I appreciate that. A bit of good PR does wonders for a book, but I appreciate the books that I'm sent. More than this, I can appreciate when I get requests to review books, and the author/publisher has actually taken the time to look at what I blog about. 'Oh, I noticed you reviewed this book, so you might like this one.' 'Hello, I love that author too. Here's another author that I think you'd like.' Etc, etc. That can go a long way, and I'll always be more tempted to review a book if there's a reason that I might like it. So far so good.
But then there's the spam kind of review requests. I assume they must just pluck my email address from my blog and send me a Please Review This email with absolutely no idea about who I am, or what I do. I even got an email addressed: Hello Trisha. Who is Trisha? Not me, that's for sure. And I don't think I've mentioned a Trisha anywhere on my blog. Lately, I got given an offer to review a book about 'R-Patz'. For a start, I don't know how said book can exist without being a cause for some legal action but - why? I don't think the word 'Twilight' has been anywhere on my blog either, so... I just don't know. What I do know, is that it's lazy, and it's bad PR.
When my book is out there in the world, I know I'll appreciate reviews. But I'd hate to think I'd be grovelling and spamming and generally just being annoying with my approach.
Don't get me wrong, I love book review requests, and I've come across some great fiction this way. But I prefer a genuine request, and not to be called Trisha, because that's not my name.
