Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post on Rainy Day Ramblings where Rainy discuss a wide range of topics from books to blogging. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.
This week's conversation starter:
July 25th: When you first started blogging were you hesitant to give out a low rating? Has that changed?
Omg yes!! It was SO HARD. I still remember this crappy book I gave a good grade cos I just did not dare give the author a bad rating. It took a year and then I went back and gave that piece of crap a 1 mowuahahahahah. Seriously, it was a really really bad book. Trust me, SO bad.
Most times I was afraid to be honest. Authors were big and scary. Books I read on my own I could give low ratings but those authors scared me. And not only because I did not want to disappoint. I said yes to a lot of crap and the authors were not that nice. I have talked about it before but they got mad for 4s and wtf. It also gave me a really bad picture of self publishing. Which sucks, but I still have those feelings.
Now I am not afraid anymore. If a book is bad, then I am going to give it a low rating. I would hate to read a book that had all 5s and then hate it. I want all ratings. The good and the bad. So I am not afraid to give out the bad ones, they are needed. If they were not around then hell, I'd stop reading reviews! I'd just go back to trusting my gut and honestly buying less books cos it is hard to trust your gut.
I am happy I got over that bump. Now I am more stingy with good ratings instead ;)
A sunny day in April
Attacked and abducted in her home territory, Mercy finds herself in the clutches of the most powerful vampire in the world, taken as a weapon to use against alpha werewolf Adam and the ruler of the Tri-Cities vampires. In coyote form, Mercy escapes only to find herself without money, without clothing, and alone in the heart of Europe...
Unable to contact Adam and the rest of the pack, Mercy has allies to find and enemies to fight, and she needs to figure out which is which. Ancient powers stir, and Mercy must be her agile best to avoid causing a war between vampires and werewolves, and between werewolves and werewolves. And in the heart of the ancient city of Prague, old ghosts rise...
My thoughts:
Wooo, finally :D I wanted to wait for the US pb but could I could not stand it any longer.
I liked seeing Mercy on her own. It was a nice change for once, and yes sure I missed Adam and the pack. We still got Adam's pov as he searched for her. But yes it was nice seeing her do her own thing.
She gets kidnapped and then she escapes. All alone in Europe. Who to trust? We meet some new people, learn some new truths? Nah, not really. But she does it on her own because she is cool like that.
I do not have a lot to say. I mean it is book 10. It was a good one and I liked the new setting. I would actually have preferred more Mercy and less Adam, haha, well he was just trying to find her and she was exploring.
It did not take a long time to read, mostly cos I wanted time to fly by, and I really wanted to finish it.
Conclusion:
Another good Mercy book
Cover
I do not like the UK ones
Wooo, finally :D I wanted to wait for the US pb but could I could not stand it any longer.
I liked seeing Mercy on her own. It was a nice change for once, and yes sure I missed Adam and the pack. We still got Adam's pov as he searched for her. But yes it was nice seeing her do her own thing.
She gets kidnapped and then she escapes. All alone in Europe. Who to trust? We meet some new people, learn some new truths? Nah, not really. But she does it on her own because she is cool like that.
I do not have a lot to say. I mean it is book 10. It was a good one and I liked the new setting. I would actually have preferred more Mercy and less Adam, haha, well he was just trying to find her and she was exploring.
It did not take a long time to read, mostly cos I wanted time to fly by, and I really wanted to finish it.
Conclusion:
Another good Mercy book
Cover
I do not like the UK ones
Paperback, 371 pages
Published March 9th 2017 by Little, Brown Book Group
Mercy Thompson #10, Mercy Thompson World - Complete #14
Urban fantasy
Own
I rarely accept books from authors for just that reason.
ReplyDeleteIt does make it hard
Deletegreat post. I review so much trash for pay that if I start reading a book in my personal stash that I can't stand I don't. Usually 50 pages in is all I give a book so that means I don't personally review bad books on my blog and I rarely accept books from authors but I don't have to because I usually get at least 10 a week from publishers and publicists. I do have to admit that when I first started blogging authors scared me too :)
ReplyDelete10 a week, yikes, that is so many
DeleteI'm very picky about books that request from publishers and authors for this exact reason. If I don't think I will enjoy the book, I prefer to get it from the library or purchase it. That way I can either just not review it or review it and not tag the author.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this Mercy book. I liked seeing her stand on her own and show how strong she is, even when she has issues, she gets through them.
Melanie @ Hot Listens & Rabid Reads
Woot Mercy :D
DeleteThat is a good way of doing it. I am doing my best at it
When I started reviweing books prior to me blogging I felt that giving a high rating is a must. However, as I delved further into the world of reviewing and starting my own blog, I no longer feel that way. Any author who expects me to give their book a high rating when I didn't like the book will be struck off my list.
ReplyDeleteHear hear!
DeleteYes I have learned a lot about rating books now a adays!! At first I would rate it more generally, now I am more specific in my reviews and my rating on that book. But I always tried to be honest no matter what.
ReplyDeleteHonesty is a must! :)
DeleteI've become more bitchy in my ratings now hahaha I'll gladly do 1-2 star if needed.
ReplyDeleteThose are fun heheh, but mostly I dnf them
DeleteOh man I've only read the first Mercy sigh. And that's interesting about the ratings- I get so many emails that I decline, maybe I'm a jerk and nothing against self- pub but I just kinda know they're not gonna be my thing? I should just change my review policy to "not accepting"- but every once in a while an author does contact me that I WANT to read, you know? So... yeah. I just don't do the self- pubs...
ReplyDeleteWhaaat? U gotta read more of them.
DeleteI should do that, but sometimes a real gem comes through so...
I'll trade you the US covers for the UK covers! I like that one :)
ReplyDeleteI do not ;) SO we have a deal
DeleteI agree. We need the low ratings as well as the high to get a balanced perspective. It is definitely easier to do the longer I've been a reviewer.
ReplyDeleteYay for Mercy in Europe. Loved this one, too.
It was a good one :)
DeleteOh yes, early on I would feel so bad for giving a low rating, especially if I'd requested the book. Sending my link to the publisher is always so awkward! But in the years since I've learned that it's okay to not like a book, and even publicists will prefer a reviewer to just be honest. I've been able to deal with dishing out bad reviews better now, but I've also gotten a lot better choosing books I know I'll like :)
ReplyDelete~Mogsy @ BiblioSanctum
Been there! So incredibly awkward. But you live and learn :)
DeleteAnd honesty is always the best. Something one reader gives a 2 might just be the thing for me
It is hard to mark books low but ones I really dislike I do. But now I am very careful about what I accept to review.
ReplyDeleteBut you never know in the end :(
DeleteIt was definitely hard to write bad/low rating reviews for books when I first started. I still did it, but it was so hard. It's still not the easiest thing to do, but I try to be subjective and nicely list my reasons why.
ReplyDeleteThat is a good way of doing it
DeleteI was the opposite at first. I was totally honest about negative reviews and then I became more reserved when I started dealing with more self pub authors. Now I'm super picky and honest about what I feel. I don't need that stress.
ReplyDeleteFor What It's Worth
Hear hear, who needs that stress
DeleteI totally stopped this series! Thanks for the reminder to go back to it.
ReplyDeleteGet back!
DeleteLow ratings are still rough, because I think maybe the book just isn't for me but would fit someone else better. Especially because I've started crossing lines in what I read anymore, trying new things. That's something I have to mentally work out and will when I get more of that genre under my belt. :)
ReplyDeleteThat is true, but then if you give it a good rating and someone buys it cos of that and hates it, well same thing then. An honest neg rating can still make some get it
DeleteI no longer do reviews, and focus more on interviews, but when I did, it was for other review sites. Like you, I was super nervous because I didn't want to alienate an author. Eventually, I realized there was a way to be honest without being mean. Most writers appreciated that, but there were a few who were still angry over the low rating, even with a good explanation. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI once had this one that was super mad and trashtalked me on twitter and I said I liked that book! Well fu, I certainly took down my positive review after that and rated it bad as revenge...heheh
DeleteI don't hesitate to give low ratings and don't think that I ever really did. I try to quit books that I don't enjoy though. Yay for Silence Fallen...love that book!
ReplyDeleteQuitting bad ones is good :D
DeleteI don't hesitate to give low ratings and don't think that I ever really did. I try to quit books that I don't enjoy though. Yay for Silence Fallen...love that book!
ReplyDeleteGood for you!
DeleteIt's a lot easier giving books the ratings they deserve now then when I was being given books to review by publishers and authors!
ReplyDeleteI do get that
DeleteYea!! You FINALLY got to read it!! I felt so bad in the spring when you were without. I did the audiobook (I love Lorelei King). I enjoyed this one, but not as much as the previous two books. I also didn't like that the publisher got a male narrator for Adam's sections. Lorelei is QUEEN and they shouldn't have done that!
ReplyDeleteI buckled down and got the UK one, I hate when it's only out in hardback in the US. I want the pretty US covers!
DeleteAnd they all look like that, I am not a fan of the UK ones but I wanted it and US only has HB.
ReplyDeleteSo not cool when authors do that
I hate giving low ratings even now. But I do it because I have to.
ReplyDelete