Where to Get Book Reviewers for Your Book Launch

A book lives or dies in its first two weeks. Not because of the writing, you have probably done that part well, but because of what readers see when they arrive: a page with a handful of honest reviews, or a page with none.

Knowing where to get book reviewers before launch usually matters more than the writing itself once the book is live.

Early reviews are how a new book earns trust. They feed retailer algorithms, give browsers a reason to click buy, and turn a quiet release into something with a pulse. So most authors go looking for advance readers and book reviewers, people who will read the book before launch and leave a review when it goes live.

The catch is that the well-known places to find those readers were mostly built for authors in the US and UK. If you are in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, or anywhere across the continent, you may have already hit the wall: pricing in dollars you would rather not spend, payout methods that do not support your bank, or an account restricted because of where you live. Some of us have had accounts closed outright, with earnings we could not withdraw.

So, where do you get book reviewers for your launch, and which options actually work if you publish from Africa? This guide lists the real ones honestly, what each is good for and where it falls short, then explains where Sọna fits. And if you are outside Africa, you are just as welcome.

Quick Comparison

The Best Known Book Review and ARC platforms

NetGalley

What it is: The best-known place for connecting books with reviewers, librarians, booksellers, and media. You list a title, and approved members request digital review copies.

Pros: Huge, serious reviewer base. Real industry credibility. Great for traditionally published and well-funded indie titles.

Cons: Expensive, a single-title listing runs into the hundreds of dollars, or you join a co-op to split the cost. Priced and paid in dollars. Smaller books can get lost in the volume.

For African Authors: Usable if you can absorb the dollar cost, but a steep entry point for an indie author earning in naira or cedis.

BookSirens

What it is: A leaner, indie-focused ARC service. Readers browse, request your book, and you approve who gets a copy. You only pay for copies that are actually downloaded.

Pros: Far cheaper than NetGalley. Pay-per-download keeps costs sane. Genre-matched reviewers who tend to follow through.

Cons: Smaller audience than NetGalley. Still billed in dollars. Best for fiction in popular genres.

For African Authors: More affordable than NetGalley, but the payment and payout side is still built around US payment infrastructure.

BookFunnel

What it is: A delivery tool. It does not find reviewers for you, it makes sure the file reaches them cleanly on any device or app, and handles download links and reader support.

Pros: Rock-solid delivery. Reviewers can read on Kindle, phone, or the BookFunnel app. Excellent for sending copies to a list you already have.

Cons: It is delivery, not discovery. You still have to find the reviewers yourself. Annual fee in dollars.

For African Authors: Fine as a delivery layer if you already have reviewers, but it does not solve the harder problem of finding them, or of getting paid.

Other ARC services (Voracious Readers Only, Hidden Gems, and similar)

What it is: Services that match your book to readers from their mailing lists in exchange for honest reviews.

Pros: Done-for-you reviewer matching. Useful if you have a budget and want to outsource the legwork.

Cons: Quality and follow-through vary. Costs add up per campaign. Dollar-billed, US-centric reader bases.

For African Authors: Workable with the budget, but the same dollar and payout friction applies.

Discovery and Promotion Platforms

BookBub

What it is: Not really a review service. BookBub is a discovery and promotion machine. Featured Deals blast a discounted book to a large reader email list, and BookBub Ads let you target readers by author and genre.

Pros: Enormous reach when you land a Featured Deal. Powerful ad targeting. Great for driving sales after launch.

Cons: Featured Deals are selective and expensive, and meant for discounting, not early reviews. It is a marketing spend, not a way to gather advanced feedback.

For African Authors: A channel you might advertise on later, not a place to get pre-launch reviews.

Goodreads

What it is: The largest reader community, owned by Amazon. Authors use giveaways, an author profile, and groups to build early interest and reviews.

Pros: Free to start. Massive, genuine reader community. Reviews here carry weight.

Cons: Giveaways now cost money and are US and Canada-focused. The interface is dated, and the culture can be tough on new authors.

For African authors: The free community features are open to everyone, but the paid giveaway programs are largely limited to North America.

StoryGraph

What it is: A fast-growing, independent alternative to Goodreads, with strong recommendation and tracking features.

Pros: Engaged, modern reader base. Independent of Amazon. A good place to be present and build word of mouth.

Cons: Not a dedicated ARC tool. You build visibility; you do not push out review copies through it.

For African Authors: Open and worth being on, but it will not run your review campaign for you.

Reedsy Discovery

What it is: A review platform where readers and reviewers discover indie books, with the option to pay for a professional reviewer assignment.

Pros: Clean, credible, indie-friendly. A single professional review you can quote.

Cons: Paid submission for the reviewer track. One review, not a campaign. Dollar-billed.

For African authors: Useful for one quotable review, but dollar pricing and a single review limit it.

Distribution Platforms (a different job, but they come up)

Draft2Digital (formerly Smashwords)

What it is: A distribution aggregator. You upload once, and it pushes your ebook out to Amazon, Apple, Kobo, Barnes and Noble, and libraries. It is not a review or ARC tool; it is included here because it comes up in every publishing conversation.

Pros: Wide retail and library reach from a single upload. Free to use, they take a percentage of sales. Handles formatting and store delivery for you.

Cons: Nothing to do with early reviews; this is post-publication distribution. You still need a separate plan to gather launch reviews.

For African Authors: Built around Western payment and tax systems, so authors outside their core markets can hit onboarding limits, payout methods that do not fit, or restrictions tied to their country. Check the current terms for your country before trying to sign up.

Where Sọna fits

Sọna is a reading and publishing platform built first in Africa, and open to readers and writers everywhere. For your launch, the part that matters is the eARC tool: a way to put advance copies of your book in front of real readers, gather honest reviews before release, and do it without paying in dollars or getting shut out for where you live.

How it works:

• List your book as an eARC. Invite reviewers yourself by email, or list it publicly so readers on Sọna can find and request it.
• You decide who gets a copy. Approve requests one by one, keep trusted reviewers on a standing list, or open a title to everyone.
• Reviewers read in the Sọna Reader app for iOS or Android and leave their reviews there.
• When your book goes on sale, the reviews come with it onto its store page, so you launch with real reviews already in place.
• Keep the momentum after launch. Once your book is live on the Sọna store, you can run giveaways and gift digital copies to readers (in countries where you can sell on Sọna), to win over new readers and earn more reviews.

Pros: It is the most affordable option here by a wide margin. Even after converting naira to dollars, a Sọna campaign costs a fraction of a NetGalley listing, a BookSirens run, or a paid Goodreads giveaway. Priced in naira with no subscription, and Discovery is free for 90 days per book. Open to authors in every country, with no lockout based on where you live. You can see who actually read, with a real feedback ratio per reviewer. Reviews carry onto the store page at launch, and reviewers read in the Sọna Reader app for iOS or Android.

Cons: Sọna is newer, so the reviewer community is still growing; early on, you may lean on inviting your own readers rather than a large existing pool. It is a destination, not a distribution aggregator, so it will not place your book on Amazon or Kobo. And reading happens on Sọna rather than on Kindle or a send-to-device option.

Who it is for: African authors first, because no dollar subscription, and no risk of being shut out in your country. But Sọna is African first, not Africa only. If you write or read from anywhere else in the world, you are just as welcome.

African first, not Africa only. Built so a writer in Lagos or London can gather honest reviews without fighting the payment system.

The Short Version

If you have the budget and want maximum reach, NetGalley and a BookBub Featured Deal are powerful. If you want affordable, indie-friendly ARC distribution, BookSirens and BookFunnel are solid tools. Goodreads and StoryGraph are worth having a presence on, no matter what.

But if you are tired of dollar pricing, payout walls, and platforms that were never really built for you, start with Sọna. Set up your eARC, gather your first honest reviews, and walk into launch day with a page that already looks alive.

Start your eARC on Sọna

Some book review sites for authors work better than others, and Sona's Reading Desk is worth trying as a NetGalley alternative.