Ciao Bella’s,
With my allergies so rudely interrupting my Sunday sleep in I thought I’d stalk myself on the Internet until Sig Other drags me away to do chores. I’m always interested in what people have to say about my work and except for my one star experience it’s been pretty positive. Well to my surprise I finally found my critic and was actually excited by what they may have to say. Alas, it was just a “Don’t buy this crap!” sort of review.
I really don’t know what to do with something like that. Don’t buy it because the character’s were unrealistic, or the dialogue sucked, there was too much sex, or not enough sex. If you’re going to critique someones work please give them something to work with. Since the day I got my toy typewriter as a child I’ve been compelled to put my thoughts on paper. I understand that not everyone is going to like what I have to say but could ya please tell me at least why.
As a reader I usually look at the negative reviews first and if the majority of them are “Hated it” than I start to question the validity of the review. Reviews in my opinion are not only there for the other readers to look at to help with informed choice while buying but I really think they help the author connect to their audience and develop their craft.
Anywhoo, my rant is over, mostly because Sig Other is trying to lure me with lunch only to whisk me away to do laundry.
Until my next little tangent.
Janet
Janet Eckford's Witty Ramblings and Salacious Prose 
I too dislike reviews that don't explain the why for either a low mark or because it didn't live up to expectations or simply wasn't the readers preffered read.The ones that really get me mad are the ones where the review is outstanding but the rating level that is assigned to it doesn't match.I don't think reviewers are aware of what publishers like to put on their sites. If a review is a top read or a recommended read and is given a 3 out of a 5 and you go to the site and the explanation is it was good but not the best…. then it really sucks. Always post the review if it's very positive regardless of the rating assigned. Lots of times the mid range scores are what sites might normally score instead of doling out those high ones even though they fit the review more.
I'm actually not prone to put a review in if I can't give a contructive perspective of what I've read. I've found that when I read reviews where people just say "Don't buy it" or "This was so bad" I've actually liked the story. I also appreciate when people say, "This was good but it could have been better if…".
fist in the air. i too am all for peeps putting their opinion out there but one thing i do other than look at the rating of a particular book, i look at other items they've rated. i especially do this when i see their rating on a book that is so far removed from mine. for example, if a reviewer has rated one of my fav books a 0 out of 5 or one of the books i hated most a 5 out of 5…that is a red flag so i go in and see what else they reviewed. what i often find is that reviewers have their own little social cliques. they may hate an author they've never read and buy a book simply so they can say something sh*tty about the book…often their review doesn't even seem like they read the book at all.