A question came up for me this week: Should book bloggers do research before posting reviews?
What got me thinking about this topic was a comment I received on a book review I posted several weeks ago. I didn’t love the book, and explained why.
In the review, I stated that the book is apparently a stand-alone. A commenter informed me that they found my statement confusing, because the author had stated in interviews that this book was intended to have follow-ups involving some of the supporting characters. Additionally, I mentioned some elements of the setting and world-building that I found odd or muddled. The commenter again referred to author interviews, which explain why she chose to include some of the elements that I found out of place, and also mentioned that some of this was addressed in the author’s notes at the end of the book.
Note: Because I’d read the book via audiobook, I did not have access to the author’s notes — which is a pet peeve of mine when it comes to audiobooks, but that’s a topic for another day!
All this is fine. I appreciate hearing more information and getting other perspectives, and it was good to know that this author’s fans seem to enjoy the book more than I did.
What puzzles me, though, is the implication that I should have known these pieces of information prior to posting a review. This raises a few questions for me:
Do book bloggers have an obligation — to the author or to other readers — to track down answers to questions, Google facts about their books, check out author posts, etc before sharing a review, especially one that might not be 4- or 5-stars? Essentially, is it a reasonable expectation that bloggers do more than “just” read the book before posting a review?
In the case of this particular book, it was by an author I’d read before, but not recently. I thought it sounded interesting, so I grabbed the audiobook when it became available. This isn’t an author I follow on social media or elsewhere.
Before writing my review, I checked out the available information on Goodreads. There was no indication that this is part of a series. I looked at the book’s description on retail sites. Again, nothing to indicate that this is anything but a standalone. Without going out looking for more information, all I could go by was what was in front of me — and to me, that appeared to indicate that this book was a stand-alone.
Could I have learned more if I’d searched for interviews and profiles of the author, or checked out their social feeds? Sure. But should these additional steps be an obligation before writing a review? I think not.
My stance is that the reading experience should speak for itself. Sure, it’s fun to follow authors and dig deeper, especially when it comes to our favorites — to understand inspiration, to learn about what might be next, to get more details on the plot and characters, to get insight into intention, writing process, and more.
But also — that shouldn’t be necessary in order to share my feelings about a book. As a casual reviewer, I see my book reviews as expressions of my reactions and thoughts. I don’t pretend to be a journalist or a literary critic! I certainly don’t claim to have any expertise in regard to any particular book, beyond being an avid reader. In general, my reviews are simply my way of sharing my responses to books I’ve read. And with that approach, a deeper dive isn’t always needed.
What I like to focus on is how I felt while reading: Was I interested? Emotionally invested? Compelled to keep going? Or perhaps, confused or bored, or not blown away? Did the book itself make me want to know more about its subject or author? Or was I content to finish the book, whether I loved it or not, and then put it away?
Personally, I don’t feel obligated to look at media coverage or author reviews before posting a review. I share reviews to express my reactions to the books I read. Sometimes I’ll dig deeper or go looking for more information, especially if a book blows me away or sparks my interest in a new or unusual topic — but more often, I write my reviews based on the actual book content, and nothing else. This may not be everyone’s approach, but it works for me.
What do you think? Do you feel obligated to go beyond the book before writing a review? Why or why not?
Please share your thoughts!
Bookshelf Fantasies 
You read books for yourself and share your experience with each particular book. I don’t feel there’s ANY obligation for a reader or a reader who is also a blogger to deep dive into the hook, or topics around its or the author’s life story or their donut preferences. It’s all a matter of personal choice. So while that commenter has their own way of looking at books it doesn’t have to be yours. Or anyone else’s for that matter. Reading is a pleasure, not a chore.
You are not writing a college essay where you must annotate all references!
Wholeheartedly agree. Donut preferences, lol. And as for annotating references… key reason never to go back to school! Footnotes and citations were the bane of my existence.
The comment seems like it might have been written by AI, not a fellow reviewer??? I’ve had some critical comments that sound that way.
I think it’s unreasonable to ask more of reviewers! We’re doing our best with readily available information. I think publishers need to do their part in clearly identifying the book as part of a series.
In this case, I do think the comment was from a real reader and not AI. I got the sense this person was a big fan who was out looking for reviews of this particular book and took offense at my not having as much information as they seemed to think I should be sharing!
I agree, it’s up to the publishers/promoters to make sure all relevant info is easily available and clear, especially on major sites like Goodreads and others.
I agree with you, the reading experience should speak for itself. And who has time to do all that research for every book you read and write about? I certainly don’t. Reading for me is for fun and enjoyment and for rest and relaxation. And my reviews of books reflect my thoughts and own experience reading them. No research needed for that.
Exactly – I’m not writing a report or a research paper, just sharing my reactions! The reading experience should absolutely speak for itself.
We review what we read, if the information is confusing then the writer has not completed their job. Adding notes at the back of the book or in interviews is like an after thought.
This makes sense to me. Notes can be helpful, but we should be able to appreciate the book on its own, without having to check elsewhere.
Absolutely not! I already have a job and dont want another and I read for fun and escapism, not too do research!
LOL, how true! Reading isn’t my job — it’s for enjoyment!
I absolutely agree with you. If I’m really curious, I’ll do a bit more research, but none of it usually ends up in my reviews. A review should just be about a book so other readers can decide if they want to read it, too. Sometimes having too much extraneous information can be overwhelming, and I think most readers are casual readers who just want to be entertained, not know about the why behind every detail. For me, if an author’s choices don’t make sense within the story itself and I have to go to author’s notes or find other sources explaining it, it’s just not worth it for them to have even made those choices to begin with. Stories should stand on their own without the author having to explain outside of it.
You put it really well. Like you, if I’m really curious about something I’ve read, I’ll go looking for more information, author posts, etc, but I do expect my reading experiences to stand on their own.
Honestly, I think it depends on the type of reader you are, what you consider to be “research,” and, if you’re a bookish influencer, what type of reviews/information/content your audience expects from you. I tend to do a lot of research into the books I read and review, but that’s because I’m quite an “academic,” even in my free time, and I enjoy seeing if the background info on the author and their writing process, personal history, philosophical/political/sociological beliefs, etc. adds any new layer of nuance or understanding to my interpretation of their work. I don’t expect everyone to do this level of research, not even other bookish influencer. But for myself, I enjoy doing it, and given that my book blog’s audience knows that I’m quite academic, I think they kinda expect it from me by now.
That said, I do expect bookish influencers to at least know info such as the actual synopses of the books they’re talking about, as well as the correct age band category, the correct genre/subgenre, and, if applicable, trigger warnings. And I find a lot of bookish influencers (especially on booktok and booktube) don’t even do that much and end up sharing misinformation about the books they talk about, which leads the book to be marketed to the wrong type of readers who will end up dissatisfied when the book isn’t what they were told it was.
Thanks for sharing your perspective! I don’t ever think of myself as an influencer, and I’m not on booktok, booktube, etc — I just enjoy my little corner of the blogosphere, and seeing what other book bloggers are up to. Interesting to hear about your approach, which sounds like it makes a lot of sense for you and your reviews.
I agree that getting the basics correct should be an expectation! Although even things like target age demographics and genres can be open to debate — how a book is marketed can often not match up with readers’ experiences, I’ve found. I don’t share (or read) trigger warnings, but I know that some readers found those important, so yes, I’d expect someone sharing TWs to make sure they’re accurate.
I don’t think you would need to go above and beyond to write a review of a book you read. I know I don’t do that now. I do look to see if the book is part of a series, but I do the extent that you do, look on Goodreads, maybe a quick Google search, but I don’t go so deep to find out. Nor do I go through interviews to find out why an author added x, y or z to their story. If I’m really curious about something, I’ll look it up, otherwise I don’t think that should be an expectation. Like you, reading is all about how I felt during the reading process and how *I* liked the book.
Thanks, I appreciate hearing your thoughts! I don’t typically feel the need to go look up the reasons why an author included something to their story, unless it’s more on the sci-fi/technical side — like, could this strange/weird thing actually exist? But truly, what I care about is how I experience a book.
I completely agree with you, and our reviews are very personal, which is what makes them so unique!
Yeah, no, I take the book at face value. If I’m confused if it’s going to be a standalone I’ll look at Goodreads and see if it’s listed as book one in a series, but I’m not going to scour the Internet and read five author interviews on the off-chance they mentioned once that they may or may not publish more books.
Probably one of the most annoying comments I got on the blog was one where I wrote a book was a standalone and someone came on and told me I was an idiot because it’s part of a series. Except it was NOT a series when I wrote the review. The publisher must have thought the book did decently enough to request a sequel a few years later, but that was news to me!
Oh, how funny (and annoying)! I guess they didn’t look at the date of your post? Or are they blaming you for not predicting the future? But really, all we can go by is what we see, and I rely on Goodreads for the basics for the most part.
I don’t think we need to be researching EVERYTHING about a book or an author before we write a review. What you did was, to my mind, just the right amount of research. And as Briana noted, sometimes a stand alone becomes the first in a series later. I’ve even heard of books intended to be the first in a series, which never panned out into more books. Your review, therefore, needs to be a snapshot in time when YOU read it and reviewed it. As for the audiobooks not having the authors’ notes… I didn’t know that (I’m not much of an audiobook reader), and that’s a bummer. I think they should change that, because you’re missing out on lots of stuff.
Yes, the audiobook issue is really irritating. Some do include the notes — but that seems to be the exception, not the rule. I get most of my audiobooks from the library, and if the e-edition is also available, I’ll try to borrow that as well so I can at least glance to see if there’s more content, but that doesn’t always work out in terms of availability. (I’ll probably be writing more about audiobook issues sometime soon…)
I would never even think about doing research for a review! I’m already investing a lot of time reading it and writing a review, I don’t have time for that. Unless I’m curious about something specific, and then I’ll google it because I want to know. I usually check authors’ pronouns first if there’s any question about that, but otherwise I don’t worry about people’s comments. So strange!
Thanks! Right, who has time??? My priority is the reading — like you, I’ll google something if it really sparks my interest, but otherwise, I just trust what’s in front of me.
I totally agree with you. I write reviews based on the book that I have read and the information that I have at the time which might be Goodreads, I certainly don’t do research unless I have seen a comment in another review which might spark my interest. If there is no mention in the book of any future books, then how are you supposed to know?
I might expect professional reviewers who write for newspapers and other publications to research more but as an amateur book blogger, I review what I read and no more.
Exactly. I review for fun, and because I love talking about books. Definitely not a journalist! And who has time to track down author interviews for every single book they read?
It would make it feel like homework😀
It’s our opinion not homework or a research paper. I’m not doing research, that’s for sure.
Well, me neither! It was just such a funny/unexpected response that I thought I should check myself again other approaches. Given how much book bloggers read, expecting us all to research each book we write about would be a huge ask!
Wow, I’m not doing a deep-dive on every single book that I read simply to satisfy my reader base! Like you, if I’m really blown away by a book I’ll dig a little deeper and check out the author’s information, etc. And yes, the book should be able to stand on it’s own, especially if later books focus on a different main character.
Thanks! Yes, we’re very much aligned. Who has time to do a deep-dive — especially considering how many books we all read?
You’re reviewing the book, not the book plus the author’s entire thought process an/or possible future plans for their writing!
Also, even if the author does mention additional information or explain writing decisions in interviews, or even in the author’s notes in the book itself (and that sucks that those aren’t in the audiobooks!), that doesn’t actually invalidate the fact that in reading the book itself, you found it confusing or muddled. Arguably, if the author is having to explain themselves elsewhere, that means they didn’t do a good enough job in writing the book in the first place…
Well, that’s a very good point! If I have to go find an explanation for something in the book from another source, then the book itself didn’t describe or explain it well enough to begin with!
I just check Goodreads. I have noticed a lot of times that a book on there could look like it’s not part of a series, when I know it is, and then I might go look at the author’s website for more info. But I don’t do research on the author or anything like that. And I also wouldn’t know if a series was connected to another series if it isn’t explicitly stated somewhere obvious. Doing reviews and the blog takes up enough time as it is, I don’t have the time or inclination to do deep dives into everything.
Makes total sense. We have to be able to rely on what we see and the information that’s readily available. It’s not realistic to think we might be able to do extensive research on every book we read!
I’ve personally only done that on my own and have maybe referenced it a couple of times in a review bc its something interesting in relation to the book. however, i’d say if something has harmful or inaccurate representation that’s hurtful (specifically if they’ve been made aware*) it would be nice to see the influencer mention that in their review or atleast highlight another reader’s thoughts that speaks to the representation – that’s a topic of research i wish was prioritized so readers can be more thoughtful on rep in books but i know not everyone knows what to look for, but that’s something i think about. great discussion!
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Yep, I totally agree with you here: It’s not required to do extra research in informal spaces like this. It would be a little different if you were writing reviews for a magazine or other professional reasons. Plus, not everyone reads the author notes even when they’re reading a physical copy. I group such expectations with those that say folks shouldn’t post negative reviews of books, which is different but I put them together because I think both arise from the fact that book bloggers and vloggers are often seen as part of the marketing of a book and certain sorts of expectations (like those two) arise from that. But I see blogs and vlogs as places to share opinion and engage in conversation about books, and usually readers wouldn’t go the extra mile to figure out why an author did what they did. The book stands alone.
Thank you! Interesting point about how bloggers and vloggers are seen as part of the marketing for a book. I’ve seen that mentioned before, and while I get that the publisher provides ARCs in expectation of positive reviews, I think it’s really different than so-called influencers being sponsored to promote a brand. Most book bloggers I know are in it for the love of books, not for status or sponsorships. Anyway, yes, books stand alone, and casual blogs are very different than writing professionally for publication!
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It’s really not practical for people to read several author interviews before reviewing a book. And, frankly, they shouldn’t need to–because that is not how people read. The average person reads a book and responds to what they have in their hand. If an author interview is needed to clarify something in the text, that is arguably a flaw with the book itself, which should be able to be read and understood on its own.
And, actually, even the criticism about how it’s not really a standalone sounds a bit suspect. If the author vaguely mentioned wanting to write more books in the future, the book is, for all intents and purposes at this moment in time, a standalone. That is, the author presumably wrote it as being able to stand alone because there is no guarantee of future books. The story, I assume, wrapped up. Those future books might never happen or they might end up being companion books. The story still…stands alone. It’s not like the publisher bought a six-book series upfront. It’s different!
Thank you — all great points! And I agree, books should stand on their own, and we shouldn’t have to go searching for more info every time we finish a book (unless we want to!). This is why the comments I originally got really confused me… why would that even be an expectation? And very good point about the stand-alone issue as well. If it’s not officially contracted as a series… then it’s a stand-alone!
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how you read the book is how most readers would read it, so I’d say your depiction of it with minimal “research” is the true experience that most readers would get. sure, it’s interesting to find out more if you’re passionate about it, but you don’t have an obligation to research deeply unless the review is published in an authoritative platform. I would expect fact-checking if the review was on a newspaper. For a personal blog, it doesn’t make sense.
Great points, thank you! I think your comment about finding out more if you’re passionate about it is spot on — I don’t think a “typical” reader who casually picks up a book for enjoyment should need to do more than read what’s in front of them, unless they feel the drive to do so.
That’s so interesting someone thinks you should do way more research beyond the basics before reviewing — I think if that’s what you’re interested in or if it’s part of your blog brand, then sure, maybe you should do more. If you’re writing a long form essay, then research would make sense. But for a personal blog and for the casual reader? I don’t think so. The casual reader most likely isn’t looking for additional information either outside of the basics and if it’s not there on GR or Storygraph, then they’re more than likely not going to search for more beyond that. It’s also something I feel they’d probably ask a librarian more than a book blogger? I’d expect someone in the industry who’s writing about the industry to do that research more so.
Sometimes I’ll personally do additional research if it’s something I need to dig up in reference/have come across it and want to double check or I feel it’s important. For the most part, though, I agree that reviews are going to be based on the reading experience. We shouldn’t be expected to do more than that considering we’re not doing this professionally.
Thanks for your thoughts! I think we’re aligned on this — I wouldn’t expect a casual blogger to do more than read a book before posting a review. But yes, if I felt more of an interest in a topic or wanted to know more myself, I might dig deeper.
If it’s not in the book, it doesn’t really matter to my review, in my opinion. Just because they said something in an an interview doesn’t make it affect my thoughts on the book itself I read
Makes sense, thank you!