Yes, I am an author. Yes, I am also a reader. When I read something that really impresses me, I like to write reviews. I have had my review blog for about a year now and I have to say that I have read such a variety books, even those that I would not think of reading on my own. My blog for book reviews writes for ALL genres, not just a few. I like variety in my reading, as I like variety when I write. (If you're intersted in my blog, you can access it here.
I've read over a series of social media shares that amazon is changing their review policy and not allowing authors to review other author's work. Well, i think that decision is wrong. It has yet to affect my reviews, but if it does, I will still review and post to the other sites. I post my reviews on several sites where the book is listed.
The whole concept of writing a review is simple and some make it complicated and some write it to be wrong. I do not understand the concept of giving a book a 1-star review because of the content or storyline of the book. I do not believe in 1-star reviews because unless the pages were blank, no story is worth just 1-star. Personally, i do not give less than 3 stars, and if i feel a book is not good for whatever reason, I don't rate it at all. I actually had a 4 star rating on one of my books ("Smashed") and the review was just the work "OK".
i know that everyone has his or her own way of writing reviews, but some are just wrong. It is sad that some feel it is necessary to give low ratings, especially to MM or FF erotica gay romances because of the subject of the book. Sometimes low ratings are given and the reviewer never read the book, just the blurb. How many times have you seen a review on Goodreads for a book that has yet to be released yet, and this reviewer was NOT given an ARC from the author?
This is my opinion on reviews, and as an author, I support other authors. Hope you feel the same way.