Today’s discussion is going to be about how I structure my reviews.  Everyone has their own style of how they write reviews.  You may have noticed that there are no reviews on my blog, it’s just how I run my blog.  So now I will go into how I structure my reviews and give you two examples.  The way that I structure my reviews is that I always say what I didn’t like or had issues with first, and then I go onto what I did like and really enjoyed at the end of my review.  I really like ending my reviews on a more positive note than a negative note, I just think it’s better in my honest, personal opinion.

Here is an example of a review that I have written that shows me starting off the review with what I had issues with and ending on a more positive note.  The review is for Royce Rolls by Margaret Stohl:
First, I need to address the various issues with this book. There are homophobia and body shaming. One of the characters Bach is gay and he was also one of my favorite characters. Bach’s sister, Bentley often defends her brother against the homophobic producer of the show. The characters can only eat certain foods so they don’t gain any weight and look fat on camera/tv. I had so many issues with the producer of the show because of his homophobia and not wanting the family to gain weight. I am not a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, however knowing people that are members of the community I found the homophobia offensive. Bentley and Bach are both teenagers. This book is marketed towards young adults, and some of the things in this book don’t send a good message at all.

Bentley and Bach were my favorite characters, I saw them as the voices of reason. I got the impression that they wanted nothing to do with the show. They are both smart. Bentley’s storyline was that she was an out of control Lindsey Lohan type. She wanted more for herself than just to be a troubled reality tv starlet, she’s very smart and wants to go to college. Everyone in the family has one hour on Wednesdays where they can do whatever they want, and the focus is always on Bentley spending her one hour at the library. Bentley really cares for Bach. Bach has a gambling problem which is caused by the producers of the show giving him that story line, and Bentley is the only one to tell him that he has a gambling problem. The producers refer to Bach as “the cute gay brother.” I had issues with this because he is so much more than that. He like Bentley is very smart and is often very outspoken against ideas that his mother, Mercedes and his other sister, Porsche have. He’s also very supportive of his sister and they always have each other’s backs, especially at big parties and social events in which they want nothing to do with.

While this book is entertaining, I can’t look past its issues. I enjoyed the writing and the interesting format.

Here is an example of a review that is all positive and I had nothing negative to say.  The review is for The Wrath and the Dawn by Reneé Ahdieh:
There is nothing about this book that I didn’t like, I loved everything about it. I loved how there were stories within the story, they were a unique addition. I loved Shahrzad’s (Shazi’s) Aladdin retelling. Speaking of Shazi, I loved her and how if she was afraid she didn’t show it. I loved Khalid too, and in a way felt bad for him. I really loved how the relationship between Khalid and Shazi developed, it wasn’t rushed or insta-love, it took time. I loved how I could see that Shazi and Khalid really grew to love and care for each other. The romance was deep and beautiful and I really loved it. The side characters in this book are amazing too, I especially loved Jalal and how he was witty but in a charming way. At first, I was suspicious about Despina, but I really grew to like her, and I loved the friendship she and Shazi developed. One thing that I can’t get over is how beautiful this book is, and I can’t wait to see how the story ends.

So, these are the two ways that I write my reviews.  How do you write your reviews?