I used to love Amazon reviews and the option they have of linking what one person buy as compared to what you have purchased. It helped me find some great authors. But depending completely on their one sided reviews was disappointing. Especially as of the last few years its been revealed that professional reviews (Klausner, etc.) are receiving perks, or that negative reviews can be deleted if enough rabid fangirls say that it isn’t relevant.

As for RT, when I first started reading romances and the awards were given out for best books and all that, I remember thinking those books must be great. Because, lets face it, very very few bad reviews are written in RT. It’s mostly a glorified flier displaying the flashy covers of all the new books in bright colors.

But the online review sites, those that aren’t compensated for reviews, are what I trust. This site, Smart Bitches and The Good, The Bad, and the Unread are honest. And I love that the honesty is frank. You don’t pull punches to soften the blow to the author and its done tastefully. It’s not like the Amazon reviews of ,”You’re books suck and you suck too.” It’s a nice community that I can pop into a few days a week and figure out if there is anything coming out that I’m willing to buy. And it helps that most of the books that have been reviewed are my kind of fun.

Negative reviews almost seem to fuel the fire for the book too. When Shayla Black’s book, Decadent, was reviewed it caused a scramble simply to see why so many sites gave it awesomely bad reviews tinged with fantastic sarcasm.

Lovely job ladies!

Like others, if it’s an auto-buy author, nothing anyone says can dissuade me from getting the book. I’ll read it and form my own opinion. OTOH, if it’s an author that I’ve disowned (because they turned their back on romance and I couldn’t care less about their new books) it will take A LOT of good buzz and positive reviews to get me to try her again. (Not naming names but a few authors come to mind immediately… can I just say ‘yawn’ about their new books?!)

I rely on DA and SBTB and the community of romance readers and authors who comment here for reviews, if-you-like and recommendations. First sale stories and the chance to win free books also favorably highlight new-to-me authors in a way that adds books to my wish list and cart… I never used to have a TBR pile! Especially one that doesn’t seem to be getting any smaller…

That being said, the concept has to appeal to me — that’s still the most important factor in my book purchase and reading decisions. Though Talk Me Down was recommended, I wanted to read about a romance-writing heroine, too. I checked out The Hunger Games in the bookstore recently because of the review here on DA but ultimately decided it wasn’t for me.

However, if I read a particularly great review of a book in a genre I love by an author I don’t know, I may go out and buy it. But it doesn’t matter to me if I read a bad review of a favorite author’s work, I’ll still buy the book. My reading time is precious and I know what I like, that’s all I take into consideration.

For the most part, reviews influence me most in genres (or subject areas, for nonfiction) I’m not thoroughly familiar with. For example, I had a lot of favorite writers on the het romance side for many years, but then fell away from most of it for a decade or so. And I was never into straight contemporaries anyway. So getting back into what’s coming out now, I use reviews to sift through the huge pile of romances in print.

I rely on reviews less often on the m/m side, since I’m more familiar with what’s what and who’s who over there. And I hardly ever read reviews for SF and Fantasy; I still have enough favorite writers in those genres to keep me going.

Angie

Third, for the most part I won't let a bad review keep me from reading a book I was anticipating. Actually, in cases where I'm anticipating a book, I usually avoid reviews altogether. I only read them after I've read the book.

So I’m not the only one. :) Reviews play a major part in my purchasing decisions but only for non-autobuys.

I don’t like “professional” reviews. I want reviews by someone who reviewed a book because s/he was interested in it not because s/he was paid to do it and had a quota to meet. With “citizen reviews,” I know the reviewer is at least interested in the genre of the books they review.

I like critical reviews, but even then I never buy or don’t buy based on a grade. The reasoning behind a grade can convince me to buy or not buy.

I always check out the Amazon reviews. Sure most of them are useless; but you can get a general feel for how a book is received by readers, and there’s the occasional well-written review with convincing reasoning (or unconvincing reasoning that does the opposite of what the writer intends). The more information I have about a book the more likely I am to remember that it exists.

1 — I’ve definitely discovered new-to-me authors b/c I’ve seen several positive reviews of their work; however, if I’m going to read a book, anyway (b/c from a fave author, for instance) I won’t seek out reviews until after I’ve read the book. If then.

2 — While I’m sure reviews influence readers who actively seek them out, the vast majority of romance readers do NOT read them. Or look for them. Or care. Hence the non-existent correlation between review grades and sales, generally speaking. Even if hundreds of readers pick up a book because of a good grade, unless you’re talking a really small press where a few hundred add’l sales make a difference, those new sales won’t really impact the bottom line.

3 — I’ve never bought ad space in RT, and my grades have been all over the place, from 1s all the way up to 4.5 Top Pick. Not saying that those grades still carry much weight, but the Buy an Ad/Get a Good Review thing is a myth.

The reviews here and at AAR provide an accurate summary of the book, an analysis of what was good or bad about it, and the reviewer’s reaction. That gives me a good idea of whether or not I am going to enjoy the book. That’s as much as anyone is going to get in a “professional” review, and sometimes more. The only real difference is that professionals get paid.

RT reviews I find useless -’ everything seems to rate at least four stars, which is nonsense. Amazon reviews aren’t reviews, they are comments. If anyone knows any other good review sites, I’d be glad to hear about them.

For instance- I don’t count “reviews” on Amazon. I’ve see just too many skewed reviews there to trust them ( be they the die-hard fan-girls, or someone with a really big vendetta!) I don’t really use Amazon all that much ( except for stuff I can’t get locally) so it’s not a biggie for me.

I agree with many above in that since I’ve found this ( along with the SB’s and others) site, I’ve started to really expand my reading list. I’ve figured out who shares my tastes, and take their recommendations.

But I have to be fair, and say that I’ve also *found* some new authors via their own interactions on these blogs. Which lead me to their own sites, which lead me to their books ( Shiloh Walker- I’m looking at you!)

RT- Never really got into their site. I just don’t know why. I guess I should give them another shot, but I’m spending enough time around these parts already ;-)

It also depends on whether the reviewer offers critical reviews. Meaning, do they offer the “bad” review alongside the “good” review. I’m not going to trust a review site that says only positive things about every book it reviews (or in the case of Harriet Klausner, trust the reviewer who says only positive things).

Third, for the most part I won’t let a bad review keep me from reading a book I was anticipating. Actually, in cases where I’m anticipating a book, I usually avoid reviews altogether. I only read them after I’ve read the book.

I’ve picked up several new authors through buzz here or at SBTB, but other reviews don’t do a thing for me.

I do not consider RT a professional outfit because the reviews depends on ad space purchased and I consider that skanky and one of the main reasons I stopped subscribing many years ago; that and the egomaniac behavior of ‘Lady Barron’.

I discovered Jessica Bird through a review at AAR and I’ve never regretted purchasing one of her books. So that had a major influence on my reading/buying decisions.

Tht said, I do think there’s value in professional reviews, especially done by other writers. Charles de Lint, one of my favorite fantasy writers, reviews regularly for The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. I thought this was really cool when I found out, and while our reading tastes are a bit different, I was stoked to read his honest take on what he read in a professional setting.

I can’t remember a single time I read a review from a “professional” reviewer, like RT or NYT. I want to know what people actually like, not what they’re paid to read.

I have some favorite reviewers here and other blogs that over time I know how their tastes compare to my own. But even more helpful like the article you noted is the community, not just the reviewers opinion but the commenters, visiting bloggers and how the word of mouth spreads. Heck , heated debates will tempt me into buying a book just so I can jump in with my 2 cents lol.

As far as negative/mixed reviews, those carry less weight with me. I’ve never found a reviewer whose tastes coincided with mine in a predictable way. I suppose I require some kind of irrefutable evidence (horrible writing mechanics) in order to be convinced NOT to buy, based on a review.