spoilers- do you or don't you

I love them.  I read them anytime I see them, sometimes even on books I have no plan to ever read.  Odd, I know!  I avoid them in my own reviews because I have friends who hate them but I personally find that they make the story better almost always.  There was one exception.... an Agatha Christie book that to this day I can't read since I accidentally read a spoiler.  Otherwise, I love them!

if the spoiler is simply a quote or an accurate discription of a scene then I'm usually fine with it

it's when an important scene or character detail is described and then the reviewer's personal opinions/interpretation of that are given that can cause me trouble .... because now I'll have that reveiwers interpretation in mind when I read the book ... this has impacted a couple of books I've read this year ... so now there are a few reveiwers that I try to pass by until after I've read the book   ....  once I've read the book I can go to those reviews and see if I have the same feelings ... and sometimes I've gone back to the book to see if I can see what the reviewer mentions, but I at least was able to form my own uninfluenced opinion on my own first reading

I try not to spoil with too much plot detail ... but that can be hard to do sometimes LOL  ... esp. if I particularly love a book!

We need a devil smiley, don't we?  Hee hee hee....

You made my day!   BTW, I just checked yours too, and I love the set-up that you use - concise and easy to read!  Mine need to be tightened just a bit.

Oh, and I wanted to add that of all the reviews I've read here on eharl I've never been turned off from reading a book for myself.  I guess it's because I know everyone is going to see a book differently no matter what.  I have been really interested in reading a book after some reviews - especially when they tell a tasty morsel of what the story is really about (this is usually the part that comes before the opinion of the book).  In fact, I have fun reading the reviews! 

If it is for a book I plan on reading I don't read spoilers until after I've read the book.  In fact, I don't usually read a review of a book I'm planning on reading as I don't want my reading pleasure influenced.  When I post a review for a book I didn't care for I try to keep it short & not to negative.  Sometimes I will comment that the book didn't work for me.  Lucky for me I don't read a lot of books I don't like!!!

You are right, there are a few more Icons we could use!  I like to see a hug for one!

Have a good day everyone.  Good subject Christa.

I'm glad I'm doing something right :)

I use the RT reviews to help gauge books or cull books ... I'm such a bookaholic and there are so many great books out there ... those sometimes their reviews are off, I find mostly they are a great help ... the fact that they are brief and to the point, is perfect

in 2006, my reviews for the Challenge were very brief ... perhaps a three or four sentence blurb .... and actually I think they rather got the gest of the book .... since them I've become more verbose LOL ..... and now for the life of me I don't think I'd be able to write a brief review! LOL

Gosh, I know!  I'm the same way.  I find myself wanting to do the good reviews chapter by chapter too.  For The Diplomat's Wife (a book not everyone would like, but is definitely worth trying out), I did go halfway into the book with the review!  But it's a pretty thick book, so the review left the best part out.

I like spoilers.  I think I have a different standard as to what a "spoiler" is.  To me, any plot points aren't really spoilers.  Expanding on the plot of the book and what happens is just a summary to me.  (So I started putting a spoiler warning on my reviews, saying that all of 'em contain general spoilers to some degree)

The only things I consider spoilers are things that would ruin your enjoyment of the book if you knew in advance...  things like a RAPE or MISCARRIAGE or INFIDELITY.  A secret pregnancy or knowing that the pregnancy doesn't end up in miscarriage can spoil the tension before the conclusion too.... but I would only make a special note to warn about miscarriage if the miscarriage actually happened.  And I'd warn for rape or other abuse too. 

**SPOILER**  TEXT   **/SPOILER** (is how I would note especially spoilerific parts)

I know... I don't really consider it much of a spoiler myself, I'd WANT to know myself.  But other people seem to think that I give a bit too many details... so it's good to be cautious I guess. 

The only one I feel bad about spoiling sometime is the "miscarriage" thing.  Because all the joy you feel for the couple expecting a child just gets crushed as soon as you find out there's no hope for them saving their baby.  So if there's a miscarriage mentioned, regardless of the outcome, I usually make some vague reference to their being "problems with the pregnancy" or something. 

I've used my tag line to give some spoiler hints .... if you can't mention "secrets" the hero or heroine may be keeping, so I use tags ... I try to use as many tag words as I can think of .... and it's amazing how much of the tone of a book you can get just from tag words ... I wish more reviewers would remember to use them ... esp if they are plot devices like amnesia, reuinon, betrayal, revenge

Janet, I really enjoy your reviews ..... your quoted scenes to me aren't really spoilers because you're not interpreting them in any way other than to say they are a favourite scene .... it's no more than what I do when I skim a book before I select it to read

I like fidelity in the stories too.  I mean before a relationship starts for the H and h, it's fine for one or both to be sleeping with other people... but after the H and h get together intimately I like to see them stay faithful to each other in spite of conflicts.  I just don't think it's romantic for one partner to try to get revenge on the other by 'sleeping around'.  Not only does it seem immature to me, but it seems just plain nasty.  Oh, and I'd like to see more Harlequin Everlasting Love romances, the ones that span a marriage (or relationship) over the course of time.  I've even bounced a few ideas of my own around in my head.  After I'm involved with SSE for a while, I might try writing for that line also.  Of, course I like nearly ALL of Harlequin's lines! HBZ's, HR's, SRS's, SN's, HH's, SD's.... etc.

I got a little off subject here, didn't I?  Oops....  Anyway it's really interesting to read everyone's different opinions about spoilers.  I'm thinking that 'spoilers' are kind of elusive...it's hard to define exactly what they are.  But so far I haven't read any terrible reviews that made me want to throw up.  To me, almost anything someone says about a book is better than nothing at all.  Of course, as with anything, there's bound to be exceptions to this.  I just haven't found them yet. 

I have really enjoyed reading the "favorite scenes" that Janet has been doing. For me, it has made me want to read the books even more. That is also true if someone is really excited about a book and gives information about the basic story but does not give away the big stuff or too many details.

I don't mind know certain things. I don't like to read about everything that happens. Basically, a summary of the book that tells me everything. It may also depend on the book. I know that I wanted to go into the Lover Enshrined blogs because I was really curious of the direction the story might be going. I also was excited about the book being out and wanted to get more excited. But I was afraid there would be spoilers of the things I wanted to find out for myself.

I think that in series where we know so much about the characters and are anticipating certain things to happen, then I do want to read that for myself and feel the excitment or whatever emotion. The Black Dagger Brotherhood books are like that for me and the In Death books too. I don't want to know what is going to happen with Eve, Roarke and the gang until I read about it.

I love to talk spoilers after I've read a book. I also miss the white font. It was fun to be able to use that.

Margie :)

But, Amanda, I love spoilers and I hate opening presents before Christmas.

*VBEG*

"I don't think different opinions change my review because I know my take on the story will not be the same as the other persons."

 I agree.  I don't think it's the opinions so much that effect whether or not I want to read to read the book, but the content that's mentioned.  For instance, most people tell what the general theme of the story is in their review - which is what I focus on.  I don't pay as much attention to whether they thought it was great or horrible.  If the theme sounds interesting to me, I'll check it out.  Sometimes the title and cover alone snatches my attention, but more often it's the theme. 

I'm seldom ever sorry I bought any particular book.  It's happened, but not too often.

I always enjoy your reviews.  In fact you've called my attention to more than one book I probably wouldn't have read otherwise.   You've influenced me more by what you wrote about the book, than your opinion of it - if that makes sense?

I did get to thinking about something else to add to this great topic. There's a few instances where I've seen several reviews for the same book and they're all negative because of a demeaning quality - ex: infidelity.  If that's the case, I confess I stay away from the book because I can't possibly imagine that it would be salvaged for me, considering that I despise infidelity between he H & h.  After all, there are so many other books to choose from.  Why waste time reading something that's probably not meant for me?  Let me go on record as saying that this is very rare, however 

Christa...  I don't want either the H or h to do cheating themselves.  If the significant others of a H or h cheat, then that's not going to bother me too much because I'm not MEANT to sympathize with or like that significant other.  What bothers me is that I'm supposed to like and respect a H and h, and I don't when they cheat on either their H/h or they cheat cheat on their significant other WITH the H/h.  I like it better when they end their other relationships first and have a little honour and respect for their partners. 

Often this happens: the hero cheating after he's met the heroine... that evil oft-appearing other woman who wants to get the hero back into her bed and cause trouble.  If the book has no long-separation, then usually the hero turns the other woman down...   but I hate to see it when there's a lengthy separation and in those years that the third party broke up the H/h, the hero sleeps with the very woman who spread lies and took the heroine out of his life.