Policies

Review policy

Contest & Privacy policy

Review Policy

Updated 2015
I am currently not accepting any new titles for review.
Due to me moving house I have a huge backlog of review titles. I'm focusing on reading those before I accept any new titles for review. I apologise for the inconvenience.

Important!

Please note that I do not live in the United States if you are considering to ask me to review your book.

Requesting a review
Review requests can be sent via email to lvng.books@gmail.com. Please include the following: Title of the book, intended age group, synopsis, cover image and a link to the book on Goodreads. If the book is part of a series, please include which book in the series this is (first, second, etc.). Please do not send me the manuscript of the book in your review request.

Within YA and middlegrade I read just about anything, though I'm not keen on horror and historical fiction. I do not accept or review non-fiction, religious fiction, picture books or poetry. While I do occasionally review adult titles on Loving Books, I don't accept adult fiction for review.

Please note that if I accept your book for review this does not promise a positive review or a review within a certain time-frame. If the review book is an Advance Reader Copy (ARC), I will do my best to post a review around the release date. If I accept your book for review, this does not guarantee a review on the blog.

Books I request are given priority over any other books I may have for review. Currently, I cannot guarantee to review books within a particular time.

All ratings and reviews are cross-posted to Goodreads.


Rating
The main thing I take into consideration when I rate books, is the enjoyment that I had while reading the book. Sometimes it happens that I really liked the book, but when I think back of the writing style, plot or characters, I will not like those individually. The star rating might be good then, but I will give my thoughts on the other parts of the book in the review itself.

This is a small overview of the rating that I give to the books I've read:
5 stars - Loved: Fantastic book -- quite possibly an all-time favourite
4 stars - Liked: Great book
3 stars - Enjoyed: Enjoyable book that has some issues
2 stars - Bored: Book I didn't find particularly enjoyable
1 star - Hated: Not my type of book -- either I hated it or did not finish

Where needed, books get an additional half-star rating (for example 4.5 instead of 4). I would say that 3 - 5 stars is a good rating.



Do you accept payment to read and/or review books?
All reviews reflect my personal opinion and I will always be honest in my reviews. I do not accept payment for reading a book, posting a review, promoting a book or author or whatsoever.

Loving books is currently an affiliate with Book Depository. If you purchase a book through one of the links to BD that I posted on my blog, I will get a little commission which will help me afford books and/or shipping for contests. This does not affect the way I review - I will give my own honest opinion on every book I read, regardless of the source of the book, or if I'm affiliated with any party. The fact that I'm affiliated with BD is purely to offer a little extra to my readers.

I am a proof reader for a Dutch publishing company, who ask me to read certain titles to see if they would fit their portfolio. I receive some compensation for this. However, they do not pay me to give a positive review, nor do they pay me to write a review on my blog for them. I do this in my personal time. Some books I've been offered to read will get a review on the blog, but I am not paid to do so. All books receive an honest rating and review (if I decide to do one).

Every book on this blog is purchased by myself, unless stated otherwise.


Thank you for reading my review policy. If you have any more questions, feel free to send me an email at lvng.books@gmail.com.

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Contest & Privacy policy

For specific giveaway rules, please read the contest post carefully.

Basically, these are the standard rules:

• All contests are open to those 13 years of age or older. 
• In you are underage, you'll have to ask a parent or guardian for permission to send me your shipping information
• Prizes will be sent out after I receive the address information of the winner by email. Make sure that your address is correct, as I will not ask you to confirm the address. 
• Contest winners will be announced on the blog as well as being notified by email. 
• I am not responsible for items lost in the mail. This blog is a personal blog and prizes and shipping are paid by myself, unless stated otherwise. 
• I hold the right to end a contest before its original deadline without any prior notice.
• I hold the right to disqualify any entry as I see fit.

Other things you should take notice of:

• Make sure to check contest deadlines.
• Make sure to check who the contest is open to. Usually my contests are open internationally, but this may vary. 
• Make sure to follow contest instructions, if you fail to do so, this will result in disqualification. The rules are carefully stated at every contest post. 

I will not save any personal information like addresses when I receive this information from the winner. Email addresses will only be used to notify the winner and will not be used for any other purposes. The shipping address is only used to send the prize to and will be deleted afterward.