Confession time: I’m a pretty good writer in many ways, but I’m not great at wording book reviews.
When I see some of the reviews other folks put together, I’m in awe.
Fact: I still leave many of my less-than-poetic reviews, because they’re important (see below). And the amount of stars you leave is just as important, and they don’t require writing!
Just The Other Day…
I told someone that reviews on my book launch day and during the week after that are the most critical. She was embarrassed and said she had never left a book review. So of course I told her I would put together information on how to do that. Which led to this blog post.
When you’re thinking about which book to read next, you probably base your decision on recommendations from others.
That’s why it’s so important for you to leave a book review.
Leaving a book review helps other readers decide if a book is right for them, supports authors (especially lesser-known ones), and contributes to meaningful discussions about the story.
Where to Leave a Book Review
As many places as you can, especially sites that are popular for book buyers, such as Amazon and Goodreads.
If you’re not familiar with Goodreads, it’s the world’s largest site for readers and book recommendations, with 150 million members. It’s also owned by Amazon. Some Goodreads members review books and have many followers who look to their recommendations when considering buying a book.
Both Amazon and Goodreads allow you to leave a review even if you didn’t buy a book through the site (Goodreads has affiliate links to many online book-selling platforms).
How Reviews Help Lesser-Known Authors
Amazon book reviews matter—a lot. They help a book get noticed, build credibility, and, ultimately, sell more copies. The more reviews a book has (especially good ones), the higher it ranks in Amazon’s system, making it more likely to pop up in searches and recommendations. Plus, reviews act as a trust signal for other readers, helping them decide if the book is worth their time.
Goodreads reviews matter a lot, too. The Goodreads ranking even shows up next to the Amazon ranking of a book.
Goodreads ratings are usually lower than Amazon ratings, and there are a few reasons for that. Goodreads is full of serious book lovers who tend to be more critical, while Amazon has a mix of casual and dedicated readers who might be a bit more generous. Plus, Goodreads users often rate books even if they didn’t finish them, while Amazon reviews usually come from people who actually bought the book—so they were probably already interested in it. Amazon also has stricter review policies, which can filter out some extreme ratings. So, it’s pretty common to see a book with a 4.5 on Amazon but only a 3.8 or 4.0 on Goodreads.
The bottom line: For lesser-known authors, reviews on Amazon and Goodreads can be a game-changer, helping them reach more readers in a competitive market.
How to Leave an Amazon Review
To leave an Amazon book or product review, you must have spent at least $50.00 in the past 12 months from a credit or debit card on Amazon.
Here are some do’s and don’ts:
DO: Write a review ASAP (as soon as the book is launched). Or as soon as you can. A short one is fine, with a headline and one or two sentences. If you want to include more information, you can share a brief summary of the book, genre, characters, writing style, similar books, what you learned, and/or what type of reader might like this book.
DO: Buy a copy of the book if you can. You can review the book without purchasing it from Amazon, but these reviews will not be marked “Verified Purchase.” While any review is helpful, Verified Purchase reviews may be taken more seriously by buyers, and the Amazon algorithm may give more rating weight to verified purchases.
DON’T: Mention in your review that the book was written by a friend, fellow author, etc. That is considered a conflict of interest and Amazon can remove this review.
Here is an example of a review I left for Once Upon a River, by Diane Setterfield.
To leave a review:
- Go to Amazon and search for the book
- Once you’re on the book’s page, scroll down the left side near the bottom, to the Reviews area
- You will see a notice on the left that says “Write a customer review”
- Click on that, and you will come to the Review page
- First, click on the number of stars you want to give the book
- Then, write a headline
- Then, write what you liked about the book
- Then hit submit
How to Leave a Goodreads Review
You’ll need to set up a free account first. You can learn how here.
Here is my review of Silence, by Julia Park Tracey:
To leave a review:
- Go to Goodreads and log in
- Once in, search for the title of the book you want to review
- On the book page, on the left, below the cover of the book, you will see the book price, whether or not you want to read it, and the ability to Rate the book
- Choose the number of stars
- Then you can choose to write a review, which you should do
- After you write the review, you can include all kinds of information like when you read it, but you can also just choose “post” and the review will be posted