What is the book All About and What to expect from a particular book – The characters, plot building, style of writing, the concept behind, and how beautifully all this has been portrayed in the book should become evident to your readers by reading a Book Review.

To justify the task of writing a book review you should be thorough with the contents of the book and should have a clear, unbiased opinion about it in comparison to other sellers in the market. Also, you need to draw a comparison in-between bestselling books in that genre and then write a statement about it.

For many perplexed readers, a book review is like a guide and an indirect method that helps them in deciding whether to invest time in reading a particular book or not. They serve as first-hand memos for authors by which they come to know about their flaws in writings and improvise the content according to the interest of their regular readers.

These 8 pointers should be surely present in a particular review in the order mentioned hereafter –

1. Describe what the book is about in brief

A basic summary of the contents in the book so that people get a vague idea and a general gist of the plot in advance. This will play a crucial factor in helping them decide whether to start reading that book or not in the very first place. Don’t unravel the major twist and turns in the storyline, climax or ending of the book and avoid giving away spoilers so that you don’t ruin the reading experience of your audience(those interested in reading). Do not forget to mention if the book is a part of any series in continuation without reading which it will be impossible to comprehend this one indeed.

2. Throw some light on important aspects in the book-

Bring into the limelight how this book differs from the rest. Mention sections of work that intrigue the most and their relevance in the author’s storyline. Nail down the theme, the main characters and the situational crisis around which the story plot revolves. Don’t shy away from giving them some hints and writing in a manner that they are bound to read the book for solving their hidden quest. Try and bring in the Author’s Perspective in the dictation and your version of how the narration sounded to you. Any other general left-out information that is important to be acknowledged by the readers should be included within the review.

3. Your Unique take on the Book (Praise + Critique):

Should occupy the longest expanse in your review of the book encompassing all the major aspects of the book you find entertaining to those that you disagree with or didn’t match your expectations. Highlight both strengths and weaknesses in the piece of writing provided to you. Assess in detail the outlined structure, settings, the newness of the plot, originality, narrative coherence with relevance in context, schema of happenings, the combination of realism with fantasy and cutting-edges of the story.

Don’t forget to decipher the basic question – purposefulness the story adds in one’s lives if any and the hidden motive behind writing the narration in the way it has been depicted in the book.

Notice dialogue delivery, pacing, the flow of language and its understanding to any layman who is not acquainted with this genre of writing before.

Some questions that need to be clearly answered in a book review-

• Did the book meet your expectations?
• How was your experience? – A gratifying, worthwhile and memorable one indeed!
• Why this book was not up to the mark or why you were disappointed?
• Mention the characters that touched you the most. Would you like to read it again?
• Did the story keep you engrossed till the very end?
• Was the plot quite gripping in itself?
• Was it useful to you in any manner?
• Is the writing jolly or ends on a sad note?
• Something special in your storyline- Was it too simple or impossible to believe in?
• Is the plot Understandable or you were finding it difficult to gather everything together?
• Did you like the way world-building took place?
• What were your favorites parts and which part you didn’t like the most in the composition?
• What hit you hard and if you couldn’t make any sense out of it?

4. Include short quotes or catchy lines in the plot as examples

Hooks or catchy phrases in the beginning or somewhere in the middle of the review need to be included to generate and maintain the interest of its readers so that they continue reading instead of just scrolling past it.

Captivating and mesmerizing phrases or lines quoted by the protagonist that got imprinted in one’s mind while reading will increase the authenticity of the book. Make it interesting so that audience does come back for more and specifically search for your reviews in the amidst of thousands available on the net.

5. Wrap it up with a concluding note

Summarise your writings regarding the context with your thoughts on the book as a whole. Try to end with a short and sweet befitting ending line concising it up totally.

Suggest the type of readers, it is best suited for younger readers, elders, old readers, fans of drama/comedy/mystery/ romance, and so on

6.  Assessment of the book-

Give the book an overall rating on a scale-out of 10 and explain the basis of your ratings in brief

Break down your star ratings into different categories for each element like characters/choice of words/ subjectiveness/relevance and so on. Give a proper rationale for every rating.

Details of your personal experience i.e. what sort of journey it is and the huge panorama of emotions they can expect to surface while reading it must be clear to them.  Your distinctive opinion about the book and what message you drew from the author’s power-packed writings must also be thoroughly conveyed to your readers.

The author of the book or any writer for that matter appreciates reviews in which you point out exactly the loopholes present in the format of the book. Why you gave a rating with its explanation is what they are always looking forward to.

For example-

• Writing Style: 3.5/5
• Subject: 4/5
• Relevance: 4/5
• Candidness: 4/5
• Choice of words: 4/5
• Entertainment Quotient: 3.5/5

The ratings and reviews you give a book serve as a first-hand learning experience for authors to improvise and connect well with their literary critics in their upcoming books. They want your thirst for more and queries resolved.

7. Your recommendation or evaluation of the work

Would you promote this book personally or suggest reading it to your family and friends?

Prefer reading the book from the start all over again…

Worth spending your time and money??

All this stuff should be as clear as a bright mirror to the public as they buy on your trust. If you are able to maintain their trust and build confidence in your writings- you can harness this potential to sell anything let alone books in the market. Either write in favour or completely discourage with the purchase of the book. This is the recommended way of working in the market.

Your writing must conclusively evaluate the overall work of an author and should be strongly opinioned rounding up all the inevitable aspects in one go.

8. Suggest a similar book you find worth-reading

This book can be of the same series or genre similar to the one you are reviewing right now.

Mention how you relate to a particular book. Then sample more books- from this author or from authors in the same genre (you love to read). Suggest with your findings as to why you resonate more with them in comparison to others.

9. Inclusive of all essential book information and relevant links

The review should also contain a link to the book, the number of pages, information about the publisher, where you can buy from, the author’s bio and their contact information.

The work’s themes the story involves, narrative mysteries, illustrations and stylistic mannerisms of writing amplify your book’s reach and guarantee more sales in the end. All these pointers prove beneficial when you ask reviewers to write reviews for your books.

For a reviewer – Crystal Clear and Comprehensive feedback is very important but always remember to take care of pronouns, choice of words that you use yourself while writing a review. Avoid narcissist writing and structural seizures in your review to maintain the quality and interest of the readers.

More reviews mean an increase in sales for the authors so write immediately after you have read a book while all the incidents are fresh in your memory so that you can easily describe them in detail. Be firm with your opinions and authentic while writing any section of the review.

Follow these three tips while writing any review:

• Keep it streamlined
• Be honest
• Remember to proofread