My Star Ratings Explained

Over the course of the past two years, I have dedicated a significant amount of time to the exploration of literature, both in terms of consuming various written works and articulating my reflections through the craft of writing book reviews. In the midst of this journey, I have come to a pivotal realization – that I have not yet taken the opportunity to expound upon the specific criteria and considerations that underpin the rating process employed in these literary evaluations. Therefore, in an effort to rectify this omission and offer transparency to my audience, I am compelled to embark upon a detailed exposition of the principles that inform my book ratings.

Books that receive a 1 Star rating are books that I thought have several issues:

• They are predictably dull and full of cliches
• The writing style is challenging to get through- no flow
• The characters have no depth
• The overall unenjoyable reading experience
• Poor narration – making it difficult to listen
• I would NOT recommend

Books that receive a 2 Star rating are books that I thought were just okay.

• I won’t reread 
• It wasn’t good, wasn’t bad 
• The writing style is hard to get through
• The characters weren’t anything special – they lacked depth
• It has an interesting premise but disappointing execution
• I probably wouldn’t recommend

Books that receive a 3 Star rating are books I thought were good.

• They have an exciting premise, but the execution could have been better
• The characters lack depth and complexity
• The plot is superficial
• The themes could have been handled better
• There is some momentum – slow in parts but overall good
• It is not a particularly memorable story
• I would probably recommend it with caveats

Books that receive a 4 Star rating are books that I like, and thought were very good.

• I enjoyed the book from start to finish
• The writing style flowed well – great momentum
• The characters were solid and had depth
• There are deeper themes -thought-provoking
• But it is missing the cherry on top – it didn’t blow my socks off entirely.

Books that receive a 5 Star rating are books that I absolutely LOVED and thought they were great.

• I can’t stop thinking about the book and the characters. I thought about them when I wasn’t reading them and continued to think about them afterward.
• The story filled me with emotion, making me think about things, laugh, cry, or both.
• There are memorable, multifaceted characters with distinct voices – I would be sad my time ended with them when the story was over.
• A great writing style that brings everything to life in multisensorial ways.
• It is a unique or exciting plot or story that’s well executed
• The ending is satisfying, yet it makes me want more time with the characters.
• The story transcends its genre.