How to Review Nicely

On Sunday, 22 August, Emily Owen posted on how she felt on receiving reviews of her books (‘How I Made It Through’).  These last few months, I find myself on the other end of the reviewing spectrum, the writing-reviews end.

I decided to resurrect my book-reviewing blog Dear Reader which had been languishing for some time and I attempt to review what I read for pleasure and for my church bookclub (not always the same thing!)  I am also a member of the ‘Dream Team’ which reviews new publications for Bridge House Fiction and Chapeltown Books and just recently I have become involved in reviewing for Dollycas’s cosy crime Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.  I spend a lot of time reading, to put it mildly.

There are numerous articles on the internet and elsewhere about how to review a book, but this is what I do.  Bear it in mind that all that is required for my sort of reviews is about 300-400 words.

I begin with a short summary of the setting and the first part of the plot.  I think of it as laying down a problem before my reader.  For instance, for Cajun Kiss of Death by Ellen Byron (which I reviewed most recently), I wrote that ‘When Chansons, a new Cajun restaurant… is opened… owners of rival eateries are… beset by a series of dirty tricks which seem to emanate from Chanson's. When Philippe Chanson is murdered in a freak motorboat accident, fingers are pointed at the other restauranteurs…’  The important thing is to reveal just enough to tantalise the reader – but no spoilers.

I then comment on writer’s style and anything new I gleaned from the book.  There’s always something; from Cajun Kiss of Death I found out that recipes are not copyright, unless you copy them word-by-word from the page and republish.

Of course, you learn much more than odd titbits of information, about written style and how authors present their plot.  Most interesting for me is how certain writers handle a reveal.  One writer did it this way, holding the suspense for as long as possible by feeding the reader drip-by-drip… Yes, I have some very important information... He could not be the murderer… A bit more and a bit more… Then, at last, she tells us why and how the character was innocent.

Occasionally you find glaring errors, often in research.  In one book (not Cajun Kiss of Death) ‘Ma petit’ came up in a French American character’s speech.  (If it’s feminine, doesn’t it need an ‘e’?).  On the same page was ‘Apres tout’ (after all?)  Ouch!  However, I have been warned that bad reviews are not in order.  One of my editors tells me that if I’m about to award three stars or less, I must contact her.  A good rule is that, if you can't give a good review, don’t review at all.  

Reading Emily’s post, we understand how personally reviews are received by authors and our review is only our personal opinion. It doesn't hurt us to find the good in a writer's work for a change, rather than seeking out every possible glitch and flaw in our own work.

Finally, if you’re reviewing on a reading blog, don’t forget to post additionally on Amazon and Goodreads.  This is what authors depend upon. 

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Rosemary Johnson has had many short stories published, in print and online, amongst other places, Cafe Lit, Scribble, The Copperfield Review, Fiction on the Web and 101 Words.  She has also contributed to Together magazine and Christian Writer.  She has also written a historical novel, set in the Solidarity years in Poland.  In real life, she is a retired IT lecturer, living in Suffolk with her husband and cat.