It’s Friday, so it’s time for the Book Blogger Hop again, hosted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer. I’ve made my own image from a stock photo (credit: Anna Shvets) to avoid adding images created via generative AI to my blog. Feel free to use it too if you would like!
This week’s prompt is about online reviews:
How much do online reviews shape what you pick up next?
I mostly find new books in two ways: other bloggers talking about them, and random browsing in a bookshop.
When it comes to other bloggers talking about books, sometimes that’s just seeing people mention upcoming books they’re interested in, and sometimes it’s based on their reviews — a book I semi-recently picked up that I might not have if it weren’t for reviews was Jarod K. Anderson’s Strange Animals (which was reviewed by Mogsy and Tammy), for instance. If people pick out details that intrigue me, or if certain bloggers whose taste I know well are enthusiastic, that’s usually a good sign.
Sometimes when I’m trying to decide whether to get a book, I look at reviews on StoryGraph, and then I don’t just count on the reviews of people I know; I tend to seek out both very high and very low rated reviews, to get a sense of what people who feel passionately about it (one way or the other) are saying. It’s a pretty good way to quickly root out when a book is actually super racist or something, which helps.
That said, when it comes to books I find by randomly browsing in a bookshop, often I don’t look up anything at all, and just go based on the back cover and a random flip through the pages. I’ve found some real gems that way, and it’s fun sometimes to just throw aside caution and try something solely because it looked interesting and new. It’s also sometimes a terrible idea, of course, but I don’t mind taking that risk, especially since I know the fact that I do also post neutral and negative reviews sometimes helps people find books more to their taste than mine, or avoid books that they wouldn’t like either.
So the answer’s ultimately another “it depends”, I suppose!
I tend to go by the blurbs of books. If a book is popular on social media I’ll investigate the blurb to see if I want to read it.
I find that Goodreads rates books that I enjoy fairly low which is interesting.
I have delayed reading a book before because there were mixed reviews about it. I ended up loving it The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Have a great week!
Emily @ Budget Tales Book Blog
My post:
https://budgettalesblog.wordpress.com/2026/09/11/book-blogger-hop-how-much-do-online-reviews-shape-what-you-pick-up-next/
Emily @ Budget Tales Book Blog recently posted…Spelling September In Books – 25th Anniversary of 9/11
That’s why I tend to read the low rating (and high rating) reviews, rather than paying attention to numerical ratings. Some stuff is just a matter of preference, and some things I might find fun aren’t universally appreciated!
I love browsing a bookstore and choosing a book simply because something about it catches my attention—sometimes those turn out to be the best discoveries! I also agree that knowing a blogger has similar tastes makes their reviews especially helpful. Happy Reading!
Kat ~ Forever Book Lover recently posted…Book Blogger Hop: How Much Do Online Reviews Shape What You Read Next?
Exactly, it’s a really fun experience to just browse in a bookshop and choose something. Sometimes it doesn’t pay off… but often it does.
Nice! I find I’m the same more or less. If there’s a book I am on the fence about I will look for reviews on it to help my decision making. But on the flip side if there’s a book I want to read, I won’t read the review, be it good or bad. It’s funny, you mention the bookstore browsing as I remember that’s pretty much how I did it in my youth before blogging and social media became a thing. I would go to the store and browse the aisles until a title caught my eye or when the books slowly began facing out if a cover caught my eye. I’d read the back cover blurb and it would always be a treat when it sounded exciting enough and I could make my way to the register! I could be at the store for over an hour or only 10 minutes. You never knew!
Thanks for visiting my BBH!
That’s exactly why I love browsing in a bookshop — just letting things catch your eye and hoping serendipity will lead you to something fun.
To help me decide, when I’m on the fence about a book, I rely on StoryGraph reviews to help me decide. I’ve noticed that books can get downgraded when it fails to meet an expectation. Like when a literary reader finds themselves reading pulp fiction and visa-versa.
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Definitely. Sometimes the bad reviews are the thing that helps me decide I do want to read it, as well — you can tell a lot about a book from the reasons people don’t like it.