You're answer is in the true form of your question. You say "your efforts seem the opposite of marketing triumph" so you view a HN review as a marketing exerci

You're answer is in the true form of your question. You say "your efforts seem the opposite of marketing triumph" so you view a HN review as a marketing exercise. I don't believe that asking the HN community to review your site is a good marketing ploy. It is asking for a review. Reviews should be honest. Good sites/ideas will be praised. Bad ones will be ripped. And some sites will just not be understood. In any case, when you ask for a review you better expect a mix bag.