When I started writing down my thoughts I realized that in trying to explain the story and MC – that he’s an asshole. lol The cons started to outweigh the pros when put on paper and it was harshing my reader love vibe.
My review then turned into a Monday Musing.
The book in question is Perfect Ten by L. PhilipsWho is Sam Raines's Perfect Ten?
It’s been two years since Sam broke up with the only other eligible gay guy in his high school, so to say he’s been going through a romantic drought is the understatement of the decade. But when Meg, his ex-Catholic-turned-Wiccan best friend, suggests performing a love spell, Sam is just desperate enough to try. He crafts a list of ten traits he wants in a boyfriend and burns it in a cemetery at midnight on Friday the 13th.
Enter three seemingly perfect guys, all in pursuit of Sam. There’s Gus, the suave French exchange student; Jamie, the sweet and shy artist; and Travis, the guitar-playing tattooed enigma. Even Sam’s ex-boyfriend Landon might want another chance.
But does a Perfect Ten even exist? Find out in this delectable coming-of-age romcom with just a touch of magic. ~ Goodreads
Musings...
I stand by my love for the book. While reading, I was absorbed in Sam’s dating drama, which guy he would choose and watching the changing dynamics of his friendships, especially with his ex, Landon. I was unsure of how it would end (or how I even wanted it to end) and that’s pretty rare for me these days.
But…when I went to write my review the adorable romcom vibe I felt while reading was lost as I started to find issues with the guys Sam was dating and how Sam does some really uncool things while he’s trying to figure things out.
But…I felt it was one of the more realistic YA’s about dating that I’ve read in a really looong time and that Sam is a much more honest portrayal of a teen boy being torn between hormones and true love.
So, I’m just not going to bother nitpicking it to write a full review and just say I loved it and you might not. lol
Which leads me to this question for you…
Do you ever read a book that you love so much but on closer inspection it might be found lacking so you choose not to review it so it doesn’t ruin the experience?
Reviewing books I didn’t enjoy or even picking apart books I loved started ruining reading (& blogging) for me. Instead of getting absorbed in the story – I found myself critiquing and making note of things I wanted to mention later in a review.
So now I only review about 20-30% of what I read these days and that has gone a long way in helping me avoid another reading slump.
Oh that's happened to me before and then I start going "What the heck was I thinking?" However I always review books given to me by authors or publishers good or bad. I actually recently had that happen to me and for a while I didn't know what to say in my review.
ReplyDeleteI review all the books I agree to and have no problem writing a negative review - this one was for fun though but I had loved it so much I wanted to write a review but then couldn't help but point out the flaws and it was starting to ruin the book for me lol
DeleteOh yes, I've had that happen a few times. I don't review all the books I read.
ReplyDeleteI think if you blog and review books you need to set aside books just for fun or you burn out faster.
DeleteYeah, sometimes it's just better to enjoy something without trying to pick it apart. Appreciate that you had an enjoyable experience. :) In saying that, I've seen so many mixed reviews about this book that I'm reluctant to pick it up. Just too many other great books to read that I don't have the time or patience to settle on things I *might* dislike. Thanks for the post! Oh, and I definitely do NOT review all the books that I read, though I will say that it's mostly for the books that BROKE MY HEART and I just can't manage to bring the words out.
ReplyDeleteI agree with points made in all the reviews that I've seen - both good and bad - Sam (& his friends) is not going to be for everyone but I thought it was honest.
DeleteI really enjoyed this one and thought Sam was realistic in his actions - even if they were shitty at times. I do mini reviews when I don't want to pick apart a book so I get that.
ReplyDeleteI agree! When I started writing the review though I started pointing out Sam
Deletes flaws - because I like readers to know both sides - and it was ruining the book for me lol
But I think it was accurate for Sam and teens in general.
I agree , I do not like picking things apart and I am having a tough time lately with books that I though I would love but turned out not to.
ReplyDeleteIt'a hard to turn off the reviewer inside and not nitpick so when I had fun with this book anyway, despite it's flaws, I didn't want to really tap into that and ruin the book for me.
DeleteThis happens to me too a countless of times before, but lately, not. Hopefully not ever, pheeww.
ReplyDeleteI usually just avoid talking about the book but I was curious whether this happens to other bloggers.
Deletelol I have definitely had this happen to me multiple times. Glad that you ended up enjoying it overall tho! I agree with what Grace said in an earlier comment, I do mini reviews when I don't want to completely pick apart a book sometimes.... and also some times when I don't have strong feelings about a book either way. lol! This is one that I've been wanting to read for a while now.
ReplyDeleteI do mini's for the same reason too. It was weird with this book though because I LOVED it and wanted to squee about it but knew there are things in it that would bother others and felt like I had to point them out. But then it would ruin the book for ME lol
DeleteGood call on just explaining your feelings without a lot of detail about what brought it on. It really depends with me. I don't do blog reviews on every book I read, but I usually type something up about it at GoodReads sometimes just so I'll remember my impressions. I've done reviews where I thought it was important to detail out issues even if I overall enjoyed the book and other times where I didn't. I have had that fear too that by going after the details I loves my enjoyment of a story.
ReplyDeleteGreat discussion, Karen!
I almost always write a goodreads review but that's more for me.
DeleteI knew this book had issues that would bother some readers and if I just OMG I loved it (which I did) without mentioning them they would have read it and gone wtf was wrong with her for not mentioning this? lol
Yeah I don't always review books but if I look to closely at the book I won't like it as much. There are some books I just want to enjoy reading.
ReplyDeleteWell you can do that full time now! lol
DeleteI review pretty much everything I read but there is the occasional one like you mentioned!
ReplyDeleteI at least review on Goodreads and I do mini reviews for meh books but I loved this one a lot but it also had issues and to break it down would have ruined it for me.
DeleteNot really, but I do get that feeling
ReplyDeleteI find that I cannot NOT review a book - take notes and such. It's just so much a part of my reading experience. However, that said... I only pick up books I WANT to read for reviews. I also find that I like to write out initial thoughts about a book with a rating and then go back some days later to actually write the review. I've both up'd and decreased a rating after I let it simmer and sit.
ReplyDeleteYeah - I can't turn off my reviewer brain anymore.
DeleteThis was a book for fun so I didn't feel any obligation to review but because I enjoyed it I wanted to share. But I also knew it had issues that I didn't feel like dissecting.
LOL oh that's too funny. I'm usually fairly steady with mine but sometimes that can totally happen.
ReplyDeleteI find it happening more now because I like to save some books for fun reading these days so I don't burn out.
DeleteExcellent. I was unsure of this one but now I shall add this to my library pile.
ReplyDeleteI'm interested to hear what you think. It could go either way lol
DeleteIf I read a book that I know will end up with a 2 star and below. Sometimes DNF, I don't spend a lot of time review it. Just a short blurb as to why I gave it the low rating. And those I only leave on GR. ~Aleen
ReplyDeleteIn this case I loved the book - I gave it 4/5 stars on Goodreads but I didn't want to review it because I knew I would need to explain some of the things that were wrong with it and it might ruin how fun it was for me while reading.
DeleteIf I read a book that is less than three stars, I don't normally write a review. If the book has a higher rating I will review even if I had issues.
ReplyDeleteI rated this one 4.5 stars on Goodreads. It wasn't a review book so I was under no obligation - or else I would have anyway. This was more about not wanting to examine it too closely or else it would take away from my enjoyment of it.
DeleteI feel this so much Karen and often struggle to review books I've loved but still have so many issues. As I review I sometimes change my rating as well as I break down what I've read. And reading is so subjective too. I'm really glad you enjoyed this Karen, wonderful review <3
ReplyDeleteI had rated this 4.5 stars on Goodreads but when I sat down I could feel the rating plummet so I just decided to ignore the review (it wasn't a review book so I could do that) and just go with my happy afterglow lol
DeleteHa, that happens to me all the time. I actually had to walk away from two reviews this week and give myself some space to figure out what the heck was going on. I thought the books were entertaining while reading them but then when I sat down to write out my feelings I found myself pointing out all of these flaws. I eventually found a little balance and evened out the reviews but yeah, I know exactly what you're saying!
ReplyDeleteI feel like you have to point out flaws in reviews so readers don't get sideswiped and say KAREN! Why didn't you tell me??!! lol
DeleteBut if I examined this one too closely, it wouldn't have ruined my own enjoyment of it.
This wasn't a review book though so I could get away with it. If I had to review it - I would have and pointed out the flaws.
I have 100% had this experience before. Sometimes when I start to dissect a book for a review I realize that there are actually quite a few sketchy things in it, and that can definitely impact my enjoyment of the story. On the other hand though, I think it's perfectly fine to like things that are problematic or feature douchey characters so long as you're up front about it - I usually try to warn people ahead of time, haha.
ReplyDelete