About Me

BookSexy Review is the 3-year-old project & tragically named blog of Tara Olmsted (a.k.a. – tolmsted).   I’m an American reader whose obsession with books began early and never went away.  I currently live in the Eastern United States with my husband and two dogs (all booklovers in their own, special ways) in a house packed with books. 

At night I dream about bookshelves.

On the whole you’ll find my reading habits fairly democratic – with a bit of everything popping up at one time or another.  But as of 2011 there has been a definite shift towards books in translation and international authors.  

That shift occurred after reading the Iranian author Shahriar Mandipour’s novel Censoring of an Iranian Love Story.  Relations between the U.S. & Iran have been, to put it mildly, somewhat strained.  Iran is constantly mentioned in the news, but it’s a country I know very little about.  Mandipour made me realize that cultural identities can be represented and made accessible through literature.  That it is possible to gain some insight into a different culture’s motivations and values by reading their books.   And once I started on that path – seeking out books translated from other languages into English or just written by authors from countries other than my own – I didn’t look back.

An unfortunate by-product of my compulsive reading habit is the need to connect people with books they’ll love. I’m a literary matchmaker whose friends are tired of being set up. (This wouldn’t be a problem if they’d read faster!)  Once they revolted I was faced with a decision: lifetime banishment to the spam folders of my nearest and dearest, or start a blog. Thus BookSexyReview was born.

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BookSexy Review Policy

BookSexy Review is a general book review blog with a focus on fiction, literary fiction & non-fiction.  I am currently only accepting books by international authors and translations for review.  I am always happy to receive requests from publicists and authors.  Please send them to booksexyblog@gmail.com.  (Please be aware that I am less likely to review romance, memoir, sci-fi/fantasy and YA titles unless the writing is particularly strong or they “cross-over” into the literary fiction & narrative non-fiction categories).

Acceptance of a review or advance copy does not guarantee a review (favorable or otherwise).  Reviews will clearly state whether the book is an advance or review copy.

All reviews will be fair and all opinions expressed will be my own (unless otherwise noted).   Because I review both fiction & non-fiction, in multiple genres and areas of interest, I may sometimes do background research or cross-reference the book with other books by the same author, on the same topic, etc.  Part of the fun of writing BookSexy is making these kinds of connections.  Ultimately, books will be reviewed on their own merit and with the author’s intentions always in mind.

I will only read books that I find interesting, that I believe my readers will find interesting, or in which I see literary value.

BookSexy Review is a completely non-profit venture.  No review or advance copies will ever be sold for personal financial gain.

I am also active on GoodReads (Tara Cheesman-Olmsted) & Twitter (@BookSexyReview).