Kirkus Reviews: Value for Money?

Many regard the Kirkus Review as one of the top forums for book reviews, along with Publishers Weekly.

There's a well-written and balanced article on the ALLi (Alliance of Independent Authors) website concerning the value of paying for a Kirkus review. The cost to receive a review in 7–9 weeks is $425 US. You can purchase an expedited review for $575 US that will be delivered in 4–6 weeks.

The author, Giacomo Giammatteo, points both to the pros (marketing tool; credibility in the publishing world) and cons (expensive and rarely results in increased sales) of a Kirkus review.

He also notes that Kirkus promises a review of 250-300 words, but that most of the review consists of a rehash of the plot with little to say about the book itself.

If you're interested in reading this article, it's available at http://selfpublishingadvice.org/publi....

Thanks to Giacomo Giammatteo for an interesting discussion.