Being A Book Blogger | Interview with Jess aka Jess Hearts Books
BB: For any of our readers who aren’t already followers could you tell us a little bit about the girl behind the blog?
Hi, I’m Jess - a twenty something, British Nerdfighter with a love for all things Disney. I’ve been blogging on my book blog Jess Hearts Books for three years now. I mainly blog about YA but there is some Chick-Lit and New Adult on there too for good measure!
BB: Where does your passion for reading come from and how did you get into reviewing?
I’ve loved reading for as long as I can remember and that passion has just grown as I’ve gotten older! I can’t remember a time where I haven’t had a book in my hand and I can’t imagine ever not reading either. I actually started posting reviews on Amazon a couple of years before I started book blogging. I decided that I wanted a place to put all of my reviews together in one place so that people with similar tastes could find other books that I’ve enjoyed and therefore they might enjoy also. My best friend actually started a book blog first (she’s since moved on to Booktubing and can be found here) and I thought “that looks like fun!” and decided to make one too. I had no idea at the time that there was a whole community of book bloggers out there and gradually discovered other bloggers through meme’s and people leaving comments on my blog. Some of those early commenters are still blog regulars to this day which I feel very lucky to have.
BB: Of all your reviews so far which are you most proud of, and which did you find the most difficult to write?
I’ve been quoted in/on a few books here in the UK so I always feel really proud of the reviews that publishers have decided to share snippets of on the actual books themselves! A few of these include Dare You To by Katie McGarry, Shadow & Bone and Siege & Storm by Leigh Bardugo and Fathomless by Jackson Pearce. I’m also really proud of my review for A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness as it got me into the top ten of a blogger competition.
Any book that I have a huge emotional connection to or have really loved is always difficult to write a review on. I always feel like I can never do the book justice! Just One Day by Gayle Forman and Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins would be prime examples.
BB: You have a unique romance themed rating system for your reviews, how did you come up with the idea?
I was actually having my blog redesigned at the time. Up to that point I’d used a standard 5 star rating system. I wanted something unique to me and the blog and I figured given my blog name rating a book on how much I loved it using relationship stages would go really well with my blogs theme. I looked online for some common relationship terms and ideas and now have a system ranging from a 1 star “it’s not me it’s you” to a 5 star “all time love” rating.
BB: Which five books are at the top of your TBR list right now?
My TBR is constantly changing depending on my mood but as of right now I have these books coming up soon.
1.) Perfect Ruin by Lauren DeStefano
2.) More Than This by Patrick Ness
3.) The Redemption of Callie and Kayden by Jessica Sorensen
4.) Another Way to Fall by Amanda Brooke
5.) The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater
BB: Now for a couple of fun questions! Who is your 'book crush'?
I have so many favourite book boys! I actually have a list on Goodreads titled “the best book boys” to keep track of them all. My top favourites are Cricket (Lola and the Boy Next Door) Simon (The Mortal Instruments) Hale (Heist Society) and Augustus (The Fault in Our Stars.) My most recent addition to the list is Levi from Fangirl! I really like sweet, intelligent, funny, nerdy guys.
BB: Which two fictional characters, from different books/series, would you like to see appear together in a new story?
I would love Will (The Infernal Devices) and Jace (The Mortal Instruments) to meet! They are so similar in personality and I think they’d be so funny together as well as make an unbeatable Shadowhunter fighting team.
BB: Finally, which book blogs (other than your own of course!) would you recommend our readers take a look at?
I have a list of my favourite blogs on my blog and I try to visit them all regularly. My absolute must reads though are bloggers who have very similar taste in books as me and are who I get most of my recommendations from.
1.) Daisy Chain Book Reviews – Leanna is a blogger who I have followed from the very beginning. She writes honest and thoughtful reviews and I love that it’s not easy to get a 5 star rating out of her because then I know that the books that she does rate 5 stars are extra special.
2.) The Secret Life of a Bookworm – Samantha is a new blogger that I’ve discovered this year and I’m so happy I did! I call her my “book soulmate” as we share the same taste in pretty much all of our books. I’m constantly recommending her things I’ve loved because I know right away that she’ll love them too.
3.) The Readers Den – Jasprit and Rachel’s blog is also one that I discovered this year. I think of them as my “contemporary girls” as I’m always adding onto my wishlist contemporary books I’ve found from Jasprit and New Adult books I’ve found from Rachel.
4.) Planet Print – I’ve followed Liz’s blog for a couple of years now. I love her reviews and our opinions on books match more times than not. If Liz likes a book it will go up on my TBR and if she hated it it’ll go down.
5.) Realm of Fiction – Sam’s blog I only discovered a few months ago but it has quickly become one of my favourites. Her reviews are INCREDIBLE they give me review writing envy! I’ve already bought a few books based on Sam’s recommendations one being Of Beast and Beauty by Stacey Jay which I can’t wait to read soon.
6.) The Cait Files – Like Liz I’ve been following Cait for a few years now. I think I actually discovered them both together as I’d always see them talking on Twitter! I love Cait’s blog for exactly the same reasons that I love Liz’s and now she’s started working at a publishing house I love hearing about how she’s doing at her dream job!
7.) Dark Readers – Casey is a book blogging firecracker! Not only does she have great taste and has persuaded me to check out so many books but she also does these gorgeous make-up looks based on book covers and makes book trailers for publishers! I love this girl and was so happy to meet her in London recently!
Wow, I feel like my answer to this question is a post on its own! I seriously love each of these blogs and hope you’ll check them out and love them too!
Thank you for having me on your blog today!
Find Jess' blog here - Jess Hearts Books
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I'd like to say a huge thank you from all of us here at BB to Jess for taking part in this interview.
If you are a booktuber or book blogger
and would like to be featured in a similar post we'd love to hear from
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Interview & post by Erin
Cover images via Goodreads
Interview & post by Erin
Cover images via Goodreads
I'm always really interested to see people's book crushes. There are names that you see everywhere, but there will always be a few extras thrown in you wouldn't have thought of.
ReplyDeleteI think of Jasprit and Rachel in the same way! I haven't always been the biggest reader of contemporary fiction, but those two are always managing to convince me to add things to the pile. :) It's so nice to be mentioned! Jess' blog has fast become one of my favourites too.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I don't think I've stopped by here before, so it's nice to discover a new blog. Thanks for sharing, Erin. :)
Wonderful interview here! Thanks for the shout out, Jess! I love visiting your blog and getting your take on reads. I agree, Sam does write the most amazing well thought out reviews! So cool you were quoted in Dare to You as it's one of my favorite reads! Cricket is one of my favorite book crushes, too. Lovely interview, BB! It's nice getting to know our fellow bloggers better! :)
ReplyDelete