Short answer: it depends on your topic. BookSirens can work really well for a memoir or a true crime book. For a book about gardening, parenting or something more niche, it’s more of a gamble, and BookSirens has said so itself.

I’m Jenny, a nonfiction author with around 50 books out since 2012, mostly fact books for kids. Before you spend money on any ARC site, I think you should know how it treats books like ours, so here’s everything I found. I have used BookSirens on and off for many years now and struggled to get the volume of readers that fiction authors get. However, they are very transparent about the fact that they aren’t necessarily the best fit for nonfiction, which I appreciate.

Full disclosure: I run AuthorWing ARC Readers, a free ARC service just for nonfiction. So yes, I have an interest here. I’ve stuck to facts and sources, and I’ll tell you when BookSirens is the better choice.

What is BookSirens?

BookSirens is an ARC service. You upload your book, and readers who signed up for your genre see it in their weekly email and on the site. They request a copy, read it, and (hopefully) post an honest review on Amazon, Goodreads or both.

A few things it does well:

• Readers choose books. Nobody is assigned your book at random, which usually means better reviews.
• Reader vetting. Readers are checked against their Amazon and Goodreads profiles, and you can limit your book to readers with good review records (TCK Publishing).
• A proper dashboard. You can see downloads, which reviews are pending and which are done (selfpublishing.com).
• It’s built around Amazon’s rules. Reviews are optional, readers aren’t paid, and you can’t ask for a positive review.

How much does BookSirens cost in 2026?

As of October 2026 there are two ways to pay (source):

• Author plan: $100 a year for unlimited ARCs across two pen names.
• Pay as you go: $10 per book, plus $2 for each reader who downloads it.

So 25 readers on pay as you go would cost you $60. If you’re launching more than two books a year, the Author plan is the better deal. BookSirens says about 75% of readers who download a book end up reviewing it, but that’s an average across everything, and they’re clear it can’t be promised for any one book.

What BookSirens says about nonfiction

This is the bit most reviews skip. BookSirens accepts nonfiction, but its own team has been open that nonfiction is harder to predict, because the topics are so specific. In an interview, they said memoirs and true crime do very well, while parenting and gardening books do poorly (TCK Publishing). That interview is from 2021, so things may have shifted, but a 2026 guide still says the most active readers are in romance, sci-fi, fantasy, mystery and thrillers, and that books outside those categories may get fewer requests (selfpublishing.com).

It makes sense when you think about it. Fiction readers read a whole genre. Nonfiction readers read a topic. Someone who devours true crime will happily request the next true crime book. Someone who reads about bees is a much smaller group, and they need to be on the list, in the right category, in the week your book goes out.

What authors say about it

On Trustpilot, BookSirens currently has a score of 2.3 out of 5 from just 17 reviews (Trustpilot). That’s a small sample, and unhappy people are always more likely to leave a review, so I wouldn’t read too much into the number. The themes are more useful:

• The good: easy to set up, reasonable prices, responsive support, and a sensible option when NetGalley is too expensive.
• The not so good: books turned down because there wasn’t room or enough readers in that genre, sometimes within hours. Some authors also got few or no reviews, or reviews they felt were unhelpful.

None of the reviews mention nonfiction specifically. But “not enough readers in your genre” is exactly the risk for a niche nonfiction book, so it’s worth knowing before you fill in a long submission form.

Which nonfiction books does BookSirens suit?

Here’s how I’d think about it. The first two rows come from BookSirens itself; the rest is my own judgement as a nonfiction author, so treat it as a starting point rather than a rule.

Your book	Good fit for BookSirens?	Why
Memoir, true crime	Yes	BookSirens says these do very well
Parenting, gardening	Probably not	BookSirens says these do poorly
Self-help, popular psychology	Worth a small test	Close to what many fiction readers also enjoy
History, science, nature	Worth a small test	Readers exist, but they read by subject
Children’s nonfiction	Unlikely	The buyers are parents and teachers, not the usual ARC reader
Business, money, how-to	Unlikely	Very specific readers who don’t browse ARC lists

If you do try BookSirens with a nonfiction book

1. Start with pay-as-you-go and a reader cap. Put a limit of 10 to 20 readers on it. If it works, switch to the Author plan for your next book.
2. Turn on approval-based access. BookSirens has said this is available but off by default. It lets you check who’s requesting your book before they get it.
3. Say who it’s for in the first line of your blurb. “For beginner beekeepers” does more work than a clever opening line, because readers decide in seconds.
4. Pick your category carefully. The right subgenre is how the right readers find you.
5. Don’t rely on it alone. Use it next to your own mailing list and a nonfiction-specific option, so one quiet week doesn’t sink your launch.

Alternatives for nonfiction authors

I’ve compared all the main options, including Booksprout, NetGalley, StoryOrigin and Pubby, in my guide to the best ARC sites for nonfiction books. The short version:

• NetGalley if libraries and schools are your market and you can afford it (about $575 for six months in the US).
• Booksprout if you’re building a review team across a series.
• AuthorWing ARC Readers if you want readers who picked your topic. It’s nonfiction only, every copy is personally stamped with the reader’s email, and it’s free for authors during the beta. We’re new and smaller than BookSirens, so I can’t promise numbers, but your book won’t be competing with dragons.

My verdict

BookSirens is a legitimate, well-run service, and for memoir or true crime I’d happily recommend it. For most other nonfiction, it’s a test rather than a sure thing, because the readers are mostly there for fiction. If you try it, keep the reader cap small, and give your book a second home where readers choose topics, not genres.

Questions about BookSirens

Does BookSirens accept nonfiction?

Yes. Nonfiction is accepted as long as it meets their quality standards, but books can be turned down if there aren’t enough readers or space in that category.

Is BookSirens allowed by Amazon?

Giving free review copies is allowed on Amazon, as long as reviews are optional, honest and not rewarded. BookSirens is set up that way. Readers should mention that they got a free copy in their review.

How many reviews will I get from BookSirens?

Nobody can promise a number. BookSirens reports about 75% of downloads turning into reviews on average, but for nonfiction it depends heavily on how many readers follow your topic.

Is BookSirens worth the money?

At $2 a reader it’s one of the cheaper ways to try an ARC site, so a small test with a reader cap is low risk. Just set your expectations by topic, not by the average.