Rating books is such a subjective activity with so many nuances and stipulations attached. For example, the same book read by three different people can not only receive three different ratings but their points can be the exact same for how they felt about the book overall and no review or rating is wrong for it. Someone’s three-star is someone else’s five-star and vice versa. What I want to do with this week’s discussion post is simply explain my rating system so that, should I use it in the future, you will have a better understanding of how I feel about the books I’ve read.

When I write reviews, I find myself wanting to omit the star rating because I don’t want people to misunderstand my thoughts in favour of an arbitrary – and often skewed – rating system. Stars are a quick and easy way to rate a book, but if people don’t know how you rate something then there is a strong likelihood a personal bias or their personal rating system will overshadow your own. So, let me make it nice and easy for you guys to know what I mea with any star ratings I do.

There is a caveat (isn’t there always with these kinds of things?) where different genres have different expectations, therefore changing my ratings system. It’s frustrating, isn’t it, when there are layers upon layers of extra detail and information to unpack in what should be a fun easy accessory to a review. My taste in historical fiction and murder mysteries, and thrillers to an extent, has been refining itself for a while and so the framework for an excellent novel has really been honed in on. What I want out of these books is more than I want from any Fantasy and any Sci-Fi that I pick up. Similarly, the kinds of Fantasy I want to read tend to have many layers to them, political intrigue and world history and complicated relationships between characters. I’ll do my best to highlight the genre expectations with each rating but I may get a little lost in the sauce, so to speak.

My Rating System

Let’s start of with a simple statement. I will not have any one-star or two-star reviews because I will not force myself to read a book I cannot get through. I see no reason to slog through a red simply to give it a low rating. My ratings start at three-stars and go up in halves.

3/5

This is an alright book. I didn’t love it and I probably won’t be recommending simply because it’s either not my kind of book. Maybe there are characters that I don’t relate to or maybe the plot wasn’t hooking me in. These books aren’t bad but for my preferences they aren’t what I would like to read.

3.5/5

These books are in the same boat as above, but these ones don’t have as many critiques. Maybe there is just one part of the story that stops me from enjoying it or maybe there are elements to the plot or narrative style that keep me from getting immersed in the characters and the tension building up. Again, these aren’t bad books they just aren’t books for me.

4/5

This is a good book. Maybe an expected good read in some genres (HF, Murder Mysteries, Fantasy) but if all the conventions are there it’s already doing something right. The pacing and tension are moving hand-in-hand, the characters aren’t obviously underdeveloped or one-dimensional, the setting is well established and the plot is moving smoothly. Perhaps it’s a little flat in some aspects but overall it is a decent read.

4.5/5

This is a great book with so many amazing parts to it. Elements of the story are working really well together, there are some great contrasts and/or themes coming through and the characters are likeable (not necessarily all good characters, it’s moreso the characters are written really well). There’s just something that holds it back from being a perfect read – nothing major, but maybe some minor aspects of the story crafting, or maybe it’s in the phrases and word choices.

5/5

My perfect read. The story balances itself out really nicely, the characters are all well developed and work well together (conflicting with each other nicely also shows they work well together). The setting is strong and the themes within the story link to the setting or the aura of the work, through it’s narrative voice or style. The themes are also woven into the heart of the story and really bring out characters and personalities and the same can be said for the characters bringing to life the themes of the novel. The imagery is sharp and emotive and the book left me feeling incredibly moved and emotional (whether that be happy emotions or sad emotions).

What about you? Do we share similarities in our rating systems or do you have different takes on certain ratings? Do you include one-star and two=star ratings? Let me know in the comments!