How I Rate Books
The main goal of this site is to inform you, the reader, about media that I think is worth your time. While most reviews come with a short description of what I did and didn't
like, I also make sure to include a star rating to help you quickly
understand how I felt about a book.
My rating is a grade between 4 and 1
stars. A high score indicates a strong recommendation, the middle two are
"yes but" and "no but" respectively, and the lowest is reserved for
books I absolutely couldn't stand.
Rating books with this method can be tricky. There are plenty of
popular books that don't do it for me, or widely panned books
that I love. It's important to remember that my rating is not a
measure of something's objective goodness; it's whether I thought it was
worthwhile and think people with similar tastes will as well.
It's also worth noting that my ratings skew high: I get to choose what I read and I tend to choose things I think I'll enjoy. Keep that in mind when you
see how many things earn a 4. It's a very different grade than a perfect 10
on something like IGN's rating system.
With that out of the way, let's go through what exactly each score means and
provide some concrete examples!
: Yes!
A 4 star rating is both my highest and my most common score. Books in this bracket can be recommended emphatically. They may not be perfect, but I never felt bored while reading them. A 4 usually means that a book excelled in multiple areas and the result is more than the sum of its parts. Another way to earn a 4 is to succeed so highly in a specific area (such as characters or prose) that any concerns are dropped by the wayside; they didn't stop my enjoyment.
If you want to see the absolute cream of the book
crop, you can check my list of books that were been the best
thing I
read that year
Here are some recent books that earned 4 stars:
Does a good job smoothing out the detail while focusing on the big picture. I love the media / "the revolution will be televised" angle and the intergalactic worldbuilding.
Growing the ensemble is good and some of the more complex plot threads are coming to fruition. Carl is also less terrible at this point, which is probably for the best. He can't save everyone, but he does really seem like he cares.
The audiobook narration continues to be excellent. Jeff Hays is an all-timer.
Does a good job smoothing out the detail while focusing on the big picture. I love the media / "the revolution will be televised" angle and the intergalactic worldbuilding.
Growing the ensemble is good and some of the more complex plot threads are coming to fruition. Carl is also less terrible at this point, which is probably for the best. He can't save everyone, but he does really seem like he cares.
The audiobook narration continues to be excellent. Jeff Hays is an all-timer.
Another excellent fantasy mystery full of political intrigue and layers of deception. Had me guessing at every step. There's a lot to keep track of, but it builds its case well. The worldbuilding is excellent, per all of the author's works. Its protagonists play off each other swimmingly. Excited for more!
Another excellent fantasy mystery full of political intrigue and layers of deception. Had me guessing at every step. There's a lot to keep track of, but it builds its case well. The worldbuilding is excellent, per all of the author's works. Its protagonists play off each other swimmingly. Excited for more!
Fairly tight story. Doesn't escape being someone's D&D retelling and we probably hear too many stat numbers, but this sequel does an admirable job expanding the world and characters. Shows a slightly more introspective Carl, too which is a promising sign.
Fairly tight story. Doesn't escape being someone's D&D retelling and we probably hear too many stat numbers, but this sequel does an admirable job expanding the world and characters. Shows a slightly more introspective Carl, too which is a promising sign.
: Yes, but...
Most books that earn a 3 could have been a 4, but something held them back. Maybe it was a plot that didn't quite line up, poor pacing, or bad prose. Whatever it was I was annoyed enough about its shortcomings that I have to qualify this recommendation with a "I liked it, but wish they hadn't done XYZ".
Here are some recent books that earned 3 stars:
Fun premise that's only a little spoiled by its annoying characters. But if you lean into the romcom aspect, it's a decent time.
Fun premise that's only a little spoiled by its annoying characters. But if you lean into the romcom aspect, it's a decent time.
Starts a little slow, but it really picks up as it continues. I especially like the worldbuilding and intrigue around the corporations running the game. It feels like there's a ton going on outside our POV which I'm optimistic we'll discover as time goes on. Carl doesn't come across as especially likable, but the cat and most of the rest of the cast are fun and I ultimately did really want to know what happens next.
May not be for you if you don't like reading RPG item descriptions at length. I like what they're going for, but item & stat discussion can go a little long / dry. There's some good humor in it all, but there's also some cruelty that doesn't feel reckoned with. We'll see if that smooths out in future books.
The audiobook narration is great, but the "new achievement" dialogue gets pretty grating (even when they're funny).
Starts a little slow, but it really picks up as it continues. I especially like the worldbuilding and intrigue around the corporations running the game. It feels like there's a ton going on outside our POV which I'm optimistic we'll discover as time goes on. Carl doesn't come across as especially likable, but the cat and most of the rest of the cast are fun and I ultimately did really want to know what happens next.
May not be for you if you don't like reading RPG item descriptions at length. I like what they're going for, but item & stat discussion can go a little long / dry. There's some good humor in it all, but there's also some cruelty that doesn't feel reckoned with. We'll see if that smooths out in future books.
The audiobook narration is great, but the "new achievement" dialogue gets pretty grating (even when they're funny).
Like most romcoms, it starts stronger than it finishes. It's a funny concept, but they spend a lot of time on familial drama which is good for character building but a drag for the pacing. It's a cute concept overall though. It's a good read for the (romance-loving) birder in your life.
Like most romcoms, it starts stronger than it finishes. It's a funny concept, but they spend a lot of time on familial drama which is good for character building but a drag for the pacing. It's a cute concept overall though. It's a good read for the (romance-loving) birder in your life.
: No, but...
Welcome to the bottom half! Books that earn a 2 have more hits than misses, but there are redeeming qualities. It can also mean I would have scored it higher, but I was so put off by something (such as bad writing) that I couldn't rate it higher. If you're a fan of this genre you might still find the book worthwhile, but I'd start elsewhere.
Here are some recent books that earned 2 stars:
A great John Huges parody from someone who has clearly immersed themselves in it. Unfortunately, the actual story feels like it's silly for silly's sake and isn't compelling in and of itself. The audiobook was produced well, but I found myself bored of the way they wrote jokes and found a plot to tie them to (rather than the other way around).
A great John Huges parody from someone who has clearly immersed themselves in it. Unfortunately, the actual story feels like it's silly for silly's sake and isn't compelling in and of itself. The audiobook was produced well, but I found myself bored of the way they wrote jokes and found a plot to tie them to (rather than the other way around).
Really superb journalism. Does a good job capturing the allure of the open road, as well as the drawbacks. But, as a read? It's... hard to follow and sort of boring. Too many people and places mentioned. Only a very thin narritive throughline. I'm super curious to see how they turned this into a movie.
Really superb journalism. Does a good job capturing the allure of the open road, as well as the drawbacks. But, as a read? It's... hard to follow and sort of boring. Too many people and places mentioned. Only a very thin narritive throughline. I'm super curious to see how they turned this into a movie.
I liked it less than I thought I would. It was bleak and matter of fact, but didn't quite sell me on the descent into the mob. It was an interesting enough take on the social structures that emerge in the lack of anything else, but one clearly written by an old white guy. I don't think he earned the brutality that played out. I did like the absurdity of some of it, but overall it didn't land for me.
I liked it less than I thought I would. It was bleak and matter of fact, but didn't quite sell me on the descent into the mob. It was an interesting enough take on the social structures that emerge in the lack of anything else, but one clearly written by an old white guy. I don't think he earned the brutality that played out. I did like the absurdity of some of it, but overall it didn't land for me.
: No!
The lowly 1 is my rarest rating. Because I mostly read things I (hope to) enjoy, for something to earn a 1 it's got to really fail across multiple areas. As long as a book has reasonable plot, cast, or characters, I'll usually find enough to like about it that it earns a 2. Earning a 1 means I feel bad for having spent time on this book at all.
Here are some recent books that earned 1 stars:
Found the writing style dense and hard to follow. Bits of dialogue felt very witty, but most of the narrative felt disjoint and scattered. There wasn't a satisfying narrative conclusion. At least it was short.
Found the writing style dense and hard to follow. Bits of dialogue felt very witty, but most of the narrative felt disjoint and scattered. There wasn't a satisfying narrative conclusion. At least it was short.
I really wanted to like this. It seemed like Cloud Atlas, which I was into. This had a worse frame and less likable characters, so I never made it through it. Just couldn't bring myself to.
I really wanted to like this. It seemed like Cloud Atlas, which I was into. This had a worse frame and less likable characters, so I never made it through it. Just couldn't bring myself to.
A fiction book that reads like boring nonfiction. It describes the woes of an IT manager working on a project that's behind schedule. Dialogue was forced, characters like stereotypes from an office manual. I didn't even finish it.
A fiction book that reads like boring nonfiction. It describes the woes of an IT manager working on a project that's behind schedule. Dialogue was forced, characters like stereotypes from an office manual. I didn't even finish it.