Over the years I've had a lot of wonderful reviews, including one of the now defunct Gold Medals from Romantic Times. I've had some snorters, too, including those from people who are unfamiliar with some of the English English words I use and assume I made a mistake. That's life. You book a put out into the world and it's no longer yours. Either don't read the reviews or live with them.
Yesterday, though, was a review Red Letter day.
Flirting With Italian earned Desert Isle Keeper status from All About Romance, one of the toughest review sites on the planet (including Smart Bitches Loves Trashy Books). You get a flavour from their opening salvo -
"This book sounded trite: A recently dumped heroine lands a dream job in Rome and meets a gorgeous Italian Count..."
But then it goes on...
"Fortunately, trite is the last thing it proved to be. While it started off light and pleasant, by the end I realize just how textured and deep the characters are, and how lovely the story is. This is a good one."
Be still my beating heart. She liked it...
The review is a long one, with a summary of the plot and then finishes -
"I’ve never been to Rome or the outlying countryside, but the author brought them alive for me. I felt as if I was there, and could smell and see the sights right along with Sarah.
"I’ve read a quite a few of the author’s books. Some have been enjoyable while others were forgettable. As I closed the book on the last page I found myself crying a few happy tears. I loved this one and know I will read it again at some point in the future. It’s on my keeper shelf."
If you want to read the whole thing, you'll find it here
Here is Liz. She is smiling...
3 comments:
Congratulations, Liz! I don't think I'd be brave enough to read any of my own reviews.
I do love that cover!
May you have many, many more fabulous reviews.
That is fantastic Liz! Congratulations.
Oh my goodness! That's a lovely review even if she did manage to put the boot in (forgettable! If you read frequently, some books will be more memorable than others, but really!).
I enjoy something in every book I read. Recently, though, I read an Indian fiction book set among the contemporary Indian youth and some of the (s)exploits of the protagonists had me grinding my teeth. I wrote a rough review of it on Goodreads. But it would be easy for the writer to see why. I am the mother of two contemporary Indian teenagers. The content of that novel filled me with terror.
I think that if the writer understands where you're coming from when you write the review, that would help them. Then a 'bad' review might not necessarily be so bad.
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