A question similar to the old commercial: how many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Roll Pop? So if you don't like an author's book, how many more chances will you give them?
On three different occasions I've had someone give an Eric Filler book a good review. Then there's a bad review on a different book. Then another bad review. Then another. And then I start wondering: why the hell are you still reading these?
The first was a couple of years ago with this guy called "John Daniels." He wrote a positive review of Transformed for Halloween but then wrote like three negative reviews before writing one that was 4-stars though mostly he was still just complaining. After another negative review or two I'm like, "Dude, why do you keep reading these? You obviously don't like them. At this point you're just a troll."
He finally got the message...and immediately started to do the same on Ivana Johnson books. Which ironically is still me! It was the same shit where first there was a positive review and then a few negatives. When he complained because an Ivana Johnson book accidentally still had Eric Filler's name on it and he complained "who's the real author?" I finally said, "Have you considered they're both me?" And I haven't heard from him since. I hope he found one of my rival authors to annoy and drag down their ratings.
What was especially annoying with that guy was he acted like he was some expert on the author. Always saying stuff like, "Well this wasn't as good as other ones..." You mean that one you gave a good review to? It just go annoying after a while. And again, after 3 or 4 books why don't you just stop reading and find someone else to bother?
It happened again months later with someone calling himself "Bear Hunter." That douche never even gave much of a positive review. After like the 4th negative review it's again, Why are you still reading these? It's not like I want you to--just the opposite.
There was someone else recently too. He/she first wrote a nice review of The Comeback and then the very next day writes a negative review of another book complaining because it was too mean. And then there was another. And as I mentioned, they were books that in no way gave the impression they were nice and cozy. Ugh.
So really, how many chances would you give an author? In part I think it depends if I liked the author's first book. Like when I read all of John Irving's books I liked the first one I read, then a couple weren't as good, and then some were really good, and some really awful. But if I'd liked the first one and the next three were terrible, I don't think I'd keep going. Maybe not even if the next two were awful.
John Scalzi's Old Man's War series I really liked the first book, didn't like the second, liked the third and fourth, and didn't really like the fifth and sixth. Mostly I read the whole series because I'd already bought them.
With Lawrence Block's books there have been a few duds but far more hits. Still, it's not like I liked the first one and then hated all the rest.
But really where do you draw the line? One book? Two books? Three books? More? Or will the world never know?
2 comments:
I've thought the same thing when you mentioned this before. It's very strange and trollish. If I don't like the first book I read of a certain author, I don't read anymore. However, if I do like the first one, I'm would give the others more of a chance. Perhaps there is something they do like about your books that keeps them going, but they just don't say what it is.
One bad novel is enough for me. I gotta say it sounds strange and coordinated. Is someone paying someone to write Amazon reviews? It sounds like a conspiracy but it’s strange otherwise
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