Aussie Readers discussion

So do I Helen!!

Very spoilt last night. I saw Michael Robotham being interviewed by Vikki Petraitis at Brighton town hall. He had a lot of funny stories, he was quite entertaining.
He did mention that his 19th book is I think a series/book release being worked on in the States but his 20th book he plans it to be based in Australia.

Sounds great Heather! I'm looking forward to both of those! It doesn't matter what he writes, I'll read it :)

Really disappointed that Booktopia has gone into administration. I have $219.55 in outstanding orders!! Even if I get the money back sourcing the books from elsewhere is going to be annoying and maybe difficult. My local bookshop is not the greatest and the staff are not that helpful or really knowledgeable.
Are there any other decent online Australian bookshops?

I use for hard to get books Blackwells in the UK, they have free shipping.
https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/home/

Margot wrote: "Really disappointed that Booktopia has gone into administration. I have $219.55 in outstanding orders!! Even if I get the money back sourcing the books from elsewhere is going to be annoying and ma..."

Book Grocer is my go to bookshop now. They have new and second hand, and although they don't have new releases until down the track, they have a lot of choices. https://bookgrocer.com/

Brotherhood Books is all second hand. https://www.brotherhoodbooks.org.au/

And then there's Big W, KMart and Target which all have new releases. Big W has the biggest range, they're cheaper and they deliver for a modest $4 delivery charge.

Boomerang Books is Australian and I have used them many times.

https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/

Thanks Veronica - another one I hadn't heard of!

Brenda wrote: "I've just had 6 reviews returned from Amazon, saying they "don't meet their guidelines" without saying why. I went there to do a review again, and they've removed every single review - thousands - ..."

I had an email from Amazon overnight - "We'd love to get your feedback"!!!!! I gave it to them!!

Brenda wrote: "Brenda wrote: "I've just had 6 reviews returned from Amazon, saying they "don't meet their guidelines" without saying why. I went there to do a review again, and they've removed every single review..."

I bet you enjoyed that!!!

I did! But they STILL haven't answered my emails or done anything about it!!!

That's shocking.

I don't know who to contact next...

That is terrible, they really need to treat their customers much better :(

Brenda wrote: "I've just had 6 reviews returned from Amazon, saying they "don't meet their guidelines" without saying why. I went there to do a review again, and they've removed every single review - thousands - ..."

I really don't understand why this has happened to you Brenda. Was there anything in particular about the six reviews rejected by Amazon? For example were they all books sent to you by Authors or from Netgalley or a mixture of ARCs and kindle books you'd bought?

They were a mix of books I'd purchased (from Amazon!) and ARCs. They said I had "continually violated their terms and conditions" but that was all they said. No reason other than that garbage! I read through their terms and conditions and I have done nothing that is in there. The thousands of reviews that were already on their site, had previously been approved by them, so WHY?? It just doesn't make any sense. Plus the fact that they won't answer my emails!

Margot wrote: "Really disappointed that Booktopia has gone into administration. I have $219.55 in outstanding orders!! Even if I get the money back sourcing the books from elsewhere is going to be annoying and ma..."

The Guardian has published a round-up of alternatives - includes one or two that haven’t been mentioned in earlier replies.

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/a...

Brenda wrote: "They were a mix of books I'd purchased (from Amazon!) and ARCs. They said I had "continually violated their terms and conditions" but that was all they said. No reason other than that garbage! I re..."

It's so weird Brenda. If you had violated the T&Cs before they would have told you! So frustrating that they won't communicate with you. And also scary that it could happen to any of us without explanation! I guess all you can do is keep contacting help and asking why.

Carolyn wrote: "Brenda wrote: "They were a mix of books I'd purchased (from Amazon!) and ARCs. They said I had "continually violated their terms and conditions" but that was all they said. No reason other than tha..."

Another victim of the 'woke police'

What are "woke police" Alex?

You are not the only one Brenda. It happened to Anita today.
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

And the words she quoted is exactly what they said to me! Unbelievable ☹️

It looks as though maybe their computer is cutting out people who review "too many" books. If some idiot has set a nominal figure that could happen.

Goodness only knows, they certainly aren't going to tell me!

Perhaps is the algorithms used by AI, and need to ask to speak to a supervisor of the staff on the help line.

Brenda wrote: "What are "woke police" Alex?"

Those faceless people who set the standards that ensure any minority is to be placated/not offended at any cost. Usually via a bot.

Brenda wrote: "They were a mix of books I'd purchased (from Amazon!) and ARCs. They said I had "continually violated their terms and conditions" but that was all they said. No reason other than that garbage! I re..."

Absolutely shocking that this is happening for you! To be honest I never bother reviewing through Amazon because it seems more trouble than it's worth! GR works for me just fine (mostly haha)

I hope they sort it out for you soon, Brenda.

Odette wrote: "Perhaps is the algorithms used by AI, and need to ask to speak to a supervisor of the staff on the help line."

Thanks Odette, that sounds like a good idea..

Alex wrote: "Brenda wrote: "What are "woke police" Alex?"

Those faceless people who set the standards that ensure any minority is to be placated/not offended at any cost. Usually via a bot."

They're around too much now, these "bots". So hard to find a "real person" to speak to!!

Krystal wrote: "Brenda wrote: "They were a mix of books I'd purchased (from Amazon!) and ARCs. They said I had "continually violated their terms and conditions" but that was all they said. No reason other than tha..."

Thanks Krystal. Yes, it upset me at first, still a bit if I'm honest. But if they don't do anything (which it's looking more and more like that's what'll happen) I won't let it worry me :)

Not sure it’s helpful, but are quite a few people in the Netgalley Readers group who have reported being banned on Amazon for no reason they can think of over the last six months.
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Very sorry to hear of your Amazon troubles, Brenda. I really don’t understand them. Not a good look for them to alienate their best reviewers!

Also, has anyone had someone follow them “multiple” times on Goodreads? I keep getting notifications about one person following me and don’t know if it’s a glitch or something else.

The person is an author, who I gave a negative review to. So, I’m unsure if they’re playing at something or Goodreads notifications are glitching 🙈

It kind of appears like they’re following, then unfollowing, then repeating etc. Never had it happen before.

Margot wrote: "Really disappointed that Booktopia has gone into administration. I have $219.55 in outstanding orders!! Even if I get the money back sourcing the books from elsewhere is going to be annoying and ma..."

There's Abbey's bookshop in Sydney. They charge $9.90 for delivery within Australia. I think their website could be more user-friendly, but they are really knowledgeable about books and will bend over backwards to get books for you that they might not have in store.

Rowan wrote: "Very sorry to hear of your Amazon troubles, Brenda. I really don’t understand them. Not a good look for them to alienate their best reviewers!

Also, has anyone had someone follow them “multiple” ..."

I've had it a couple times - just assume it's people that decided to unfollow but changed their minds, or they deleted their account then regretted and created a new one. I rarely interact with these people but if it happens more than once I just ignore the new request.

Krystal wrote: "Rowan wrote: "Very sorry to hear of your Amazon troubles, Brenda. I really don’t understand them. Not a good look for them to alienate their best reviewers!

Also, has anyone had someone follow th..."

Glad to know I'm not the only one, Krystal! 😊

The author has followed, then unfollowed me around half a dozen times over recent weeks. I'll assume they're just playing games after my negative review, and move on Haha

Rowan wrote: "Krystal wrote: "Rowan wrote: "Very sorry to hear of your Amazon troubles, Brenda. I really don’t understand them. Not a good look for them to alienate their best reviewers!

Also, has anyone had s..."

My suggestion would be to block him Rowan. Go to his author's page then scroll to the very bottom and it says "block this member". That way you won't have to worry about him, and can unblock again if you want.

Carolyn wrote: "Not sure it’s helpful, but are quite a few people in the Netgalley Readers group who have reported being banned on Amazon for no reason they can think of over the last six months.
https://www.good..."

Thanks Carolyn. Interesting. Cutting of noses to spite their faces perhaps. I doubt I'll get my reviews back now, it's been so long.

Carolyn wrote: "Not sure it’s helpful, but are quite a few people in the Netgalley Readers group who have reported being banned on Amazon for no reason they can think of over the last six months.
https://www.good..."

Thanks Carolyn, just made my own comment on the thread.

Brenda wrote: "Rowan wrote: "Krystal wrote: "Rowan wrote: "Very sorry to hear of your Amazon troubles, Brenda. I really don’t understand them. Not a good look for them to alienate their best reviewers!

Also, ha..."

Thanks for the advice, Brenda. That sounds like a good idea!

Good luck :)

I contacted NetGalley yesterday after Carolyn's suggestion (thanks Carolyn) and received a reply overnight.

Megan (NetGalley)

Jul 18, 2024, 10:21 AM EDT

Hi Brenda,

Thank you for reaching out and letting us know. We are aware of the issues and review restrictions that Amazon has put in place, and we are keeping an eye on how this is affecting our members. Sadly, we do not have any insight or influence on Amazon's review policy and have been suggesting that members continue to post on NetGalley and other social media and retail sites in the meantime.

While Amazon has made changes to its customer review policy, it clearly states: "It’s OK to review a free or discounted book (advanced reader copy) that you received from an author or publisher. However, they can’t require a review in exchange or try to influence the review."

We know a number of our members post a disclaimer that says they received the digital review copy from NetGalley in exchange for a review (please note that NetGalley does not require its members to submit/post a review in exchange for digital review copies, and we do not require members to post a disclaimer). Since we're not sure how Amazon will respond to the continued use of disclaimers like this, you may want to simplify it to something like "Thank you [name of publishing company] for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.”

Instagram is definitely a place that publishers like to see members reviews. You can also start adding in the Notes section of the Opinions section of your reviews that Amazon deactivated your reviewing account so you cannot share your review on Amazon.

I added the part at the bottom with the review I just posted in the NG publisher section - a good idea!

Brenda wrote: "I contacted NetGalley yesterday ..."

It's good Netgalley have responded positively to you and are aware of the problem. Also a good idea to add that line re Amazon deactivating your account to your Netgalley reviews so the publishers are aware of the issue too.

Maybe those of us who don't already should start reviewing on Instagram and ditch Amazon :)

I haven't reviewed on Amazon for ages because I don't fulfil their purchase requirements. I post here, NetGalley if applicable, and on several retail sites and a few libraries and post links to my GR review on Insta, Twitter and several FaceBook book groups. Retail sites I post on are Boomerang, Biblio, Dymocks, Waterstones, Kobo. Other sites I post on are Fiction Database and BookBrowse

Goodness Marianne! How do you find the time to post to all those places??

Carolyn wrote: "Brenda wrote: "I contacted NetGalley yesterday ..."

It's good Netgalley have responded positively to you and are aware of the problem. Also a good idea to add that line re Amazon deactivating your..."

I think that's a great idea to ditch Amazon. I'd love to see their reviewing drop to zero! Never likely, but I can hope ;)

And yes, it's a great sentence to put on the publisher notes...

Samantha wrote: "Hope it's okay to post here!
..."

Samantha, it would be better for you to post in the Festival folder. Click on the link to take you there, then create your own thread :)

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

Brenda wrote: "I contacted NetGalley yesterday after Carolyn's suggestion (thanks Carolyn) and received a reply overnight.

Megan (NetGalley)

Jul 18, 2024, 10:21 AM EDT

Hi Brenda,

Thank you for reaching out ..."

Great to hear back from NG, and what a positive response!

Yes, she was wonderful, very professional. Nothing like the Amazon people!

Carolyn has posted in our How Do You Do That thread at the top of the group, on how to EXPORT our books from GR to your own computer. Here's the link for those who are interested :)

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Thanks Carolyn.

Brenda wrote: "Carolyn has posted in our How Do You Do That thread at the top of the group, on how to EXPORT our books from GR to your own computer. Here's the link for those who are interested :)

https://www.go..."

Thanks Brenda. It's a great way to save your library AND your reviews so please try it out if you haven't before and let us know if you have any issues. I use a Mac so there might be differences for other devices (but hopefully not!)