Sunday, November 30, 2008

Extraordinary Author ~ Brenna Lyons

For the past six months, I've been following and collecting books by Brenna Lyons. Very rarely do I focus on authors, but this woman is the real deal. She's not family, or even a personal acquaintance, though I wish she was. She's some wonderful author out there banging out amazing books that do not get enough exposure.

If you ever get the opportunity to purchase or win a Brenna Lyons book, do it because it's worth the money.

Books include:

Fairy Dreams ~ by far, my favorite
Conquest
Naughty Nursery Rhymes
Mythos
Enslaved

Monday, November 10, 2008

Book Reviews - Are they Unfair?

I recently did a book review for a local paper. While the review was the truth of my opinion, which is all any review is, it wasn't in favor of the author. I received probably eight letters from the author stating that she felt I'd given her an unfair review. This makes me question - is any review ever fair?

If a reviewer loves a book, then sales happen. However, not everyone who follows the advice of the reviewer is going to love the book. In fact, they can feel deceived if they purchase a four star rated book and hate it. On the other hand, a reviewer can hate a book. The world may love it.

Please understand what a book review is and what it is not. It isn't a factual, rock solid assessment of a book. It isn't the be all and end all of the author's worth or talent. What it is, though, is simply one person's opinion of the storyline and the writing of a particular author.