Reviews are the lifeblood of any author. Readers’ opinions of your book are what it’s all about; love it or hate it, it’s the reader’s opinion that counts. All authors want the reader to interpret the book as they intended. In other words, the storyline is understood, but usually, there is so much more that the author is trying to convey. You could argue that to convey an emotion, you first have to experience it. The same applies to the reader. This is where reviews inform writers. If the reader does not connect with the characters, they will not share whatever emotion or sensation the writer has tried to convey. This may well be the writer’s fault, but it might be that the reader is not open to that connection. Perhaps they instinctively dislike the character type or situation.
Reviews reflect this and many other human foibles. When “Parallel Lives” was first published, one reviewer said the book was nothing more than a detailed analysis of the characters’ lives. The book is precisely that – it describes how people continued with their lives despite the tragedies of the war. It is, therefore, safe to assume that this reader did not connect with the characters, so whatever they had to say was lost to them. This is not the outcome any author wants, but these are readers who are perhaps beyond the reach of that particular writer.
Some reviews are either malicious or just plain wrong. A good example is the reviewer who gave a one-star review because the word St Thomas’s was, in their opinion, spelt incorrectly! The Oxford English Dictionary cites 16 quotations from St Thomas’s Hospital papers confirming the spelling, so that kind of review can be dismissed as either misinformed or malicious.
Between the extremes of those readers the writer cannot reach, or wouldn’t want to reach, lie the constructive and informative reviews. A substantial minority of readers said that the character Lily in “None Stood Taller” was too imperious; she achieved too much. Those reviews reflect the disparity between those inspired by the character and those intimidated by her. Nevertheless, a sizable minority were very informative and helped to shape future novels. Some reviews say the World War Two books read like a history book, not a novel, while others say the novels lack historical content. These reviews are hard to reconcile, but they confirm the difficult path historical fiction has to negotiate.
Needless to say, the author wants to hear that the reader has connected with the message the author has tried to convey. It should never be underestimated how vital those supportive reviews are. We all welcome praise, but an excellent review does so much more for the author. A book like “Parallel Lives” has taken two years of painstaking research and soul-searching. The object is to convey more than a story; it is to share an experience. Without feedback from the reader, the author cannot progress. This author has thousands of reviews that say the reader laughed and cried with the characters; they could not put the book down because they were there, living in the moment. They say the history came alive. Readers should never underestimate the importance of constructive reviews. So, if you have read one of this author’s novels and haven’t placed a review on Amazon, then please do so. It will only take two minutes of your time to write a few words. A review is what water is to life – an author’s inspiration withers and dies without them.