i read hundreds of ratings...
355965
i thought i had picked out the best until i read all the ratings. i trusted what the amazon customers had to say--they were right. this is the most durable, brightest, and has longest battery life for the price. be sure to have 3 "D" cells ready when it arrives!
689953
When I read reviews for this book before I purchased it, I was super doubtful of all the ones that were only a few weeks after quitting and so excited about the purchase. I promised myself that if this worked, for those skeptics like myself I would wait a full year before writing a review. I had to remind myself of this promise repeatedly this year, as I quickly fully understood the immediate excitement others had expressed after quitting. The first time a friend told me she was reading a book and would quit smoking soon, I was sure she was crazy. But once I thought about it, I realized a couple of truths: (1) said friend was the heaviest smoker I knew, and (2) I, like she, had already tried every other method of quitting and not been successful for any length of time. Upon reading all of the great reviews here, I realized that so many positive reviews must have meant something, so I decided to give it a try. I received the book and couldn't wait to start reading as it promises quitting smoking upon finishing. As other reviews mention, this is not a magic trick but rather a better way to think about smoking. It does require a fair amount of open-mindedness in order to allow the book to change one's mind. Per Allen Carr's advice, I did not try to stop before I got to the end and in fact kept the book on my back patio with my ashtray and read it while I was smoking until I got to the end. Once I was a few pages from the end, I became very nervous and cried to my wife at least once that I was terrified this may not work and then I was going to be stuck smoking the rest of my life. I even had several thoughts of stopping reading at that point to run out for one more pack of smokes to "ease the transition." I also considered not finishing at all so that I could keep smoking (Carr warns of this as well) until I remembered that I DID NOT WANT TO SMOKE ANY MORE. So, I finished the book and literally put out my last cigarette at the same time, instantly bursting into tears as I was so excited to no longer be tied to that disgusting, horribly addictive habit. I spent the rest of that afternoon emailing a thank you to the friend that had told me about the book and other loved ones to let them know the great news. Then I fully understood the desire to immediately write reviews here heralding the greatness, as quitting smoking this way makes you so certain that it's truly over. I will say that there were times in the following couple of weeks when I didn't find the process as "fun" as promised, but I did find it relatively easy to remind myself of the addiction monsters that were challenging me and ignore them. Within three to four weeks, I found myself fully able to sit on patios at bars drinking with friends who were smoking and not wish for one at all. It probably took a full eight to twelve weeks before I stopped thinking that I needed to stop at the gas station when I left work because I didn't have any smokes, but I also easily remembered each day as soon as I had that thought, "no I don't because I am free of that now." And now I am able to go for leisurely walks with other nonsmokers instead of having to spend break times and lunch times and schedule my whole life around smoking (I no longer schedule flights around which airports have smoking lounges or have easy ways outside anymore)it's been the most freeing year of my life. Now I am not only a nonsmoker, I am also a marathon finisher. If you are thinking about being ready to quit, or even thinking about thinking about it, do yourself a favor and buy this book. I have bought several for others (only one who used it so far) because it changed my life so significantly. Happy quit-i-versary to me! This has truly worked, even when other cold turkey methods, patches, and e-cigarettes all failed for so many years. Take it from a 17-year pack-a-day smoker, I always said I just wanted to quit and not think about it anymore but nothing else did that for me. Allen Carr did.
3203889
Every review is a perfect 5.  Hard to believe.  In fact, it stinks with the odor of personal friends doing him a favor on Amazon to help him sell his book.

So why did I give a 5 too?  I'm not POSITIVE, yet I wanted to say that I do not trust those reviews.  So what's one more 5 gonna hurt?
3202138
I was so excited to receive this... I had looked at others but the read the reviews on this particular product. I read the feedbacks and it helped me make my purchase decision.
4124250
There's pretty much a million and one things I could say about this book but I simply can't. I don't know how. All I can say is that I enjoyed it ten times more than I thought I would. I'd probably even re-read it someday.
1045856
I have been wanting to read this book, like, Forever. I just couldn't get myself to pay 7.99 for it. So it was just there and I am just here reading all these lousy .99 books. The synopsis of these .99 books seem so good and interesting. I don't hesitate to pay .99. Lately, half the time I skim over those pages b/c it just couldn't hold my attention or I couldn't connect with the characters.
Why am I doing this when all I have heard are great things about November 9. Not to mention, I have already read some of her other books and I love the way she writes.

I finally bought the book 2 days ago. Thank goodness I started it on the weekend. I couldn't put it down. Are you trying to decide is it worth the 8.00? Yes, yes it was. It was so good to read some good smooth writing.

Not going to go into what the story is about...The synopsis pretty tells you; not to mention half a dozen of other reviews.

Dual points of view. Thank goodness!!!! These are strong characters. They have their moments but they each pull his/her own weight; including her BFF, Amber. They aren't wishy washy.. They go in and take the "bulls by the horns." (if you know what I mean)
As each yr passes, you can see how they grow in maturity and the decisions that are hard to make.
Ben has a personality that will positively having you chuckle to yourself. I even believe he humors himself.

I don't know why this line made me LOL but it did.

Fallon ask "You think we'll ever see each other agian?"
Ben says, I hope so. I would be lying if I said I'm not already plotting to hunt you down when your twenty three. But five years is a long time. Who know what could happen between now and then. Hell, I didn't even have hair on my nuts five years ago."

That is such a simple statement but when you know his personality... It will make you LOL too.

So should you invest $$$, and your time in this book? Definitely a Hell yes. :)
4121981
Read all the good reviews and just add these 5 stars to the stats ... two thumbs up !
4162323
I really am picky when choosing a book to read.  I consider my time valuable & tend to "research" my reading options via reviews.  This book and author was being promoted all over my newsfeed, but I'm not usually into books with a bunch of sports details so I held off on buying it.  My curiosity got the best of me and I scanned the reviews.  I found lots of positive ones for sure, but I wanted to know what other readers disliked so I'd have a better idea of what disappointments might lie ahead.  Not to knock anyone else's review (bc I'm a sucky fan that rarely posts reviews so who am I to judge?), but a particular review caught my eye.  It alluded to usage of food analogies during intimate scenes and how it was off-putting to the reader.  The reviewer even threw in a bunch of examples from the book to make her point.  I admit that that particular review colored my expectations for the story, but I also figured that if that was the worst thing about the book then maybe I wouldn't be too disappointed afterwards.  Long story short: the book was awesome!  I learned a lot about hockey, but the author spread the info out so it wasn't overwhelming for me or distracting from the romance aspect.  There were hilarious word choices for sure & some quirky analogies that I wasn't expecting, but it all came together in this amazing way that made the story memorable and different.  I went right ahead and bought the second book without even doing my usual research and that says a lot.  I'm getting ready to buy the third book in the series bc I'm now familiar with the writing style of the author & I LOVE IT!!
204475
I haven't bought a new screen yet for my broken phone. But, in reading 'customer reviews' on several of the products offered for sale, I am seeing that the reviews on several different products are exactly the same, word for word! SO, either many people bought one of each product and had 'amazing, easy to install, love it, great!' experience with every one of them, OR, someone is copy and pasting customer reviews on several different products....
4185751
I get non stop comments of how much people like them
882053
...and I read a lot. The book didn't seem very interesting but I read the reviews here and finally picked it up. This is one of those books that entertain you and make you think. If you don't want this, turn on the network tv channels...
3536962
But I got suckered by the reviews.  It seems to me that the author reworded all the zombie apocalypse stories out there. Quite a bit of the walking dead story lines. And at times not even changing the words. 1 scene where a Negan like character is trying to decide who dies in this group of good guys. He actually uses the Eeny Meany Miney Moe Schitck  Nothing original. Which would be ok if the writing and characters were compelling or likeable.  Add in an anti Christian /anti religion tone and a leftist political stance. And top it all off with a out of nowhere a main character (Rick from Walking Dead) killed off then resurrected by a random hillbilly preacher. I try to read and support new authors as much as possible but I feel like I got ripped off on this one. Way over priced
800750
I admit... I was a bit skeptical... but after reading the dozen glowing reviews racked up in just 4 days after it was published... I soon understood that this book was special.

AFTER ALL... it promises MIRACLE foods. Now don't you want a miracle?

In fact this book is so great that one reviewer (Angela Johnson) is already off her blood pressure medication just 4 days after the book was published!  And just look at those Editorial Reviews. This guy even got the book reviewed by the World Heath Organization! I confess, I did not know they did book reviews.

So do what I did... On the advice of his friends.... ooops I mean the other reviewers, I quit going to the doctor and now I'm eating miracle foods. My blood pressure was fixed in just 12 minutes. (top that you other reviewers)

Who needs doctors with fancy degrees and letters behind their name for medial conditions when we have retired project managers writing ebooks about miracle foods?

And if you believe this review, you'll probably believe the rest of them too!
928971
There are a lot of books, websites, blogs, and suggestions out there for authors - I know - I've read many of them. This one came highly recommended by respected fellow authors so I eagerly snatched it up. I did not read to the end before trying the suggestions. Changed my description. I've done that before without a problem. Left my categories alone but changed my keywords. Big mistake to try out several changes at once. My books TANKED in the ratings. Spiraled out of control like a meteorite heading for Earth. Went into unheard of, miserable ratings like 800,000!!!! They were in the tens of thousands to 100,000 before I tried the techniques. All I'm advising is to read through to the end and make one teensy tiny change at a time. Otherwise, the killing that will be made is to YOUR books.
857171
Decided it was too expensive for me so I can't really offer an opinion. I just went with 5 stars because it had high ratings from others.
3374752
It can be so hard to evaluate these reviews on Amazon.  Do numbers matter?  100 people love a book and 25 hate it, will I like it? (I often start with the one-star reviews which I'm beginning to think may be a mistake).

As an exercise I read this book and then reviewed the reviews.  "Maine" is my kind of book.  It's almost entirely character driven.  I don't have to love the characters or hate them or even find them especially fascinating.  Perhaps because life is all about people and relationships for me, what I have to do is hear the character's voice distinct from the author's.  I got that in "Maine."  Each of the characters is different and believable.  I know people who remind me of them.  Alice is the mother, if not of my family, at least of one of my friends growing up.

Many of the one-star reviews for "Maine" complain that not much "happens" in the book.  This isn't, in fact, a plot-driven book.  If you need that, read The Red Tent or any of a zillion other novels.  I would think they'd be much easier to write, but to me it's just a long stretch of an author manipulating the characters' actions to achieve a desired result.  Too often I see characters who are unique in some power or talent, wholly unlike anyone I've ever known (when I see the word "Harvard" in a novel I know I've made a mistake.)

Maine doesn't have any of this.  It's character-driven, not plot-driven, and the characters are interesting, not necessarily against a backdrop of fascinating human characters, but simply for who they are.  They're well drawn.  They're people I want to know better.

I think Courtney Sullivan is an exceptional writer and I'm really glad I ignored the one-star reviews and read this book.

I hope this review has helped you decide whether it's something you'd like to read.
2345368
I'm inclined to agree with the Reader From Atlanta...when I see five or more reviews, with similar dates that all seem to gush with very similar generic enthusiasms, "Please, someone pinch me, this book is so Wonderful", the gauge on my b.s. meter starts heading for redline.