Hi from sunny Florida! It’s so relaxing being here and spending time with my family. I don’t see them as often as I like, so spending all this time with them is exactly what my soul (and patience) needed. Normally, when I come, I’m with one or more of my NY family members, but I get to monopolize everyone’s attention while I’m here, and it is glorious! So far, I got a full day of rest and relaxation, then headed to my nephew and his wife’s home to see my oldest great niece and meet my oldest great nephew for the first time. He’s 4 and so smart! Tomorrow, I’ll be headed to my other nephew’s house to spend the week, then heading back here for a full week. It’s really nice to be able to take an extended trip and catch up with everyone, and the weather has actually been not sweltering or humid!
Now for this week’s discussion topic: book reviews. The majority of my subscribers are also book bloggers, so before you roll your eyes at the topic, I want to explain.
I’m curious about what you guys look for in book reviews, and when you read them. For me, if there’s a book that I’m planning to read in the near future, I typically don’t read reviews beforehand because I don’t want the review to influence my opinion of the book, or accidentally see a spoiler. However, a lot of the reviews that I do read happen because the cover or title grabs my attention, or if it is from a blogger who I really enjoy reading reviews by, or from a blogger who steadily recommends books I love. I’ll read reviews while I’m reading a book I am not enjoying. Sometimes I want to see if the story will appeal to me more once I’m further into the book, or if it’s just going to be more of the same.
The other side of the topic is what you like to see in a book review. For me, I love a review that shares the reader’s thoughts or emotions that came up, and what specifically they liked and didn’t like about a book. I also like to see both sides of their feelings. The vast majority of books that I read have at least one small thing that didn’t work for me, but for most books that I didn’t enjoy, I can still find something positive to say about it, even if it’s something as simple as how much I love the cover. I tend to seek out reviewers who provide balance and honesty in their reviews, even if they share about a book they didn’t like at all. Since humor has always played a big role in my life, I like reviews that have a little humor in them, or even fitting memes or gifs to spice things up. Don’t get me wrong—I also like reviews that are more streamlined, as long as the reviewer is honest and can list specific aspects of the book that appealed to them or didn’t work for them.
What do you look for in book reviews? Do you check out reviews before starting a read, or do you wait until you’ve finished?
Categories: Sunday Bookish Discussion
Leah's Books 
I covered this exact topic a few weeks ago: https://laurieisreading.com/2024/11/01/lets-talk-bookish-book-reviews/
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Oh cool! Thanks for leaving me the link.
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I don’t like to read LONG book reviews which give the whole plot away, that is why I often read book reviews AFTER I finish a book. Ha!
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Same! I tend to write longer reviews when I really enjoyed or disliked a book, but can’t stand spoilers. We seem to have another thing in common!
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I like this discussion topic. For me… I think it could go either way? I am definitely inclined to read a review for a book that I’ve already read to see if the blogger has similar or different takes than mine. It’s always fun to discover people who had the same reactions, but it’s cool to read reviews in which people got something completely different from a book than I did. I don’t usually worry about spoilers unless it’s a book in a series that I’m very eagerly anticipating. But even then, I might still sneak a peek at the review. 🙂
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It’s fascinating how no two readers experience a story the same way, so I also enjoy reading other people’s reviews, but after the book because I can’t stand spoilers and have been burned one too many times 🤣
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Book reviews are always a little strange for me, lol … many moons ago, I had a very active book blog that was all about the reviews and etc. (Nowadays, in my current blog incarnation, reviews happen as mini reviews).
As a reader … I like reviews of books that I might not have heard about/missed – those books that aren’t getting all the hype on social media and etc. I sometimes use reviews to determine if I want to give in to social media peer pressure and read those hyped books, lol … I also really get into reviews if I’m not sure if I want to finish a book or not.
I like personal input in reviews – how did the reader respond/feel/etc to what they read. And definitely if something really did not work – because a lot of times if it’s called out, especially on multiple reviews, it’s something I would also not like/appreciate, so … that’s handy.
I feel like this answer is all over the place (not enough coffee this Monday morning, lol) …
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Is there ever really enough coffee on Monday mornings?
But I agree with a lot of what you said. I love learning about books under the radar through reviews, and those tend to be my favorite blogs. Mini reviews are something I was thinking of doing – I can get wordy, but not for some books, you know?
And I definitely agree – if I’m on the fence about a book, I’ll check reviews and if a bunch of them say something negative, I almost always pass on the book.
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