Today's Life

Do you trust customer reviews for online book shopping?

Hi,I did the following:
Question: Do you trust customer reviews for online book shopping?

There are different places that have reviews posted, such as Amazon. Maybe I’m a little too suspicious, but it seems like an authors friends would probably post favorable reviews.

The following is the answer:

Answer by boogie
No! I go from word of mouth or I check it out from the library first

Answer by valkyrieace99
For me, choosing a book is quite simple. All I have to do is read the title. If I like how it sounds in my head then I’d consider buying it. What irritates me are those book reviews written on the back of the book. Most books are sealed & I prefer not to bother opening them just to find out the story. I want to know what’s the book all about, NOT what the critics had to say. It’s nice to reead about the reviews at Amazon & I find it a little helpful in deciding. HOWEVER, I absolutely don’t care if the book was included in the NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER LIST or Dan Brown commented on the book. MY opinion is still what matters. If I like it then I’ll buy it, if not, then I won’t. Simple as that.

Answer by skokiesam
I have a tendency not to trust the customer reviews, but I do read the reviews that come from reviewers, like Kirkus Reviews or Publishers Weekly. I often get a story summary from those types of reviews, but for the most part, I go to the bookstore and read the jacket flap, then the first page or two. If a book doesn’t grab me by then, I’m not going to be able to get into it and finish it.

Or you can sign up for goodreads.com. A whole bunch of friends of mine are on it, and I trust their opinions and they know what I like to read, so that helps.

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