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As a reader, you’ve probably rated and left reviews on books before. What do those star ratings mean to you? How do you decide what rating to give a book? Here’s how I approach them, and I’d love to hear what you do!
5 Stars
I loved the book: it kept me engaged, I read it quickly, and I want to read more. To earn five stars, a book must have good grammar and punctuation, and must do well at showing instead of telling. A few mistakes here and there are okay, as long as they weren’t too distracting. In my opinion, a book does not need to be “life-changing” to earn this star rating, but it does measure up to good books in the same genre. If I want to give them 4.5, I always round up not down. Because I’m pretty careful choosing my books, many of the book I read deserve 5 stars.
4 Stars
I liked the book, but a few things preventing me from loving it. Maybe there was a character that got on my nerves, or I didn’t love the ending. I also give books four stars if they were brilliantly written but had several grammatical errors that kept pulling me out of the story. Again, if I think it’s 3.5, I’ll round up to 4. If a book has an overall 4.5 star rating and I give it 4 stars, I am aware that I am bringing down the author’s overall rating.
If I keep thinking positively about the story after a few weeks or find myself recommending the book a lot, I may go back and up the rating because it apparently grabbed me more than I realized at the time of the review.
3 Stars
The book was okay. I don’t regret reading it, and I might read the next book in the series if it’s steeply discounted and I don’t have other good books to read, but it’s not a book I’d recommend to friends. Books might receive this rating if I hated the ending, if there were glaring grammatical and punctuation errors throughout, or if there was a lot of telling instead of showing.
In my opinion, three stars is not a good star rating for a book. I would count three star as a negative review, because I know that when I buy books, I only buy books that have an overall rating or four stars or more.
2 Stars
I didn’t like the book. The story line was was predictable, the characters didn’t grow, there was only telling and no showing, or the book had enough grammatical or punctuation errors that it was often difficult to understand what was going on in the story.
1 Star
I hated the book. The writing was nonsensical, the plot went nowhere, or it read like it was written by someone who barely speaks English. I also give books one star if I hate the main character. If I feel that way, then the author has completely failed in their purpose to get me inside the character’s head and explain the motivations for their actions.
When you shouldn’t rate a book
There are also times when I pass on writing a review. For instance, if a book isn’t a genre I like, I don’t feel I should review it as my perception will be colored. If I’m sick, having a terrible day, or dislike the author’s politics, I will not write a review because I’m probably not going to be fair. You get the idea.
Be kind
On a final note, remember that authors are people too. They have feelings. They’ve put their heart out there on the page, so always make sure your comments are about the book and its plot (no spoilers!) and not an attack on the author personally.
What process do you use to rate books? What does each star rating mean to you? I’d love to hear! Please post in the comments below.
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How is a three star rating a bad review? I give tons of books three stars. Three stars means I enjoyed it but it wasn’t all that great. There’s things holding it back but it’s still nice.
A five star rating is reserved for the best book of the year. I only give a five star rating to 1 or 2 books a year.
One star means “I regret reading this.”
Hi.
Sent you a personal email. Just one extra comment. I’m a writer but also a geriatric. Published my first INDIE novel when I was 69 years old. By the way, I’m a male.
I use a similar rating system for giving stars to a book, but I often read several reviews before purchasing the book. I mostly get books free from authors directly because I want to leave a review for that author, or if I’m a beta reader or editor for the book. I don’t purchase many books at all, so reading reviews gives me an idea of what to expect and whether or not I may like the book.
One thing that really bothers me about reviews, however, are the ones that just say “good book” or “I liked it” or “Don’t waste your money.” I, as a consumer, want to know what you liked about the book, or what made it good. Why do all the other reviews say it’s mediocre but your rating is for 5 stars? I realize that authors encourage any reviews of their books, but reviewers should make the effort to tell us why they rated or reviewed the book the way they did. Even a full statement, such as, “I liked the book a lot because the main character reminded me of my childhood best friend,” would be better than just saying it was okay.
When I get into a series, I give 5 star ratings. I read the free books on my Kindle & will buy the rest of the series. I read the reviews & decide for myself whether to read a book or not. I don’t always buy books according to the reviews because some of the reviews are based on their feelings not mind. Some reviews say there is too much sex, bad words & etc. I say don’t read the book but don’t given it bad reviews just because you don’t like the sex or bad works because some readers don’t mind.
I agree that readers shouldn’t base their reviews only on certain aspects of the book they don’t like, such as the sexual content or bad language. I try to include the fact that the book has those particular elements, and others, such as a lot of violence, in my reivew, but I don’t base my entire review on one element I don’t like.
Although I rarely leave a 1-2-star review, I often read them. The reviewer’s reasons may or may not be thngs that would put me off, and as I read, I amy or may not agree with their assessment.
I sometimes struggle with how many stars to give although I think I follow what you have outlined in general. I think your explanation will help crisp up my decisions about how many starts to give. Thank you for sharing.
I don’t agree with you regarding writing a review for a genre that I don’t normally read. I deliberately try to read a wide variety of books so as to stretch my horizons. If I start a book that is ‘out-of-the-norm’ for me, there is something about it that has caught my attention and I believe that it deserves to be reviewed. I do try to be specific regarding what I liked or didn’t like about the book so people reading the review can determine whether they would have a similar reaction or not (ie whether they should consider my review in their decision about reading the book or not). I rate based on the specific book, not how it compares to other books in the genre, so I don’t think it matters whether I have read a lot of books in the genre or not.
I don’t tend to be real picky when it comes to editing/grammar/writing style/etc. If the story resonated, I liked the characters and I am satisfied with the ending then I am generally pretty happy with the book regardless of how it was written.
I’m not too picky, I definitely give new authors a try, I read different genres, different ratings, different languages, etc.
I certainly don’t review every book I read, it all depends on the book.
If it just isn’t my cup of tea, I don’t review. Don’t want to discourage others from reading just because I didn’t like it for no particular reason.
5 Stars: Loved it, grammar/spelling was 95-100% right, I actually went and looked for more by the author and/or preordered the sequel/next in the series already.
4 Stars: Either I loved the story but the grammar wasn’t too great, or I liked it quite a bit but it wasn’t a favourite (=not loved) and the writing was great, or it wasn’t 5 star worthy but I can’t even quite say why…
3 Stars: It’s okay but there were issues I had with it. Spelling, grammar, plotholes, obvious timeline errors…
2 Stars: If I didn’t like it because of specific things (bad grammar, plot holes you could drive a truck through or something similar) I usually give it 2 to 3 stars depending on severity of the “thing” that drove me nuts.
1 Star: If I think it’s only worth 1 star I usually wouldn’t review at all, so one star reviews only happen when I got lied to. Lying for me are things like: *making it look like it’s a new story when it’s just a re-release with new name cover and sometimes even changed character names (2 of my fav authors have gotten 1 star reviews because of this!), *saying it’s a standalone when it clearly isn’t, especially when it “ends” in the middle of the story trying to get you to buy the next parts, *claims to be clean but ends up extremely smutty or the other way around, *if the plot seems awfully familiar and is clearly just adapted or even stolen.
I pretty much give 4 or 5 stars because I’m picky about what I read. But if the book manages to pull my emotions out to the point I either laugh out loud or cry, then that book will always get a 5 star rating from.
Your system does not seem to allow for rating of the REALLY good books. [The kind I read slowly and savour, that leave me wanting to read another (different) book by the same author after re-reading confirms it really was that good and that are complete in themselves (even if part of a storyverse).] But maybe you haven’t been fortunate enough to read any yet.
I tend to think of the star-ratings as meaning bad, poor, good, very good, and excellent.
Being honest from the thousands of stories I have read over my lifetime many have been very good but even rounding up I doubt as many as a hundred would rate as excellent. How is the poor reading addict supposed to find guidance to the good, well-told stories amongst all the inflated, sock-puppet, and prostituted reviews? Perhaps we could have a caveat on reviewers giving their overall reviewing stats to put their ratings into context. {Personally I have just re-read CJ Cherryh’s Faded Sun trilogy – having happened on a pocketbook omnibus edition suitable for reading in breaktimes at work – and thirty years on I still thought this was VERY good.}
At a time when the extent of story-based content of digital “books” is becoming obscured by supposed page-counts and reading times, with file-sizes equally ambiguous and no failsafe of actually checking in a bookshop, the gaming of reviews and deliberate spiking of sales in search of momentum is leading increasingly to Emperors New Clothes scenarios. There are undoubtedly reading licences available which individual readers could find worth accruing but it is becoming harder and harder to determine which. At the same time authors seem to be being ground up by marketing machines. I have heard it alleged that truth in advertising can exist but this may have been a marketing ploy.
I give a 5 to books that I really like. I give 4 for to many errors or a constant use of one word that I really hate by the end of the story. I quit reading if books do not interest me. I was an English teacher; but, do not let it stop me from enjoying a good story. I only read books that rate my interest. I rarely ever read romance because too many of them are not fit to read. There are some authors that I won’t touch.
I fall between you and RosaA in my rating system. At 76 I have been reading a long time, and am also on a fixed income. I read many of the same authors as Rosa did, plus Pearl Buck and James Patterson, James Mitchner and Agatha Christy. If it’s cheap enough and I don’t want to think too hard, I will read almost anything. I also loved Tolkien and my great grandson has gotten me into Robert Jordan. My two biggest negatives are grammatical errors and series that are all the same with just the victims and bad guys have different names. I am also not a romance fan. I try not to give negative ratings because I know every word has the author’s blood in it. I have edited and proofread professionally on a limited level, and have done newspaper writing, mostly human interest, and I’ve done some short stories, but they have never been published.
That’s a fair system. I usually only leave reviews if the book was sensational (4-5 stars), extremely disappointing (1-2 stars), or if an author asks for a review. And am I the only person who hates it when a reviewer says, “Loved it!” and leaves a 1- or 3-star review?
i give d same ratings as u stated above nicely put by u….if i give 5 star ratings it means to me i loved d book & would like to read more of the said authors books ….
& a 4 star rating means i enjoyed d book but something was missing to capture my full attention….3 star is book was okish if i had missed reading it wouldnt ve made a dfference…
1 & @ star means i m disgusted with d book & left reading it on page 1 itself
My rating system seems to fall in line with yours. I will generally choose not to leave a review that is less than 3 stars. Don’t want to hurt the author’s feelings.
5 Stars
Loved it, in fact I want to read it (or listen to it – I do lots of audio books) again immediately. It was interesting and did something new with the genre. I’d recommend it to anyone who reads, even if this isn’t a genre they normally read.
4 Stars
I really liked it, possibly new and interesting in the genre but I don’t want to read/listen again. I’d recommend it to anyone who reads the genre.
3 Stars
I liked it but it’s fairly standard for the genre. I won’t be recommending it to anyone.
2 Stars
I didn’t like it, it was boring, or badly written.
1 Star
Hated it, I wish I could un-read it.
5 stars are for books that suck me into the story and I hate when it ends. There are very few of them.
4 stars are for a good read, believable characters, an interesting plot and a stand alone book.
3 stars are for not such a good read or a genre I don’t normally read and didn’t get the best out of it. I always say if that is the reason. Usually it is that the characters or plot don’t live up to a good read, but I persevere in the hope that it get better.
2 stars are generally that I read it but considered it a waste of time
1 star is for books that I gave up on or hated.
Spelling, geographical or historical correctness don’t come into it unless it is so blatant as to be annoying. I am not an expert in any of these areas.
I agree with you mostly. But I don’t think a 3 star rating is bad. I give three star ratings when the book might not have been as good as expected, but I have enjoyed the other books written by the same author who I generally give 4 stars or even a 5 star rating to. I guess my hope is that the book just didn’t speak to the author as much as the others and the next one written will be back to the 4 star rating I generally give,
I also agree about not leaving a rating for books that are not in the main genre that you read. In my opinion you don’t have enough information to base a rating on. But on the other hand, I will also give a book a rating but not write a review because I don’t have enough experience in the genre but I really enjoyed the book.
5 stars are for great books that will stand the test of time (assuming our civilization survives).
4 stars are for books I enjoyed that are not 5 star quality, or provisionally for seeming-5 star books in a series where it’s too soon to rate them as 5 stars unless and until the series is completed at a 5 star level.
3 stars is neutral, midpoint of the scale.
2 stars is negative, with some redeeming feature that makes it better than 1 star.
1 star, I HATED, or it’s plagiarism (@#$%^&*!), or a rip-off sold of a common-domain book available for free elsewhere, such as on Gutenberg (which I will note if that’s the case).
I apply the same points to my review that you have mentioned. I hate to give a bad review. I don’t often leave a 3 star because I usually pic ARCs in my genre and they seem to always be well written. I have found that Indie authors are just as good or better than the big company published ones. I have read over 2900 books since receiving my kindle. From those books I have only DNF around 5. Well I have to go write a review.
I tend to rate mine similarly to you. Although if it looks like it’s going to get below a 3, I usually don’t finish it. I have went back and finished some and gave them good ratings. Sometimes it’s just not the right time to read a certain book. I consider 4 & 5 to be good ratings. A 3 is a maybe I will give the author another chance.
When I’m looking at reviews for books where the overview looks interesting, I start with the 3-star reviews. If I’m attracted by what I read there, I’ll read the 4-star reviews. Generally, 3 stars tell me the “warts” about the book–spelling, editing (or lack thereof), the believability of the plot/characters, etc. Oh. And cliffhangers. If a book ends in a cliffie that would require me to purchase the next book(s) to continue the story, I’m gone. Period. Being on a fixed income makes me pretty critical of “weekly serials” and the like. If the 3-star reviews pass my review, I’ll head on to the 4-star ones.
The 4-star reviews generally give me a bit more “meat” and the like. I still get info on spelling, sentence structure, editing (again, or lack thereof), while giving me more “meat” about the book. I’m picky, so I read reviews with an eye to my “would this be a book I’d purchase in hard copy?” list. I live in a very small apartment, so my list in quite critical to me. For me to say that it’s a book I’d order in hard copy format is quite something.
I have to admit that, to me, a lot of the 5-star reviews seem quite unreliable as they’re TOO fantastical in a lot of cases. It’s the same, in my opinion, with the 1- and 2-star reviews. They’re just too fantastical in a negative way.
I hope this helps. I grew up reading Andre Norton, Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, Brian W. Aldiss, Larry Niven, Fritz Leiber, Philip K. Dick, Philip Jose Farmer. Later, I came to enjoy books by Anne MacCaffrey and David Weber. At 68 years of age, I’m no longer worried about “dating” myself. *chuckles*
I agree with you, Rose, that 5-star reviews are overdone to the point of meaninglessness. I often feel like they are written by the author’s friends. I reserve 5-star for a book I would love to reread although I seldom have the time with so many good books out there. I use 4-star for books I would readily recommend. Goodreads interprets 3-star as “I liked it” so I use 3 on Goodreads for books I don’t regret reading, but wouldn’t suggest my friends read, but I up those to 4-star on Amazon because their translation of 3-star is just “OK.” I am an author myself and well aware that we are people. If a book merits less than 3-stars, I often leave it unrated. The exception would be an issue that I felt needed to be publicly pointed out like gross incompetence to promote an agenda.
I rate a book on how it flows, does it make sense, and does it hold my interest. I’ve read books that half a page the main character is talking to a squirrel.
Thanks for the explanation on the meaning of star ⭐️ ratings, I found this most helpful, as I do love reading and leaving reviews… Thanks again….
I feel the same. There are few that I rate 5 stars. I mostly do 4 or 3. I hate giving lower but will if needed.