For this rating explanation I will mostly explain things in the context of books, since that is easily 90% of the media that I consume and review. I occasionally review video games, anime, movies, and shows. I will go over a few specifics about different media types, but the 1-5 star rating explanations are applicable across all forms of media.<\/p>\n
\u2665 My ratings are entirely subjective and my opinion only, and it is not a commentary on the quality of the work or the people that created it.<\/p>\n
\u2665 I recommend media, whether I liked it or not, on social media in cases where I think the person would enjoy it, or if it fits a specific request or prompt. It might be someone else’s new favorite.<\/p>\n
\u2665 I do not rate or review books, games, or other media that I DNF. I only review things that I have completed.<\/p>\n
\u2665 Half ratings mean that my feelings fell somewhere between two ratings. So a 4.5 star to me was really good, better than great, but just not quite there.<\/p>\n
\u2665 I don’t consider a low rating or negative review to be a bad thing. I actually like reading a variety of reviews, good and bad, to give me a full picture. Sometimes a bad review can sell me on something.<\/p>\n
\u2665 I hope that the bad reviews that I give out do not dissuade anyone from trying something out for themselves. Ratings are subjective, and that is the beauty of consuming art!<\/p>\n
\u2665 I’m a firm believer that I won’t know if an author is truly for me based on just one book. I typically try to read two or three before I decide whether or not I want to continue to read an author’s work.<\/p>\n
\u2665 I’ve given low ratings to authors I really love, and even if I occasionally read a miss, if I like the author’s overall body of work I will continue to support their work, generally.<\/p>\n
\u2665 According to BookSirens, I’m also apparently a hard ass reviewer. I don’t care how popular or unpopular a book is. I have given five stars to books that are widely hated, and one stars to books that are bestsellers. I just go with how I feel.<\/p>\n
\u2665 After reading and reviewing hundreds of books, I can say with certainty that I tend to have unpopular opinions a lot of the time. If my rating is high, proceed with caution. Or if my rating is low, don’t take it personally because I am very often in the minority.<\/p>\n
\u2665 When I review short story collections and anthologies, I write an overall review of the collection, and I rate and write commentary about each individual story. The average rating of all stories determines my rating of the collection. Because of this, short story collections will often not be a perfect 5 star, unless the book average was a 4.7 or something and I decide to round up.<\/p>\n
This is something that I loved in every way, wouldn’t change a thing, the media was either of very high literary quality or it probably impacted me on an emotional level, and I will likely think about it for a while. Would consider a reread, rewatch, or replay.<\/p>\n
I enjoyed my time and thought it was great, but maybe there was a thing or two missing for me to consider it a favorite, but glad I experienced it. Might consider a reread, rewatch, or replay.<\/p>\n
I had a good time, and I think it was solid. Has more aspects that I enjoyed compared to what I didn’t enjoy. Probably wouldn’t reread, rewatch, or replay, but I’m glad I experienced it once.<\/p>\n
This was something that I didn’t find as enjoyable, though there are still some qualities that I liked. I didn’t dislike it necessarily, but it didn’t check the right boxes for me. Books where I didn’t like the pacing, found significant grammatical errors, or issues with continuity or subject matter will be likely reasons. Likely would not reread, rewatch, or replay.<\/p>\n
I strongly disliked it. Anything that is a 1 or below is a piece of media that I did not enjoy and I found it either boring or offensive. Would not reread, rewatch, or replay.<\/p>\n
Note: Header art by Katie Fox.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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