About Me & My Reviews

I am an avid reader turned blogger.  I believe that an explanation for everything in life can be found in the Big Bang Theory. If for no other reason, because laughter fixes everything.

I love to curl up on the couch with a good book and lose myself within it's pages. Nothing is better than that escape from reality, a time when your imagination combines with the words on the page in front of you, which were put together by someone else's imagination, to create a whole new world. I also enjoy writing reviews on the books that I have read. I hope that my reviews help other people choose books that are to their liking so that they can enjoy their time while lost in their own books.

 I have a cat & two dogs who all love to curl up with me while reading.  They are also high energy animals who love to play, but are also well suited to the life of a bibliophile.  When not reading I also enjoy spending time at the barn with my horse and knitting up a storm.

As someone who thoroughly enjoyed post-secondary education, I have both a BSc (double major in Biology and Classics) and a BA (honours in history with an emphasis medieval religious history).

I love hearing from authors, readers and other bloggers.  You can connect with me via email at purejonel@gmail.com, on Goodreads, Amazon, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, & Pinterest.


About the Blog:

Pure Jonel, a book blog with 1,000+ followers, was launched in December of 2012. With monthly hits of 10,000+ and daily posts including reviews, guest posts, author interviews, giveaways and more. Pure Jonel caters to authors of all types and a variety of different publishers.

Pure Jonel does not differentiate or discriminate between traditionally published and independently published works. All writing is taken and reviewed based upon its own merits. As the sole reviewer on the blog I endeavor to give my unbiased opinion of each work I read. My reviews are cross-posted to Goodreads, Shelfari, Amazon, B&N, and Indigo (where available), as well as publisher websites that allow for reviewing.


I review books using the standard 5 star system followed by a spoiler free review.
  • ★★★★★ If I could give myself amnesia and re-experience this book again for the first time every day, I would.
  • ★★★★ This book was like good chocolate, but without the guilt.
  • ★★★ This book was just fine. ("Just fine??? The fourth Harry Potter movie was just fine!!!" ~ Rajesh Kuthrapali, the Big Bang Theory).
  • ★★ This book wasn't my cup of tea. Take it or leave it fellow bibliophiles.
  • ★ It took herculean willpower to reach the final punctuation mark.
  • I will never rate a book that I did not finish. Therefore they'll never appear on my blog.

I also 'file' books based on my own system. I use a "shelf" system to denote how books were received:
  • Review ~ books that I received a complementary copy of in exchange for an honest review.
  • Netgalley ~ review copies requested & received from Netgalley via the publisher.
  • Own ~ I own a physical or digital copy
  • Borrowed ~ books that I borrowed from friends, family, and the library

When contacting me for a review please include a brief synopsis of the book along with your desired "review by" date.  Once you have requested a review I will advise you of my expected completion date.  I can work with .epub, .mobi, pdf, or print copies of literature.  Also, Audible copies will be accepted.

Feel free to contact me at any time to request a review, interview, or guest post.  Just email me at purejonel@gmail.com or find me on Goodreads.



Please note: I reserve the right to accept or decline any work presented for review based on interest sparked by the synopsis, timing requested, the weather, general curmudgeonness, what happened on the last episode of the Big Bang Theory, and any other factor that comes into play.

Review time frames will be determined on a case by case basis upon acceptance of a work for review by Pure Jonel.

Canadian authors:  Are you Canadian?  Do you want to join the Spotlight on Canadian authors page?  Drop me a line and we'll chat!

Blogger Tip:  Want more spotlight?  What about a guest post or an interview?  Get in touch with me and we'll set one up!  Giveaways also increase traffic to posts exponentially.