Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme, created and hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books and Dani @ Literary Lion, where we discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts. You can check out more about this meme here!
Today’s topic is about book reviews and what we, as a reader, like to see when reading other reviews.
WHAT I LOOK FOR IN A REVIEW
One of my pet peeves when reading a book review is when it doesn’t actually review the book. I read a lot of reviews on Goodreads which simply restate the synopsis by briefly talking about what happens during the book. And this is probably an unpopular opinion, but I also really dislike when reviews are filled with gifs 🙈 It makes it really hard for me to follow along with the review and what the reader is trying to say when there is a gif every two sentences. It’s way too busy on my eyes; I prefer reading just text.
When I read a book review, I’m more interested in what the made the reader like/dislike the book and their opinions on certain aspects. Some of the things I like to see the reviewer touch on:
✨ Worldbuilding/Setting – how well was the world developed? what kind of setting is the book in?
✨ Characters – who are the characters? are they well-developed? how is their growth throughout the book? what kind of relationship do they have with the other characters
✨ Romance – i’m a sucker for romance so i love knowing whether or not romance is a part of the story and between who
✨ Writing/Pacing – is the book fast paced? slow and hard to get through? how is the writing? what style does the author use to tell their story?
SPOILERS IN REVIEWS
I don’t mind people putting spoilers in their reviews–as long as they are tagged appropriately. I can’t tell you how many times someone’s review has come across my Goodreads feed with a huge spoiler for a much anticipated upcoming release. I really don’t mind people including spoilers (I even go searching for them sometimes) but I just wish everyone would have them tagged appropriately on Goodreads, or a warning in their blog posts.
I usually only include spoilers in my reviews if sometime major happens that causes a lot of feelings, whether they be good or bad. I typically type my reviews in white so they blend into the background of my blog post and someone would only be able to read them if they highlight the phrase/word. On Goodreads, I always make sure the spoilers are hidden appropriately.
EFFECTIVENESS OF READING REVIEWS
Reading other book reviews definitely affect whether or not I’ll pick up a book. I’ve decided not to read books before when I’ve seen nothing but negative reviews. I’ve also added many, many books to my TBR after reading glowing reviews on Goodreads. For example, both The City of Brass and The Poppy War were not books on my radar but I saw a lot of positive reviews following their releases and it persuaded me to give them a try. And as anyone who follows my blog knows, I am obsessed with those two series. My favorite kind of comments on my own book reviews is whenever someone tells me I convinced them to add a book to their TBR!
Let’s Talk Bookish! Chat with me in the comments below!
Paws & Paperbacks 
I really like reading reviews of books I’ve already read–helps me think about the book differently! Great post!
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I totally agree with you! Thank you! 😊
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I quite like gifs on reviews – if it’s not too many! Any more than 3 is a bit too much. I use gifs on my discussion posts (sparingly) but never on my reviews. I feel like my discussion posts are more informal than my reviews.
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I don’t mind gifs or images for reaction posts, but when I’m reading reviews and there are like 10-15 gifs in a row it’s a bit much for my eyes 🙈
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Amazing Post! ❤️
I LOVE reading book reviews, I read especially after reading the book, but I like to read before because it gives me a better idea of what I will find & I also love writing them 🥰✨
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Thank you so much! 😊 I’m the same way! I absolutely love reading reviews, both before and after I read the book. Like you said, I like to read them before to get an overall sense of what the book entails, and afterwards to see if others felt the same way as me! 💕
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Thanks for your tip on how to hide spoilers here on WP! Great post!❤❤❤
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You’re so welcome! I actually borrowed that trick from my years on Tumblr way back when lol. I always hope people realize I’m typing a spoiler and not just leaving blank spaces randomly the middle of my review 😂
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Great post! I agree with you about the gifs. LOL!
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Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it! Sometimes the gifs can be a bit much lol ✨
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I love gifs, but I do agree with summary on reviews. In general I don’t like them, I feel like I can read them on my own you know? but I dislike them even more if that’s all the review contain
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I totally agree with you! I see a lot of reviews that are just a summary of the book or literally the synopsis rewritten 😕 I wanna know the thoughts and opinions!
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I love reading reviews of books I have already read or want to read in the near future. I am happy that most reviews are spoiler-free but I also enjoy reading spoiler sections and about the thoughts other people had when reading about major plot twists, etc. And, I agree with you to some degree; I don’t like putting gifs in my own reviews but enjoy seeing them in other people’s reviews. 😂
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I used to NEVER read spoilers, but sometimes I’ll go searching for them especially if I have a sinking suspicion about something while I’m reading the book 😆 But I always want major spoilers to be hidden so I can decide for myself whether or not I want to see it!
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I got to be honest, I’m lazy when it comes to reading book reviews. If it’s just a big block of text, I’ll probably just skim through it. But, like you, I don’t like a lot of gifs, they’re distracting and I end up closing the review without reading anything.
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Definitely agree with you about the gifs being distracting. If I see the review is a whole string of them with a sentence or two in between I just don’t even bother.
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I always thought that book reviews with GIFs were the best! Even though I don’t include any in mine, I guess everyone looks for different things! I definitely agree that those four points are the most important parts to mention in a book review. I try to always include those things in my reviews as well.
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While I don’t like gifs in reviews, I don’t mind them when people post them on Goodreads as their “first reactions” before they write the actual review! But I agree that everyone looks for different things in review, so it’s great that there are such a variety!
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Yeah GIFs are definitely not for everyone – which makes me glad because I have no idea how to find the right ones for my reviews so I never use them!
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This is a great post. You’ve made me stop and think about ways to create a more interesting review to really draw readers in 🙂 THANKS!!
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Thank you! 😊 I’m glad you found my post helpful! 💕
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Incredibly late, but great post, Breanna!! I kind of agree about the GIFs: I don’t like it when they are pretty much the entire post, but at the same time, they can be accurate and funny supplements to the reviewer’s points. And yes, reviews have definitely helped me pick up some books! I actually picked up The Poppy War a couple of weeks ago because of May @ Forever & Everly’s raving about it, and then she wrote a phenomenal review, and I just had to read it. I ended up really liking it. Honestly, I’m guilty of skipping most reviews in my feed 🙈 but when I need those reviews, I’m so glad that they are there ❤
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ahhh I’m so glad May convinced you to read The Poppy War! Her reviews are always so eloquent! The Poppy War is one of my favorite books so I love when other people say they enjoyed it 💕 I agree, when I see people raving about a book in reviews, it definitely makes me want to read it, even if it was never on my radar before!
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Good to know I’m not the only one who goes looking for spoilers 😂. I agree that reviews should actually review the book—not just summarize.
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