Question for reviewers

[Michelle]

I've recently started reviewing books and I was wondering, what if a book description or genre doesn't appeal to you and you decide not to accept the book? How do you communicate that politely to the author?
Also, what if you have accepted a book but are unable to get into it? What do you do?

[Alina]

I set expectations on my website. I encourage authors to contact me but warn them that I might reject or not finish a book, explaining that it doesn't necessarily mean the book is bad, just that it's not for me. I've only recently started doing it, so I haven't had a situation where I didn't finish the book, but I've rejected one. I explained that the theme of the book was just something I personally wasn't interested in, but encouraged them to keep trying with other reviewers because it had to do with my personal preferences only. The author was understanding and we had a nice conversation :)

[Michelle]

Thanks Alina. That's very helpful.