Book Review Policy
Need a Reader? ALWAYS Free
Looking for ARC Reader? Or just want to find a new reader? I would LOVE to support you!
I know how hard it can be and how daunting it can be trying to gain readers. I understand the barriers to entry when it comes to publishing, the pricing of Net Galley, etc.
My main form of reading ARCs is through Net Galley and BookSprout.co, as I am able to work with both indie publishers and the top 5, and it’s a wonderful experience. If you are interested in gaining me as a reader or want to pitch me, here is the page to do so. Book reviews are always free. I do not leave reviews on Amazon.
Paying for reviews is actually against FTC guidelines. Here is my transparent ARC Review and Reader policy as an ARC and Book Reader and Reviewer
The very blunt, short, and to the sweet policy. (I tried)
My promise to you is the following: Your ARC is safe with me, always. I have never and will never share ARCs. I cherish them each and each one is truly an immense privilege. If I end up loving your book organically, you will have a new biggest fan, seriously. Also, being a kind human genuinely goes a very long way. The author community is absolutely wonderful and I am extremely grateful for every connection and amazing human I’ve been able to meet. You know who you are!
Ok, I’m done being sappy now. Time to get to the point.
ARC and Book Reader and Reviewer
ARCs:
I heavily prefer physical books but am happy with ebooks as well so long as they are properly formatted. If it is not properly formatted, I will likely be unhappy, as Atticus exists. From my understanding, this is an accessible book formatting software.
My Rating Scale:
5 stars: I loved it immensely. (I will try to post on the following platforms: Bluesky, book blog, GoodReads). Please do not expect a post. I will do my best. Recently, way more of my reads have been 5 stars. I try to keep up with them but I typically have 17 books I read monthly.
4 stars: I loved it but have loved other books more. I will likely leave a rating on StoryGraph, GoodReads, and my blog. I might also post on my social media platforms. I likely will not include the rating and just say I loved it.
3 stars: I enjoyed the book enough to finish it. This may go on my StoryGraph, GoodReads, and blog.
2 stars: I usually do not push through, but sometimes I do. This will not be posted on social media. I will still post reviews on GoodReads but will also post them on Story Graph.
1 star: Either the book was genuinely offensive, had some major issues, should not have been published, or I genuinely hated it. Will potentially go on GoodReads.
I never ever tag authors in reviews under 5 stars and rarely remember to tag authors on social. I will typically follow you if I am interested in your book and post the book review for you to see. If you want to interact with it you can! No pressure, though.
Where I post:
As an ARC and Book Reader and Reviewer I post on Instagram, this blog, GoodReads. I can also post a review on Barnes and Noble and BookBub. I DO NOT POST ON AMAZON, this is because Amazon has been flagging reviews and I am dependent on Kindle Unlimited. I do not post every ARC I read. For example, there might be a book I am hesitant to recommend to my own audience. Please know my rating scale above is a rule of thumb and I am only human.
How long it typically takes me to read and review: In the past, it has taken me only a few days, but with recent events, it is taking me longer to get through reviews. I currently have 8 ARCs I need to get through. If you pitch me please give me a few days to get back to you as I may be having a flare up or I may be ill.
I do not charge for ARC reviews ever. See FTC Guidelines here
BEFORE YOU PITCH ME:
If you pitch me an ARC, please be nice. Do not use Chat GPT to write your pitch. Also, you can just email me like a friend. I come from a journalism background and am neurodivergent, so memes, bullet points, and casual friendliness work best for me with email tones. Yes I am a Zillenial lol.
I am not currently interested in books with the following themes:
-Alcoholism
-Car accidents
-Monster erotica
-MM romances (not my preference)
-Family trauma, violence, domestic abuse
-Nonfiction books on diets
-Nonfiction books on mental health
-Books related to AI or business
-Hockey romances
-Vampire romances
-Memoirs related to mental health or illness struggles
Things that cause me to DNF books:
Racism, homophobia, bad formatting, telling instead of showing, overwriting, lack of plot, lack of character development, editing issues. If I see the word “fa**ot” I will likely DNF the book, even if it’s a queer book. That word is extremely triggering for me.
Books I am looking for:
- Queer space opera
- Sci fi with feminism themes
- Diverse romance books
- Diverse dark romance (no themes of alcoholism, car accidents, inc*st etc, I am a whimp thank you, see my dark romance category on my blog for the books I have loved in that category)
- Cozy mysteries
- Thrillers under 250 pages
- Sapphic books:
- FF
- Nonbinary characters
- DO not prefer MM, it continues to be most of what I see and what is recommended to me. There has to be at least one person not a male.
- Extreme horror (not to be confused with splatterpunk, I want horror taken to the next level, violence and gore added, but the themes and conflict and characters need to be the main focus, not the grossness, i enjoy the reflection and sweaty palms aspects of horror)
I refuse to read anything with AI involved (please, stop using AI cover art and hire an artist).
Please look at the books I read before pitching me. Sending me an .epub file is best as I have a Kindle Paperwhite. I also read on my tablet.
Update: Since making this policy extremely blunt, I have had much better pitches come my way! I hate that I have to be harsh about it, but I don’t want to waste your time or mine! Thank you authors! You are AMAZING!!!!!
EMAIL ME HERE: almostallthecake@gmail.com
OR complete the form here
Please let me know if you are interested in a featured spot. My blog typically gets a minimum of 40 views monthly. It is typically around 80.
