they give 4 and 5 stars to happen to be urban/street lit or horror/thrillers. Rest
assured, there’s a good possibility they weren’t going to enjoy the story anyhow.
Third thing I look at is the fact that they have only one review. Hmmmmm. I raise an
eyebrow at that one. So, you came on to Amazon just to review little ol’ me? And no
one else? Nah, something in the gumbo ain’t fresh.
Overall, some people who leave reviews don’t understand the difference between
“constructive criticism” and downright vitriol that attacks not only the book, but
the author as well. That’s when I lose respect for the reviewer—when the text is so
filled with anger or hate for no apparent reason. That’s all on the reviewer and not
the author—keep that in mind. Somehow their personal stake in it has been raised
because emotions are involved.
Here’s what you need to consider when actually absorbing the intent of the reviews
you receive:
Are they all saying the same thing?
Too many errors
Story isn’t consistent, even characters name change in the middle of the story, etc.
Do they go further and say the story/plot needs work
The author could have used an editor
This story has been told so many times; it’s predictable
The story seemed like it was written just to sell another book
The author didn’t end the story; it’s a cliffhanger
[On another note: Cliffhangers. No love there. Why? Some authors don’t know how
to end the current book but force the readers to have to buy another book to get the
rest of the story. This whole “let’s stretch this out for about three to five books so w