are novel reviews affecting your interest on reading a novel?

Discussion in 'Novel General' started by msbwhy, May 17, 2022.

  1. msbwhy

    msbwhy Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 1, 2020
    Messages:
    428
    Likes Received:
    352
    Reading List:
    Link
    some reviews like this:
    [​IMG]
    (i found it kinda funny tbh)
    for me, i think it affects me almost 80-90%??? i mean it's like a first impression or smth. but sometimes i went YOLO and read some novels on whims & found out it was pretty great
     
  2. Asf

    Asf 《《The aria of souls》》

    Joined:
    Dec 31, 2015
    Messages:
    7,413
    Likes Received:
    5,868
    Reading List:
    Link
    Its impossible to please everyone after all..

    That review up there is also just a spite without explaining what he didnt like.. so its just not a review.. its something that should be deleted by the mods

    And sometimes the best reviewed novel isnt even your cup of tea.
    I view the synopsis higher than reviews
     
  3. MessyMind

    MessyMind Active Member

    Joined:
    Apr 9, 2021
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    13
    Reading List:
    Link
    Hmm, idk I only read reviews when I like a novel...just trying to find someone who has a same opinion as mine:blobsweat_2: sometimes there's spoiler hiding in there so I avoid reading it before I start reading the novel.
     
  4. Harry

    Harry Now you see me

    Joined:
    Dec 13, 2015
    Messages:
    1,493
    Likes Received:
    1,518
    Reading List:
    Link
    If they pointed out what exactly was wrong/nonsense in the novel, i really will avoid the said novel :blob_coughblood:. But if the shit is actually my cup of tea :blob_coffee:, I will feel motivated to read it:blobsmilehappyeyes:. Looks, they show me this is the hidden gem :justabotheart:
     
  5. Dahna

    Dahna (-, – )…zzzZZZ

    Joined:
    Feb 13, 2021
    Messages:
    603
    Likes Received:
    464
    Reading List:
    Link
    Depend on if the reviews reveal a plot that I don't like or not. :cookie:
     
  6. XIII

    XIII Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Oct 25, 2018
    Messages:
    261
    Likes Received:
    209
    Reading List:
    Link
    Some of the novels that i read and completed and found it really enjoyable where those with a number of 1 star reviews. So i do not really check for the reviews anymore when i try to read a novel.
     
  7. Friederike

    Friederike Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 16, 2017
    Messages:
    25
    Likes Received:
    10
    Reading List:
    Link
    Yeah reviews affect me a lot, even after reading a novel so I skip them on purpose. Sometimes, some aspects of the novel which I don't really consider as flaws get highlighted, and I end up second guessing myself. But reviews like the screenshot above really fire up my spiteful spirit so if I like the summary, I take that as a cue to at least read one chapter.
     
    novem and mir like this.
  8. Kaminomikan

    Kaminomikan 神のみ感

    Joined:
    Feb 8, 2016
    Messages:
    983
    Likes Received:
    1,071
    Reading List:
    Link
    when is a bought novel, physical or digital, then I read them, but everything else, no. with wn you should just check tags, ppl tends to nitpick on "free" things
     
  9. lnv

    lnv ✪ Well-Known Hypocrite

    Joined:
    Jan 24, 2017
    Messages:
    7,702
    Likes Received:
    9,044
    Reading List:
    Link
    I read the bad reviews mostly to prepare for the worst looking for "flags". Then see if there are any counter reviews that straighten things out.
     
    Nimroth and Solus like this.
  10. canaria23

    canaria23 『  』

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2015
    Messages:
    9,488
    Likes Received:
    10,955
    Reading List:
    Link
    Reviews don't matter when you're desperate
     
    Michelangelo likes this.
  11. Aqua_the_idiot

    Aqua_the_idiot my decisions are justified by my name

    Joined:
    Dec 24, 2021
    Messages:
    1,039
    Likes Received:
    4,077
    Reading List:
    Link
    Honestly, I try to avoid reviews because sometimes for them a scene/plot wasn't liked by them BUT when I read it I might really like it. These reviews sometimes "ruin" a character for me ( based on my experience ) even though I found them good.

    Ofcourse, many reviews have saved me from some very bad novels. I have read many novels and then immediately regretted not reading the reviews cuz the novel was very bad and if I have read the reviews I could have avoided wasting my time.

    Imo, if a novel has caught your interest give it a try even though the reviews might be bad. I mean who knows, maybe it good? Maybe it's bad. It's based on your luck , atleast that's my experience.
     
  12. Novel Monster

    Novel Monster Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Aug 17, 2021
    Messages:
    104
    Likes Received:
    70
    Reading List:
    Link
    Unfortunately for me, reviews usually dampen my spirit to read a novel. But that mostly happens if the story has something in it that I can't stomach. If the reviews are mainly about the charachters I don't give them much attention, because while others might see a charachter as a cold blooded sc*m, I like to judge that myself first.
     
  13. Kaylee

    Kaylee Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 13, 2019
    Messages:
    2,383
    Likes Received:
    1,896
    Reading List:
    Link
    shrugs
     
  14. sjmcc13

    sjmcc13 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Dec 29, 2017
    Messages:
    1,938
    Likes Received:
    4,777
    Reading List:
    Link
    I tend to ignore 1 and 5 star reviews, to many troll and fanboy reviews in those that tend to blindly love or hate a story due to some unfair factor like the presence of a tag or 2, including lying about how much of and how thoroughly they have read the story. I also tend to not bother looking at anything that does not need to be expanded to fully read.
     
  15. Rumby

    Rumby Rumbly Tumbly

    Joined:
    Feb 23, 2017
    Messages:
    1,091
    Likes Received:
    1,010
    Reading List:
    Link
    Is that the full review?
    It looks like it doesn't follow NU guidelines https://www.novelupdates.com/review-guidelines/ as reviews should explain why they don't like the novel.

    And to answer the general thread title, yes it does. But it may get me more interested if I see spoilers I like. Definitely I won't read, if I see anything I'd avoid mentioned in a review.
     
  16. ExiledMage

    ExiledMage Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Dec 22, 2021
    Messages:
    125
    Likes Received:
    229
    Reading List:
    Link
    Don’t judge a book by it’s cover, basically don’t judge it by it’s reviews.
    Unless the translation is comparable to mtl.
     
  17. Nightenviel

    Nightenviel Active Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2016
    Messages:
    9
    Likes Received:
    1
    Reading List:
    Link
    Before yeah, now? not so much anymore. I often realize that novels that are rated low are only low because the morals don't align with the author usually, especially if you see that most ratings are either 4-5 stars, or 1 stars. Of course, there's still the occasional trash translation as above mentioned.
     
  18. MidstNost

    MidstNost 【 Reigen's Saltshaker 】【 Lingtian Raider 】

    Joined:
    Apr 2, 2019
    Messages:
    866
    Likes Received:
    918
    Reading List:
    Link
    More the opposite. Reading novels affects my interest in reading novel reviews because there are many times where I read a great novel and it's rated lower than the novel which I don't like at all.
     
  19. Filli

    Filli Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2020
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    11
    Reading List:
    Link
    Without going into detail, yes. Even more so for CN novels/KR otome novels.

    As to why, simply put— most of them aren't really worth the time reading. Vast majority of them falls into the same "X-cliche" scene or trope so I'd rather read others' review before reading them myself. If I found two or more people agreeing on the same thing, then I'd skip it. If the reviews are conflicting one other, perhaps. And if it's just one person ranting on that one specific scene/chapter/character, also perhaps.
     
  20. Gandire Alea

    Gandire Alea [Wicked Awesome Translator]

    Joined:
    Jan 24, 2017
    Messages:
    4,014
    Likes Received:
    70,796
    Reading List:
    Link
    No, cause I learned it's better to not read them