• Meet Taylor
  • Book Reviews
    • Book Reviews by Title
    • Book Reviews by Author
  • Categories
    • Blogging
    • Books
    • Faith
    • Goal Setting
    • Lifestyle
  • Newsletter
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

Taylor Epperson

Good books + Good living (formerly Bookish Tay)

Categories: Books

My Book Review Process

As I plan to share more book reviews here on my blog, I wanted to give you a little inside scoop on my process and what you’ll be able to find in my reviews going forward.

To see a list of all of the books I’ve reviewed here on Bookish Tay, you can click here. If you are an author or want to suggest a book for me to review, check out my review policy!


public.jpeg

What I look for in a good book:

For me, to make a book good (and great!) it needs to have a few things. These are what I look for when going into a book, and things I’ll often talk about in my reviews.

Story

I’ll mention this in a second, but the books I read need to have a good story, cause who has time for boring books? I love it when books draw me in. Whether it’s because of the plot or the characters, I need a good story.

Life-like Characters

Characters are big for me, even over plot. I need good, real-life characters that have great growth. I want the things they experience to be believable (for the most part, I am okay with a stretch) and I love when characters aren’t just one dimensional.

Writing

The prose and how the book is written can also be a deal-breaker for me. I need to want to come back to the book, and writing plays a big part in that. If the writing is weird or clunky, I’ll definitely let you know. And likewise, if the writing draws me in and captures my attention, I’ll share that too.

Own Voices

Diversifying myself and reading more #OwnVoices has become increasingly important to me. While I may not always “relate” to the main character, I’ll share my views about the book but I will no longer share a star rating for these books. But rather, I’ll point out that they are #OwnVoices and continue to share books that include everyone.

Can I (or will I) re-read this?

I love reading books again and again. I can almost always tell in the first 100 pages of a book if it’s going to be one I’ll read again. In my reviews, I’m planning to start sharing if I plan to re-read books in the future or not.

Trigger Warnings and Content Warnings

As someone with anxiety and PTSD TW and CW are very helpful. For me, I know I can read books that include sexual assault and emotional abuse, but I need to be in the right frame of mind. I don’t like to read something that someone raved about, only to be sent into a PTSD episode. I’ll include content warnings and trigger warnings (as much as possible) in my reviews. Trigger warnings are not spoilers.

What I’ll share in my reviews

Along with the things I’ve listed above, in my book reviews, I try to share things that I liked and that worked well, as well as things that maybe didn’t go over as well.

I believe in sharing honest reviews, so I’ll never ‘bump’ up a rating or rave about a book that I didn’t enjoy, even if I received a copy from the author or publisher.

I also generally share star ratings, and this is my rating scale:

5 Stars – Absolutely loved, will read again, have to have my own copy
4 Stars – Truly enjoyed, would recommend, might read again
3 Stars – This is a solid novel, would most likely recommend
2 Stars – Didn’t do it for me, had some issues (pacing, plot, problematic)
1 Star – Did not like, would not recommend, generally has blaring issues, problematic, bad writing.

I also want to point out that even though I may rate a book low, you may love it. Reading is all subjective, and if a book sounds like something you’d enjoy, I’ll always recommend you pick it up! The beauty of reading is that we can all find different books that we love. I share reviews on my blog because I know that as a reader, I love reading reviews before I pick up a book, and because reviews are helpful in knowing more about the content of a book. And I have a few friends who, when they share books, I pick them up right away because we have similar taste.

Truly, I want to help you find great books to read, which is why I’ll be reviewing more books in the coming year!

What does your review process look like? What do you look for when reading?


Subscribe to get blog posts by email

    Share this:

    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest

    You may also like

    About Taylor

    Taylor is an aspiring author, stay at home mom, and avid reader. She loves reading books and talking about them. Because life is short and you should have good books to read.

    Comments

    1. Ashley Ziegler

      October 28, 2020 at 3:45 pm

      Okay! I loved this. Thank you for sharing!! I’m always interested in how others review books and their process and what goes into consideration.

      Reply
      • Taylor Epperson

        October 30, 2020 at 5:14 pm

        You’re welcome!! I’m always curious too and realized that I’d never shared, even though I often share book reviews!

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Photo of person (me) with one hand on my chin, my elbow on books

    Hi there! I'm Taylor! I'm an aspiring author and book lover. On my blog, you'll find great book recommendations and tips for following your dreams! I'm so glad you're here!

    About me

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    Follow

    Popular Posts

    13 Books to Read if You Enjoyed To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before

    Contemporary books lying on a wooden table

    11 Contemporary Books to Read When You Need a Distraction

    Follow @tayloreppersonwrites

    Have you ever met a bookstagram friend in real lif Have you ever met a bookstagram friend in real life?!  Tonight, me and my sis met up with Ashley (some of you knew her from her old account Ashley the reader) we’ve met up before, but this time we remembered to take a picture!  It can be so easy to get caught up in the numbers here on intstagram. To forget why you started. I joined bookstagram because I wanted to talk about books with people who also liked books. But the relationships I’ve made have been so special and life changing!  I’m grateful for each friend I’ve met here. If we talk often in DMs, know that if I ever talk to my husband about you I say “oh my friend _____ said this today” y’all are the real deal and so many of you have been my lifeline to adult connection as I became a mom and again as we have been living through the pandemic!  All this to say, send that DM to someone. Start the conversation. You never know if you’ve just met a new, life long friend! 💕
    “He is risen! He is risen! Tell it out with joyf “He is risen! He is risen!
Tell it out with joyful voice.
He has burst his three days’ prison;
Let the whole wide earth rejoice.
Death is conquered; man is free.
Christ has won the victory.  He is risen! He is risen!
He hath opened heaven’s gate.
We are free from sin’s dark prison,
Risen to a holier state.
And a brighter Easter beam
On our longing eyes shall stream.”
- He Is Risen hymn  Happy Easter friends 💕
    There’s been a lot going on behind the scenes re There’s been a lot going on behind the scenes recently 💕  More details about the next big thing happening with my writing on my blog.  Link in bio 🥰 @tayloreppersonwrites
    Another sweet romcom that just made me feel like t Another sweet romcom that just made me feel like this 🥰🥰🥰🥰  I read 5 books in March and 3 of them were by @authorsarahadams and I’m not even mad about that! If you want books that will make you smile, have sweet romances and swoon worthy men, you should pick up her books. And if you don’t do it now, don’t worry, because I’ll probably talk about her books till the end of time! (PS you can read them for free on Kindle Unlimited!)  What was your favorite read in March?
    What are the books that you always recommend? The What are the books that you always recommend? The ones that people on booksta often associate with you?  I love recommending books (who knew 😉) but there are a few that I’ll always recommend!  ✨ The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by VE Schwab
🎸 The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner
🧑‍🚀 The Gravity of Us by Phil Stamper
🏔 Happiness for Beginners by Katherine Center
🎭 Someday, Someday, Maybe by Lauren Graham
🥁 Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid  These are just 6 from my list 😂 I have so many books that I love and just want to shout about. What book do you love to shout about and wish that more people read?? Let me know in the comments!
    Who’s a new to you author that you discovered an Who’s a new to you author that you discovered and now want to read all of their books??  For me it’s @authorsarahadams 😍😍 I finished The Off Limits Rule earlier this week. This book had me laughing out loud and I honestly loved every second!  If you’re looking for something fun, quick, and light hearted, then this book is for you! It’s a closed door romance, so most of the steam happens off the page, which I didn’t mind.  This book made me super happy and the second book in this series comes out next week and I can’t wait to read it (and everything else Sarah’s written)  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - it was exactly what I needed right now and I’m so glad I picked it up! Have you read this one?  #tayeppreads

    Privacy Policy | Disclaimer | Terms & Conditions

    Copyright © 2021 · Taylor Epperson | Theme by Blog Pixie