amazon book review examples

How to Write a Good Book Review on Amazon

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Last Updated on June 5, 2024 by Sarah McCubbin

Write a book review on Amazon in just a few easy steps. For new and established authors, Amazon is the biggest seller and most common source of reviews. Reviews are a valuable resource for consumers both on and off Amazon as they help us know whether a product is right for our needs.

(Disclosure: If you make a purchase through links in this post, I may earn an affiliate commission. Thank you!)

Table of Contents

Why Are Book Reviews Important?

As a consumer, book reviews are important because they tell me whether a book actually provides what I am looking for. For this reason, book reviews should accurately reflect the reader’s opinion of a book as well as offer helpful insight as to why it was helpful (or not helpful) for their situation.

Sometimes books have something that is helpful to one audience but offensive to another audience. When you write a book review, you have the chance to include details that help consumers save time and money. Thank you for taking the time to write a good review!

Sample Book Review Template

I learned this first hand in 2021 when my brother and his friend wrote the book, REAL Experience: A Tactical Field Guide for Buying & Selling Homes. We were working down the “checklist” of promoting a new book and of course one of the items is asking people to write reviews for the book. This post came about as I was helping people who bought the book know how to write a review that was genuinely helpful. If you think this guide should have something else in it, please send me an email at [email protected] and let me know!

How to Review Books on Amazon

Whether a book is fiction or non-fiction does play some significance in what you share on Amazon.

5 Tips for Fiction Book Reviews on Amazon

Fiction reviews may include the following elements:.

• A brief summary of the story.
• An analysis of the characters, plot, and genre
• Description of the writing style of the author
• If the reviewer is familiar with the author’s other writing, they may offer helpful comparisons that will help potential buyers know if they would enjoy this book.
• A comparison to other books in the same genre to give the reader an understanding of whether they might enjoy this work as well

6 Tips for Non-Fiction Book Reviews

Non-fiction is a pretty broad category that may share some similarities with fiction especially if the work is a biography or other true account.

However, most non-fiction should be reviewed based on other elements. For example:

• What was the books purpose? (This is usually stated in the introduction or first chapter. It is also usually on the back cover or inside flap)
• Why did you buy or read the book? What were you hoping to learn?
• Did the book meet your expectations?
• What did you learn from the book?
• Who would you recommend read this?
• Did the book accomplish it’s purpose?

How to Give Stars on Amazon for book reviews?

In your book review on Amazon, you can rate your purchase as anything between 1 and 5 stars. Before you do a book review on Amazon, make sure you are actually rating the book and not things like the shipping time. You want your review to reflect the product. You can rate shipping times under seller profiles instead.

Additionally, be aware of your own biases when reading a book. If you strongly dislike science fiction…but you are for some reason reviewing a science fiction book, it would be unfair to give a low review based on your dislike of science fiction. Do not intentionally give low reviews on books that don’t line up with your personal preferences in the first place.

Here is a general guide to help do your book review on Amazon:

1 star: In book terms, this book was poorly written, not cohesive and does not meet its defined purpose in any way. Or, it could be that the book is a perhaps a bait and switch…the book’s purpose was not the focus of the book but more of a hook in order to push another agenda. 1 star is pretty rare. I did book reviews for years and as a reviewer, I can remember giving one star only 1 time. It was a very poorly written self-published book written by 3 nurses. Nothing about this book added up…so it was a 1 star book.

2 stars: The author of this book had a good idea but it was poorly executed. Maybe they have poor writing skills. Maybe the book needed an editor. Maybe the ideas didn’t flow…or they flat out contradicted each other. Additionally, if the book failed to meet its own purpose, this would also warrant a low rating.

3 stars: This book is neither great nor terrible. It is neutral. The author had some good ideas. Maybe the story was ok. But the book is incomplete and lacked important details that would lead to a satisfying ending. Perhaps the writing was average and it did not hold your attention well.

4 stars: This work was a very good book. You would recommend it to a friend with perhaps a single reservation…or two. Maybe you liked the whole book but you strongly disagreed with a position or two taken by the author. The book is well written, kept your attention, demonstrated a good though process or story line, but had one or two glaring things you just can’t forget.

5 stars: This is as good as it gets on Amazon. The author of this book clearly put in a lot of time and effort to make sure that the details lined up just perfectly. They must have had a team of editors double-checking for errors as well because this book flowed. You can recommend this book without reservation knowing that the next person will likely appreciate it as much as you.

You are of course welcome to review a book however you would like. Maybe there are factors important to you that are unique but other buyers might find helpful. Writing your reviews to help other buyers is the key!

Guidelines for a Book Review on Amazon (as well as for other products).

As it turns out, Amazon has some specific requirements for writing reviews. Before your review goes live, they do actually have someone check the reviews to make sure they meet the necessary criteria.

1. In order to leave a review on Amazon, you have to have an active account.

They define that as an account that has $50 spent on it on a credit card in the last 12 months. There is a limit of one review per product per account. This means that multiple individuals sharing an account CANNOT all post reviews to the same account. They would need to open a separate account…spend $50…and then be allowed to post a review. Fun right?

The good news is, there are other places you can post book reviews that don’t have any spending requirement. Goodreads is a popular place to leave reviews when one does not have an Amazon account.

2. Amazon wants Genuine Reviews

When you do a book review on Amazon, know that they want reviews that share both positive and negative opinions and are helpful to customers trying to decide whether a product is a good fit for them. They do not allow manipulative or misleading reviews.

Among other things, Amazon does not allow the following and will remove reviews that break their rules:

• Reviews that are a promotion
• Reviews by someone who has a financial interest in the product. (either directly or indirectly)
• Reviews that say they are written by someone closely affiliated (family, friend, co-worker) with the author or product owner. It is fine for these people to write the reviews…just not announce it in the actual review.
• Product Manufacturers
• Paid Reviews

Check here for a complete list of Amazon Rules .

3. Amazon Recognizes Verified Purchases

Have you ever looked through Amazon reviews after an unhappy purchase of a product that was clearly a dud? I know I have. I usually look at reviews before I buy, so it is very frustrating when something is clearly misadvertised. It is even worse when all the reviews are raving about a purchase I now realize is junk. Amazon wants to prevent buyers from having those frustrating purchases, so they identify some product reviews as “Amazon Verified Purchases.”

Can I Write a Review a Bookon Amazon without Purchasing?

Yes, as long as your Amazon has had $50 in purchases in the last year, you can review anything on Amazon without purchasing. However, these reviews will not be marked “Verified Purchase.”

While all reviews are valuable, buyers often look at Verified Purchase reviews with more confidence knowing that at actual person spent their own money to buy this. If they are happy with the purchase, then there is a higher chance that the next customer will be happy too. For this reason, when someone is launching a new book, they will often promote their book on Kindle for a very low price so that customers will “buy” the book and then submit a review on their new book.

The Most Important Key to Book Review on Amazon

If writing a book review seems overwhelming, know that there is really one important key. The key is to be honest in your review. If your motivation is to help others…you will be a success!

Need a Sample Review Template? I have one here!

Happy Reading!

Sarah McCubbin and her husband and 9 kids live in Ohio. She loves talking about all kinds of education topics and is passionate about helping families find the best education options in each season! Socially awkward growing up, she loves to help families teach life skills, social skills and leadership.

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• How Not To Commit Murder

How To Write Book Reviews On Amazon

Readers often ask me how to write book reviews on Amazon. It’s tough being a reader these days – that is, if you buy your books on Amazon. You can’t just read the book, enjoy it and go on to the next one. No, siree!

Not only have you got the author asking you (very nicely, of course) to post a review on Amazon for them, but you then have Amazon itself emailing you to ask, ‘What did you think of the book? Would you like to leave a review?’

I don’t always read a book as soon as I buy it. It often has to wait patiently in the queue while I finish the books ahead of it. Usually those I’ve borrowed from the library, as they get a little antsy if my books are overdue. So I often get a reminder email from Amazon about posting a review before I’ve even read the book.

I almost always post a review on Amazon on the books I’ve bought there. This is because

(a) I enjoy writing book reviews and

(b) as an author myself, I appreciate the importance for authors of getting as many reviews as possible.

If you don’t know why, this is it in a nutshell. The number of reviews affects your visibility on Amazon - the more reviews your novels get, the greater your visibility on Amazon, and potentially the higher your sales.

Amazon Review Guidelines

But I do appreciate that many readers either hate writing reviews, couldn’t be bothered, forget and a myriad other reasons. Research shows that only about 2% of book buyers leave a review, so I’m always very appreciative when a reader makes the effort to post a review. Amazon has made it even easier for reviewers now, in that it gives you the option of four multiple choice questions to complete:

• How would you describe the plot of this book?  Predictable/some twists/full of surprises
• Which of these words describes the mood?  Hopeful/dark/nostalgic/light-hearted/suspenseful/thoughtful
• How would you describe the pace?  Slow/steady/fast
• How would you describe the characters?  One dimensional/developed/complex

Then there’s a box below the questions for you to write a review in your own words, perhaps to expound on the questions you’ve answered, or bring up other aspects of the book. I don’t know what happens if you just answer the questions without writing anything in the review box. I did that a couple of days ago as an experiment for one of the books I’d bought and didn’t see my answers posted on Amazon.

So if you would like to write a review, but don’t know where to start here are my tips:

Write The Headline Last

When you start to write book reviews on Amazon, coming up with a title is often the hardest part.

That's why I leave it until I’ve written the full review and hope that I'll either have a flash of inspiration, or part of the review simply screams "title". You could also write a headline that summarises your review, such as:

Lots of   twists and turns with a surprise ending .

Entertaining story with lots of laughs .

I couldn’t go to sleep until I‘d finished this book .

Or you can make it a recommendation:

Fans of hot romance will love this book .

If you love crime with plenty of action, you'll enjoy this book.

As with any piece of writing, your headline will often determine whether people read your review or not. A well-written review will help other readers decide whether to buy the book.

Use The Amazon Multiple Choice Questions

You don’t necessarily have to answer them, but use them as springboards for your comments. If you can write a sentence or two each on plot, characters and style of writing, it would be more than adequate. It doesn’t have to be to the standard of the New York Times Book Review, just write conversationally as if describing the book to a friend.

To Hard To Write Book Reviews On Amazon?

If all the above still sounds like hard work then o ne sentence is perfectly fine. Two words even. Two recent reviews for my novel How Not To Commit Murder  were ‘ Good read ’ and  Very funny .’ I’m happy with that – I would rather have them than not, particularly as they were both 5 star ratings.

If you’re reviewing a non-fiction book, your review format will be different. You could mention:

• How thoroughly the book covers the subject matter
• If the style of writing was clear and easy to understand
• If it added to your knowledge/motivated you to take action

And a headline that sums up your opinion:

Helpful Resource for Nude Bungee Jumpers.

The Only Book on Bull Castration You’ll Ever Need.

One Question That Is Frequently Asked Is:

Should I post a review if I hated the book?

Authors have varying opinions on this. When requesting reviews, particularly from book bloggers, some authors will ask them not to make the review public if it’s negative, as negative reviews bring the average star rating down. Some book bloggers will comply with that request and some have it as part of their policy. Others warn that they will post the review regardless – that’s the risk the author takes when they request a review. And of course it’s completely up to the reader – the author can’t stop anyone from posting a bad review.

I’m of the opinion that any author who tries to put an embargo on negative reviews is being a bit of a diva. (Unless they're the victim of a campaign to discredit them by posting negative reviews, in which case Amazon will take action, once alerted). When you release a book into the Amazon wilderness, there will always be people who don’t like it for any number of reasons and you just have to learn to suck it up. Even Harry Potter has had one star reviews – every literary work in history has had its detractors.

How Not To Write Book Reviews On Amazon

But what I would recommend is that if you genuinely don’t like the book, don’t just launch into a diatribe about its awfulness:

This book is so bad I wouldn’t use it to line the kitty litter tray .

Give specific reasons:

The plot was full of holes/ The characters were clichéd/ The pace was too slow and I lost interest.

Or all of the above. That way, you’re giving other readers an indication of why they might/might not like the book.

It can also be useful feedback for the author. No-one can deny that negative reviews hurt (any author who does is lying) and if it’s just the occasional one, you read it and try to forget it. Unless it happens to be one of many, all saying the same thing. If you’re getting a ton of reviews saying that your plot drags or your characters are dull, you'd need to give serious consideration to the fact they could be right.

There’s one proviso to this:

Don’t read a book in a genre that you’re not a fan of and then post a review saying how much you hated it. You just end up showing your ignorance. As in:

The  Billionaire’s Marriage Tryst  is lame. There’s way too much emphasis on unrequited love and Arabella and Brandon end up in each other’s arms at the end - so predictable!

Or  Vampires on Mars  is a crap book. Such a weird concept, full of way out creatures and places, and things that couldn’t possibly happen in real life.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on reviews. Do you write reviews of books you’ve bought? Do other readers’ reviews influence your decision to buy a book? Chime in below.

I’ve never written a review before. I was asked by the author to write a review on three books she wrote .

That’s great. Hopefully you’ll be able to put these tips to good use in your reviews.

I read a lot! I try to leave reviews for each one. I applaud anyone who can put thoughts to paper and work getting something published. I refuse to give them less than 3 stars or I don’t review. I don’t usually say anything too much about the plot so as to not give anything away. I comment on how the book made me feel or generic info on the plot. If I have to regurgitate the entire plot, there won’t be any reviews.

Hi Renee The way you review books sounds perfect. Speaking from an author’s point of view, I always appreciate it when a reader takes the time to write a review for any of my books, even if it’s only a couple of lines.

I am knew with Amazon and had needed help for writing reviews, I found your article and that helped me a lot. I just wanted to thank you.

Hi Helene I’m glad you found it useful. 🙂

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