Should authors review books?

I have always been a reader. Ever since I was a kid in my tiny bedroom lounging on my hot pink vinyl beanbag chair. My love of books and great stories is what encouraged me to write my own. Once I became a writer and then a published author did not mean I stopped reading.

After I started writing, but before I became published, I joined Goodreads. I thought it was great! I love organization and having this great website to keep track of the books I read and what I thought of them was so so cool! I wrote honest reviews, but was never rude or nasty. Just not my style.

But then my book was published and things shifted. I was now on the other side. Now not only was I giving reviews, I was receiving them. Luckily, I've yet to get a really bad review (knocking on wood really hard!!!) But I started to wonder if it was really appropriate for me to give negative reviews of fellow authors' work. I didn't feel it right to lie and give glowing reviews for books I did not think that of. But was it really proper to point out a book's flaws???

I still wish I had an answer to that. I ended up removing anything negative from the reviews I had written. I focused on the positives. But my star rating still reflected my true feelings.

As an author, it is extremely hard to read a book and completely turn off the editor inside my head. I am more critical than the average reader. I notice things readers might not notice. Sometimes it is really hard for me to completely lose myself in a book like I used to. I just can't...I'm too distracted. If the editing is bad, or there is head-hopping, it completely distracts me. I have to force myself through and really search out the story and I don't enjoy myself.

Also today, I am guest posting over at Flutey Words, Aubrie Dionne's blog, about my writing process! Check it out!