Kirkus Reviews 

Kirkus is what it claims to be. That is why true authors submit to them. We want that honest review and judgment. So I know it is a gamble of an investment to put it out there. Yet, if you are honest with yourself and believe that you have given your novel your heart and soul plus have looked back with a fresh set of eyes, you should submit. This may very well be the rocket fuel you need to go for your dreams. As for my experience, everything was done in a very timely manner. Amy, Ky, and Leah are wonderful to work with. Amy helped me get the ball rolling and always answered all of my questions. Ky did exceptional work for my book's cover art. Leah made sure all the details about my novel were accurate and was very polite. I highly recommend them.

The novel, The Awakening, joins the other nine novels by Bill Fernandez that Kirkus has reviewed.
Half Native Hawaiian, Bill sets them in historic periods affecting Native Hawaiians and the heroes are all Native Hawaiian men. The reviewer captured the strong emotions revealed in the story as the islands are challenged by Western business interests and Christianity. All of the Kirkus Reviewers were sensitive to the issues and drama.

Excellent service. Prompt and professional. Kudos!

I requested a Kirkus review for my latest book and when it came back the information within it was incorrect. I emailed the info email and Dan responded. He was kind and considerate. He investigated the review and just this week got back to me apologizing for the below editorial standard review and offered me another one. I felt this matter was handled in such a kind and professional way. Thank you for hearing my query and understanding my dilemma and fixing it. My one suggestion, if I may, would be that Kirkus begin handing books to reviewers in their genre. I feel this is one thing that the other top reviewers have over Kirkus. I’m a mystery writer and would much prefer being critiqued by mystery readers and editors. It means that much more. But this is just a side note. I’m very thankful for the re-review. Thank you. 💕🙏🏻

I received a rare starred review, which was an honor. That star led to Kirkus further supporting my book in their year-end “best of” picks. The review was thoughtful, and very helpful to readers. The technical aspects of dealing with Kirkus were smooth. These folks are well-trusted for a reason.

Cogently written, about a book on life as a black American diplomat, the reviewer got what I was trying to say--"Although the author's diplomatic expertise...is on full display...its strength lies in its tone of vulnerability." Such choice words told me that the reviewer had understood me well. Their frankness showed that the reviewer had tucked into the work and rather than ooh and aah over the movie-like scenes from my dramatic life, which I hear a lot and though flattering can be said of most people's overseas experiences-- took a deep breath to give readers a piece of their mind. That's something I can run with.

I want to echo the comments of many others. Kirkus will deliver a thoughtful, honest review of your book in a timely fashion. The customer service is great, especially when wending your way through the website and download niceties. I have received some very positive reviews, and one not so positive, on books ranging from Random House to self-published, and I would never write a book without having Kirkus review it.

I wish I had read more comments online before spending $674 on a Kirkus review. I naively assumed that for that amount of money I would receive a discerning analysis that at worst would yield a quotation or two that could be used to market the book. That's not what happened. Like others, I received a vacuous summary that read more like a book report written by a lazy high school student--who sprinkled in a few quotations to demonstrate they had "read" the book--than a professional review. While the "review" was not negative, there was no critical engagement and not one sentence worth quoting or one positive comment about a book that has been praised elsewhere. The only hint at criticism was a peevish complaint that the book is too long and there are too many deaths--six over a period of fifty years.

In my experience it is evident that Kirkus does not offer a service commensurate with the cost of a review and that it takes advantage of the good faith of people who have put a lot of time and effort into their work. A brief examination of comments online supports the perception that the reviewers are unqualified, even apathetic, readers looking to pick up a little extra income who are not governed by uniform standards or professional oversight.

You may have written a very good book, but don't believe the reviewers at Kirkus will make the effort to read your work carefully or write a few words to acknowledge that.

Excellent service with great communication and outstanding return on investment. And I'm not exaggerating. I felt that the review I received for my hybrid (indie) published book, ARE BISEXUALS JUST GREEDY? was very fair and accurate. I loved how the reviewer had paid great attention to detail in my book, and included complimenting my talented illustrator. It also had a note of questioning if one chapter could've been a deeper dive, which added to the authenticity in the review.

Furthermore, since the review was published whenever I've had questions or need help, my points of contact Paola and Leah have been quick to respond with warm replies.

Thank you.

I thought Amy and Ky were exceptionally responsive, kind, on their games and terrific at guiding me for the best ad experience. I needed to pivot on a couple of things and Ky made that seamless with the design. Amy and I had a very detailed conversation about which ads and formats would be best, and she was entirely generous with her time and expertise. Plus, I just like both of them immensely. It's such a pleasure--and a rarity--to work with people who can immediately adjust, who deliver with grace and timeliness, and you are w pleasure to talk to. BRAVA, you two!!

The editorial assistants were exceptionally helpful... The reviewer captured the essence of my writing, truly understood my work, and grasped what I am trying to do. First-rate and top-notch service at all levels of this company! I couldn't be more impressed by their professionalism and high-quality standards...

Writing speaking my truth has been my biggest blessing that I have accomplished it took me about a year and a half to put it all together I was really scared to tell the world my story but as soon as it came out I was able to breathe a sigh of relief and I hope people from all walks of life can relate to my story and always speak their truth.

Don't waste your money, especially if you are an author of color.

Over five hundred dollars--a hundred dollars a sentence---for a review a barely-schooled teenager could have written, and maybe did! A superficial plot summary, followed by five careless, ambivalent comments about characterization. No mention in those facile notes of the story, the nuances, the implications, the psychology, or --really, anything. It would have received a D minus grade in any literary class. Not even as good as a copy of a Cliff notes. Utter waste of money, and the customer service response was: We're not going to read your complaint anyway, so Up yours!

I recently went to Google and typed in the search bar, "Book Reviewer Jobs" I found reedsy.com on the top of the search result. The tittle of the site, "17 Legitimate Sites That Pay Reviewers" was very catchy and I jumped into it. You may get surprised that kirkusreviews.com was on the first rank in the article. My curiosity led me to the trustpilot.com to find the reviews of both sites. I came a cross many positive reviews of reedsy then I jumped towards the kirkus.com and got shocked to see only two reviews and those two reviews were not good too. Then I personally went to kirkusreviews.com and found nothing bad there. That shocking experience inspire me to give a positive review on suggestion based.

On the base of my little experience I'll like to give some healthy and productive suggestions to the site owner.

I often use to visit trust pilot every time I come a cross a new website to know how much the particular site is value able in the eyes of it's users, clients etc. By frequently visiting the trust pilot I observed one thing very closely that the active site owners also come here. They not only bear the negative reviews but also try their best to satisfy their reviewers. This is what I want to say that what may one think but customer is God.

2. You must never disappoint your clients because a client is your first and foremost advertisement of your site. So always be humble towards them and try to solve their problems as much as possible.

3. Positive negotiation leads to the possible solution.

4. It takes much time to reach at the top. I will say it is easy to be at the first rank. But the thing that is the hardest one to maintain that position till the last breadth.

5. Self reviewing is the best review one can ever imagine. Always see the things happening around. Ask several questions from yourself. Try to find the new and different ways and reach at the possible solutions of the occurring problems.

I paid hundreds of dollars for a PROFESSIONAL book review, and I got an amateurish book report written by a 12 year old child who can't spell or do proper research.

Enough said.

Oh, I don't recommend this mediocre company's services to anyone.