I would like to think that giving a book a rating is helpful to anyone preparing to dive into a book review. Not only is it a quick indication of how positive or negative a review might be but more importantly, so a reader can more easily compare their tastes to my own.

While it's more than perfectly okay to have differing opinions, there is something kismet about finding a person in this vast world who has the exact same tastes in stories as yourself. A community created by mutual love or hate of a novel is not something to take lightly.

So if you've read a few of my reviews and found your opinions close to mine, or even if you can't believe why I disliked your favorite novel, I've outlined my system below to shed light on the criteria and guidelines I use when rating.

To be perfectly frank, I have a love/hate relationship with assigning star ratings to books I review. It feels like a permanent, inflexible grade to someone's hard work. While five star reviews are a delight to hand out, rating a novel as only a star or two doesn't always feel the best. I hate discouraging authors with not-so-positive reviews, but my goal is to always help the readers of Rather Bookish pick and choose what to add to their TBR pile with honest ratings.

Before showcasing my rating system, I have a slight disclaimer: Try as I might to be logical while rating a book, I am only human. Sometimes, I have to go with my gut and that means working outside of the standards set for stars and spice. There are times I've found myself revising my initial opinions after rereading a story, or when halfway through the review I realize I'm being overly critical of one plotline when the overall book was a great read.

Ultimately, I aim to be a source of opinionated truth for the books I read and consistent in my thoughts for the sake of my Rather Bookish readers.

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