# Books with ALL Five-Star Reviews.



## KirbyTails (Jan 4, 2012)

On my twitter, I keep seeing one or two authors who promote their books saying "[X] Five Star Reviews! [Title]" or whatever.

Then, when I click their links, that is ALL they have.

So then, these people are either REALLY phenominal authors, or else they have a large extended family willing to give them 5-star reviews.

At least, that's my thought process.

What are your thoughts?


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## Millard (Jun 13, 2011)

KirbyTails said:


> On my twitter, I keep seeing one or two authors who promote their books saying "[X] Five Star Reviews! [Title]" or whatever.
> 
> Then, when I click their links, that is ALL they have.
> 
> ...


I don't know that it seems _that_ fishy. That always comes up as an accusation, but I don't really buy it. Most people are only inspired to leave a review if they really loved or really hated something. My guess is that the ratio of 1/5 to 2/3/4 star reviews is skewed enough that you're not going to see that many 2/3/4 star ratings unless it's a product with a ton of reviews.

With that in mind, anyone who brags about that in promotion looks kinda dumb and needy.


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## Krista D. Ball (Mar 8, 2011)

If you have under 5 reviews, it's easy to happen. 
If you have over 5 reviews, I start to question it.


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## KirbyTails (Jan 4, 2012)

Krista D. Ball said:


> If you have under 5 reviews, it's easy to happen.
> If you have over 5 reviews, I start to question it.


Ha ha, yeah, 5 or so 5-star reviews isn't bad. In this case, though, a few of these people had something like 30+ reviews.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

KirbyTails said:


> On my twitter, I keep seeing one or two authors who promote their books saying "[X] Five Star Reviews! [Title]" or whatever.
> 
> Then, when I click their links, that is ALL they have.
> 
> ...


My thoughts are that without some reason to say that, it is pretty mean spirited and yes, this does somewhat hit home. For a very long time I had nothing but 5-star reviews on Freedom's Sword and was quite sure there were people out there calling me a cheat and a liar because of it. *sigh*

Nope, not from friends and family. From LibraryThing who are notorious about being tough reviewers. If I could get my family to read my novels I would count it as a major victory.

Then it got some 4-star reviews but I figured people were still saying the same thing. Five days ago, 10 months after it came out it got its 22nd review which was its first 3-star review.

So my thoughts are that maybe you should have some reason for saying that besides that a lot of people may like the book in question. Would I tweet that particular tweet? No. But I wouldn't post accusing them of being cheats either.

So when I only had 5 5-star reviews I was honest but when I had 10 5-star and 10 4-star I was an obvious cheat? Hmmmm...


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## R. Doug (Aug 14, 2010)

I wouldn't say it was fishy, but I certainly would like to know what they're using for bait.

Sorry.  Couldn't resist.

The first group of reviewers for almost any new book are most likely going to be from the author's friends and family, so the first half-dozen or so are probably going to be skewed in favor of the high end of the rating system.  Beyond that, well . . . .


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## Zelah Meyer (Jun 15, 2011)

If all the reviews for a title are glowing, I sometimes check what other things the reviewers have reviewed.

I'm not talking about five star reviews saying that they enjoyed/loved the book (and, importantly - _why_.) I'm talking about people who fail to describe anything about the plot but say it's the greatest book they've ever read and how 'it's just like *insert name of best seller* and if you love that, you'll love this one!'

If I check out a book that's purely the latter, I tend to just click the little X in the top right hand corner of the screen... I figure it's got to be bad if they're desperate enough to get fake reviews.


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## KirbyTails (Jan 4, 2012)

JRTomlin said:


> My thoughts are that without some reason to say that, it is pretty mean spirited and yes, this does somewhat hit home. For a very long time I had nothing but 5-star reviews on Freedom's Sword and was quite sure there were people out there calling me a cheat and a liar because of it. *sigh*
> 
> Nope, not from friends and family. From LibraryThing who are notorious about being tough reviewers. If I could get my family to read my novels I would count it as a major victory.
> 
> ...


And I don't necessarily want to be accusatory. But I have seen some suspicious reviews in the past. I once saw a book with a single review that said something like, "You have not reached enlightenment until you've read this book." What?


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

KirbyTails said:


> And I don't necessarily want to be accusatory. But I have seen some suspicious reviews in the past. I once saw a book with a single review that said something like, "You have not reached enlightenment until you've read this book." What?


I have also seen suspicious reviews, but you are saying in effect that ANYONE who has good reviews is a cheat.


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## ShaunaG (Jun 16, 2011)

It actually bugs me that people say this. Yeah, sure some friends and family are going to read and review your book and they're probably going to have glowing things to say, but does that mean all of them are? For my YA series, book 1 has 15 reviews on Amazon, all 4 and 5 stars (I have some  2 and 3 stars on GoodReads) and only two of those 15 are people I know, my mom (heh) and a friend, but she read it before we became friends. We met at a neighborhood bbq, she found out I was a writer and looked up my book. The rest are from readers and bloggers - the bloggers are ones I've reached out to and asked them to read it and review it and got lucky that they all seemed to enjoy it. 

I agree with the idea that you should look and see what is being said in the review and how many reviews they've done. When I see 1 star reviews and 5 star reviews from people who have never ever reviewed anything else, I start to question that.


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## Millard (Jun 13, 2011)

Maybe we all have our KDP author eyes in though. Are regular customers so suspicious about reviews?

I was actually relieved the first time I got a four star review for a book that had, up to that point, gotten nothing but fives, but maybe that's just the KDP AUTHOR MIND.


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## KirbyTails (Jan 4, 2012)

JRTomlin said:


> I have also seen suspicious reviews, but you are saying in effect that ANYONE who has good reviews is a cheat.


I'm sorry. I really did not want to come off as generally accusing everybody. Like I said above, it's one thing if the person has a few 5 star reviews...its when they have a ton, and it's all they have, that I begin to wonder. That said, there are some phenominal writers out there who deserve good reviews.


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## dalya (Jul 26, 2011)

In my experience, 5-stars are hard to come by.  (Maybe it will become easier if I can grow as a writer!)

Here is an observation: You probably have to make people cry during the book to get a 5-star.  I suggest having someone lovable die slowly and tragically.  I'm not surprised when books with some tragedy get 5 stars.  (I'm thinking Nicholas Sparks here.)  

Another observation:  Books that lack a strong narrative hook (in my opinion) seem to get better reviews.  I think that when the plot is lacking, people will read on ONLY if they feel a strong personal connection to the author's writing style.  If you write a book with some intriguing mysteries, people might begrudgingly read on to find out "what happens" but then drop a bomb-review on your head after.

I've had friends read books (mine and others) and yet say they didn't like them.  I always ask why on earth did they keep reading.  They say they "wanted to find out what happened."

Now, in my mind, when I want to find out what happens next in a book, I am enjoying that book and will give it a good review.  It's apparent that other folks do not review by the same parameters as I.


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## BrianKittrell (Jan 8, 2011)

Reviews follow a very strange trend to me. Mine tend to start off with nothing but 4 and 5 stars, then they'll start getting the 2's and 1's. I think this results from the people who buy based on the good reviews but who find the book not to be of their liking.

In this way, the customer reviews are not as wonderful and amazing as some might say, and everyone really has to check out every aspect of a book before purchasing to see if they think they might enjoy it.

It could very well be a self-inflicted wound for people waiting on reviews alone before they buy; they wait for the reviews, they see high ratings, and then they decide to buy based upon that alone. The only thing true with book buying is that you must figure out if it works for you because no one else can do that for you.

As to the OP's question, it can be a little suspicious sometimes. It depends on the context. If the reviews are basically 26 statements reworded of "OMG AMAZING BOOKM BUY iT NOW OMG", you can't really take it seriously in the first place. A useful review will tell you what they liked, what (if anything) they didn't like, and whether or not they recommend it for other people. The occassional review will "speak to the author", a style which I personally dislike; if you're writing a review, make it for readers. If you want to speak to the author, send them an email.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

I am probably over-sensitive on this topic because I have had a couple of novels that early on got very high review rankings. A lot of 5-star reviews. In fact I went so far as to ask a blogger who had given Talon a 3-star review on his site to please put it on Amazon. *I* wouldn't have taken the 5-star reviews Talon received first as serious reviews, but I SWEAR they were from people who had asked for review copies at LibraryThing and it does not have a reputation for having easy reviewers. None were from friends or family.

(My family is generally supportive but they just plain don't tend to read what I write. They sure don't do reviews.)

A Kingdom's Cost has always had a balance of 4 and 5 star reviews, but in the US it's never gotten anything below that. (Edit: Oops. I forgot that 3 weeks ago it got its first 3-star review, its 20th review) So, yeah, I've always been convinced there were people out there who said I faked reviews. If you read most of them (barring Talon lol) they really don't read like fakes though. Still...

I was probably over-sensitive on the subject. I'm sure no personal accusation was intended. Brian does have a point that often the first reviews are high for some reason. Maybe it's that people who review either love it or hate it.


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## BrianKittrell (Jan 8, 2011)

JRTomlin said:


> I was probably over-sensitive on the subject. I'm sure no personal accusation was intended. Brian does have a point that often the first reviews are high for some reason. Maybe it's that people who review either love it or hate it.


Well, there are a number of things that probably go into it. One thing I have seen is that once someone notices a plot hole, a negative thing, a missing word, or something like that and posts the 1-star, several other people will eventually follow suit. It's like they didn't notice it before, but a review comes in and suddenly, that's the flavor of the week.

Some will boost up a low rating if they feel like the average is too low, and others will rate it far lower than they might have originally if the rating is too high for them. I've had that happen before (he left 2 1-star reviews solely to reduce the average rating).

But, these things will happen, and rarely will Amazon do anything about it. If you think reviews are staged, flag or report them and move on. Life's too short.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

Oh, well, I don't pay much attention to other people's reviews and *try* not to pay too much attention to my own. That way lies madness.


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## cecilia_writer (Dec 28, 2010)

I have a book with 29 reviews (various star ratings) on amazon.co.uk the last time I looked, and as far as I am aware none of these are from family and friends, not even the 5* ones, and I haven't faked any of them. It's been a free download for months and has been downloaded tens of thousands of times, so this is why there are so many. My paid novels have only attracted a handful of reviews on Amazon.
I've noticed something similar to what Brian mentioned, that the average star rating tends towards 3* over time but this may just be some sort of statistical thing with everything coming back to the norm!

ps I don't actually read the individual reviews any more as I agree with the previous poster about the madness.


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## KirbyTails (Jan 4, 2012)

> (My family is generally supportive but they just plain don't tend to read what I write. They sure don't do reviews.)


I tried to get my boyfriend to read it and do a review, but it's pretty much impossible to get him to read anything that isn't in audiobook format.

I just got my first review too. It was 3 stars. I'm cool with that in itself, but I can't help but wonder if people will see a thing with my one three star review vs. something with 30 5-star reviews and think, "Well OBVIOUSLY everybody likes this book a lot better!"

Ha, I'm so new at this it's not even funny. It's at the point where I'm suspicious that I've only had sales because my forum friends are taking pity on me and purchasing them in secret, which is pretty ludicrous.


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## HeidiHall (Sep 5, 2010)

I always want to add a comment to reviews that address me by name saying, "I swear, I don't know this reviewer." But first, I never respond to any review. And, second, it's actually flattering to have a reader feel they know you after reading one of your books. Reviews are a strange beast, but even though I know there are people out there who fake them, I want to believe they are the minority. If there's any doubt, I sample - which I tend to do anyway. I think Indies writers are sensitive to this because we get accused by association. But it's also possible the author has targeted the correct audience and given them what they want. Okay, now I really need to get back to writing or all those reviewers asking for the next in the series are going to revolt


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## Terrence OBrien (Oct 21, 2010)

Perhaps people who don't like a book drop it and don't waste any more time on it.


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## BrianKittrell (Jan 8, 2011)

JRTomlin said:


> Oh, well, I don't pay much attention to other people's reviews and *try* not to pay too much attention to my own. That way lies madness.


Oh, I agree wholeheartedly. I've read mine and a glimpse others sometimes, but when I feel that twang in the back of my head, I know it's the signal to run away.


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## Nell Gavin (Jul 3, 2010)

One-star reviews might rankle you, but they're really your friend. There is a widespread suspicion against books with only five-star reviews. This is especially true because readers out there have learned that - sometimes - a one-star review on a book that previously only got five stars disappears within 24 hours. That's because of a really noisy and demanding author who reports the review, and cries, apparently. Those obnoxious authors in the past (I'm talking 2004 or so) made it more difficult for authors to have bad reviews taken down nowadays.

I got a one-star review for Threads on the UK site the other day. I winced. Then sales rose. Apparently the one-star reviewer sold the book for me. 

You have to have that mixture. You really, really, REALLY want to dissuade people who are not your audience from buying your book. If a one-star reviewer speaks to those people and talks them out of the purchase, you're blessed. You've just avoided more one-star reviews. Those reviews also speak to people who would like your book. If the reviewer is someone potential readers can't relate to, they'll buy your book BECAUSE of that review.


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## Zelah Meyer (Jun 15, 2011)

I downloaded a freebie book the other day on the basis of a detailed one star review rather than on the blurb.  OK, so it was free - but I'm still pretty fussy about fiction.  I do push my comfort zone a little and download freebies of stuff I wouldn't usually buy in order to try something new - but it still has to sound like something I might enjoy (and, as mentioned, I'm pretty fussy about fiction!)

The blurb made it sound rather dull and not my sort of thing, the review was complaining that it was too light and they disliked a few other things that I either like or don't mind, so I went for it.  Haven't had the chance to read it yet to see whether that was the right decision or not - but I thought I'd share as confirmation that one star reviews can work in your favour.


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## 41352 (Apr 4, 2011)

A reader I met on Goodreads contacted me to say he liked my novel, but it wasn't exactly his thing and would give it 3 stars, and if I still wanted him to post it...

I said hell yes!   A review is a review is a review. It's an opinion, and I appreciate it.


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## Joseph Flynn (Sep 29, 2010)

One of my titles, "The Hangman's Companion," has 19 out of 19 five-star reviews; another, "Round Robin," has 17 out of 24 five-star reviews; the other 7 are four-star reviews. There are a few explanations for situations like these — other than having a large family to whom you've been good. You wrote a good book; the people who liked it were moved to write a review; the people who didn't like it weren't sufficiently motivated to write a review saying the book was mediocre to awful. As a writer, I'd never publicly slam someone else's work. I know all the effort that goes into creating a novel. I've never met any writer of popular fiction who has started out with the idea that he or she was going to write a piece of crap and see how many people could be fooled into thinking it's great. If I don't like something, that's just my opinion; lots of other people might love it.


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## Greer (Sep 24, 2011)

JRTomlin said:


> I have also seen suspicious reviews, but you are saying in effect that ANYONE who has good reviews is a cheat.


For me, at least, it isn't if the author has good reviews -- it's if all they have is 5-star reviews. Because the fact is, just by a law of averages, no book will appeal to every single person who reads it. There will naturally be some people who really dislike it, some who thought it was okay but didn't love it, and some who thought it was absolutely the most perfect thing since the invention of the Gutenberg printing press. But not all of those people will think it's worth a rating of 5 stars. So when all I see is 5-star reviews, I start to think the author is stacking the proverbial deck.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

Dalya said:


> I've noticed that the more specific the genre, the more likely the book will get happy little 5-stars.
> 
> For example, traditional "romance" novels. I don't read them because they're a little low in tension for my taste, but for people who love them, they REALLY love them! It's not unusual to see a romance novel with nothing but 5 stars. The people buying them know what they like, and as long as the book delivers, they're happy customers.
> 
> ...


I am going to have to disagree a little with this. I read a lot of romance, voraciously. I find that as many love love a novel, just as many absolutely hate it. Romance readers do not hold back either way. They tend to be very vocal about their likes and dislikes. Which is why some of the biggest names and some of the most talented authors still get lower stars. When you have romance books that are consistently on top of reader voters polls get a average of 3.8 on Goodreads, that is a very very good rating. Extremely good.

So when I see a book by a relative unknown and it has 4.2 or so average, or even more, then I will roll my eyes.
It just sends up a red flag for me.

Someone up thread mentioned badly behaving authors getting 1 stars removed. I have to disagree with the time frame though, it wasn't just in 2004, it is very recent also. I see it all the time when authors start bullying readers when they get what the author considers a lower star. Heck, I have seen some get out of shape for a 3 star, which is a good. Now you have readers that just don't want to bother anymore with leaving a rating below 4 and 5 for the trouble it might cause. That is just one of the issues going on though. But nobody ever complains about a 5 star I notice, no matter how useless it might be.

I just think that readers are becoming more careful and savvy, and lots of this is going hand in hand with the rise of ebooks. More books, more red flag stuff going on. Its just a matter of math.

eta: edited for spelling, sure I missed some. Not a good spelling day for me


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## ETS PRESS (Nov 4, 2011)

I'm going to tell you an interesting story.
I ran across a thread on another forum where one author accused another author cheating and lying about their five star reviews. This person was threatening to contact Amazon and report the author in question.
You see, the author had 37 five star reviews in seven days. 
Suspicious?
So was I.
The author came into the forum and valiantly attempted to defend herself. She said she had set the book free, and then used the power of social media to propel the book. She claimed that a fairly well known indie band tweeted her book to their thousands of fans because she included lyrics in the book.
The accuser flat out called her a liar.
Then she mentioned that she wrote the book in a month.
_No. way._
Right?
I figured that either she was a genius or lying. The book was available on Prime, so I borrowed it with the intention of writing a fair and balanced review. 
_
The book was one of the best books I've read in a long time. The story affected me deeply._

I gave the book a four star review, although I believe the story is five star worthy. I did see a few (not many) places that needed a little tightening and few typos. I even emailed her and suggested she pay someone to edit and proof it. I also invited her to guest blog. She wrote, edited, and published the book in a month, so yes, it was amazing in that respect. I'm still in awe. And yeah, I believe her reviews are legit. I can't wait until she comes out with her next book. I fully expect that she will rocket into the indie stratosphere.


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## Guest (Feb 5, 2012)

Most of my reviews are 5 star, so my ranking shows 4 and 1/4 or smidgen or whatever.  I have two (maybe 3?) that are one star.  Most are either 5, or 4.

My experience has been that people review when they feel really passionate about the book.

I take solace in my rare bad reviews being very poorly written and short.  LOL


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## KirbyTails (Jan 4, 2012)

ETS PRESS said:


> I'm going to tell you an interesting story.
> I ran across a thread on another forum where one author accused another author cheating and lying about their five star reviews. This person was threatening to contact Amazon and report the author in question.
> You see, the author had 37 five star reviews in seven days.
> Suspicious?
> ...


That's so cool.

Just curious - how long was the book? I can see maybe writing/editing 40k words in a month if I literally had nothing else going on that month.

But personally, it's taken me more than 2 years to write The Night Life. But that's on top of working, school, etc.


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## ETS PRESS (Nov 4, 2011)

@KirbyTails  I don't know the exact word count, but it was a YA. 

One more thing: 
Four stars is the highest rating on TPT (my niche market). My rating is a 3.9. I've made 3,537 sales. If buyers looked at my rating as a negative, I'd never sale anything again.


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## TommyJCharles (Dec 23, 2011)

There are books out there that deserve their 5 star average. 

That said, a lot of indie authors have shill reviewers (family, friends) who 5 star them. It's a big problem, because ultimately Amazon's customers will lose faith in the system and our legitimacy 5 star reviews will mean nothing. 

An easy way to determine if a review is a shill or not is to see if the reviewer gives into specifics. Shill reviews are almost always generic. "This is such a good book! Blah, blah" 

Also, keep in mind that you should give more weight to a review if it is from a Top 1000, 500, 100 reviewer or if the reviewer is in the Vine Voice program. I know for a fact that some Vine Voice or Top reviewers DO give 5 star reviews.


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## Consuelo Saah Baehr (Aug 27, 2010)

Two of my books have all 5 star reviews, one has a four star average, one has a three star average and one has terrible reviews.  All are honest reviews left either by readers I don't know or a couple of authors I've met in this forum.

Two of my books have no reviews at all.  The 5-star reviews are very passionate and left by readers who really loved my historical epic novel, Daughters.
Sometimes, if I've offering a free book or trying to get it promoted by a site that only takes well-reviewed books, I will mention the reviews.  It has taken me over a year to get these reviews because they were unsolicited.


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## Sophrosyne (Mar 27, 2011)

You know what's really sad? You thought the book deserved 5 stars but let other authors, who hadn't read the story and were just seeing green about her reviews, influence you into giving her a lower rating than you thought she deserved.

That kind of thing is just sad. Really. 

How do authors become so petty as to immediately attack an author who seems to be doing well and accuse them of somehow cheating the system?

(FWIW, as a side note, Amazon seems to consider 3 stars a negative. Weird, but there you have it).

Can it actually be that people are getting 5-star reviews because they've actually written a good book? Shocker, I know. But every now and then, someone does manage to pull it off.

I'm really saddened by this whole negative peer pressure thing. If a book affected me that profoundly, I'd totally give it 5 stars regardless of what other authors think of me for doing that. Especially authors who hadn't even read the book, but are all too willing to try to trash it.

I've just never heard of this kind of jealousy surrounding reviews before. Not you, but the people you're talking about. Totally shocks me. I thought the whole point of being Indy was to support each other and cheer each other on, and be happy for each other when a book is doing well. Not to accuse each other of being undeserving of whatever success comes our way.

I think this whole push against 5 star reviews is a bit odd. Personally, I love them. Every time I go on Amazon and see a 5 or 4 star review, it's like getting a Valentine from my readers. I would never begrudge another author their reviews.


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## TommyJCharles (Dec 23, 2011)

ETS PRESS said:


> I'm going to tell you an interesting story.
> I ran across a thread on another forum where one author accused another author cheating and lying about their five star reviews. This person was threatening to contact Amazon and report the author in question.
> You see, the author had 37 five star reviews in seven days.
> Suspicious?
> ...


I wrote Thirst and had it edited within 1 month, so yes, it is possible. I released it on Dec 23rd, and it just got it's first review yesterday. A 5 star. I do not know the reviewer, and they certainly are not family.

I have another review coming in that I think will be a 4 star. The reviewer (Vine Voice) wrote me an email letting me know that they were going to post it, and telling me what they liked about it , and how I might improve.

So don't think that just because someone writes something decent in a short time frame that something has to be up. 

In my particular case, I am a freelancer. So I have a lot of flexibility in setting my work hours.


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

I think it's silly to really worry about it.... we get into this mentality as writers that if a reader buys someone else's book, he or she won't buy mine. Pish-posh. I'm a reader, and when I buy books, rarely am I counting my pennies to do so. And no, I am NOT rich.

Books as a commodity sell differently than other forms of entertainment. We convince ourselves that they are "good for us" and therefore a positive thing to spend, or waste, money on. 

As far as reviews, you can worry about who is doing what and when until you're blue in the face. I know one author who has a group of other authors at her beck and call and uses a closed forum group to send them upon ANY 1-star she receives and label it "unhelpful." I got my first one-star review when I went free from someone who hasn't reviewed anything else. I could scream "Oooooh, this reviewer is a sham," but what if it's someone who just got a brand new Kindle for Christmas? Exactly. I don't know if it's real or not...though it does funnily echo words in a review I tweeted all about the day I went free and raced up the free charts. I don't care.  The reviewer never said the book was bad, but that the ending wasn't what he or she wanted. Well, you only get one ending per book, this isn't a director's cut DVD. I can't please everyone. LOL

I trust Amazon to have methods in place to stop rampant review abuse, such as the same IP address loading up 7 or 8 5-star reviews. Other than that, it will all balance out. Even authors that con family members into leaving bogus reviews (would love those family members... mine took months to even read it, but loved to brag about the "author" in the family LOL), if the book can't stand up to those reviews then it will get the reviews it deserves...eventually.

Really, I look at those "shill" reviews as no worse than the paid "editorial" reviews you see on the Big 6 books... And in the end, it doesn't affect me in the least. Reader who use reviews in their purchase decisions are savvy enough to see through the BS, readers who ignore them, it doesn't even matter.


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## BrianKittrell (Jan 8, 2011)

Sophrosyne said:


> You know what's really sad? You thought the book deserved 5 stars but let other authors, who hadn't read the story and were just seeing green about her reviews, influence you into giving her a lower rating than you thought she deserved.


Agreed. And those who don't post good reviews because they're afraid of what other people might say about them. That happens, too. I've talked to several people privately who enjoyed my stuff but didn't want to post a review for that very reason. Same goes for those unwilling to post a negative one when so many are positive.



> (FWIW, as a side note, Amazon seems to consider 3 stars a negative. Weird, but there you have it).


Yes and no. Amazon considers a 3-star to be a _critical_ review, not necessarily negative but usually containing some negative input about it.



> Can it actually be that people are getting 5-star reviews because they've actually written a good book? Shocker, I know. But every now and then, someone does manage to pull it off.
> 
> I'm really saddened by this whole negative peer pressure thing. If a book affected me that profoundly, I'd totally give it 5 stars regardless of what other authors think of me for doing that. Especially authors who hadn't even read the book, but are all too willing to try to trash it.
> 
> I've just never heard of this kind of jealousy surrounding reviews before. Not you, but the people you're talking about. Totally shocks me. I thought the whole point of being Indy was to support each other and cheer each other on, and be happy for each other when a book is doing well. Not to accuse each other of being undeserving of whatever success comes our way.


lol Yes, and it's carried to a whole other level with sock puppetry (not people writing their own reviews, but people hiding their identities and posting negative reviews of others due to jealousy, pettyness, etc.).



> I think this whole push against 5 star reviews is a bit odd. Personally, I love them. Every time I go on Amazon and see a 5 or 4 star review, it's like getting a Valentine from my readers. I would never begrudge another author their reviews.


Nothing is 5-stars to everybody. Even George RR Martin's new book is a 2.8-star according to the thousands of reviews. People still buy it even though the 1-stars are starting to outnumber the 5's, and there are supposedly numerous fake reviews on that book, too. Like 5 new fake ones per day numerous. And it's #73 paid in the Kindle store right now (and it's been far closer to #1 than that recently). They may have come near to the maximum profit they'll be getting out of the $14.99 Kindle edition, but I have a feeling they are falling under the projections with all the fakes.

"Random House faking Amazon reviews? It cannot be!" Yes, yes... once perhaps, but not anymore. We cannot expect a company that has more on the line than any of us combined would fake reviews on such a major release, can we? They have to try to recoup the millions somewhere. But, that's a debate for another time, another place, and probably to be made by someone who cares far more than I do about it. I didn't buy it, so I wasn't really tricked by the ploy (and, thus, my anger can only be so high on the scale).


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Like it or not, people will always be suspicious of books with all 5 star reviews as long as there are authors like this one who has made an art form out of sock puppetry:

http://www.amazon.com/Kingdoms-Reaches-Signature-Illustrated-Martins/dp/1575451298


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## Millard (Jun 13, 2011)

Kevis 'The Berserker' Hendrickson said:


> Like it or not, people will always be suspicious of books with all 5 star reviews as long as there are authors like this one who has made an art form out of sock puppetry:
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/Kingdoms-Reaches-Signature-Illustrated-Martins/dp/1575451298


Wow. 155 reviews, and a rating of #3,343,214. If you view them via 'most recent', you can pinpoint almost exactly when Amazon started requiring purchases before an account could leave a review.

238 available titles too. Someone's got a lot of free time.

Oh man, shouldn't have Googled him. I'll be up all night.



> Say howdy to Robert Stanek, the genius who photoshopped himself into a picture with bestselling YA fantasy author Brian Jacques but forgot to include his legs in the pic.


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Millard said:


> Wow. 155 reviews, and a rating of #3,343,214. If you view them via 'most recent', you can pinpoint almost exactly when Amazon started requiring purchases before an account could leave a review.


Yeah. This guy's a legend for infamously posting thousands of 5 star reviews for all of his books all across the net. Amazon has obviously given up on deleting his fake reviews since he constantly keeps posting new ones. And yes, *ALL* of those 5 stars are written by the author! It would actually be funny if it wasn't so pathetic.



Millard said:


> Oh man, shouldn't have Googled him. I'll be up all night.


Like I said, he's a legend and not in a good way. 

P.S.: He even has his own forum where he pretends to be his own fans posting about his books. Sad...


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## Millard (Jun 13, 2011)

Kevis 'The Berserker' Hendrickson said:


> Yeah. This guy's a legend for infamously posting thousands of 5 star reviews for all of his books all across the net. Amazon has obviously given up on deleting his fake reviews since he's constantly keeps posting new ones. And yes, *ALL* of those 5 stars are written by the author! It would actually be funny if it wasn't so pathetic.


I've seen a similar thing from someone I dealt with in getting a review in his local magazine that claimed to have 50,000 readers - a number which takes on a different meaning in hindsight. Now he pushes himself as a singer, complete with horrendously photoshopped pictures of 'the band', made up of stock photos of musicians, with himself featured _twice_, and Tweets constantly about how he's on his way back from gigs at The Celebrity Club, Spain, and whatnot. He's 'released' at least twelve debut albums, all of him singing into a mic at his computer over stock music he pretends to have written and recorded himself. The Youtube videos of miming the playing of a guitar really are something else. There's been a bunch of fake reviews too, and at one point, he was running a second Twitter account of a supposed fan.

That level of delusion is fascinating to me, especially how so much time is wasted creating these transparent personas, rather than on actually producing work that might find success just through being any good.


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## ETS PRESS (Nov 4, 2011)

TommyJCharles said:


> An easy way to determine if a review is a shill or not is to see if the reviewer gives into specifics. Shill reviews are almost always generic. "This is such a good book! Blah, blah"


I disagree with this statement. Why are you assuming that reviewers are going to always go into specifics? I get a lot of reviews on my products that say, "Thanks." That's about as nonspecific as you can get. I think it's very hard to prove, or to know for sure if someone is "shilling" their reviews. The only one I can think of stated in his own book that he created accounts in order to create fake reviews. Once that got out, Amazon took him down. His reviews were very specific. I'm sure there are some people who do that, but smart ones would be smart enough to not give themselves all five star reviews. And then there are people who get accused of cheating who didn't simply because we start spreading the myth that a bunch of five star, nonspecific reviews can only mean one thing. This is exactly what happened to the author I mentioned earlier.

Worse than faking your own reviews (which is bad, of course) is writing bad 1 star reviews on competing books. I think that makes the "reviewer" look like a complete idiot, and indies look bad in general (because of course, everyone assumes only indies resort to this type of behavior -_not_).


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Millard said:


> That level of delusion is fascinating to me, e*specially how so much time is wasted creating these transparent personas, rather than on actually producing work that might find success *just through being any good.


Exactly. Why not put that time and energy into writing better books? Not very long ago, this same author went on a crusade doing drive by negative reviews (under fake names) on the books of other fantasy authors (including members of this board). He only stopped when he made the mistake of pulling that stunt with one of Patrick Rothfuss's books. In his haste to hurt the competition, he didn't realize there were ways to figure out he was the reviewer. I thought he had learned his lesson. But after taking a look at his latest reviews, it's obvious he's still posting 5 star reviews for his books.


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## Millard (Jun 13, 2011)

Kevis 'The Berserker' Hendrickson said:


> Not very long ago, this guy went on a crusade writing negative reviews (under fake names) on the books of other fantasy authors (including members of this board). He only stopped when he made the mistake of pulling that stunt with one of Patrick Rothfuss's books. That's what really put it over the top.


Along those lines, this is an interesting story. Historian Orlando Figes admits posting Amazon reviews that trashed rivals, and putting the blame on his wife: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/apr/23/historian-orlando-figes-amazon-reviews-rivals

and man...



> including members of this board


...do I wish I'd been around for this drama. Any links to discussions from that on here?


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Millard said:


> Along those lines, this is an interesting story. Historian Orlando Figes admits posting Amazon reviews that trashed rivals, and putting the blame on his wife: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/apr/23/historian-orlando-figes-amazon-reviews-rivals


I read that article a while back. Just goes to show that the deeper you dig into this subject, the more you discover the depths to which the review system has been tainted.


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## ETS PRESS (Nov 4, 2011)

Sophrosyne said:


> You know what's really sad? You thought the book deserved 5 stars but let other authors, who hadn't read the story and were just seeing green about her reviews, influence you into giving her a lower rating than you thought she deserved.


I'm not sure if you are referring to my story or not, but just in case, I wanted to clarify that I gave the author 4 stars because there were some areas that I thought needed tightening. There were a few typos as well. Plus I thought she made one character act too young for his age. I actually emailed her and told her all of this to help her out. If she tightens it up some, I think the story would definitely be worth five stores.


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## ETS PRESS (Nov 4, 2011)

TommyJCharles said:


> I wrote Thirst and had it edited within 1 month, so yes, it is possible. I released it on Dec 23rd, and it just got it's first review yesterday. A 5 star. I do not know the reviewer, and they certainly are not family.


I never said it wasn't possible, but quite frankly, most writers take longer than a month to write, revise, edit, and polish a book -even full time writers. You have to be a darn good writer from the get go to get the results. To me, that means you've got some serious talent. So yeah, it's pretty darn amazing.


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## KirbyTails (Jan 4, 2012)

Kevis 'The Berserker' Hendrickson said:


> Like it or not, people will always be suspicious of books with all 5 star reviews as long as there are authors like this one who has made an art form out of sock puppetry:
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/Kingdoms-Reaches-Signature-Illustrated-Martins/dp/1575451298


I was curious about the one-star reviews on this one, since there's only four of them. This one...ouch.

_I have racked my memory for an example of a worse novel, but I am at a loss to do so. The characters are wooden, the storyline derivative, and the writing itself is so trite and dull, that I actually fell asleep reading it, which I have never done in my entire life before this boring book.

I know that self-publishing isn't necessarily resorted to only by untalented hacks, but that appears to be the sad story in this case.

The book is physically ugly. It is so ugly and so poorly put together that I imagine I could have put something together myself with a stapler and glue that was more attractive, and sturdier. I discovered it at a laundromat, abandoned by its owner, with the words "This is the worst garbage I have ever read, whoever finds it can keep it," scrawled on the inside, so I started to read it as my socks dried. I should have just watched my socks spin in the dryer, it would have been more interesting.

I would give negative stars if possible.

The reviews are so inexplicably praiseworthy for this book that I suspect that many of the reviewers are shills, unwitting or otherwise. Of course, I can't prove this, but that is my honest opinion.

Avoid at all costs._


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

KirbyTails said:


> I was curious about the one-star reviews on this one, since there's only four of them. This one...ouch.
> 
> _I have racked my memory for an example of a worse novel, but I am at a loss to do so. The characters are wooden, the storyline derivative, and the writing itself is so trite and dull, that I actually fell asleep reading it, which I have never done in my entire life before this boring book.
> 
> ...


Believe it or not, this guy had twice as many reviews as he does now (as many as 600+ 5 stars on a single book). Customers kept complaining, so Amazon removed half of his five stars. Then, in response, the author kept complaining and got Amazon to remove most of the one stars too. It really is a bizarre story. All I can say is read a sample of his book and judge for yourself if those one stars have merit.


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## Rin (Apr 25, 2011)

I do find it suspicious, but I do allow for a couple of mitigating factors - if the author is well-known online, and/or has released the book before (serial, podcast, webcomic, etc), then I would expect a much higher proportion of 5 star reviews, especially if the work has only been out a little while.


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## Guest (Feb 6, 2012)

Reviews don't mean squat.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

ShayneHellerman said:


> For me, at least, it isn't if the author has good reviews -- it's if all they have is 5-star reviews.


But sometimes all a book DOES have is 5-star reviews. I have had months that a couple of my novels had nothing but 5-star reviews. So the ones who didn't like it weren't moved to post a review. They didn't dislike it enough, or they just didn't feel like it.

That is going to happen. And slamming an author because you believe that no novel can possibly have all 5-star reviews is ridiculous.

That doesn't mean that reviews aren't sometimes faked, but if a novel is getting a lot of faked 5-star reviews they will also get BAD reviews from disappointed readers.

Edit: There was a point some months ago I considered, not too seriously but I thought of it, making a sock puppet to give _Kingdom's Sword_ a 3-star review! Then it started getting some 4-star reviews and that at least balanced it somewhat even though it took 8 months to get its first 3-star one. As I said, I felt the first 2 reviews on _Talon_ were far too glowing. I reached out to a blogger and ASKED him to post his 3-star review. I mean what kind of attitude is it that would make an author AFRAID to have 5-star reviews?


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## JeanneM (Mar 21, 2011)

I understand what JR means about feeling sensitive to this issue.  I have all 4 and 5 star reviews so far.  I only have one sister, who would never read an ebook, the rest of my family has passed on.  If I asked them to review, I'd have to hire a very gifted trance Medium to reach them.  Reviews have not been bought, or traded. 

These are the emotions I feel about my reviews:

Nervous:  I'm afraid the people here whom I've come to respect and like very much, may think I'm a phony.  I've seen other threads like this one.

Guilty: I'm only a high school graduate and I've never taken a writing class in my life. Many of the people here are very highly educated.  They deserve these reviews, not me..a nobody from nowhere, really.

Happy: Only for a split second and then I remember that people are going to question them, and by extension, my integrity as well.

But I think I know why these reviews happened.  As someone mentioned, if you are in a niche category, you have a better chance as usually only your target audience buys your book. My Pet book is in an extremely narrow niche.

Another person here said maybe you have to make them cry.  I get many emails from people who have said that my pet book has made then both laugh and cry.  I hear from those who also say The Red Balloon has made them cry.  I think whenever someone has a strong, visceral reaction, you are likely to be reviewed kindly.

At any rate, I know the bad reviews will be coming along one day, and honestly, I think I will feel relieved.


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## David &#039;Half-Orc&#039; Dalglish (Feb 1, 2010)

If it is all five stars, they're clearly fake or from family.
If it is mostly five stars but for one low review, that low review is the "real" one, and the rest are paid people from fiverr.com
If it is an even mix, it's just a lousy book with some readers that have lower standards for indies.
If it is all low reviews but for one high review, the lone high is clearly a family/friend, or the author herself.
If it is all low reviews period, then the book sucks.

In other words...someone wanting to doubt reviews, can, regardless of how many, how they're spaced out, or what they say. So just stop worrying. The reviews will come, some good, some bad, sometimes in bunches, and sometimes weeks at a time without a one. And don't defend them, and try not to roll your eyes too hard if someone implies they're fake, or wonders in a review "how anyone could like this book".


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## JeanneM (Mar 21, 2011)

LOL!!! We love you Half-Orc.  I think you have it pegged just right.


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## KirbyTails (Jan 4, 2012)

> Guilty: I'm only a high school graduate and I've never taken a writing class in my life. Many of the people here are very highly educated. They deserve these reviews, not me..a nobody from nowhere, really.


I try not to reveal my age for this very reason. Unfortunately, I'm really horrible at it.


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## Rex Jameson (Mar 8, 2011)

I'm with David. Don't worry about other people's reviews. Some books will have all 5 stars and some of them even deserve it.

And as I've mentioned before when you asked about getting reviews, I think LibraryThing.com giveaways are a great way to solicit reviews from readers.


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## Pnjw (Apr 24, 2011)

Atunah said:


> So when I see a book by a relative unknown and it has 4.2 or so average, or even more, then I will roll my eyes.
> It just sends up a red flag for me.


Really?  I am an unknown with one book out. I know (in person) two people who have Goodreads accounts. Both have read my book, neither have reviewed it. The majority of my reviews on Goodreads come from a large giveaway I did on Library Thing. I knew none of those people. Last time I looked, my rating was about 4.07.


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## twg144 (Jan 16, 2012)

I dont make any claims to being an expert in this area. I have had a book out for like 40 days. It has gotten 3 reviews in Amazon.com and one in Amazon.uk. (Makes a total of 4). My family and friends do not read my books. All those reviews were 5 stars and I certainly have no clue who the person is in the UK who did the review. One person on Amazon.com I do know, and expected her to give the 5 star review so you can say 1 review was maybe "bogus" but she is a very discerning reviewer and has reviewed quite a few books she purchased at Amazon. All reviews are from Amazon verified purchases. (And the four are combined from Paperback and Kindle).

So I am confused. If a book gets all 5 star or 4 and 5 star reviews that means they are fake? I make no claims at being a best-seller or anything of that sort, and even though I am cynical most of the time, if I see a review and a verified purchase, I tend to accept the review face value even if it is for an unknown author. 

Reviews are reviews. You judge what you read and how it is written. I would assume.


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Dalya said:


> In my experience, 5-stars are hard to come by.


It's very easy to get 5 star reviews if your book resonates with its intended audience. On the other hand, you could write the best piece of literature known to mankind. But if it falls into the hands of readers who aren't interested in your subjected matter, you're likely to get negative reviews. At the end of the day, reviews are just opinions. And unless it's obvious that the reviews are the result of blatant sock puppetry like the author I linked to above, then it's overreaching for anyone to claim that books with all 5 star reviews are the product of authors gaming the system.


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## dalya (Jul 26, 2011)

I should have said: "5-stars are hard for ME to come by."

Every time I release a new book I think: Oh joy! This is the one!  Nothing but 5s.  What's not to love?  And then ... the very first review on, say, Goodreads will be a 3.  

I guess it's a bunch of skill and a bit of luck, and I'm missing something, but golly, I'll keep trying.  I'd love to have so many gosh-darned 5-stars on some future book that y'all will have to start a conspiracy thread just for me!


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Dalya said:


> I'd love to have so many gosh-darned 5-stars on some future book that y'all will have to start a conspiracy thread just for me!


Keep writing the best books you can and those 5 stars will come.


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## twg144 (Jan 16, 2012)

Kevis 'The Berserker' Hendrickson said:


> It's very easy to get 5 star reviews if your book resonates with its intended audience.


The above quote is the best. Reach your niche audience, the people who really like your genre, do your best, and then possibly the 4 & 5 stars will come. Remember a lot of people may love your work, may even loan your paper book to friends and they will love it, but they will not take the time to write a review.


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## dalya (Jul 26, 2011)

I'm writing a 5-star book even as we speak!  Someone dies tragically in every chapter.  And there are orphans.


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Dalya said:


> I'm writing a 5-star book even as we speak! Someone dies tragically in every chapter. And there are orphans.


LOL. I have to admit. As a reader, I'm a sucker for tear-jerkers. Looks like you do have a 5 star generator on your hands!


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## Zelah Meyer (Jun 15, 2011)

I read a short book yesterday (I know I'm supposed to be editing but I was going stir-crazy and had to _read_ something I hadn't written!) and I would have given it three stars on Goodreads for 'I liked it' (I don't have enough to say about it to justify an Amazon review) - but I don't want to risk offending the author and wind up getting accused of trying to bring down their average or something. I don't share the attitude that anything less than five stars is an insult but I have a little bit of sympathy for it now I know that lots of review sites insist on high averages in order to be featured.

I'm contemplating putting a line in the acknowledgements of my own book, telling readers that reviews of any rating are always appreciated. That way they know that I don't mind them giving me less than perfect scores. Heck, if I only get five star reviews, then I probably failed at what I was trying to do. To make something that some people really like, it has by its very nature to be something that other people don't like!


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Zelah Meyer said:


> To make something that some people really like, *it has by its very nature to be something that other people don't like!*


I love this! I'm printing this out and sticking it up on the wall next to my computer.


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## 41419 (Apr 4, 2011)

KirbyTails said:


> So then, these people are either REALLY phenominal authors, or else they have a large extended family willing to give them 5-star reviews.





ShayneHellerman said:


> For me, at least, it isn't if the author has good reviews -- it's if all they have is 5-star reviews. Because the fact is, just by a law of averages, no book will appeal to every single person who reads it. There will naturally be some people who really dislike it, some who thought it was okay but didn't love it, and some who thought it was absolutely the most perfect thing since the invention of the Gutenberg printing press. But not all of those people will think it's worth a rating of 5 stars. So when all I see is 5-star reviews, I start to think the author is stacking the proverbial deck.


I think you should be careful making gross generalizations. Do some authors engage in questionable or unethical behaviour with regard to reviews? Sure. But there are plenty of authors out there who have worked hard and deserve the good reviews they have received.

One of my books has all five star reviews. I'm proud of that, but I'm sure it won't last forever.

I take extreme exception at being lumped in with those who stray into the territory of purchasing reviews, exchanging reviews, inflating their review count, using sock-puppets, or roping in family and friends.

My friends and family are strictly forbidden from reviewing my work. It's something I remind them of on each release.

As far as I am aware, this embargo was only broken once - last May - a review I received for one of my shorts, where a friend gave it four stars. He said that was how he genuinely felt about the story. I thanked him and asked him not to do it again.

After that, I reminded my family and friends in no uncertain terms that I would really prefer if they didn't review my work at all. I also said that if they were going to ignore this, and they felt utterly compelled to review my work no matter what I said, that they should - at the very least - disclose their relationship with me in their review. To my knowledge, none of them have reviewed my work since.

Here are two examples, and I'll explain why I take such exception to your characterization.

A Storm Hits Valparaiso - 6 reviews, all five stars. This one has only been out since Christmas, so I'm delighted with the review count, and that everyone has felt the book was worth five stars. This book took my five-and-a-half years to write. It was rewritten innumerable times. I took a research trip to South America to get the details right. I visited museums, historians, and battlefields. The book was read by innumerable betas (and amended). I did a couple of rounds of content editing, before several intense sessions with my expert copy editor. The cover is designed by a pro. The formatting is top-notch. I commissioned a map for the book, drawn by a very talented illustrator. It's a big, sweeping historical novel. It's quite niche - it's never going to sell a million copies - but it looks like the readers who I have targeted are enjoying the book.

Let's Get Digital - 85 reviews across Amazon US and UK - almost all five stars (and they were all five stars for quite some time). All 13 reviews in the UK are five stars. There are a handful of four stars in the US, plus a two star and a three star. This is one of the top-rated books in its genre (in fact it was the top rated until I got the two star the other day). It's only been out since August. How did I get so many reviews (and so many favorable ones)? I worked bloody hard. I gave 20 digital ARCs to reviewers in advance of launch. I made the PDF version completely free - releasing it on a Creative Commons License so anyone could copy and share - and that free version has been downloaded around 8,000 times from my blog and Scribd (and countless copies have been copied and shared). I also gave away a few hundred additional copies of the MOBI and EPUB versions in exchange for honest reviews on LibraryThing and elsewhere. All of that required a lot of hard work. I get an email from someone - on average - once a day thanking me for writing this book, so I think it's fair to say that it has been received well.

Like other people in this thread, I have had people subtly suggesting to me that I have used unethical methods to boost my review count/score (especially when Let's Get Digital had something like 27 reviews and all were five stars). I took extreme exception to that then, and I do so now.

If you aren't getting the kind of reviews you would prefer, or if you are not getting them in the numbers you would like, I would suggest taking a look at what *you* are doing, rather than making gross generalizations and casting aspersions on your fellow authors.

For example, I have a simple note in the back of all my books saying something along the lines of "If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review where you purchased it. Even if it's only a line or two, it would make all the difference, and be very much appreciated."

Since I started doing that in June, my review count soared. Even my two single 5k short stories, which have only sold relatively modest amounts (around 500 copies between them in 9 months), have around 80 reviews between them on Amazon US and UK.

I would respectfully suggest trying something similar.


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## Morgan Gallagher (Feb 13, 2011)

KirbyTails said:


> On my twitter, I keep seeing one or two authors who promote their books saying "[X] Five Star Reviews! [Title]" or whatever.
> 
> Then, when I click their links, that is ALL they have.
> 
> ...


I only have 5 star reviews on Amazon, and they are all real. But there's only 3 of them!

On Goodreads, I have 62% of 5 stars, from 29 ratings. They are all real too!


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## Morgan Gallagher (Feb 13, 2011)

Dalya said:


> In my experience, 5-stars are hard to come by. (Maybe it will become easier if I can grow as a writer!)
> 
> I've had friends read books (mine and others) and yet say they didn't like them. I always ask why on earth did they keep reading. They say they "wanted to find out what happened."
> 
> Now, in my mind, when I want to find out what happens next in a book, I am enjoying that book and will give it a good review. It's apparent that other folks do not review by the same parameters as I.


Yes, I get this all the time. Mine's an epic at 150 000, and it's a hard and challenging read. I had one person give me a 1 star, as she hated it so much, but she read it all! It's a hard call. Especially in a horror book, where you do want them to feel really uncomfortable - it's not a comedy! 

I'm always delighted when someone says "I couldn't put it down." That's a 5 star review to me.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

Deanna Chase said:


> Really?  I am an unknown with one book out. I know (in person) two people who have Goodreads accounts. Both have read my book, neither have reviewed it. The majority of my reviews on Goodreads come from a large giveaway I did on Library Thing. I knew none of those people. Last time I looked, my rating was about 4.07.


Yes, those ratings to put up red flags for me. Doesn't mean I wont look at them at all, it just means I look a lot closer at everything. I am not familiar with Library Thing so if a giveaway there is similar like on Goodreads it means someone has to sign up to be part of a giveaway. I think you'll get more positives with that kind of thing anyway. Over time, you'll get more reviews by what I call regular customers and it'll even out.

I just have become much more careful and distrusting. That is just what my experience has been since this ebook boom.

------------
And as to what reviews or not are "real". Personally, its not up to me as a reader to have to figure this out. Sometimes its just easier to pass if something just doesn't look right. Its just the way it is. All we have is out own gut feelings or what we are comfortable with to spend our money on. Its not like there is a lack of books out there. 
And if a book is so exceptionally good in those rarer cases with nothing but 5 stars, it will eventually pop up through my Goodreads friends and people I follow, or come up through other friends as a recommendation on some forum or blogs.


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## Guest (Feb 6, 2012)

Personally I hate boosted reviews and I always raise my voice against them, but I also do know that sometimes the accusations are coming because other authors are envy (Always check this alternative as well.). i.e.:  I do know that David's works are a primary example for well deserved 5-star reviews (Especially Let's Get Digital and A Storm Hits Velparaiso). He has worked a lot on his books, polished them to the maximum, he also made a great marketing and then his books got what they've deserved, no less, no more. I also would give 5 star for both of his books, but I never review fellow indie authors.

My case is also a bit similar. I also have 5-star reviews, so as 4-star ones (But no 3, 2, 1... yet.). Crystal Shade has 1x5 star and 3x4 star reviews (Goodreads and Smashwords, 0 at Amazon). Pale Moonlight has 3x5 star and 1x4 star reviews (Amazon US, Smashwords and Goodreads). And based on the descriptions, Crystal Shade is the better one from the two. It is also a quite different fantasy than any other out there, yet it has more 4 stars than the other one, mostly because it's a slower read and it's also smarter... (However I find ironic as the logo of that work is a quadrilateral, a.k.a. "4-star". So I also prefer 4-stars for that work.  ). The essence is, sometimes 4-stars mean much more than 5-stars (Crystal Shade's case where the 5-stars are reserved for the other two volumes.  ), and sometimes 5-stars are also well deserved (David's case). And yes, unfortunately there are many books out there which has much more mistakes just on the first pages than in my non-native English forum posts. 

There are two types of writers... 
#1, who is honest and want to know what his skill truly is and what his work truly worth, so they may learn from past mistakes. And many of them work so hard to get the ratings what they have.
#2, the spoiled oversensitive brats who is whining if they get a 4-star or less, while some of their book description or even the title has grammar mistakes (I've seen few in the past.).

Personally I love to be the first one. If reviews comes hard, they come hard, I don't care. But if readers give me an honest opinion and I get letters even from people who hate fantasy / sci-fi; "I found your book to be beautifully written. Your book definitely needs to be read by someone who likes and understands that genre because I did feel that it is a book deserving a great rating. Just not by me."... well, this means much more to me than any of the star reviews.


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## Morgan Gallagher (Feb 13, 2011)

twg144 said:


> The above quote is the best. Reach your niche audience, the people who really like your genre, do your best, and then possibly the 4 & 5 stars will come. Remember a lot of people may love your work, may even loan your paper book to friends and they will love it, but they will not take the time to write a review.


This. Totally.

And there is something to be said for the 1 and 2 star reviews, from people Who Clearly Didn't Get It. You know you didn't write it for them!


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## edwardgtalbot (Apr 28, 2010)

One of the things to remember is that five stars mean different things to different people.  For some people, "I enjoyed this book," means five stars. For others, five stars is something they might find once every year or two out of 50 or 100 read. Same goes for other stars - for some, 3 stars is a book they would recommend to a lot of people.

Then there's the just plain weird ones: I got one 5 star review on Ibooks where the reviewer wrote one sentence "This book sucks"


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## Guest (Feb 6, 2012)

The content of the review is generally more suspicious than the number of stars.  Most people use 5-stars to mean they liked it and don't distinguish between different levels of like.  

So I look at the content of the review.  If the reviews are all one or two sentences, I'm going to dismiss them.  They don't tell me anything and therefore serve no purpose.  But even a bunch of one or two sentence reviews won't set my alarms off, because they could simply be "early adopters" of an author:  people who follow the author's blog or who know the author from somewhere (like here at KB or through Goodreads).  Not neccessarily "friends and family" but people who are already familiar with the author's work.

What will trigger my alarms in regards to tons of positive reviews is:

*Similar language.  If all of the reviews use the same buzz words or key words, this is a red flag.  If the reviews all use similar sentence structure (or make the same mistakes!) this is a red flag.

*New reviewers. People who have no other reviews on Amazon.  Sure, everyone starts out with their first review, but realistically what are the chances that a book inspired ten people to create Amazon accounts on the same day (or within a week) to write their first and only review?  Human nature is to COMPLAIN, not PRAISE.  These bundles of new reviewers are contrary to normal human behavior in just about every industry.

*Sales rank doesn't match review volume.  Specifically with a new book, as rank fluctuates the longer a book is listed.  But if a book is released on Monday, has ten 5 star reviews by Thursday, but has a sales rank of 600,000...that is a red flag.


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## Sean Patrick Fox (Dec 3, 2011)

A book with all five star reviews does sometimes give me pause. I usually check to see how many total reviews the book has, what the reviews look like (have the reviewers clearly read the book or is it simply generic praise), and if I'm really suspicious, I'll look into the reviewing history of each individual reviewer.

One of the unfortunate consequences of this "indie revolution" is that people will do anything to get their books into the spotlight, and that includes recruiting friends and family to write glowing reviews, and even hiring people to do the same. Suspicious looking reviews don't automatically make me ignore a book, but I definitely approach more cautiously. My feeling is if it's good enough then you shouldn't have to commission fake reviews.


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## KirbyTails (Jan 4, 2012)

> My feeling is if it's good enough then you shouldn't have to commission fake reviews.


Can you blame them, though? I've emailed countless people requesting reviews and so far have gotten little to no response. Some people have emailed me back saying they would do it, but so far, I've got one review as of yet. When nobody knows who the hell you are, it can be difficult to get reviews at first.


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## Guest (Feb 6, 2012)

KirbyTails said:


> Can you blame them, though?


Yes. It is unethical and selfish. People who do this are putting their own pride and ego ahead of what is in the best interest of both the readers and the indie community in general.


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## Krista D. Ball (Mar 8, 2011)

KirbyTails said:


> Can you blame them, though? I've emailed countless people requesting reviews and so far have gotten little to no response. Some people have emailed me back saying they would do it, but so far, I've got one review as of yet. When nobody knows who the hell you are, it can be difficult to get reviews at first.


Yup, it's hard work. My work stands on its own, though. I know my work is good and I work to find reviewers who are a good match for my work. I'd rather take a year to get a number of reviews (it took Harvest Moon over a year to get the 11 3-5 star reviews it has) then lie. All that does is cheapen me.


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## Morgan Gallagher (Feb 13, 2011)

Krista D. Ball said:


> Yup, it's hard work. My work stands on its own, though. I know my work is good and I work to find reviewers who are a good match for my work. I'd rather take a year to get a number of reviews (it took Harvest Moon over a year to get the 11 3-5 star reviews it has) then lie. All that does is cheapen me.


Wanna know how to make a [certain type of] reviewer go ballistic...? Ask them their review history, to see if they are good match for you. My, that was a fun one!

We are not bottom feeders....


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## dalya (Jul 26, 2011)

If I'm interested in buying a book, I'll check on goodreads, where there's a much higher volume of reviews than on Amazon.  If the book has a ton of reviews on Amazon, but very few on goodreads, that might be a sign of a ... statistical anomaly.

You have to be cautious about reading too many reviews, though, because someone can talk you out of reading ANY book and then you won't have any books to read.

About getting more people to review ... in general, I think people are more moved to post a review when the book's average score does not reflect their experience of the book.  Low reviews attract a future high-star review and vice versa.


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## Krista D. Ball (Mar 8, 2011)

Morgan Gallagher said:


> Wanna know how to make a [certain type of] reviewer go ballistic...? Ask them their review history, to see if they are good match for you. My, that was a fun one!
> 
> We are not bottom feeders....


I'd never do that. I'd take the time to, oh, look at their blogs and see what they've been reading. You know, work.


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## Sean Patrick Fox (Dec 3, 2011)

KirbyTails said:


> Can you blame them, though? I've emailed countless people requesting reviews and so far have gotten little to no response. Some people have emailed me back saying they would do it, but so far, I've got one review as of yet. When nobody knows who the hell you are, it can be difficult to get reviews at first.


I certainly understand the frustration, but fake reviews are a slippery slope, and there are readers out there who will refuse to read an author if they know or suspect he/she is using friends and family to post flattering reviews, or paying people to do it.


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## Morgan Gallagher (Feb 13, 2011)

Krista D. Ball said:


> I'd never do that. I'd take the time to, oh, look at their blogs and see what they've been reading. You know, work.


They approached me! And it wasn't a blog.


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Bards and Sages (Julie) said:


> The content of the review is generally more suspicious than the number of stars...What will trigger my alarms in regards to tons of positive reviews is:
> 
> *Similar language. If all of the reviews use the same buzz words or key words, this is a red flag. If the reviews all use similar sentence structure (or make the same mistakes!) this is a red flag.


Exactly. There are websites (and publishers) out there that advocate authors to write bogus reviews under pseudonyms. Part of this advice suggests that these reviews include certain catch phrases to entice readers to buy a book.

*Nearly every 5 star review for the books of the author I mentioned before uses some variation of mentioning a popular book title or author:*

_I haven't read anything this good or anything this enthralling since Lewis's tales of 'Narnia.'

If you have ever read the Lord of the Rings or The Dragonriders of Pern books, then The Kingdoms and the Elves will be just perfect.

it is going to be the new Harry Potter

It's as good as Potter,

Robert's writing style has been called a wonderful cross between J.R.R. Tolkien and J.K. Rowling and the books have been called the Star Wars of fantasy.

I read many books from Harry Potter to Artemis Fowl, the only books I have read twice is Robert Stanek's Kingdoms and Elves.
_

*Other reviews include constant mentioning of family members:*

_Everything about the first book that made my son and I love it so much returns in this sequel.

My 12 yr. old son absolutely loves this book_

*Or praising the book to high heaven:*

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I HAVE EVER READ! EVER!!

I LOVE KINGDOMS AND THE ELVES OF THE REACHES!!!!

*Or saying they have read the book repeatedly:*

_i just finished reding it for the fourth time.

Very readable, and very RE-readable thanks to all the subtle things you miss the first time.

This book, however, and the entire series I not only read over once, I read it three!_

The point is, you can pretty much tell when a book has fake reviews. But this does not mean that all books with mainly 5 star reviews are generated by the author.


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## Guest (Feb 6, 2012)

T


Kevis 'The Berserker' Hendrickson said:


> The point is, you can pretty much tell when a book has fake reviews. But this does not mean that all books with mainly 5 star reviews are generated by the author.


These aforementioned reviews are excellent examples. All of them sounds like a poor advertisement and cross-marketing, which tells nothing about the book, but trying to lure the readers in with false premises, such as it's a cross of Harry Potter and Star Wars, but this one is better. Usually PR companies, friends and family members used to write reviews like this, who actually never read the actual book. My ultimate favorite 5 star what I've seen was the following; "Author [Insert name here] did it again!!!" The problem... it was the debut novel of the author.


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## KirbyTails (Jan 4, 2012)

Morgan Gallagher said:


> Wanna know how to make a [certain type of] reviewer go ballistic...? Ask them their review history, to see if they are good match for you. My, that was a fun one!
> 
> We are not bottom feeders....


I would love to see the exchange that went down on this one.

I mentioned it somewhere else in this thread, but my favorite possibly fake review was, "You have not reached enlightenment until you have read this book!"


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Guardian said:


> My ultimate favorite 5 star what I've seen was the following; "Author [Insert name here] did it again!!!" *The problem... it was the debut novel of the author.*


ROTFLMAO! That one IS a classic!


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## Guest (Feb 6, 2012)

Gang, I gotta say...

Paying that much attention to SOMEBODY ELSE'S REVIEWS is a bit disturbing.  I read my own.  I've been both lucky and flattered.  When somebody says something negative, I try to see if they have valid points.  And then I shut that browser/tab down.

What benefit does anyone get giving this much time and energy to reviews for SOMEBODY ELSE'S work?

Stop! It's not healthy!


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

oliewankanobe said:


> What benefit does anyone get giving this much time and energy to reviews for SOMEBODY ELSE'S work?
> 
> Stop! It's not healthy!


I'm a self-diagnosed review-a-holic. I just can't stop reading reviews! In fact, they're often more fun to read than the actual book!


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## anne_holly (Jun 5, 2011)

oliewankanobe said:


> Gang, I gotta say...
> 
> Paying that much attention to SOMEBODY ELSE'S REVIEWS is a bit disturbing. I read my own. I've been both lucky and flattered. When somebody says something negative, I try to see if they have valid points. And then I shut that browser/tab down.
> 
> ...


I am a compulsive reader of reviews for books I've just read or movies I just watched - I love seeing if other people felt the same way I did, and I love shouting at my monitor if they didn't. As a reader, I don't use reviews to pick books very often, but I am a bit addicted to them for the postmortem.

As a writer, though, I find them less interesting, unless the reviews themselves are particularly amusing or well written, etc (which some really are). (ETA: That is, I enjoy them less if I haven't read the book or have no intention of doing so, except if they are particularly compelling reviews.) Though, I guess one could argue that reading reviews for the books of others might be good marketing or craft research, to feel out how readers respond to various things.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

I pay very little attention to anyone else's reviews and *try* not to pay too much attention even to my own. I know what I'm like. I STILL grind my teeth over the review that said I shouldn't have used the word 'merlon' in a historical novel because the OED said it was first recorded in the 16th century. The guy checked the fricking OED on my word usage! 

Reading reviews is bad for your mental health.


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Next to getting being paid to invent imaginary people and places, reading the reviews of my books is the most exciting part of being an author. I love all of my reviews, including the one-stars. _Especially the one-stars._  To be honest, I probably wouldn't bother publishing books if I couldn't find out what people think about them. The fact that reviews are hard to come by makes me cherish them even more. Bring on the reviews!


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## anne_holly (Jun 5, 2011)

Kevis 'The Berserker' Hendrickson said:


> Next to getting being paid to invent imaginary people and places, reading the reviews of my books is the most exciting part of being an author. I love all of my reviews, including the one-stars. _Especially the one-stars._  To be honest, I probably wouldn't bother publishing books if I couldn't find out what people think about them. The fact that reviews are hard to come by makes me cherish them even more. Bring on the reviews!


I give this post 4 stars. It's got a great attitude, but I can't dance to it.


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

anne_holly said:


> I give this post 4 stars. It's got a great attitude, *but I can't dance to it.*


Maybe what we need is a little music.


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## dalya (Jul 26, 2011)

Let's turn this thread into a how-to!

Share your tips on how you're planning to get 5-star reviews!

1. Tragic death of adorable side character ("woobie," according to tvtropes)
2. Orphan protagonist
3. Main character corrects others when they say politically incorrect things


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## EStoops (Oct 24, 2011)

I have a book that is sitting on 5 5 star reviews. I know who SOME of the people are who reviewed it, but not all. It's actually kind of awkward, now that I think about it, to get undetailed yet "rave" reviews, because I was hoping to get some detailed feedback so I could understand what my readers wanted out of the series. I'm sure I'm not the only author that looks at these reviews and is both gratified and perplexed. (Yay! I captured lightning in a bottle.... wait a minute, how did I do that.....)

I guess I'll just interrogate my betas again... heheheheh.

A bit more on topic, I read a lot of samples. I might start with reviews when entertaining a book, but even big name books get a lot of "Omg, I soooo lurrrrved it" five star reviews, and a bunch one-star "it sucked." reviews. Reviews are a nice starting point, but rarely a good way to make a purchase decision, IMO. I have to read the sample to get a real feel for it unless I see about 3-5 DETAILED reviews.  Detailed, multi-paragraph or multi-point reviews are almost ALWAYS what seals or breaks the deal. However, once in a while a one-liner is all it takes (generally when the book really is bad.)

So is a book with all five stars suspicious? Not necessarily.


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## Millard (Jun 13, 2011)

Dalya said:


> Let's turn this thread into a how-to!
> 
> Share your tips on how you're planning to get 5-star reviews!


1) Inserting all the n-words that were removed from Huckleberry Finn into my own book. Including a couple in the acknowledgments. Anyone who visits Youtube knows that racists _love_ to leave comments.


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Dalya said:


> Share your tips on how you're planning to get 5-star reviews!


Great idea! I'm going to write a book about a young boy who goes to a boarding school for wizards and another book about a teenage girl who falls in love with a sparkling vampire. Oh, that's been done already? There goes my five star books...


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## BrianKittrell (Jan 8, 2011)

oliewankanobe said:


> Gang, I gotta say...
> 
> Paying that much attention to SOMEBODY ELSE'S REVIEWS is a bit disturbing. I read my own. I've been both lucky and flattered. When somebody says something negative, I try to see if they have valid points. And then I shut that browser/tab down.
> 
> ...


In Robert Stanek's case, you just can't help yourself. It's too ridiculous.


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## dalya (Jul 26, 2011)

Kevis 'The Berserker' Hendrickson said:


> Great idea! I'm going to write a book about a young boy who goes to a boarding school for wizards and another book about a teenage girl who falls in love with a sparkling vampire. Oh, that's been done already? There goes my five star books...


I know this comment is satirical, but I've noticed a number of hit YA books that actually do follow the Twilight formula. A few reviewers will point out the similarities, point by point, but the vast majority of fans simply enjoy the books. Hey, if you love Twilight, you'll love another book that is similar to Twilight.

Most readers do value originality and realism, but they'd MUCH rather get entertainment and emotion.

Shoot. Why am I not writing a plain-girl-meets-magical-powerful-rich-pervy-obsessed-cute-boy trilogy?


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## David &#039;Half-Orc&#039; Dalglish (Feb 1, 2010)

BrianKittrell said:


> In Robert Stanek's case, you just can't help yourself. It's too ridiculous.


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## Guest (Feb 7, 2012)

oliewankanobe said:


> What benefit does anyone get giving this much time and energy to reviews for SOMEBODY ELSE'S work?


*I'm a book buyer. * I read reviews for information. If I come across reviews that are fake, I feel disrespected and defrauded by the author. I take the seller/buyer pact seriously. You want my money. I want your product. I have an obligation to pay you in legal currency. You have an obligation not to try to defraud me. If I tried to buy your book with counterfeit money, you would be upset. As a consumer, when an author thinks I am such a moron and has so little respect for me that he fakes book reviews, I am upset and insulted.

And as a publisher, this behavior also impacts MY BOTTOM LINE. If people begin to think all five star reviews are frauds, it dilutes the value of a five star review and makes it worthless. There was a time a couple of years ago where one or two good reviews could drive a lot of sales. As this nonsense spreads, the marketing power of good reviews diminishes. People stop trusting the reviews. They feel cheated and betrayed. This is bad for business.


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

BrianKittrell said:


> In Robert Stanek's case, you just can't help yourself. It's too ridiculous.


The only reviews more entertaining to read than Stanek's are the reviews for Snooki's book. 

http://www.amazon.com/Shore-Thing-Nicole-Snooki-Polizzi/dp/B004WB19MG/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1328625269&sr=1-3


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## daveconifer (Oct 20, 2009)

oliewankanobe said:


> I read my own. I've been both lucky and flattered. When somebody says something negative, I try to see if they have valid points. And then I shut that browser/tab down.


That's way more than I do. If I accidentally notice there's a new review, I look between my fingers in an attempt to get a star-count to discern if it's good or bad. Then I make sure never to read it, either way. I'm too thin-skinned to survive the bad ones, and too cynical to appreciate the good ones. I'm not even jokin' ya...


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## Zelah Meyer (Jun 15, 2011)

Kevis 'The Berserker' Hendrickson said:


> The only reviews more entertaining to read than Stanek's are the reviews for Snooki's book.
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/Shore-Thing-Nicole-Snooki-Polizzi/dp/B004WB19MG/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1328625269&sr=1-3


I beg to differ.... 

http://www.amazon.com/Cloverdale-Fresh-Whole-Rabbit/dp/B00012182G/ref=sr_1_1?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1328626020&sr=1-1


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

Zelah Meyer said:


> I beg to differ....
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/Cloverdale-Fresh-Whole-Rabbit/dp/B00012182G/ref=sr_1_1?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1328626020&sr=1-1


I had a look at those reviews a few months back and do admit there are some rather amusing reviews for the fresh whole rabbit. But I think Snooki wins this one.


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## jen meyers (Jul 28, 2011)

My first novel was released a just over a week ago, and I have 12 reviews on Amazon--all 5 star--and 16 reviews on Goodreads--three 4 stars, thirteen 5 stars. The most recent of any of those reviews posted was from my sister-in-law, who just read the book. She's the only reviewer who knows me.

Otherwise they are all from strangers. I have so many reviews already--and good ones--because I offered a free copy of the ebook, pre-release, to anyone who would post an honest review. (Yes, I asked specifically for an honest review, and asked that they post even if they didn't like it.) Of course everyone who saw my post about the offer or who is on my mailing list was there because they read my free short story that intros my book, so they already liked my premise and writing style and were likely to feel the same about the novel. 

So all 5 stars (and more than 5 reviews) doesn't necessarily mean they're not legit.


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## Millard (Jun 13, 2011)

It's not a book, but this always trumps any funny product reviews discussion: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Box-Canvas-Print-Paul-Ross/dp/B001N6W8U0

I don't know if not being British and having no idea who Paul Ross is will make that more or less great.


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## Jon Olson (Dec 10, 2010)

KirbyTails said:


> On my twitter, I keep seeing one or two authors who promote their books saying "[X] Five Star Reviews! [Title]" or whatever.
> 
> Then, when I click their links, that is ALL they have.
> 
> ...


I don't know. Five, even 10 reviews is not very many -- and even if they're all five stars, it's too small a sample to say the author is phenomenal, or they're all from family. Give me thirty and I'd say that.


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## StephenEngland (Nov 2, 2011)

Currently watching an argument going on between an author and someone with the audacity to leave a 1-star on their book(a well-deserved 1-star, I might add). It's a little pathetic.


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## Rin (Apr 25, 2011)

StephenEngland said:


> Currently watching an argument going on between an author and someone with the audacity to leave a 1-star on their book(a well-deserved 1-star, I might add). It's a little pathetic.


Oh, link please? I love crazy little author-vs-reviewer arguments.


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## soyfrank (Feb 2, 2011)

I think the content of the review is the key, no matter the star ranking. Like someone posted earlier, a thoughtful 1-star review can be more helpful to a reader than a 5-star review that offers nothing but glowing praise.


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## Guest (Feb 7, 2012)

Rin said:


> Oh, link please? I love crazy little author-vs-reviewer arguments.


That would be a violation of the KB "What happens on Amazon stays on Amazon" policy...


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## SentientSurfer (Sep 20, 2011)

Zelah Meyer said:


> I beg to differ....
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/Cloverdale-Fresh-Whole-Rabbit/dp/B00012182G/ref=sr_1_1?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1328626020&sr=1-1


I don't know which is better -- the reviews or the also-vieweds which include uranium ore and zubaz pants


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## dalya (Jul 26, 2011)

Last night, I had a peek at what was new on my Kindle and read the first few pages of a freebie download.  (Nobody who comments on here.)  It was beyond terrible.  I looked at the Amazon reviews and concluded the 5-stars must be fakes.  Even if someone loved the book, surely they would have taken a point off for all the terrible errors?

Well, I checked it on Goodreads this morning.  Thousands of reviews, many of them critical, but overall a decent average.  Despite everything the author had done wrong, the author must have done the important things right!

We all know that taste varies, but sometimes it is SO HARD to comprehend that a book so poorly written could get so many fans.  It had a really lovely cover, though, so draw your own conclusions.

(No, I didn't rate it or comment.  I only rate books I finish.)


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