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Apr 25, 2013

How Much Do Amazon & Good Reads Reviews Influence What You Read?

I was considering downloading an egalley the other day.  The synopsis sounded great but pretty weird and I just wasn't sure if it was something I wanted to read or not, so I went to GoodReads to check out some reviews.

There was a few one star reviews and a few five star reviews.

Honestly, those are the ones I avoid.

I feel like if someone is more concerned with the names of their shelves on Good Reads or how many gifs they put in their reviews then they aren't as concerned with the review (or book).

I look for the two, three and four star reviews.  The ones that tell me what they liked or didn't.  I know this is a huge argument because people think that negative reviews are just as important as positive reviews.  And i do believe critical reviews are just as important.

Here's what I don't get about negative reviews--if you truly didn't like a book why did you finish it?

If I am not enjoying a book--connecting with it within the first 50 to 100 pages I just don't finish it.  There are too many others out there that I want to read.  I also don't waste my time reviewing it, or even explaining why I didn't finish it.  Yes, part of this it out of respect for the author, but mostly it's because I am really busy. 

I do finish some books I don't love but really, why waste your time reading, then reviewing a book you hated?

Ultimately I am suspicious of a glowing review (unless it's someone I trust a bit more) and a bashing review.

Also, I am very picky about who I friend on GoodReads and whose friend requests I accept.  If someone has more friends on there than books, that is a big no for me!

How useful or valuable do you find Good Reads and Amazon reviews?

5 comments:

  1. Does it affect me?
    Yes and no.
    I like to read 5 star reviews and 1 star reviews. Between the two I make my own opinion if weather or not it's for me.

    I give all books I ever try a star rating.

    It helps me remember if I liked something or not. But I usually don't take the time to write long reviews unless I liked it and/or read it all the way through.

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    1. I need to develop a way to remember those books I DNF. I normally just delete them from mt Good Reads shelves but maybe I will start a DNF shelf!
      I do give a star review to everything as well, but have quickly decided not to review everything. Too much out there!

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  2. There have only been a few times I've given up on a book, even if it was bad. Leaving something mid-read is like leaving mid-world to me. It makes me uncomfortable to have seen a world but to not ever have finished touring it. There are times when I just need to find out if it gets any better and have found a redeeming moment here or there. There are other times that I've found myself just grateful it's over. I've written a couple of those scathing reviews with a 1-star and an "avoid" message. Personally, I think that if a book is truly bad, I want to be warned so I don't waste my time (and I really wish I'd been warned about those awful ones). Those 5-stars are the ones that make me wary. Too many people give 5 stars to just about everything they read and a book without any 2 or 3 stars just seems too good to be true.

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  3. I might check out the summary on Goodreads but don't really focus on the reviews until I've finished the book. I don't want any spoilers for a book that I am interested in. After I'm done I usually read most of the reviews, I'm always curious about what others thought but also to work on my reviewing skills. I learn alot by what others write.

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    Replies
    1. Sometimes I go on there specifically looking for spoilers. There are times where if I know where a book is headed it makes me keep reading to see how it got there!

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