Don’t know how to write a review? No problem. The key is to not worry about the writing itself. Just say from the heart whether or not you liked the book, and then say why or why not. If you loved the book, pour your enthusiasm into the review. If you would gush to a friend to read the book, gush away in the review just like you were talking to that friend. It is the emotion (the enthusiasm) behind a review that makes the review stand out as helpful to other readers.

Reviews help authors in a lot of ways. Here’s just a few:
1. They provide social proof that a book is worth while to hesitant readers who are new to the author.
2. They can create buzz around a book to help it spread by word of mouth.
3. They let authors know which books are resonating with readers and what, exactly, about those books is resonating.
4. When a threshold number of reviews is hit, they trigger online store algorithms to push the book out to potential readers.
5. Strong reviews help authors gain credibility with libraries, physical bookstores, and even agents, publishers, and media producers.

This might be changing, but as I write this, leaving a review on Amazon is the most impactful for triggering store algorithms and discoverability. But all reviews left on any store or review site help other readers find the books, and they are appreciated no matter where they are left.

Nope. You can leave a review on Amazon even if you bought, borrowed, or received the book elsewhere. (Though Amazon does require you to have an account and to have spent $50 on Amazon in the previous year before it will let you write a review, to prevent spam reviews.)

Yes, absolutely. And if you are so inclined, ❤️.