Articles About Me

My First But Not Worst Review

I've said this before, but the thought of y'all actually reading my book fills me with anxiety. 

My articles appear in the newspaper all the time, and that doesn't faze me a bit. I'm pretty confident that I'm a good journalist, but when it comes to my fiction, that's a whole different ballgame. 

I feel exposed and vulnerable. 

I realize this book--its genre--is not gonna be for everyone. But I want y'all to like it. It's kinda like having an ugly baby. It doesn't matter if it's the homeliest little soul on the face of the planet, you love it fiercely and want others to love it too.

Jim tried to prep me for bad reviews. He knows me well and worries about me taking them to heart. 

In publishing there's something called an ARC--advanced reader's copy. Readers in the genre get an early copy of the book in exchange for a review. The beauty is they can post their reviews as soon as the book goes live.

I signed up for a service that matches your book with potential readers. This is all new to me, and I'm learning as I go. I didn't realize I had the option to review the prospective reader, see actual reviews written, and accept or decline. I left it wide open.

And that brings me to my first reader/reviewer. 

Have y'all seen those Reels where actors read bad reviews? I'm tempted to make one.

Let me preface by saying that TRIGGERS were clearly labeled for the prospective reader.

It should come as no surprise if you know me that my book would contain PROFANITY. And it was clearly marked that way.

Let me show you the review:

Indeed a cozy, even though it has more four-letter words than any book I've ever seen.
And the heroine has some kind of sexual mania.
And the end of the plot is unnecessarily vulgar.
I received a free e-book ARC of this book. This is an honest review.

WTF.  I was stunned when I read it. I felt like I'd been kicked in the gut and wondered if my book was in the wrong genre.

And then, y'all, I realized this reviewer was fucking nuts and probably needs therapy. She made my book sound like a cross between Boondock Saints and Fifty Shades of Grey. It is not. 

My publishers laughed, told me not to change a thing, and said I ought to get the review printed on a T-shirt.

The second review was much better. You better believe I vetted this one before I let her hold my baby. 

Fantastic book, I loved the humor as well as puzzling out the clues. I hope the author continues to keep writing and making this character into a series, because I will definitely read them. I received this advanced review copy for free and am leaving this review voluntarily. This was my first time reading anything by this author, and it certainly won't be the last. I read Odd Job Annie in one sitting because I couldn't put it down.

Y'all, this book author stuff is one strange ride.

Postscript: I wrote this back in December before the book came out and never posted it. As of July 2025, the book has a 5-star rating on Amazon--they round up!

Believe it or not, as bad as that review was, the reviewer gave me three stars.

It's not even the worst review lol.

Someone also gave me 1 star on Goodreads.

Here's that review EXACTLY as posted:

I gave the book a 1 because of the fowl language.

Y'all. That one made me laugh.