Non-fiction works definitely benefit from reviews. These must be from other experts in the field and it does not matter whether they agree with your findings or not, as long as they do not criticise your writing or dispute your facts. If they do, it is advisable to check whether or not they are right and alter your manuscript accordingly before publication. A little controversy can only intrigue your readers, who will also be interested in your subject and likely to buy your book.
For fiction, Amazon reviews which generate stars are most valuable. These will come from readers who have bought your book or ebook and give a fair assessment of the quality of your work to other potential readers. Most people star gaze on Amazon. They may or may not read what other people have said though. You can encourage people, including friends and family, to give you reviews through social media and special offers on your book. Good ones can then be added to the cover by the publisher if you wish. Any book printed after such an addition will carry the review. If it was printed before the alteration, it won’t.
Books in bookshops are another matter. You need robust reviews to cite on the cover which will lend cachet to the work.
“This is a lovely book by our boy and he did all the long words by himself” Mum and Dad
This will not be a helpful addition. Whereas:
“A gripping page turner…” S.M. White, Arts Editor, Clothfold Chronicle
has a lot more clout even if S.M. White is just a local journalist. He is a professional and in the literary world. He counts. Give him a free copy and ask him if he will provide a review. He might even put a piece in the local paper for you to tell the community about your upcoming book signing or launch. Add a local radio interview and you might find the presenter will provide another review.
With these two upgrading your cover, you can register your book on the Public Library Registration. Librarians like genuine reviews from literary professionals and they often need a certain number of them to justify adding the book to their stock.
Never pay for a review. Organisations which offer ghostwriting services for reviews provide pretty words but mean little. If your book is good, it will attract real ones with minimal effort on your part.
The gold standard reviews are provided free of charge by Kirkus Reviews, an American journal published 24 times a year, which is respected throughout the book industry. A Kirkus Star is the highest accolade a book can achieve and is only awarded a couple of times in any given year. Traditional publishers have access to this service. So do hybrid publishers such as Tweedlecoate. Note that Kirkus Reviews is not the same as Kirkus Indie (although both stem from the same organisation) for which reviews self publishers pay a fee. Never pay for reviews, however prestigious. Use the literary sources you can access realistically and network your way up higher by sheer high calibre writing.
