M

I am Lover of romance, who indulges in the romantic adventures of literature

My name is Renee, and I am the host of this site. I am a 34 year old woman, on the prowl for her mate, searching out the best of books, exploring the wilds of the imagination and delving into the heart of a beautiful love story.

 

Tea and Biscuits Book Discussion: My Ratings!!! What are Yours?

by | Jul 4, 2016 | Tea and Biscuits Discussions | 11 comments

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This week, I wanted to talk about the important of ratings….what are mine and why I have them at the level they are and I am curious how you rate your books!! I have noticed each person does their ratings differently. What makes a five star read for you? And why do you set them at a certain level! Well I would like to clarify mine and explain why I think they are important. Now when I first started a blog, I was pretty general about them, but over the years I have become a bit more specific than I ever used to. I am also way pickier than when I first starting reading romances and reviewing the books I read. My tastes in reading have developed, but there are also other things that have changed in the way I love or hate a book!!

5 Blossoms

Now what does it take for a 5 rating? Well it takes quite a bit for me. In fact this only happens a few times a year. So when I five star a book…that should show how much I loved it!! First off it has to be engaging, the type of book that will keep you up all night reading it because its so dang good. I focus less on actions of characters or situations, because if the author is talented enough at writing it—she or he can make just about anything be a well written book you can love. The characters have to be in depth, easy to love and relate with and get to your emotions. I love a story that is well rounded in the emotion department. I like a story where you laugh, you cry and you want to dance in excitement.

4 Blossoms

Now what does a 4 rating do for you? Well for me as long as I enjoy it, like the characters then I will more than likely rating it at a 4. There are some things I may not like about the story, the characters, the plot but those factors don’t detract from my enjoyment from the story. If I like a book but don’t love it, I put them under this category. In fact, most of the books I have read over the past couple of years have fit in this category. Mostly because, I have become picky in engagement and plots!! I don’t just love a book because its a fun one to read. There are quite a few factors involved. For a four rating, the book has to fit into certain categories. Such as at least one of the main characters to be one I like. Its okay to have issues with the other, but they have to be redeemable too. The plot has to be engaging, but its alright for it to be a bit predictabel at times…as long as there are some twists along the way.

3 Blossoms

Now I always know when I am at a third rating!! the biggest sign as I am reading a story, is that its average…doesn’t thrill or excite me, but its a story you can relax with on a slow day. It doesn’t really impress you much, but its not terribly written either. It just doesn’t have anything that stands out to the reader. Its pleasant and likable enough…but nothing else to make it a book you would want to buy or read again. It does make you want to ask yourself “its missing something!!” But you aren’t sure what, you just know the story is definitely lacking so pizazz!

2 Blossoms

Now a story has to be pretty bad for it to get to 2!!! This is where you have a hard time with the flow of the story. The characters you have issues with and there isn’t too much to recommend the story. There are some likable moments but they are scattered throughout the story, its unbalanced and not a story you would recommend to anyone. These happen very rarely for me. But when they do, its never a fun experience!! Because you want to enjoy it more, but can’t find enough to like it.

1 Blossoms

Now I can say that these are so rare for me!! But it has happened on ocassion!! Normally what happens with a one star, is that there are a couple of aspects I liked….maybe a few positive moments but the rest of the book is horrible and not worth reading at all. But you do because its popular, or has a plot you are intrigued by or has a setting you like but in the end its the authors writing that gets to you!!

DNF

I am so much more pickier about DNF than I ever used to be. I used to ALWAYS finish a book, just felt like I needed to. But now a days I give myself 100 pages…if I can’t like it enough to continue, I put it aside. Because quite frankly, there are so many good books out there you want to get to, why be slowed down by a story you hate and can’t put yourself through. Yep *nodding head* this is true….don’t waste your time folks!!

So what are YOUR Ratings? What makes a solid Five star read for you? What makes a story put it aside as a DNF?? Tell me, I want to know!! 🙂

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11 Comments

  1. AJ Sterkel

    I always like hearing how other people rate books. I don’t use star ratings on my blog. The stars mean different things to different people, so I’d rather just post my review. It is rare that I completely love or completely hate a book, though.

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      Its good that you just post your review. I like the star ratings though, but sometimes it can be hard with certain books. There are probably only a handful of books that are “the best” in my eyes. But they do happen, just not very often.

      Reply
  2. Sophia Rose

    Actually twos and fives are the tricky ones for me. I don’t usually have trouble with fours or threes or even DNFs (other than I still struggle a bit stopping for a DNF Haha).
    I used to never have a five because I kept thinking a five had to be so perfect and mind blowing, but then I realized that the perfect book didn’t exist. Then I had to figure out that a five for me was still amazing, unputdownable, and stayed with me for some time if not always. I’ve even come to realize that a five can have a notable flaw and still be amazing, unputdownable, etc.
    Now a two is the other one I struggled with. I’ve adjusted my fours to being the really enjoyed and engaged with and the threes to it was likeable if not memorable. So the twos became the meh to painful reads that have probably as many issues as likeable moments though probably more dissatisfying than satisfying. I still haven’t found much use for the one star as I usually go from two to DNF.
    What gets frustrating is that people take exception when I slap a three on my reviews. I still consider that a likeable/decent read, but I’ve had authors and fans get hurt, huffy, and even angry about it. I show positive and negative aspects in the review to explain, but for some reason I get the feeling that outright hating their book might be taken better than being only moderately in like with it.

    I think you have a clear picture of how and why you use a rating and that’s the important part- consistent with your own rating even if it doesn’t quite mean what someone else does with the same rating.

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      DNF’s can be such a challenge right? Mostly because I feel so bad at putting aside a book, especially when I know the author and have read them before. For a five though, it never used to be about being perfect. Years ago, if I loved it—it was a five. I really wasn’t that picky back then when I first started reading romance, I don’t know why. But now I am so much more picky and its rare for me to 5 a book. I hear ya about others (especially authors or even publishers) that get angry over a three. I get its a bit disappointing, but one I am always positive in my reviews, and two three isn’t a bad rating. Its a good one. So I hate having to rate three sometimes, because it can have the worst backlash.

      I do think its important to see how others rate their books, because each person does it so differently.

      Reply
  3. Blodeuedd

    I think where we are different are the 3s, I would buy more in a series where a book was a 3. Hmm, I think my 3 is actually your 4! Ha, yes and my 2 is your 3…I am confusing myself 😉

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      haha!!! Its weird our scales are just right behind each other though. 🙂

      Reply
  4. Quinn's Book Nook

    Ratings are so tricky, especially the middle rating. I only give 5 stars out to books that are EXTRA special.

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      They can be tricky. For me its the trickiest the lower you go!!! 4 is the easiest one to rate. But I agree there are times I have a hard time with them.

      Reply
  5. Eva

    Yes love this! Ratings are so hard — I find that mine seem to be different than most but I’m glad to know yours! 5 Stars are also rare for me — thank you for the western rec by the way! And you know I LOVE Suzanne Brockmann!! ♥ Great idea for a post!!

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      Oh I agree Eva, they can be so difficult for sure!!! Brockmann is a pretty fantastic author. I can never get enough her SEAL series here though, I think I have read (listened) to them multiple times hehe She does a great job of balancing out romance and suspense.

      Reply
  6. Anna@herding cats&burning soup

    I’m super stingy about my 5 star reviews. So far only 2 this year. 4 is my general rating. I do make mine a bit more complicated since I do half ratings as well. It’s rare I finish a book and don’t have a good feel for it’s rating. Just one of those gut feelings that hits me while reading.

    Reply

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