In a couple of those cases, the authors sent out emails to people they knew and asked them to leave a good review on Amazon...to aid in the quest for the all-important high Amazon rank.

That was all well and good...and when I did leave a review, it was done with sincerity and integrity.

So today, a couple of months later, I was looking for some books in the same general category as the books I previously mentioned. And as I looked at titles, reading their reviews, I noticed something...I was seeing stellar reviews for those books by some of the very same people who had reviewed "my" books.

My first thought was "great, someone who liked a book that I liked recommends this new title." But after seeing a few sets of reviews, it slowly dawned on me. (And yes, I'm a little retarded sometimes.) The authors of these new books had solicited good reviews from friends and colleagues in the same way that I had been approached a few months ago. I was seeing numerous reviews from the same folks, many of whom I know professionally, on book after book.

And not only that, they had the same endorsements from many of the same "big names."

I don't begrudge anyone a stellar review or a big name endorsement. But when you see the same people reviewing the same kinds of books, or the essentially the same endorsements on numerous titles, can you trust the reviews? Does anyone review books on Amazon out of the goodness of their heart, or is it just to help out a friend or colleague and get your own name out there in the process?

I've always appreciated the fact that folks CAN review books on Amazon...but does it become pointless when so many reviews are orchestrated as part of a bigger campaign?