Anakalian Whims

Review Policy

Welcome to Anakalian Whims, thank you for stopping by.

I mostly read and review books that I already own and occasionally ones that I have borrowed. However, I am very much open to requests and I would be very happy to read and review books for authors and publishers, as I have done here and there in the past.

Genres I Enjoy: I do not lie when I say I will literally read anything.  My tastes are all over.  I have a tendency to like racier novels less, but it all depends on context, and therefore even romance is not a hard fast no.  I read a lot of fiction, but I also enjoy biographies, memoirs, history, and more.  I suggest you read through my blog and decide for yourself if your book belongs in it.  I have a daughter, so children’s books are always welcome also.

Format: Kindle ebook for all genres except children’s books are acceptable.  I prefer hard copies for children’s picture books.  Truth be told, I prefer the reading experience of physical copies in general, but I understand the financial issues regarding the ability for indie authors to send *every* reviewer a book by mail.  Physical copies definitely get priority attention, though.

What you can expect from my reviews:

• The title of the book and publishing information
• A picture of the cover
• A link to purchase from Amazon.com
• A few paragraphs or more where I state my opinion, mood while reading, etc.
• Often I reference other authors that people may be able to relate to when reading the book in question
• If you are interested, I’d be more than happy to do an author interview on a separate post
• Childrens books are read aloud to my daughter, her reaction is included in the review.

When accepting a review request, I will try to read and review it as soon as possible. I can usually have a review posted within two or three weeks of receiving a copy.  I always give my honest opinion on each and every book I read, therefore a positive review is not guaranteed;  but if you have taken the effort to send me the book, I will take the effort to be kind in my critiques.  If the book is not to my taste, but I see its good merits for someone else to enjoy, I may bring in a guest blogger to review, so that my integrity is not questioned, but your book has been given a fighting chance!  Regardless of my tastes in the book, interviews and setting up a signing are still options.

I tend to share my reviews on Goodreads, Shelfari, and Amazon. I am open to sharing on Barnes & Noble, I just don’t frequent that site so I often fail to upload a review there unless asked to do so. Unless the site provides its own guidelines, this is my typical system when choosing a rating:

My ratings:
1 star – A blight upon the face of the earth.
2 stars – We had a failure to communicate.
3 stars – I liked it well enough but was feeling quite neutral or it just wasn’t splendid enough to be special…  read the review for specifics.
4 stars – Something special.
5 stars – How did I ever live without it?

This is merely for uploading reviews to other sites, I do not rate my books via a star system for my blog.

If you’d like me to review your book(s), feel free to contact me at andiklemm@rocketmail.com – I typically reply within 48 hours of receiving your message. I hope to speak to you soon.

Your Faithful Reader,

Anakalia