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This poll got us thinking about the struggle authors face in getting thoughtful reviews from publishing pros. Asking for blurbs can be awkward for everyone—authors, agents, editors, and publicists alike. You ask around and end up with a review from a middle-aged true crime author for a YA romance! Still, blurbs and reviews are vital for a book’s success. With only a handful of slots for the hundreds of thousands of books published each year, securing quality endorsements is tougher than ever.
CANREADS doesn’t believe that a blurb from a well-known author guarantees better sales. In fact, a blurb from the wrong author can even ruin an author’s reputation, an agent's reputation, and a publishing house's reputation. It's also painful. For every 50 requests sent out, authors get maybe two “I’ll think about it” replies. Most writers are introverts. We’d rather have our head down in the pages than out pounding the pavement, asking for reviews. It's exhausting, to say the least. That's why we created CANREADS, so we can do the work for you.
Book buyers are often very, very, different from authors, who are not always as tapped into communities or book clubs in the same way as avid, local readers are. That’s why our roster of reviewers goes well beyond authors—the people who review your book are part of the groups who will actually buy your book and refer your book to others, or those who have extensive experience in your genre! We are highly selective of who we hire as reviewers, so you can ensure your review will be genuine and professional. We offer Canadian city-specific bylines to promote regional interest in sales.
Our annual CANREADS Book Awards remains a focal point, celebrating outstanding literary achievements. Every other year, we round up our vast collection of submissions, carefully evaluating them to recognize and honour the most exceptional works. This rigorous selection process helps to elevate the profiles of talented authors, ensuring they receive the recognition they deserve. The CANREADS Awards cover a diverse range of 38 genre categories, with eligible pub dates currently ranging from 2015-2025.
Authors who purchase a blurb or review are automatically entered for free.
Please reach us at info@canreads.ca if you cannot find an answer to your question.
Although these are promotional reviews, we ensure they are entirely honest and provided by readers from your target market. As outlined on our website, our reviewers are carefully vetted and include avid readers in your genre, book influencers, former and current Indigo employees, and industry professionals with deep knowledge of the market. While our reviews emphasize your book's strengths, they remain genuine and unbiased. We always include constructive feedback if necessary, which you can omit in your promotional materials.
We prioritize confidentiality with the utmost care. All of our reviewers are bound by strict contracts to maintain full confidentiality, and many of them work in publishing, fully appreciating the sensitivity of pre-publication materials. Access to your manuscript is limited exclusively to our team, who store it securely on a locked drive, and to the single reviewer assigned to your book. If additional security measures are desired, we can provide a legal agreement confirming that everything remains confidential on our end and under your full ownership.
The review process usually takes 4 to 6 weeks from submission. We aim to provide thorough and timely feedback. Expedited options are available for delivery within 14 days.
Although we cannot guarantee a specific reviewer, you are welcome to indicate your preference, and we will make every effort to accommodate your request. Rest assured, we carefully pair each manuscript with an industry professional or reader who specializes in the target market and has ample experience with your genre.
To submit your book for review, visit our Shop page and purchase a blurb or review package. Our team will then reach out to you to collect your manuscript and provide more details.
After your book has been reviewed, you will receive a comprehensive review report via email. You can use this review for promotional and marketing purposes, and it will also be featured on our website. Additionally, we send promotional stickers for you to place on physical copies of your book. These stickers have been shown to boost in-person sales by drawing attention and signaling credibility to potential buyers.
We do not publish them on third-party platforms, which would conflict with platform policies. These reviews are designed for your use in promoting your book—whether on the front or back cover, in press releases, advertising, or as part of your book description on third-party platforms. If the assigned reviewer is personally inclined, they may choose to leave a separate review on third-party platforms. However, this would be independent of the CANREADS review and clearly differentiated as such. These third-party reviews are not part of our official service but allow for broader exposure if the reviewer wishes. Once the reviewer submits it to our editorial team, we will ask if they’d like to leave a personal review on Amazon, Goodreads, or any other platform they use.
We reserve the right to withhold publication of a review if your book does not meet our standards. Many readers and industry professionals browse our website, and we aim to maintain a high standard in what we showcase. If your book has issues such as a large number of grammatical errors or readability concerns, we’ll still provide a constructive review for you, but we won’t publish the review. However, if the material is overtly offensive or contains discriminatory content, we will not review it at all, as we do not tolerate hateful or discriminatory language.
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CANREADS is closed on all major North American holidays. If you reach out to us or purchase a service outside of business hours, we will get back to you and/or fulfill your order the following business day.
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