Raine Balkera - Romance Author

Hi, folks! Sorry about opting out last week, but the topic had no appeal, and I also had nothing to contribute to it, either. This week, Week 14, the Topic What I Learned from My Worst Review,  isn't much better, but I want to try and complete as many of these as I can without dropping out. I do have two ePub novels listed on Amazon, but no one is reading them, so I don't have any reviews. Well, I do, but they are from the five friends who said they were interested in reading it, which just means they left complimentary reviews of the high-caliber variety (in order not to hurt my feelings). So, for this post, I thought I could give examples of some really scorching reviews I've encountered when searching for things to read at Amazon, share them with you, and tell you how I would respond if they were directed at me and my work. So, without further ado... found at Amazon This is page one of three total, in the 1-star category, for a Historical Romance...

My review of Samantha Holt's Her Highland Defender, a Scottish Highlander Historical Romance novel. Pages -  133  Published -  November 12, 2015 Sold by -  Amazon Digital Services LLC Genre -  Medieval, Historical Romance, Scottish Highlander Language -  0/5 Sexual Content -  3/5 Narrative -  3rd P While six thousand Scots follow Robert the Bruce to wage war on the English at Bannockburn, Blane Ross is fighting his own war—single-handedly. After the indiscriminate slaughter of his village at the hands of English mercenaries, he wants revenge. However, when he stops at a castle for information and rest, he doesn’t expect to come across a fierce, beautiful lass in sole charge. Desperate for help, Ceana rejoices at the arrival of this impressive stranger. Dealing with her errant younger sister and her eccentric mother while trying to protect their clan hasn’t been easy. With all the men joining to fight against the Engli...

alexstoneart - DeviantArt Well, since everyone else is doing it, I figured I may as well, also. I'm really in the mood to write, so there is that. I've gone through my Blog Posts for 2017 and have chosen each of the Romance Novels I rated highly for one reason or another. They are 5 and 4 1/2 star reviews only. Then Came You by Wendy Lindstrom (as an aside, this is a Book Two out of Eight, and although I thoroughly enjoyed this one and Miss Lindstrom's writing, I was startlingly disappointed in Book Six in this series, which wasn't written at all like this second novel in the series. The story itself was interesting and had purpose, but the writing had changed drastically... from thoughtful and educated to slipshod and rushed.) The Fall of Lord Drayson by Rachael Anderson (and I still look forward to reading Books Two and Three in the Tanglewood Series) Intertwine (House of Oak Book 1) by Nichole Van (also still anxious to...

Not going to apologize to anyone for this particular post. Then again, I can't recall having ever apologized for anything I've ever written in a blog post of this nature (meaning, my having discussed something others may deem as butt-hurt inappropriate and anti PC). 😉 Today someone pressed my last-straw button and so here I am... venting. It was this... Which is a far more common occurrence than one might think, along with remarks such as this... I'm thinking at this point that anyone possibly reading this Post might not be as quick to jump up and down crying foul now, am I right? And I know what you're thinking... that I'm not being fair and considering ALL of the possibilities and circumstances surrounding such thoughtless instances as these, right? Yes, yes I am, actually! Seriously, on what planet is it acceptable and common knowledge to offer up 1-star (not rotten apple or devil face, mind you) as bein...

If you are a regular to my blog, you know that for months now I've been reviewing-for-research Book Reviews of Romance novels. More often than should be occurring, I find reviews that make me wonder what the reviewer read or if they actually read at all. Sometimes the review makes me wonder why that person chose to post a review, and other times, they compel me to share their review with you. Here are three that made the cut and deserve to be poked fun at here. #1 The Agenda Reader To be fair, Amazon Customer has a point. However , the premise of the novel had to do with an abused housewife who then sets out on her own to fulfill a dream and eventually find real love. #2 The Confused Reader Why is this person reading Romance Novels? One-star, mind you. This is thoughtless and cruel. However , nothing says cruel like ... #3 The Clueless Reader This occurs far more frequently than you might believe. 1 comment   beat me to the pu...

We've all read at least one review (possibly about our own novel) that manages to not only upset but also give the impression that said reviewer would write something awful regardless of content or execution. It's a tough call, especially when it isn't the author's job to cast judgment on a reader in the same way a reader can and will do to any and all authors. We've probably read at least one blog post or online magazine article that recommends authors 'ignore' bad reviews, and I know a few authors who never read their book's reviews at all: good OR bad. Yet there are authors who like to brag-post a glowing review -- which probably has more to do with attempting to boost sales than it does a need to feed their ego -- but again, it's hard to tell sometimes. Lately, we read and discuss the issue of 5-Star reviews and their possible draw-backs. There are countless blog post and online magazine articles that offer some form of advice about...