When I announced a competition for guessing the most frequently used adjectives in reviews of Spear, I knew it could get complicated. First, there were some words and/or phrased such as Queer, Recommended, and variations on old-bones-new-story and too-short-wanted-more that were essentially ubiquitous and so, to me, not really fair; I discounted from my tally. Second, English is an odd language that allows some parts of speech to behave like others, so I guessed there might be a couple of judgement calls—and in fact there were, but not nearly enough to render the results unclear. And finally, third, I’m a human being with emotions and some words stand out more than others—I dearly wanted some words more than others to win. If it were up to me, for instance, the top adjectives would have been Dazzling or Stunning, or maybe Breathtaking or Brilliant, and there again Gorgeous and Mesmerising have a lot to recommend them…

But in the end it was all easy and clear. So here, in descending order (with frequency), are the top adjectives used in Spear reviews* up to and including May 3, that is, two weeks after publication:

  • Beautiful (24)
  • Lyrical/poetic (22)
  • Magical (15)
  • Delightful (11)
  • Gorgeous (11)
  • Lovely (11)
  • Fresh (10)
  • New (10)
  • Classic/Instant classic/Canon (9)
  • Genderqueer -bent -fluid (9)
  • Brilliant (8)
  • Fantastic (7)
  • Inclusive (7)
  • Original (7)
  • Spectacular (7)
  • Wonderful/Wondrous (7)
  • Breathtaking (6)
  • Compelling (6)
  • Flowing/Fluid (6)
  • Rich (6)
  • Spellbinding/Sorcery/Enchanting (6)
  • Stunning (6)
  • Dazzling (5)
  • Epic (5)
  • Intense (5)
  • Subversive (5)
  • Amazing (4)
  • Captivating (4)
  • Concise (4)
  • Dreamy/Dreamlike (4)
  • Effortless (4)
  • Humane (4)
  • Masterpiece/Masterful (4)
  • Mesmerising/Hypnotic (4)
  • Polyamorous (4)
  • Sensual/Sensuous (4)
  • Vivid (4)

In terms of readers’ guesses, there is one clear winner: nikkiel101, who went with Beautiful x 17. So nikkiel, you will get the signed and personalised hardcover, the pin, and a digital download of the audiobook just as soon as you get me your email and mailing address (please email me via the contact form). But there was a second reader, Roberta Arnold, who came very close, guessing Beautiful x 16 in one guess and Lyrical/Poetic x 22 in another. So, Roberta, if you’ll email me with your mailing address I’ll send you a hardcover and a pin, too.

And to everyone else: Thanks for playing!

*Either in professional journals or from those in the book profession such as fellow authors offering blurbs and librarians and booksellers responding to the publisher. I did not include podcasts or YouTube videos or reader reviews on platforms such as Goodreads or Amazon or personal blogs because there were just too many.