With the popularity of the Kindle, the Nook, the iPad and other various e-reading devices, the electronic book as become easier than ever to obtain. And there are literally millions of them available. But how do you decide what your next ebook purchase will be?
I'm curious, as I will soon be in the market for ebooks. I know they are easy to download, but how do you decide what to download?
In the store, when buying a book, I browse through the shelves, looking at covers, reading the blurbs on the back, and checking out the cover quotes. But where do I begin with an ebook when searching for a new author to read?
Any advice you can give this novice ebook reader would be greatly appreciated. The amount of ebooks on any one site feels overwhelming. How do you decide?
Alexis
Alexis
Good question. I start at Amazon and find the genre I'm interested in. Then I sort by the best customer reviews. Even if I don't buy through that site, I know that darn near every e-book ever published will be listed there. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Randi. Do you find the reviews to be in line with your reading experience? If they say it is a wonderful book, for example, do you generally find that is the case?
ReplyDeleteOh, Alexis!
ReplyDeleteI have no clue on how to begin choosing, as I don't have a Kindle or any of the other ebook readers (not yet anyway), but I think how Randi does it sounds like a good way to start.
Marie
Hi Marie,
ReplyDeleteI worry about different tastes. I've gone to movies that the critics panned and loved them. But I do think reviews are a good place to start. I wonder if there are other ways to cull through the choices.
Hi, Alexis!
ReplyDeleteMy method is similar to Randi's, and just like I shop for any other book. Either I'll search authors I'm looking for, then see what ebooks they offer, or I search a genre for high ratings or interesting reviews. But then, my town has a shortage of good bookstores, so I'm used to perusing titles online. They're usually cheaper and arrive within days (or within moments when they're ebooks!) And ebooks have beautiful covers, blurbs, reviews, etc., so you're not missing anything there.
Happy shopping! ;)
Hi Anne,
ReplyDeleteIt was so great to see you at Nationals :-) Thanks for the tip. We have only 1 bookstore on island, Undercover Books. Luckily, it is an independent bookstore and she has started a whole romance section because of me and all the books I've ordered. Still, I'm really looking forward to ebooks!
This is pitiful, but I start w the free ones...When I find one in the list that looks promising, I then ck to see the date it was published and the publisher. If they are recent...within the past year to six months, and by a pub I am interested in targeting, then it's a no brainer. I have about a dozen categories set up on my Kindle, so I have my books sorted for easy access.
ReplyDeleteWhat type of e-reader are you considering? Just curious...
Lyndee
Hi Lyndee, I was thinking about a Kindle. Do you like yours? Did you consider others?
ReplyDeleteDo you find the free reads are well done?
Hi Alexis,
ReplyDeleteI'm a diehard Kindle owner. At first, I downloaded every free Kindle book possible.
It didn't take me long to discover I wasn't reading all of them. The ones I did were recommended by friends or had good reviews.
A nice feature is the sample pages in e-books. It's like standing in the aisle at the book store and thumbing through the opening pages of a book. (Only you can do it from your bungalow.)
If the writing appeals to you, download the free one. I've picked up a couple of great e-books that way.
Be warned, returns are difficult at best. So before you spend the money on an unknown, ask friends, family, blog buddies and check out reviews.
E-books thrive similarly to print. Word of mouth.
Hey, J.S. so great to see you here again :-) So there are sample pages? That sounds promising. Believe it or not the house we are in is called "Casa Blanca."
ReplyDelete