Bookerworm started as a place for me to share my opinions on books I have read with fellow bookworms. Some of the books I review are from books from my personal bookshelf; others are books on my kindle which have been sent as advanced copies in exchange for honest reviews.
I learnt to love books at a young age because my parents and most of my extended family were avid readers. When I was growing up I could often be found curled up somewhere reading my latest book and not hearing a word anyone around me was saying. This meant that for years the most common word used to describe me was "bookworm". My favourite books to read were Enid Blyton and Roald Dahl followed by Goosebumps and Point Horror books.
As an adult my favourite genre of book is science fiction and dystopian novels but I try not to limit myself and will read any book I can get my hands on. I love any book by Margaret Atwood and have read "The Handmaid's tale" so often that my copy has literally fallen to pieces. I also enjoy books by Patrick Rothfuss, Jodi Picoult, Paulo Coelho and Dorothy Koomson to name a few. I also enjoy reading non-fiction books on a variety of subjects ranging from Sociology and Psychology to Politics. You can't beat the feel of a real book in your hands but when I am travelling or out of the house I like to have my kindle handy and many a time I have missed my stop on the bus because I was so absorbed in what I was reading.
It was pure accident that I stumbled upon a website where I could receive advanced copies of books for review. I was on Goodreads and accidentally clicked on the FAQ section where there was a post about getting advanced copies of books. I was intrigued and decided to join one of the sites mentioned in that post.
Often my friends and family will ask me when they are looking for their next read and I enjoy sharing my views with them. I also like receiving recommendations and it was that which prompted me to join Goodreads and eventually to set up my own website.
My favourite and most unexpected benefits of sharing my reviews have come in the form of emails from the authors, publishers and authors sharing my review and social media and the occasional paper copy of a book and lovely thank you note.
The process of reading a book for review varies depending on whether I am reading a real book or a copy on my Kindle. If I am reading on my Kindle I highlight areas of interest as I am reading before transferring any relevant quotes to a notepad at a later date and then I write the review from these notes. If I am reading a paper copy I record the notes straight onto my notepad and then write my review from there. It typically takes me no more than a week to write my review after reading a book.
For me, great books come in many guises; a book doesn't have to be cleverly written or full of flowery language to make it worthwhile. A great book is one that sticks in my mind for a long time after reading it, a book that makes me want to read it again and most importantly for this site it has to be one I want to tell other people about. I love to reread books but I have limited space on my bookshelf so if a book gets five stars it has to be special.
On the other hand, those books that get below 3 stars are just books I haven't personally enjoyed for whatever reason but it doesn't mean that other readers won't enjoy them. I try to give my honest opinions on every book I read and give constructive feedback wherever possible.
For any author wanting me to review your book please send a message to me via the Contact Us page. It would be helpful if you could include a brief description of your book in your message. For those of you just looking for your next read who like what you see please feel free to share our reviews with likeminded people on social media.