Scoring Free Books: Even New Releases

Hello

Happy Wednesday!

How are you guys feeling? I am good,  relaxed, happy, blessed and grateful.

I love a good deal, and scoring free books is one of my little secret pleasures.

Since committing to clearing my debt and starting my journey towards financial freedom, I am very mindful of what I purchase.  I stopped my busy Kindle Store One Clicking.

Nowadays,  I pause before clicking and select book samples instead.  If I enjoy the sample, then I search  for discounted books or free advanced reader copies.  I would love to buy and own more hard copies of books, but,  for now that is not in my budget.  Therefore,  free books are my best friends.

Here are my top 5 ways for scoring free books

1. Kindle Freebies:

   Search Amazon Kindle store for a wide selection of free Kindle reads. For the best results, refine the search based on genre, and star ratings, and you are sure to find some free gems to add to your reading list. Years ago, when I first downloaded the Kindle for Android app on my phone and I did not have a credit card, I went full on with downloading and trying out free Kindle reads. If you choose to search for free books on Kindle  you may not have access to the grand literary tomes or the hugely successful commercial fiction. However, several indie and self-published authors will share their work for free. It a great way to explore new authors and new genres. And if you do choose to download a freebie,  be sure to give back some love to the author by writing a review.

2. Readers’ and Bloggers’ Networks:

   I am a member of the Writerly Yours Bloggers’ Club.  So far I have participated in five WYB Club blog tours and with each tour I sign up for I get a reviewer copy of the book.  (Priya, if you read this, please correct me if I get the number wrong).  There is always room for new members to WYB Club so please feel free to join. There are other online community, free feel to start searching for reader networks.

3. Instafreebie: 

   Instafreebie is really simple.  You just need to add your name and email address and deals for free ebooks will be emailed to you on a weekly basis. Here is the catch with Instafreebie, your email address will be shared with the authors in the network.  You will be automatically subscribed to these individuals’ mailing lists.  That is it, after you have signed up and viewed the list and you don’t want to be included in a particular author list, then unsubscribe. So far many of the books, I have selected from Instafreebie are first in a series books. Therefore, if you are a standalone novel kind of reader, this service may not be for you.  A great feature of the website is the book formats and file types available. Readers can choose to claim books from .mobi for Kindle, .epub for Nook, Sony Reader, and iBooks, and PDF for everything else!

4. Free ARCs As Bloggers:

   Scoring free books that are advanced reader copies or new releases make me doubly happy.  I am a member of NetGalley and Edelweiss. I joined NetGalley in 2015.  According the NetGalley system I have been approved for 103 books.  NetGalley is free. It is for professional readers, book reviewers and bloggers, media, journalists, librarians, booksellers and educators.

   My biggest gripe with NetGalley or the publishers listed is that there are books that region specific and locked. Therefore, some books are specially held for US based readers, or the UK, or Australia.  I think this practice is unfair. If I can buy the book from Amazon or any online book merchant and have the books sent to me, why are the freebies restricted?

   Now…Edelweiss. Late last year, I also signed up for Edelweiss but I have not actually requested any books from them as yet.  The Edelweiss team recently changed the site’s dashboard and I am still figuring my way around. Just for the purpose of the post, I am going to request a book and see if I get it.

5. BookShout: 

   BookShout and I have a love-hate relationship. I have access to a number of classic books from the website. My biggest dislike is how the apps for Android function. I had the mobile app on my phone and I deleted it because the promised off-line functions were fickle. I would download a book to my phone and then close the app, and then, hours later when I was ready to read, the book would not be accessible. Annoying. The app worked better on my tablet.

   However, I prefer BookShout on a laptop and using it with the internet.  BookShout has its own online store and subscribers can get daily emails alerts on deals. The discounted books are low as USD$1.99.  And at times books are free.

   The freebies are usually classic books but there are other gems hidden there too, just search and be patient. My favourite feature of BookShout is the little rewards system based on reading and time spent on the system. BookShout will estimate how long it takes for readers’ to complete a book and you can set your daily reading times.  When  you go beyond the reading limit or invite friends to join, you earn BookShout cash and that can be used to buy more books.
   

That’s it!  Those are my top five ways of scoring free books.

Do you enjoy freebies as much as I do?  Please share where you score your best book deals.

And a quick question, what are you currently reading?

Talk to you soon,

Let’s meet here on Sunday afternoon for a quick chat on guided meditation and other ways to lessen the noise and lower anxiety levels.

Chantel