The Youtini Review System

Here at Youtini, we celebrate all things Star Wars literature. We love the books, the audiobooks, the comics, the short stories, the audiodramas, and everything else under the twin suns of Tatooine. There has simply never been a better time to be a Star Wars fan, because we are experiencing an explosion of creativity that has never been seen over the last four decades of fandom.

However, where there is creativity there is also critique and analysis. For every new Canon release, we publish a non-spoiler review on the day of release or as close to that date as possible. Within these reviews, we attempt to maintain a positive, excited attitude, but we also pride ourselves on our ability to critique fairly and honestly.

In order to help us keep a balanced outlook on each new project, we have developed a simple ratings system to help us stay objective. Within this brief article, I will answer a few questions regarding how we rate and review each new Star Wars book, and hopefully, it will help you as a reader understand where we’re coming from when it comes to our overall recommendations!

Are the reviews at Youtini the views of just one person or the whole staff?

Our reviews attempt to compile the opinions of as many staff members as possible. While every new Canon novel is reviewed only by the writers who receive early copies of the books, older novels have been rated by the entire team as a whole. By gathering as many opinions as possible, we try to incorporate thoughts and opinions by a staff of people with wildly different Star Wars backgrounds as well as life backgrounds.

By combining the thoughts of a wide variety of people, we hope to give a reflection of a whole community so we can give you the best consensus opinion we possibly can!

How do you decide a book’s rating between Mediocre and Masterpiece?

At the bottom of each book review or book profile, you’ll see a rating of Good, Incredible, Masterpiece, etc. We have come up with a series of criteria that allow us to objectively rate a book based on a set of characteristics and give it an overall score as a result.

These criteria include:

Plot: Rate the plot of the book. Consider plot development, story flow, pacing, cameos, and connection to other works.

Characters: Rate the characters in this book. Consider character development, quality, importance to the EU, and decision making.

Writing: Rate the writing style of the book. Consider writing density, complexity, flow, structure, and overall challenge.

Entertainment: Rate the entertainment value of the book. Did you want to keep reading? Could you put it down? Did it have major implications for the EU?

Once each of these criteria are rated individually on that scale, we average them to find our overall score. The score you see upon first review may also change as more staff members are able to catch up on their reading lists, so be sure to check back on your favorites!

What are the possible rankings for every book?

Masterpiece

Incredible

Good

Fair

Mediocre

How long after a book’s release should I expect a full review?

A full review should be expected on the day of release. Occasionally, this is delayed due to shipping delays or the availability of various books.

At Youtini, we believe that Star Wars is a true community filled with some of the best people that fandom has to offer. With this rating system, we hope to continue bringing you reviews that are comprehensive, objective, and hopefully very enjoyable.

Have a blast on your Star Wars reading journey, and keep an eye out here for our reviews of all the upcoming Star Wars novels!

May the Force be with you.