"Best" place to buy ebooks?

[jhowell]

You should be asking which publishers you can trust rather than which book sellers.

[hobnail]

For classics there's also https://www.delphiclassics.com/

You did say "buy" but for free there's also http://www.gutenberg.org/

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by gandoe

Thanks again for all your responses.

Yes, I guess it is a bit of a hit or miss thing. The problem is, if I'm reading something new to me, I won't know if it's been "edited for clarity". I think I'll just have to pay more attention to the ebook versions and stores I purchase.

Thanks again!
Ed

If it's a commercial, still in copyright book, there is but one version extant: the publisher's. eBook stores are no different from pbook stores: what they get is what they sell. If the publisher puts out a poorly edited or even unproofed book then that's what they'll sell, with few exceptions.
(If you catch it quickly, you can always return it at most ebook stores.)

The exceptions seem to be mostly at Amazon, which has a feedback process for readers to tell publishers about errors they encounter. Things like duplicate passages, scrambled text, etc. If the problems are big enough, they'll pull the book until the publisher corrects it. Or not.

(That is one area where smaller tradpubs and Indies are very responsive. Big publishers are loathe to maintain separate text bases for print and digital so the ebook only gers corrected when and if the pbook is.)

Once the issue has been fixed, Amazon will send you the corrected version but only if you enable it. After their own 1984 fiasco early in the Kindle age, Amazon only removes or replaces books when the *customer* asks.

Editing it themselves? No.
The stuff isn't worth enough to offset the cost of post-publisher editing, even if it were legal (it isn't--it would be a copyright violation). Plus in today's environment it would only unleash a torrent of vilification. Nobody wants to deal with the resulting boatload of abuse.

Now, if you're talking PD books, there are indeed multiple editions of many popular titles. Some better than others. You'll have to research it.

One notable case can be found at, ahem, BAEN, where they carry a series of (very) early SF titles, cleaned up and edited by Ron Miller. One of the bundles, of Jules Verne classics, features all-new translations from the original french:

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

Features 26 unique illustrations by Ron Miller including cutaway views and schematics of the Natuilus, accurate maps, and details of Verne’s diving suits
Includes appendices, annotations, and other additional information by editor Ron Miller
Now with an Historical Afterword by Ron Miller
Unabridged version

Featured in Ron Miller’s “The Conquest of Space Book Series.” This special edition of Jules Verne's classic novel corrects more than 3000 errors in the original 1872 English translation and replaces the 23% of text that had been expurgated by the original translator for political, ideological and other reasons.
Published: 7/16/2013

Things like this are exceptions, not the rule.
It is non trivial to do. Costs money.
Penguin and B&N's Sterling offer some commercial cleaned up classics of tbeir own but these newly edited editions come with brand new copyrights, so they won't be as cheap as the more common repackaged-Gutenberg edition.

Not commonly done though, but you can find quite a few free, labor of love editions right here at Mobileread.

[barryem]

I buy all my books from Amazon these days. That makes it simple for me. The quality is generally very good with a few exceptions. I have bought Kobo and Nook books in the past and I didn't see any real difference in quality.

I don't think this is a very important question. We have a lot of choices and they're all pretty much the same. Amazon has a bigger selection but they all have excellent selections. I don't think there are anything but good choices here.

Barry

[mikeayers]

Originally Posted by hobnail

For classics there's also https://www.delphiclassics.com/

You did say "buy" but for free there's also http://www.gutenberg.org/

I second going to http://www.gutenberg.org/... When I want to read a "Classic", that is always my first stop

[PeterT]

You could also check the MobileRead library for a wide range of ePubs, the majority (if not all) have been formatted with TLC by MobileRead members

[mrgrtt123]

I only purchase e-books from Apple and Amazon.
Kobo is also a good option.

[BookCat]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

You cannot buy an ePub from one store and find it's been edited for clairty vs the same ePub from another store. You buy the same ePub from different stores and you'll get the same ePub. There are no eBooks in any format that have been edited for clarity. You just have to buy the eBook you want in the format you want and read it. It is as it is.

What you can do is remove the DRM (if it has any) and using the Calibre editor or Sigil, you can edit it ot be as good as it can be for you.

I've heard of 'PC versions' of books like Huckleberry Finn having the N word removed and generally being edited to suit a modern reader's sensitivities, especially when those books are aimed at children. Also, there are many Abridged versions of long books.

But the abridgement issue can be a problem with paper/hardbacks too. I have an old Regent's Classics version of Wuthering Heights. No where does it mention that it is abridged; I realised this was the case when I downloaded the ebook from mobileread.

If the OP wants carefully formatted books in the UK public domain (the author died over 70 years ago) mobileread's library contains the most wonderful books.
I would also advise the purchase of a eink dedicated ereader, especially if (he) reads a lot. Maybe a basic kindle.

[svenlind]

Originally Posted by hobnail

For classics there's also https://www.delphiclassics.com/

You did say "buy" but for free there's also http://www.gutenberg.org/

For classics I will recommend https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/

The books are excellent quality and are available in epubs and mobi.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by BookCat

I've heard of 'PC versions' of books like Huckleberry Finn having the N word removed and generally being edited to suit a modern reader's sensitivities, especially when those books are aimed at children. Also, there are many Abridged versions of long books.

The Bowdlerization of HUCKLEBERRY FINN (and TOM SAWYER) caused quite a ruckus.

https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/...he-n-word.html
(Note the comments.)

There have also been bowdlerizations of DVDs.
Difference being that the Twain books are in the PD and so (unfortunately) fair game but the DVDs aren't. Hence the lawsuits that follow:

https://arstechnica.com/information-...dlerized-dvds/

Abridgement is a different story.
Literally.
Most publishers take care to advertise the abridgement because they think it is a positive, "making the book more accessible". Publishers do odd things all the time.
Again, PD books are the biggest target but it is fairly common to see abridged audiobooks. And Reader's Digest built their whole business around anthologizing and abridging licensed content.

Weird stuff.
But it's publishers doing it, not the stores.
They know better than to get a reputation for selling polluted editions.
One advantage of reviews is they tend to highlight such defects in books.
Caveat Emptor applies.

[tourneur]

Originally Posted by svenlind

For classics I will recommend https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/

The books are excellent quality and are available in epubs and mobi.

A terrific initiative indeed. Only downside for me, for translated works they will usually use an old, public domain translation. Some foreign literature classics may have newer, more modern translations available which I sometimes prefer.

[Apache]

Originally Posted by PeterT

You could also check the MobileRead library for a wide range of ePubs, the majority (if not all) have been formatted with TLC by MobileRead members

The MobileRead Library is my go to source for public domain books. As said they are lovingly proofed. It is a shame that publishers can't do the same for their books.
Apache

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by Apache

The MobileRead Library is my go to source for public domain books. As said they are lovingly proofed. It is a shame that publishers can't do the same for their books.
Apache

Well, mobileread contributors do it for love of the story. That means putting in as much work as necessary to get it right.

Publishers do it for love of money. That means putting in as little work as possible to maximize per unit profit, which is their mantra. Their's is a volume business, not a craft business.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by mrgrtt123

I only purchase e-books from Apple and Amazon.
Kobo is also a good option.

Please stop buying any eBooks from Apple. Because of Apple, we now have agency pricing. Apple does not deserve to have anyone buy any eBooks from them. They deserve to have their eBook division sink aster then the Titanic.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by BookCat

I've heard of 'PC versions' of books like Huckleberry Finn having the N word removed and generally being edited to suit a modern reader's sensitivities, especially when those books are aimed at children. Also, there are many Abridged versions of long books.

But the abridgement issue can be a problem with paper/hardbacks too. I have an old Regent's Classics version of Wuthering Heights. No where does it mention that it is abridged; I realised this was the case when I downloaded the ebook from mobileread.

If the OP wants carefully formatted books in the UK public domain (the author died over 70 years ago) mobileread's library contains the most wonderful books.
I would also advise the purchase of a eink dedicated ereader, especially if (he) reads a lot. Maybe a basic kindle.

I would not suggest a Kindle as it is easier to go from a Project Gutenberg HTML to epub using Calibre or Sgil. I would suggest a Reader that can natively handle ePub. If in the US, the OP would be best with the Kobo Aura Walmart edition. It's similar in price to the Kindle basic, but has a higher resolution screen (1024x768).