No Tease — Contest! Win a Signed Copy of ALL JACKED UP!

November 16, 2010

Happy Tuesday! I’m still trying to catch up from my trip to Kentucky, and I couldn’t find a snippet that I wanted to share today for Teasing Tuesday…so let’s just have a contest. I’m curious about readers thoughts on reviews…

Here are the rules:

1) Leave a comment about your thoughts on how/if/why reviews affect your buying habits.

That’s it. Seriously. I’m a simple girl 🙂 I’ll pick a winner and post tomorrow!

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65 Comments:


  1. Lisa K in STL said:

    Reviews do not affect my buying habits because the individual giving the review will not enjoy the same books that I do and will not have the same opinion about the books that I like to read.


  2. Jessica Pence said:

    I ALWAYS read the reviews before purchasing anything from books to toys for my daughter. If several people think a product isn’t worth buying I generally tend to skip that product. Books are a little harder for me because I LOVE LOVE LOVE to read. I try to keep an eye out for what people say about the plot and if the book is really slow & boring. If more that 2 people say it is boring I usually don’t read the book!!


  3. aurelie avesque-jouan said:

    How a review affects my buying habits? Héhé 😉 – if it’s teasing enough, fun enough and mouth watering i will go for it in a heart beat (if my credit card is not whinning too much ) …nothing more simple!
    …and pardon me for my english..not quite perfect 😉


  4. Jenny Muraski said:

    I ignore the reviews because not everyone has the same tastes as me. I may love a book and someone else may hate it. So I base whether to read a book on who the author is and the synopsis on the back cover.


  5. Scorpio M. said:

    All the positive reviews are what led me to your RR series and I am now hooked! So yes, positive reviews are very important especially when I am deciding to buy a book of a ‘new-to-me’ author. Negative reviews won’t necessarily drive me to not read or buy a book but it will cause me to ponder the decision more.


  6. janeen said:

    I would say yes that reviews influence my choice. I read blogs and read reviews of people that are like minded in reading material. Most of the places I get my information from is spot on with the types of books I like, so its usually a safe bet. Which is helpful because I would chose a book over extra groceries!*grins* (hubby would so kill me for that last comment)


  7. ms bookjunkie said:

    Reviews bring to my attention books that I’ve never heard of before, or I check reviews to find out what other people thought about books that I’ve already read. Books by auto-buy authors that I intend to buy and read asap? Don’t want to know anything about them!

    (Don’t enter me in the contest. I have my ebook of AJU and can’t for the life of me find space for a paper copy.)


  8. Evelyn Maldonado said:

    The reason I have hundreds and hundreds of books in my library and IPad is because of reviews, I have found my favorite authors and there series based on reviews from authors who I am currently reading. I love my books and there stories they bring me great joy. Thanks for the great read! Evelyn Maldonado


  9. Robin said:

    I often look at the review stars to see what the trend is – if there have been a lot, and they are all bad, then that might sway me, or at least convince me to read a few reviews to figure out “why”. If they are all good, again, might sway me. If they are mixed, I go with my gut and purchase if the book sounds good……I don’t let a few bad reviews in a mix of good ones ruin it for me, particularly on the major book sites.


  10. Caty said:

    Hi! I would love to enter the contest. Is it open internationally?

    I do care about reviews, not all of them, but yes, I have a few blogs that I follow because their authors seem to have similar tastes than me. Also, is a great way to meet new books and authors, actually I came around your books thanks to a Goodreads’ friend who kept writing great things about your Mckay boys 😀


  11. Jennifer Lubow said:

    If I havent read anything by that author then yes the reviews will affect whether or not I buy the book. But if it’s an author I normally enjoy then no the reviews dont have any influence.


  12. Jaimie Dalton said:

    Reviewss do not affect my reading choices. I’ve read horrible reviews on books that I LOVED and I’ve read great reviews on books that I didn’t like. I think enjoyment of the book is personal to the reader. Everyone likes different things. That being said I don’t like negative reviews. As far as I’m concerned whether I liked it or not the author put a lot of time and effort into it and just because I didn’t like it doesn’t mean I need to put that out there for the author to read.


  13. Janna Sierens said:

    I will glance at the reviews but ultimatly I make up my own mind. Everyone has different reading styles and likes so it is really hard for me to base purchasing a book on someone else’s reviews when they may not like the same type of books as me.


  14. April P said:

    When it comes to reviews I won’t even bother to read the “professional” reviewer’s comments because all they normally do is rewrite the product description in there own words. I will read to see what other “normal” people write if several people state a book was slow, or boring etc. I will usually skip it, unless it’s part of a series I like then I will read regardless so I have the full picture of the on going story. On a side note I would love to have a job where I get paid to read.


  15. Dorothy said:

    I do look at reviews, and if a book appears interesting, I am more likely to get it from the library to check out the plot/author first. I usually buy a book based on author, theme, or a plot that I feel in the mood to read about.


  16. Sharon S said:

    Lorelei, I try to NOT let a review influence me on the purchasing of a book. Especially if the author is a favorite of mine (hmmm, like you). In those instances it is an automatic ‘buy’ for me. As for authors that I am not familiar with, I will read the back cover of the book to get a gage of the storyline, and if it’s available for the kindle I will download a sample (which is usually the first one or two chapters) and then decide if I’ll buy it. Everyone has such vast opinions and I truly try to be my own judge….if it looks interesting then I buy it.


  17. Morning Glow said:

    They do and they don’t. If it’s a book that I already know I’m going to love and will definitely buy, I don’t read reviews until after I’ve read it. But if it’s a book I’m not sure about, I’ll start reading reviews. And if the reviews make me interested, I’m more likely to buy the book. I guess since I’m a book reviewer, I should say that I read reviews all the time, for everything. Oops =)


  18. Kati Davis said:

    I don’t let reviews influence whether or not I buy the book. I very rarely even read the reviews. No one has the same exact taste in books as I do, so their opinions will differ as well. One person might say This is a poorly written book…. Don’t buy it. And their reasoning could be the author used the f*** word. Or another could say the sex scenes were disappointing because it wasn’t something they haven’ experienced in real life. Or they just might not like the plot of the story. I have read books that I hated the first time around and I saw it on the shelf a few weeks later, then I loved it. Authors put alot of time into writing their books so I think I should take the time to read it before I decide whether it was a good book.


  19. Paige said:

    I do look at the reviews…I guess I sort scan them. There are so many spoilers in them and a lot of times people don’t make the as ***spoilers***.

    PICK ME!! PICK ME!!!


  20. Paige said:

    I do look at the reviews…I guess I sorta scan them. There are so many spoilers in them and a lot of times people don’t mark them as ***spoilers***.

    PICK ME!! PICK ME!!!

    I really can spell ( :


  21. Leslie said:

    When the positive reviews are from a reader that I’m familiar with & trust, it can definitely make me pick up a book that I might have passed by. If it’s a negative review from that same trusted reviewer of a book I was looking forward to, I take into account what they didn’t like about the book. It could be something that I know won’t bother me so I’d still read the book.

    It’s really all about being familiar with the reviewer’s taste and how much you trust their opinion. If I’m on the fence about a book, often I’ll read the comments and see what others who have read the book think.

    There are certain authors that are auto-buys for me & I’ll read them regardless of the reviews.


  22. Leagh Christensen said:

    I like reviews. However when a person reviews a book that is outside of their normal reading comfort zone and then gives it a bad review it really upsets me. Like with the Rough Riders series. That series is a really hot series and some people do not like to read stuff that erotic and when they do they do not enjoy it. My opinion is if you don’t normally read a certain genre and it is your first time, don’t review it cause it is not as accurate as someone who is comfortable with the type. With that said, I normally don’t read the review before I read a book cause it effects how I view a book. When certain things are pointed out to me I notice them when I might not have noticed them on my own. It actually sometimes ruins a book experience for me. I like to make my own judgement on a book. The description on the back of the book is way more important to me.


  23. kellie tatum said:

    I read reviews but there have to be at least 3. If the book is available to down load a sample copy or at least visit the we site of my chosen author and try to read an ecxcerpt. Its good to at least have a couple of different views from people who upentanhave read it. I like to hear from people who are not paid critics. The fans are the best reviews because they love the authors style. We know what we like and what we don’t like in our chosen authors writing.


  24. Virginia C said:

    Hey, Lorelei! Sit down, take your shoes off, and rest a spell : )

    With all my reading choices, I look for well-developed, involving characters and detailed, interesting story lines. Many authors today write in multiple genres. If I like an author’s work, I will follow them from genre to genre. This past year or so, I have been stepping outside my fiction box on a regular basis, and it’s been a blast. I usually follow my basic instincts, but I do take into account word-of-mouth, book blogs, review sites and author and publisher sites. I started out in life as a very young reader, then life got in the way and other things took precedence over reading. Now, I have come full circle, and I am once again the chubby blonde girl curled up with a book : )


  25. Michelle Holden said:

    I do not look at the reviews when I buy a book, if it is written by an author I like, I buy it no matter what. I have purchased books just because of a cover and then enjoyed the author and have gone back & purchased other books by them as well. I loved this book, I found you by seeing one of your covers & then went back and purchased all the others in the Rough Rider series. I love this series.


  26. Donna said:

    There are some reviewers who have proven over time to have the same basic opinion about books that I do, both good and bad, and their reviews do influence my choice of books. I shy away from book reviews that use the word ‘hot’ more than twice. I like my books to be quite erotic but, really, one hot tells me enough, two at most.

    For whatever reason, many of the blurbs on books seem to be less accurate than they once were and with the same covers being used on many different books and often having nothing at all to do with the story, the cover art isn’t always a good clue. I think that’s why honest reviews have become even more important.

    BTW, I have a real pet peeve about reviewers who give books a low score as a criticism of the paranormal, menage, or erotic elements in a book when those elements are clearly marked in the description of the book. 😛


  27. catherine curtis said:

    hi lorelei, how are u doing?
    well for me the reviews actually help people wth witch books are good and witch isnt worth reading. i mean i actually like have other read the book and have there thoughts about the book so i know if its worth my time and money. like when i started ur book, i looked at the cover and thought i def have to try this out. i know u should never judge a book my its cover. but i do it alot and the reason for that is if i see what i like then about 95% i be reading it and buying the book. when i read the reviews for ur first book, it had 5 stars and everyone loved it. so i think having reviews really to help people pick the product. even in movies everyone read the reviews and see if its worth the time and money. we dont want to go to or buy a book that some one think its bad or not worth the time. bc i have done that before buy a book and after i read it i was very disappoint it and upset that it wasnt good book. so i think its nice to have other people give there thoughts about a book to help other. im a mother that love reading and i have to have all ur books and read them 3x now, now im going to start ur other books under lori armstrony. cant wait!!!


  28. Sophie Engberg said:

    I usually look at the reviews but I tend not to care what they say. If 2/3 of the reviews all say the same bad thing I might hesitate, but 99% of the books I’ll buy anyway if I like the plot outline. If I’m really in doubt I’ll get a Kindle sample to see if there is any obvious things to put me off from actually buying. Some times the reviewers will tick me off so much that I’ll buy the book just to spite them. Silly I know, but that’s my little rebellion :o)


  29. Sarah said:

    Reviews don’t have as much of an effect on me as reading the jacket and the excerpt or first chapter. Everyone has their own interests and what I love another person may hate. A bad review is just one persons opinion. I’ll know after reading the excerpt/first chapter if I’ll like the book, if the authour is passionate about the book they wrote and how well they connect witht their readers.
    They say you can’t judge a book by it’s cover but you also can’t judge it by a review.

    Sarah


  30. Peg said:

    I usually dont look at reviews. If the book is by one of my favorite authors….its an automatic buy. (All your books are an automatic buy for me!! ) 😉 Some books can make me buy them from the cover alone. Give me a cowboy or native american on the cover and I am one happy woman. 🙂


  31. Tina Tracy said:

    I do read most reviews but it depends on what I’m looking for as to if it matters. I tend to buy authors who do a series because I like knowing a little about the characters in the story. If the review is by an author I like I usually buy it.


  32. jeanette8042 said:

    Reviews sometimes help me decide whether to purchase a book I’m stuck considering buying, like if there are several good reviews that override some of the bad I’ll try it out. This is also the same for books and authors I’ve never read about.


  33. Dee Ferreira said:

    I definitely read reviews. I read the good and the bad to get a good perspective of both sides. I wouldn’t say the reviews influence my choice in reading a book. I’ve read bad reviews of books I’ve truly enjoyed myself. Afterall, reviews are an individual point of view of some else’s likes and dislikes.


  34. Crystal D said:

    It depends on the reviewer. I don’t believe books or authors should be bashed but not everything published is total awesomeness. I also don’t think it has anything to do with being part of a mean girls club if you write a review of what you didn’t like or what didn’t work for you.


  35. Ruth said:

    If it is an Author I like I don’t read them. If it is a new Author and the story summary sounds good I want to see what others think.


  36. Barbara Matthews said:

    I really don’t pay attention to reviews when I go to buy books. I do look at the author’s previews or blurbs about the book to see if it catches my interest. Some authors I’ve loved everything I’ve read so far so I automatically pick up their latest release. I do however take time to leave reviews or at least ratings of books I have read.


  37. JulieW said:

    I rarely read reviews and try not to let them effect my buying habits unless it’s someone who I know has similar tastes in books to me, but even then… I’ve had books I couldn’t finish that other people loved and vice versa. When I do read reviews I tend to look at what the negatives are (wimpy heroine, etc) and whether that’s something that bothers me. Since reading is such a personal thing, what other people don’t like may be something that doesn’t bother me. My number one rule, though, is that I don’t read reviews for an author I know I like — I don’t want anything spoiled one way or the other. I only read them when I’m trying to decide whether to read a new author.


  38. Shelly Wegand said:

    I don’t put a lot into reading the reviews, I will glance over them, but that doesn’t necessarily dictate my buying the book. I am swayed more buy the cover and the back cover of the book, when looking at new authors I haven’t read before.


  39. Tabatha said:

    If I like the cover I buy! lol
    or if the title catches me


  40. Amy J said:

    Reviews what are those? I usually get it if I like it, leave it on the shelf if I don’t like what I see.


  41. Mae said:

    I don’t like reading reviews because just because someone thinks it’s great, doesn’t mean that I will. How I determine if I’m going to like a book or not is by the title and then by the summary on the back or inside cover. Then I’ll pick a random page in the book and if I like what I read, then I know I’m going to like the book, so I buy.


  42. Sharla L said:

    I very seldom read reviews. I prefer to make up my own mind about what I like and dislike. I like looking at covers or titles. I love finding out what books the authors I enjoy to read are reading – I haven’t been let down yet!

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  44. Denise said:

    I do read reviews on books, so I have an idea if the subject matter, situation is something that would interest me. A great place is amazon becuase it is REAL people reveiwing the book.


  45. Sharon said:

    Usually reviews do not affect my buying at all. I have favorite authors that I read and I will almost always buy everything they write. Now, if it’s a new author I may take reviews in to account however, if the price is right I will still buy it.


  46. DJ said:

    While I like to read reviews before purchasing an item, it in no way affects the way I decide to buy things. I like to form my own opinion and I figure if I like the way it reads regarding the summary of a book, I’ll most likely buy it. Just because I know that everyone thinks differently and while I might like something, someone else might not like it or vice versa. At least everyone agrees that the RR series is worth buying.


  47. Lisa B said:

    yes and no. If there are alot of bad or so so reviews then i’ll maybe hesitate about buying but look for a copy at the library or a local store and peruse a few pages first maybe. lol If it’s a author i love i buy it anyway and hope everyone is wrong. In reality though everyone likes different things and so wht i like you might not so i try to give everything a fair shake.

    Lisa B


  48. Himeko said:

    I guess if I already love an author like you for example, a review would not sway from buying or not buying a book. I don’t think reviews matter much to me, it more about the synopsis or the back cover blurb. If those don’t interest me then I probably won’t but the book. I feel like sometimes review put our hopes up because some raves about a book so much and about a certain thing and we all have different tastes and so a review can be good for one person but not everyone.


  49. CrystalGB said:

    Reviews don’t affect my buying habits. I prefer to decide for myself if I like a book. 🙂


  50. Brittany Heil said:

    I do not allow a review to sway my decision about how good or bad a novel can be. It all depends on how the individual doing the review feels about a certain topic. I mean you wouldn’t want someone who was into science fiction reading a novel with hot sexy cowboys that set their blood ablaze! When they prefer to read books about space and time. Certain individuals prefer a genre that fits them and where they can’t put the book down until its finished. There are those individuals who feel that there might be to graphic descriptions in a novel where some prefer the down right dirty. Not every novel is meant to be read by everyone. You sometimes have to take the bad with the good. They only true way your going to be able to say whether or not its a good or bad book is to pick it up and start reading! It can never hurt to expand your vocabulary or some dirty stuff to do between the sheet! 😉


  51. Estella said:

    I don’t pay much attention to reviews. Not every ones tastes in book are the same so the reviewer can hate the book and I will love it.


  52. Leisa said:

    I do tend to read the review of other buyers before I purchase a book written by an author with whom I am unfamiliar. However, if the author is a favorite of mine, I never read the reviews since I already know that I like the author’s work.


  53. kris said:

    if I like the back cover blurb, it’s a done deal. if I’m on the fence, I check out reviews. If i see too many strongly negative reviews (as compared to positive reviews), I will skip the book.


  54. Kim F. said:

    I tend to read the review just for a reference point. I just like to know what other people are thinking. I can usually get a good idea about what the book is is like from reading about 3-4 reviews whether they loved it or hated it and form my own opinion.If it’s an author I know though I tend not to read the reviews so much.


  55. Rosemary said:

    I almost never read reviews if it is a book by an author I already love. For new authors sometimes I like to read reviews so I can get an idea of what I may be in for.


  56. Misty said:

    To be honest I do not read any reviews. I see them sometimes on the back cover of a book and I might get excited if I see an author I know has said something positive about the book. I have learned the hard way that you never judge a book by the cover and I hold that true to reviews as well. What someone liked you could hate and the other way around as well.


  57. Tina C. said:

    If its a first time read, I may not purchase a book and move on to something with positive reviews. If its an author I like, reviews don’t mean much. But when I like someone, I post and tweet them as must reads! I’ve done this with your books often!


  58. Tina C. said:

    BTW I forgot to mention in my earlier post that I love that Keely and Jack’s first song has husband and wife in Slow Ride was the same song from a very hot scene in All Jacked Up!


  59. Brenda said:

    Not reviews, but Amazon recommended ” Long Hard Ride” and I feel in love with Lorelei James’ writing.


  60. Sarah Amos said:

    I do look at reviews sometimes, but I have learned not to base whether or not to buy a book just by others opinions. I have read books that I have absolutely loved but others have hated. We all have different interests and opinions; just like we all have differences in music, movies, etc. I do read the synopsis of a book before I make a decision to buy or not, but sometimes you cannot go just by that either. I do have certain authors, like LJ, that there is no doubt that I will buy their book when they come out.


  61. Karla said:

    I don’t put a lot of stock in reviews. I have my favorite authors and they have never let me down. If it is a new author, I usually read the back cover and peak at the reviews that are written by other authors I read; if they have a great review it might sway me to read the book.


  62. nadya said:

    I don’t read reviews at all. Having heard the movie “Jumanji” referred to as the worst Robin Williams movie ever and the albulm “In the Life of Chris Gaines” by Garth Brooks referenced as the biggest mistake of his career, both being my favorites by those artists, I learned a valuable lesson in following my own instincts. So I read the blurbs and I have a huge list of favorite authors, watch ads, but TOTALLY ignore anything by ‘professional’ reviewers. Having said that, if it is a fellow reader I’ll sometimes read it with a grain of salt but even that is very very very rare.
    On the other hand, I am very happy for any favorable reviews that my fave authors do get because they obviously deserve them.


  63. Victoria CK said:

    Sometimes…
    1. They bring books & authors I would miss to my attention. Find new reads/authors through the review blogs/sites all the time (weather I agree with the review or not).
    2. If unsure about a book or the blurb leaves me confused, then reviews or reader opinions are much more important!
    3. If a fav author or really recommended by trusted person, then will ignore reviews.
    4. sometimes will be persuaded by STRONG reviews or reader recommendations (both good and bad)…Like my mom and couple of friends who read as I do who HATED Twilight, thus I have NEVER had desire to read it, even though I read lots of (good) paranormal.

    vickykerr@sbcglobal.net


  64. mahlet said:

    The only reviews that sometimes affect me are ones that come from my trusted Goodreads friends. Some of us have been reading each other’s reviews since 2007. If they describe the plot and give me a heads up on something I know I won’t like, or if nearly ALL my friends’ reviews of a book I’m considering (new author and sometimes even familiar ones) are negative, then I probably won’t buy it.


  65. Silvy said:

    Whenever I read a review, I’m always reminded of that old saying “You can’t please all of the people all of the time”. I’ve read reviews that will trash a book that I’ve absolutely loved, and conversely, read positive reviews for a book that I’ve loathed. I pretty much ignore reviews. If I like the author, I’ll buy/read their books, no matter what the reviews. Although I will admit to getting a smidge annoyed when my favourite authors/books get hammered in a review. I always think “pfft – what would YOU know you – that was a great book ya moron”.

    Tend to get a little protective of my favs lol.

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