye of humans who go to the site and provide “social proof” that others have read (and hopefully enjoyed) the book. In some cases, the number of reviews of a book can trigger other opportunities for promotion, either within the retailer’s own ecosystem or in promotional newsletters etc.
It’s important to be honest
I’m not going to lie. Author’s want five-star reviews…we just do. We pour our heart and soul into our stories so we readers love them as much as we have. Those five-star reviews help us sell our books to more people. But so do one star reviews. Yep, one star reviews (with appropriate detail) can help a reader decide that a book is not something they are going to enjoy. For instance, although it never feels good for a Christian author to read something like “this book was way too Christian for me”, that comment can be helpful to people who are looking for Christian books. In fact, a one star review (with detail) can be more helpful than a two to three star review because it shows that the reader had a reaction to the book. A two or three star rating suggests the reader’s feeling was nothing short of ‘meh’.
Something is better than nothing
As mentioned, even just tapping in “Loved it” can be helpful to an author because the quantity of reviews matters as much as the quality. However, it is more helpful to say what you enjoyed about the book without giving away spoilers, as this will help others decide whether or not they want to read. Posting a one-star rating without offering reasons why is so unhelpful (for both author and fellow readers) that it almost amounts to trolling. It’s ok to hate a book, but be prepared to say why.
When you review, don’t feel you have to give an extensive summary of the plot. Review readers want to know what you thought of the story. You can simply mention what you liked about the writing, the characters or the setting! Authors take note, you can turn good reviews into marketing materials as I have done here (although you may need the reviewers permission to do this).
Places to review books
Most online retailers will have some function that allows you to review.
You can review books online at
- Good reads
- Bookbub
- Your own social media or blog.
A note on tagging the author: I urge you to only tag the author if your review is complimentary. It’s ok not to like a book, but it’s not polite and often unnecessarily hurtful to tag an author in a negative piece.
Your review helps make a book visible to others! So this weekend, if you read a book that you love (ahem, Heart in the Clouds, ahem), pen a few words to say why.
Over to you: Writers, what are your tips for readers who are reviewing your books? Readers, how do you decide what you’ll say in a review?
