Review Policy

Overview

➢ Policies and disclaimers
➢ Preferences
➢ About My Reviews
– Review Structure
– Rating System
➢ How to Request
➢ AI Policy

Last updated: May 17, 2025

Policies and Disclaimers

All my reviews are honest, sometimes brutally so, and my opinions are my own. I reserve my right to share the full extent of my opinion, including, but not limited to, low star ratings, criticism and mentions of unaddressed problematic content.

I try to review all books in a timely manner, but I cannot guarantee to have my review ready by release date, the requested deadline date and/or the requested time frame.

I reserve my right to not finish and/or not review a book I received for reviewing purposes. If this happens, I will communicate the reason why I was unable to finish and/or review the story privately.

I do not review books I do not finish (DNF). If I DNF a book, I move it to my “DNF” shelf on Goodreads.  I will also reach out to whomever I received the book from and let them know that I DNF’d the book and my reasons for doing so.

I am open to reviewing sequels, but I request that I be provided any previous parts in the series and, if relevant, any other books and companions needed to properly review the requested book.

I am open to review requests for multiple books, whether it’s multiple separate books or part of a series. Requesting multiple book reviews at once may increase my turn-around time as I am not always able to read the books back to back.
I accept review copies through snail mail, email, NetGalley, BookFunnel, BookSirens, and Booksprout.  I am open to using an alternative method by request.

I post my reviews on my blog (https://alphascourt.blog), Instagram (@alphas_court), Goodreads, BookBub, my blog’s Facebook page (Alpha’s Court), various genre specific Facebook groups, NetGalley, BookSirens, Booksprout, if possible and applicable.  I am unable to post reviews to Amazon.

I am open for reviews for blog tours or similar promotional events.

Preferences

I accept New Adult and Adult books in physical and EPUB format.

I accept novellas, short stories, novels, comics, graphic novels, and manga.

I accept books written in English.

I accept horror, romance, mystery, thriller, and crime drama, fiction, historical.  I am open to most other genres as well, though I reserve the right to deny a request for a genre not specifically mentioned.

I don’t accept Young Adult, Children’s, coming of age, secret baby or any content written with or by AI.

About My Reviews

All of my reviews are written from my own perspective and coloured by my own life experiences.  I consider my reviews to be written in a structured, informal fashion.I try to keep spoilers to an absolute minimum and only use them to explain my opinion better, to get a point across and to explain representation and/or (potentially) problematic content. These spoilers come with a tag or warning, or they are minor (for example, information that is mentioned in the book description).  Any review containing overt spoilers will be marked as such wherever applicable.

Review Structure

Note that the format of my review differs slightly depending on the platform. 

  • Graphic. I either use the book’s cover or a self-made graphic with the cover of the book.  Any graphic I make is made in Canva and is not made with any AI
  • Title. <title book> by <name author>
  • Star rating. A rating based on my personal opinion. (Details about this are written underneath the ‘Star Rating’ head below.)
  • Little introduction of the post and book. This could be a small summary of the book, what drew me to it, or why I started reading it. This element may vary.
  • Body of the review. The body consists of my thoughts on the book.  This can include, but is not limited to, my opinions on the characters and plot, the writing style, what worked for me, what didn’t work for me, the development of plot elements.
  • Conclusion. A short summary of what worked (or didn’t), if I would I recommend the story or not and whether I would read more books in the series/by the author.
  • Content warnings.  I don’t always include these, but if there is content in a story that is not mentioned as a trigger that I think could be majorly triggering to a reader, I will mention it.

Rating system

Blew my socks off and I highly recommend. (★★★★★)
Good, but not amazing.  Recommend. (★★★★)
It was okay and I likely recommend. (★★★)
Too many issues to recommend. (★★)
Very problematic and no redeeming qualities (★)

How to Request

To submit your request, email me at alphascourt@gmail.com with the subject line ‘’Review request: [book title] by [author]’’ and include the following information:

  • Book synopsis/description.
  • Name of the series (if applicable)
  • Genres/subgenres
  • Publishing imprint (if applicable)
  • Length of the book (page- and/or wordcount)
  • Format(s) of the book you have available.
  • Any content and trigger warnings applicable
  • Preferred deadline or timeframe for the review.
  • [Optional, but preferred] High quality image of the book cover I can use for my review graphic.

I am a pretty quick reader and don’t necessarily have a specific turn-around time.  I work with deadlines given to me by the author and requestor and do my level best to have a review posted (or communication of a DNF) by that time. If sending a physical copy for review, please keep in mind any possible shipping times to Illinois in the United States. If my life circumstances change and I need additional time for a review, I will communicate so to the author or requestor in a timely manner.I do not charge for my reviewing services.

AI Policy

I do not accept any content that was made with or by AI.  By requesting a review from me, you accept my policy and acknowledge that no part of the work you are requesting was written by or with AI.  If, at any point in the request or review process, I find out that the requested work is AI assisted or written, the requestor/author will be added to my blacklist and I will never consider a review for the requestor/author or any company affiliated with the requestor/author in the future.

I do not use AI whatsoever in my reviews or in any graphics I may create to post with my reviews.

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