How we find/rate books

We do not accept submissions; we kind of like to go fishing ourselves.  Thus you can read our reviews knowing that we have not been compensated in any way by the authors--this is a hobby for us, not a business (although we won't complain if you peruse our fine selection of advertisements).

We are avid readers of everything to do with independent publishing.  We find our selections the same way regular readers do:  on Facebook, Kindleboards, GoodReads, and so on, as well as--of course--just browsing around on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

We look for attractive covers, an alluring description, and good writing (properly edited and formatted so that it doesn't distract from the experience, of course).  Don't you?

Our ratings are on a 1-5 star system, with 5 stars as the highest recommendation:

Five stars:  A largely perfect book:  an original, well-written story in an attractive package, offering a good value for your money.  Buy this book!

Four stars:  A very good book:  perhaps not perfect, but still a rewarding experience.  Well-written and a good value.  A recommended purchase.

Three stars:  A fair book, perhaps hobbled by some minor problems.  Might be recommended with caveats.

Two stars: A book suffering from some major problems.  Not generally recommended, but perhaps suitable for a niche audience.

One star:  Not recommended.

Brutally Honest:  Sometimes even one star is too much.