For book writers, there is no better affirmation of their work aside from sales than a review from established book review sites for authors.
Book review sites are sites that publish and rate book reviews. Most of these sites conduct independent book reviews of authors whom they think are worthy of a literary review and can pass the standards and reputation. Some review sites provide professional book review services for authors, self-published ones most especially. Book review sites vary in their standards and method of reviewing literary works. Some put emphasis on the plot and summary, others on the idea and relevance. Other book review websites prefer to examine books based on their writing styles
Why are they essential in promoting authors and their brands?
Book reviews, whether professional or book readers review, are essential in promoting the book as well as the authors. We have repeatedly mentioned in our past articles that a book review can make or break an author’s literary career.
Book reviews are important because they bring forth an objective and honest criticism of your work. Positive reviews boost not only your self-confidence but also your book sales as well. Negative or not so pleasant comments allow you to improve more on your craft and see where you fell short.
As for book promotion, book reviews are a must for every author who hopes to level the playing field for his or her book. More than 85% of readers rely on book reviews, whether published or word of mouth. As it is, landing a good book review, especially in reputable book review sites or even review sites such as Trustpilot reviews, offers a lot of advantage.
There are many book review sites available but reputable sites should be the target. All book reviews are welcome but only those from reputable reviewers with wider reach should matter. We gather our top 10 book review sites for authors.
List of popular and established book review sites for authors?
- Amazon
Amazon is perhaps the best-known site for their book reviews. Whether it’s print books or in eBook format, Amazon has a book review for almost every title. Another great feature for Amazon is that it has multiple reviews for a single book. Although most reviews are done by amateurs, amazon still has pretty reliable book reviews.
- Bookish
Bookish is not your typical book review site. The community offers editorial content. If you’re a published author who wants some publicity, then Bookish is perfect for you. Author interviews, opinion essays, and book recommendation are the main ingredients of their editorial. In a way, these also form part of a book evaluation.
- Book List
Book List is a professional book review site which provides professional online book reviews for a relatively affordable price. All reviews are written by seasoned experts from the America Library Association.
- Book Riot
Although Book Riot is a relatively small blog site, it offers a many list recommendations readers can check every day. If your book lands in one of their lists, it’s sure to get the attention of book lovers and critics from different sectors of the reading community.
- Kirkus
Probably one of the more established book review companies, Kirkus has been around for almost 80 years. Established in the 1930s, they are most famous for their rating system of Borrow It, But It, and Skip It. If you visit their site, you can see the past book reviews by clicking the Kirkus Prize section. Today, Kirkus does professional book review services for LLC and self-publishing companies.
- Bookangel
Bookangel is a London-based site. It started as a private book lovers site. Although they also do reviews for American authors, they prefer British spelling and grammar. They also require books that are in their site. The good thing about book angel is that they are known for their unbiased book reviews. And yes, they are for free!
- Goodreads
If Amazon is the most popular site for book reviews, Goodreads is easily the most popular online community for book lovers. Reviews on good reads matter a lot simply because of its reach. While there is the risk of allowing almost anyone to review your book Goodreads is also known to filter those that don’t pass their standards.
- Google Books
If you are aiming for a better book review than Amazon’s and a slightly wider reach than Goodreads, then aim for Google Books. Enough said.
- Bookreporter
The Bookreporter has over 30 book reviewers with reputable backgrounds as writers, published authors, and literary figures. They boast a great number of books reviewed and a regular publication of these reviews. For self-published authors, Bookreporter is another great option because it caters to a lot of self-published works and their reputation and reaches are pretty good.
- BlueInk Review
Like the Bookreporter, BlueInk Review features a pool of reputable reviewers with multiple backgrounds in various literary fields. They take pride in their selection of book reviewers, choosing only writing experts with more than considerable years of experience in editing, book reviews, and expertise in the subject matter of the books.
ReadersMagnet is a self-publishing company that offers book review services. They work with Kirkus, BlueInk Review, and ReadersMagnet Reviews for their published authors. Contact ReadersMagnet at their office number: (619) 354 2643 Toll Free Number: (800) 805 0762 Fax Number: (661) 338 1442 or email them at [email protected] for more details