Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

...what does it take or what elements must it have to rate 5 Stars.


Question submitted by Kate.

Hold my interest is number 1!

My 5 stars tend to be books that I fall hard for the hero and I loved the interaction between H/h. They are books that are memorable to me. Maybe certain scenes stay with me and I'll want to reread them again and again. Books that I finish and feel sad that it's over and I want to reread them right away.

Story is important but my ability to connect to the character(s) has the edge. It doesn’t even matter if I like them, I just have to be able to GET them and become immersed in their story. My 5 star-rated books are those where the characters AND stories have completely captivated me, giving me both connections I crave.

Any book that stays with me long after I've finished it, even if I never read it more than once. I don't necessarily know what qualities make that happen, but I know it when I read it.

I rate books based on my enjoyment of it & its impact on me as a whole. My 5 star ratings go to books that completely enveloped me for whatever reason.

Yep, Alice! The enjoyment and its impact says it all.

And, Kim, sometimes I don't know exactly what makes a book work. Some just do.

I can't even explain how it happens for me. My five star reads are in pretty much every genre (romance or otherwise), and I have no idea what they did to capture me.

I just know it when I see it. I can read exactly the same plotline from two different authors and end up giving one book one star and the other five...

Sonya Heaney wrote: "I just know it when I see it. I can read exactly the same plotline from two different authors and end up giving one book one star and the other five..."

I know! There are authors who can write the phone book and make it interesting and others who just don't do it for me.

I love the hero and/or the heroine and/or the characters (I love it when the supporting characters can stand their own ground and lead their own interesting lives or are humorous). I cried for the characters or storyline. The banter is addictive, funny, lovable. The sex is love and it blazes. The storyline is engaging; I don't skip. I can't get some scenes or the characters out of my head, memorable/lasting-impression. Books from my childhood. I miss the characters. I miss the world in the story. I crave another read of the book. Books that cater to my humor (witty, crude, blunt, mischievous, playful, perverted). Storyline or characters that resonate with me: I've been, or am, in the same boat. Wildly imaginative, unique, mind-blowing.

Story and characters that grabbed me and I didn't want the book to end.

Five star books blow my mind and my perceptions. They move me and show that the author values the time I spent reading their book. I have gotten more stringent about rating books because of the book slump I am going through. I realized that now when I give a five star rating, it really has to bring something to the table. Whether that is superb storytelling, jump out of the page characters, emotionally investing narrative, or beautiful writing. I am not a grammar stickler, so I can give a five star rating to a book that might have technical errors. But it won't be a boring book that doesn't engage me.

Great question!

My five star reads are defined by my need to forego sleep in order to hear more of the story. TO hide away and take a shower which is really me reading in the bathroom so the two year old leaves me alone. Also books I finish and I am just like WOW or I can't stop thinking about it or can't finish another book immediately after.

Danielle The Book Huntress (Angels Weep For Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ) wrote: "Five star books blow my mind and my perceptions. They move me and show that the author values the time I spent reading their book. I have gotten more stringent about rating books because of the b..."

Danielle, that kind falls in line with my own rating system. Most of the books I just enjoyed are 3s. My 4s have a certain special quality that stays with me,warrants a re-read, and I have to tell others about. My fives are saved for books that changed/challenged my world view, had characters that are so real they feel like friends I'm required to keep visiting, and I'm in love (or love to hate) with the main characters. In other words, 5 stars equals the perfect book. Out of 962 rated books, only 42 earned my highest rating.

I used to allocate five stars differently. However I found myself in trouble, because a lot of the books I just *knew* were amazingly-written I didn't enjoy half as much as some books that weren't.

I guess now five stars go to books I plan on reading again because once just isn't enough. Some I know my university tutors would approve of. Others, not so much! :) :)

I have only 10% of my books rated 5 stars.

I have a 28% five star rating, but that could also be that I am pretty selective (at least by my own criteria) about what I read (outside of review books). I know my use of five star ratings has gone down drastically over the past two years. 3 star is a so-so book for me. 2 and below, I pretty much didn't like the book.

3 stars usually mean it was okay for me. Nothing to write home about. May have had some good moments but may have lagged too much or the style of writing didn't sit well with me. 2 star books are books that I didn't really care for but I finished them and didn't feel they deserved 1 star since I managed that. 1 star is very rare for me.

Pamela(AllHoney) wrote: "3 stars usually mean it was okay for me. Nothing to write home about. May have had some good moments but may have lagged too much or the style of writing didn't sit well with me. 2 star books are b..."

I think authors don't realise this, though it seems to be the way most people rate books. For some, three stars even means 'I liked it quite a lot'. Three stars isn't the end of the world, and I definitely go looking for three star reviews when shopping for books. They're usually the most helpful!

I don't rate many books with stars these days (I did in my old Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ account - which I closed years ago. Got sick of the drama).

However, I guess you can figure what *isn't* a five star read for me: it either doesn't have a star rating, or has a one star rating (yep, I kept a few of those!)!

Pamela(AllHoney) wrote: "3 stars usually mean it was okay for me. Nothing to write home about. May have had some good moments but may have lagged too much or the style of writing didn't sit well with me. 2 star books are b..."

Like you, I rarely rate a book 1 star either. It has to be really bad for me to do that.

5 stars have to have the Trifecta.

Good dialogue/narration balance
Good writing
Interesting plot

Pamela(AllHoney) wrote: "3 stars usually mean it was okay for me. Nothing to write home about. May have had some good moments but may have lagged too much or the style of writing didn't sit well with me. 2 star books are b..."

I don't have a lot of one stars, but most of them are DNFs. I hate not finishing a book, so it's pretty bad if I couldn't go any further. I actually find my more scathing reviews might be for my twos because I'm sometimes mad by the time I'm finished. Mad at the book and myself for the unnecessary punishment. LOL