New Rating System

For the last two months, I've been rating books on a five-star system. I haven't really had any standards from which to base these stars; it's sort of been on a whim, really. If I felt one book was better than another book, then I'd rate it higher. I've been thinking about it, though, and I've realized that since I don't review books from only one genre, it's not really fair to compare, say, a Deanna Raybourn book to a Kurt Vonnegut book. It's like apples and oranges, really.

Instead, I've come up with a new rating system by which to judge the books that I review. Being that the title of the site is Gabriel Reads, I've decided to give books a rating based on the Gabriel Scale. This Gabriel, to be exact:

Tilda Swinton as the angel Gabriel in Constantine.

I'm a huge fan of Tilda Swinton and of characters named Gabriel so I figured this would be an apt choice. :)

Here is the rating scale, with five being the best and one being the worst:

Five Gabriels: A book that receives five Gabriels is a book that I would read again in a heartbeat. It has well-developed characters, a gripping plot, and a satisfying resolution. In other words, it pulls me in and doesn't let me go. A five Gabriel book must also be free of all but the most incidental grammar and spelling mistakes.

Short Version: I Loved It

Four Gabriels: A four Gabriel book is a read that I thoroughly enjoyed but that I wouldn't add to my list of favorite books. I may reread it again or I may never come back to it. There might be a few flat characters or it might have needed a bit of improvement where plot is concerned, but, as with a five Gabriel book, it can't have any glaring spelling or grammar issues.

Short Version: I Liked It a Lot

Three Gabriels: This is a book that didn't overly impress me but that wasn't too awful either. It most likely will never be reread. It's probably either too long or too short, without a satisfying resolution and lacking character or plot depth. There may also be some issues regarding the conventions of English.

Short Version: It Was All Right

Two Gabriels: A two Gabriel book is utter garbage but is still readable. It has little to no character development and the plot is either non-existent, boring, or hard-to-follow. There are probably numerous spelling and grammar mistakes or the author is simply just not gifted in the art of writing. Would never be reread.

Short Version: What the Heck Is This Crap?

One Gabriel: There are not enough words in all the languages in the world to describe how much I loathe this book. Characters are weak, unlikable, and cliche. Plots are boring, not well-thought-out, and come to a thoroughly disappointing conclusion. Possibly rampant spelling and grammar issues. May not have even finished reading the book.

Short Version: Why Was This Even Published?

Half a Gabriel: A book would never receive half of a Gabriel by itself, but there will be some books that don't exactly fit into the qualifications for a whole-Gabriel-rating. The half-Gabriel exists for just such books. It means that while I may not have liked the characters the plot was better or vice-versa. It may also mean that a book by the same author was slightly better than a different book by that author that I had read.

Short Version: This Book Deserves a Little More Credit

NOTE: Any reviews that I have done up to this point do not count on the Gabriel Scale. They were done with a more willy-nilly rating system and therefore don't necessarily meet the standards of the current scale. Therefore a book that received four stars would not necessarily receive four Gabriels.

-Gabe