He’s a ten but… he chews with his mouth open.
He’s a ten but… he lives with his mom.
He’s a ten but… but he wears jean shorts.
He’s a ten but… but he doesn’t tip his servers.
Have you seen this trend on social media? They are joking posts about men (real or fictional!) commenting on certain things that may or may not be deal-breakers — basically, on a scale of 1 to 10, he’s a 10.
Except is he really??
To me, it’s a funny reminder that no one is perfect (except Jesus!) and also an interesting exercise in hypotheticals. Of the above examples I listed… the one I would struggle most with is a man who doesn’t tip at a restaurant. I know globally, it is different, but here in the US — servers rely on tips and it be a red flag for me to have a man refuse to tip!
I got to thinking about my blog this week and I wanted to twist this little social media game on it’s head and talk about books!
It’s a five star read but… there were a few typos.
It’s a five star read but… I didn’t relate to the main character.
It’s a five star read but… it was too preachy.
It’s a five star read but…
You see where I’m going with this! Sometimes, we will still call it five stars. Which in my mind means, this little side note didn’t impact my overall enjoyment of the book and I still recommend it to others.
Sometimes though… that little extra comment means that for me, it really wasn’t five stars. Kind of like my fictional non-tipping date. He’s not a 10 afterall.
This week, I have a gift for you all! My debut novel — Falling on Main Street — is FREE until September 25th.
I have a lot of “It’s a five star read but…” feelings about this book.
Even after all these years and more than fifteen novels later, I love the story in this book. It’s centered around a woman whose life falls apart taking refuge in a small town and discovering the love of a Savior that pursues her soul, all while falling in love with a grumpy widower who wants nothing more than for her to leave town. Hate-to-love is still one of my favorite storylines!
I love the cozy autumn vibes in the story — the small town festival, the fall activities and crunchy leaves.
But… it was my very first book. And there were a few more typos (which I’ve since corrected!), a little less flow, a little heavy-handed gospel message, and a lot of writerly mistakes most readers probably wouldn’t notice.
So, I think it’s a five star read, but… I’d love for you to read it and decide for yourself if it really is!
What little side note would you put on a five-star read that might make it a four instead, or might just be a little disclaimer for the person you’re recommending it to? Share your “It’s a five-star read, but…” in the comments!
I’ll give one commenter a free copy of the entire Main Street Minden Series, which this book leads into.
Tara Grace Ericson lives in Missouri with her husband and two sons. She studied engineering and worked as an engineer for many years before embracing her creative side to become a full-time author. She loves cooking, crocheting, and reading books by the dozen. Her writing partner is usually her black lab - Ruby - and a good cup of coffee or tea. She loves a good “happily ever after” with an engaging love story. That’s why Tara focuses on writing clean contemporary romance, with an emphasis on Christian faith and living.
Firstly the non tipping in Australia wouldn’t be a big deal as we don’t tip much as most people you tip get good wages and are not relying on tips to survive. Food is normally that bit dearer to help cover wages. (Same with hotel staff, hair dressers etc)
I actually saw a 5 star reviews that I can use for this.
It’s a 5 star review but the ending was too abrupt with no real closure.
It’s a 5 star review but its unrealistic and unbelievable in many scenes.
Thanks for the free kindle book.
Welcome today. Its a five star…but… For me this is not really a thing. If it is a five star, it has hit all the buttons. If it does not, I rate accordingly. For me, keeping my reviewing simple like this helps me not to stress out about reviewing too much. I wont put negative comments in my review, but I will be honest.
Aw, man, I can totally relate to those feelings about my first book!
Thanks for the free read.
If I put on my critic’s hat, I could probably nitpick even stories I’ve really loved. But most of those things are just a matter of personal preference, which wouldn’t bother other readers. Some “5 star buts…”
It’s a 5 star read, but could have been 10,000 words shorter.
It’s a 5 star read, but there are too many side characters to keep track of.
It’s a 5 star read, but some plot threads were left hanging.
Like I said, though, these are minute faults and the book would still be one I’d happily recommend.
It’s a five star review but the author was way too detailed in the descriptions of every little thing making the book much longer than it needed to be.
Thank you for the book!
I agree with some previous commenters, for me to review something as a 5 star it needs to be really great with no real issues. But some of my four star plus reviews might be
It’s a five star – but the minor characters were a bit two dimensional
It’s a five star – but it’s a bit over long on some sections
It’s a five star – but some of the dialogue didn’t flow too well.
I downloaded your book yesterday. Looking forward to reading it.
I have given a “It’s a five star – but” review lately. In this case, I think it was where my head was, or wasn’t. It was a VERY good book and I want to go back sometime and reread it. I just thought the book was going in one direction and I was totally wrong. I was waiting (or maybe wanting) the typical romance with “and they lived happily ever after”. Guess I should explain that it is a biblical fiction book. So it was not going to be the typical romance book.
If it’s a 5 star read, I don’t put disclaimers. I put a LOT of disclaimers for 3 and 4, though! Most of the books I read are 5 star, as most of them I want to read again! If it’s less than that, I don’t care to read it again. There are very few books that I give 3 and 4 stars to. If it’s lower than that, I just don’t review.
I definitely wish “tipping culture” would disappear around here!
Those real 5 star reviews are ones to me that would make me actually give it fewer, haha!
Thanks for sharing.
I think that makes a lot of sense! Honest reviews are so important — and appreciated!
I actually think it’s okay to put negative comments in reviews (not cruel, obviously!), especially when they are presonal preference… for example, I often see reviews with “negative comments” like — “This book had too much Jesus in it!”
And as a reader, I see that review and go — “Thank you very much, I’ll be buying it for that reason!”
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
I usually reserve five stars for a book for the ones that were so good they stay with me long after I finish them, and the ones I k ow I’ll love to go back and re-read. For that reason I don’t give a huge amount of five star reviews. To me a five star review really shouldn’t have a “but” in there or it’s not really a five star book.
I was just talking about things I’d do differently in my debut too. But as authors, I think we do tend to be harder on stories in general, and probably especially our own!
Those are good examples, Milla!
In my mind, there is no “perfect” book, but there are tons I’d give 5 stars too!
Ooh, yeah. I’m not a huge fan of overly descriptive writing either. That’s one reason I shy away from historical fiction sometimes…
Thanks for sharing!
“Four star plus” is a good way to think of it!
Thanks for your examples, too. I think those are spot on.
It’s a 5 Star book, but I’m hoping there is a sequel , and hopefully there is. Have a great day, I loved reading this post. Some people are just way too picky and surely we can’t please everyone. :)
Oooh, that’s a great point! Sometimes it has little to do with the book and everything to do with our own headspace while reading!
Thanks for commenting (and downloading the book)!
Thanks for sharing, Trudy. I like your system — I think it makes a lot of sense!
I could see that perspective!
Sometimes I find that a story is five stars and sticks with me, but perhaps the actual writing fell short, which means it wasn’t really a five star in the end!
Oh, definitely! It’s so hard to look back on earlier books and wish I had known then what I know now about writing… but we just have to move forward, because there is always growth (and that’s a good thing!)
Haha, I love your disclaimer! And you’re right — we can’t please everyone!
In my mind a five star book shouldn’t really have anything you would change other than maybe a few typos. I think anything else would probably lower it to four stars for me.
It was a five-star read, but the characters felt a little too immature.
Hi Tara! Thanks for the insightful blog. I agree with other: It was a five-star read, but too descriptive. Or it was a five-star read, but too repetitive. This retiree and avid reader is not fond of long descriptive passage. In traditional published stories, I often think the author went back and added description to add pages or words to the book. For being repetitive, some stories are great, but I do not need to be told a character flaw over and over / or some other detail. In reality, I give those stories a four / sometimes a three when I write the review. Best wishes. Thanks for the freebie. Helps with my book budget. Fall is in the air in Michigan – temperature, wind, clouds. Sure even Lake Michigan has put on its fall color. Enjoy your weekend.
Thanks for the gift! things that will take a book from five stars down to 4:
– The characters thought too much about each other’s physiques.
– It was instalove.
Now…
– It was a 5 star read but the romance felt a bit rushed.
– It was a five star read but the characters started dating before he/she was a Christian.
– It was a five star read but a teenage character drank alcohol at a party and didn’t tell his/her parents.
I know I wouldn’t have given them a 5, actually I did give a 4 to one of the examples. My theory is a 5 is the best of the best. If you start with a book with an issue as a 5 where to you go. Its like in a survey I rarely give 10 0ut 10 as if you say 10 it gives no room for improvement. (Unless it was exceptional). I wish books were out of 10 rather than 5.
I have constant head pain and you get asked whats the score which is so hard to work out but even at its worse I said 9 out of 10 because if you say 10 it means it cant get higher and I know there is a chance it will. (A dr said your pain was 10 out of 10 yesterday when I went back to him and I made that comment. thankfully its more controlled thank to a treatment but I know that it is likely to stop working as most get 5 or so years before they need to try something else)
When I leave reviews, I don’t ‘but-ter’ them. (Yes, I made that word up!!) If there is going to be a but, make the rating 4 stars and explain why!
I have read some non Christian author books that have a great story premise that would make the story a 5 star, but the author took it in a different direction with detailed bedroom scene or bad language that did not have to be used. I struggle to read the book as well as rating it since it goes against my morals. I am in a secular bookclub. I have had a few of these books last year. Thankfully there has only been one this year. Thank you so much for sharing. God bless you.
it’s either 5 or 4, not 5 with disclaimer
I think all the books I have reviewed are a five but if I can’t get into the book or wasn’t a good book it’s either a 1 2 or 3 but I don’t think I have many of those
Hi, Tara! When reading a book, I will find typos or other errors occasionally. Even though this bothers me, I generally overlook them because I am never certain if the error was made by the author or if it is a mistake made by the publisher.
What really bothers me is when a story just ends abruptly and I felt surprised that the last page was the end of the book. A rushed ending is a big let-down. Similarly, an ending that doesn’t finish the storyline is frustrating and would lower my review.