Do news reviews really help us?

[jack everett]

The Sun newspaper-largest circulation in UK (4,000,000 +) has just reviewed 1/1: Jihad-Britain and given it 4 Stars the highest scoring review this week. Does anyone have first hand experience that it really helps sales?

[I. J. Parker]

PW is a trade publication. It is read by people in the trade (libraries and book stores, etc.) As a rule, the publisher submits ARCs.

[jack everett]

Then I shall have to have words with my publisher I.J. thanks for the info.

[I. J. Parker]

You're welcome.  They probably know.  If you have a publicist, you can ask.  The other three are Kirkus, Library Journal, and Booklist.  Reviews there are well worth having.

[jack everett]

Don't know how hard it will be to get in with any of them but it might be worth a try.

[Mary McFarland]

Seconding what I.J. said, Jack, but reminding you to find novels similar to yours and see what they've written.  They're tough trade reviewers, and thank goodness for their professionalism, but sometimes, a permanent PW or Kirkus review can smash a budding career. 

 

I.J., others, any thoughts on this?

[jack everett]

Softly, softly catchee monkee then?

[I. J. Parker]

Kirkus can be snarky, the others are fairly gentle. I doubt PW would ever smash a career.

[jack everett]

Have you tried my e-mail again so that I can let you have that book?

[I. J. Parker]

It strikes me belatedly that you are UK-published, and the trade pubs are U.S.  This may not matter, if your publisher has U.S. distribution.

[jack everett]

I don't think they do but I am not sure. I think they are primarily European based.

[Stephen Brayton]

For me being a first time published author, I enjoy seeing the reviews becaue I know people are liking the book. I take the reviews, spread them around over my website and use them when advertising the book on FB and Twitter. I think it probably helps indirectly if people can red a review, especially if the reviews is written intelligently with some insight rather than just a 'Yeah I like the book' sort of blurb.

[jack everett]

The reviewer's actual words, other than describing what the novel was about, were only ' A chilling read',

but that added to the fact that it was the largest national daily in the UK which only reviews 3 or 4 books a week made it for me. And giving it 4* was a bonus.