Ebook/Audiobook Subscription services

Lparsons21 · 12-01-2018, 01:10 PM

I've noticed that there is little discussion of these services here. That surprises me as I would have thought more would be using them. For me with the poor selection of ebook/audiobooks from my local library, and my reading habits of reading/listening to 10+ books a month, they are very valuable. Here are the ones I've tried or am using.

Amazon Prime - One of the benefits is First Reads. Each month they offer a selection of 6 books, you can select one of them for free.

Amazon Kindle Unlimited - Amazon claims an astounding number of books and some audio, and while that is probably true I found that most books offered are from lesser known authors. I don't have a problem with that as a good book is a good book no matter who writes it. But with new/self published/lesser knows authors, the quality of the read is all over the place. I've read plenty of good books here and no few stinkers. Cost about $10/month with a little discount if you pay for a year. One plus on cost is that they occasionally have a sale on the subscription though you usually have to dig around to find it.

Scribd - They changed their subscription model and now offer 'unlimited' reading/listening of books, magazines and some other things. This service tends to have more mainstream authors but with a twist. For instance the JD Robb "in death" series are almost all here but only as audiobooks and I've found others that way too. I've been using it for quite a few months now and am very pleased with it. Cost about $9/month with a cheaper annual plan.

Audible - A very good service for audiobooks but at a premium price. It doesn't fit me as I prefer reading to listening. Cost is about $15/month for one regular book and 2 'audible books'. To be honest, I'm not quite sure what the 'audible books' are.

That's mine, what's yours?

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tubemonkey · 12-01-2018, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lparsons21

I've noticed that there is little discussion of these services here. That surprises me as I would have thought more would be using them. For me with the poor selection of ebook/audiobooks from my local library, and my reading habits of reading/listening to 10+ books a month, they are very valuable. Here are the ones I've tried or am using.

First Reads

Audible

The other two get mentioned when they have sales.

Alohamora · 12-01-2018, 01:47 PM

I mostly do audiobooks, probably 4 to 5 a month.

I'm lucky to have a good local library which offers Overdrive and Hoopla audiobooks.

To supplement, I start and stop an Audible subscription. When they offer me a free book, at least once year, I'll start a subscription and keep it going for a few months. These fill in for the books I really want to read that aren't available through the library. Once I get a backlog of books, I cancel or put the membership on hold.

I've used the Kindle unlimited trials as they've been offered to me, at least 3 times so far, I've discovered a couple of absolutely delightful authors this way, but I haven't found enough audiobooks to justify keeping the subscription going.

There'also the Prime lending library, I think it's a subset of Kindle Unlimited.

Those are enough to keep my ears busy. ��

tubemonkey · 12-01-2018, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alohamora

Those are enough to keep my ears busy. ��

I hear ya

John F · 12-01-2018, 02:18 PM

Lparsons21, did you look at Prime Reading?

John F · 12-01-2018, 02:20 PM

I do pay for library cards to 2 libraries: Brooklyn and FLP. They, along with my local library, provide all the reading I want.

Lparsons21 · 12-01-2018, 02:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John F

Lparsons21, did you look at Prime Reading?

Yes, and it was what got me started with the subscription model. Now I use Kindle Unlimited when I get a real good sales deal on it and back off to Prime Reading otherwise.

For those that haven’t looked at Scribd, it is worth taking another look. And to sweeten the deal they have a 30 free trial. Plenty of both ebooks and audiobooks

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

Apache · 12-01-2018, 03:54 PM

Scroll down to Everything Audiobook and there are two sub forums.
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/fo...play.php?f=265
Apache

pendragginp · 12-01-2018, 06:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John F

I do pay for library cards to 2 libraries: Brooklyn and FLP. They, along with my local library, provide all the reading I want.

Yes, I do too, plus Scribd. I'm a book fool, e-books, audiobooks, paper books, everything.

drjenkins · 12-03-2018, 08:29 AM

In addition to Overdrive my local library system also has an extensive selection of books on CD. Don't overlook the availability of physical media.

12-01-2018, 01:10 PM	#1
Lparsons21 Zealot Posts: 139 Karma: 4321046 Join Date: Nov 2018 Device: iPad mini 4	Ebook/Audiobook Subscription services I've noticed that there is little discussion of these services here. That surprises me as I would have thought more would be using them. For me with the poor selection of ebook/audiobooks from my local library, and my reading habits of reading/listening to 10+ books a month, they are very valuable. Here are the ones I've tried or am using. Amazon Prime - One of the benefits is First Reads. Each month they offer a selection of 6 books, you can select one of them for free. Amazon Kindle Unlimited - Amazon claims an astounding number of books and some audio, and while that is probably true I found that most books offered are from lesser known authors. I don't have a problem with that as a good book is a good book no matter who writes it. But with new/self published/lesser knows authors, the quality of the read is all over the place. I've read plenty of good books here and no few stinkers. Cost about $10/month with a little discount if you pay for a year. One plus on cost is that they occasionally have a sale on the subscription though you usually have to dig around to find it. Scribd - They changed their subscription model and now offer 'unlimited' reading/listening of books, magazines and some other things. This service tends to have more mainstream authors but with a twist. For instance the JD Robb "in death" series are almost all here but only as audiobooks and I've found others that way too. I've been using it for quite a few months now and am very pleased with it. Cost about $9/month with a cheaper annual plan. Audible - A very good service for audiobooks but at a premium price. It doesn't fit me as I prefer reading to listening. Cost is about $15/month for one regular book and 2 'audible books'. To be honest, I'm not quite sure what the 'audible books' are. That's mine, what's yours? Sent from my Google Pixelbook using Tapatalk

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12-01-2018, 01:47 PM	#3
Alohamora Evangelist Posts: 446 Karma: 8897438 Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: USA Device: Android phone, Fire tablet, ios phone	I mostly do audiobooks, probably 4 to 5 a month. I'm lucky to have a good local library which offers Overdrive and Hoopla audiobooks. To supplement, I start and stop an Audible subscription. When they offer me a free book, at least once year, I'll start a subscription and keep it going for a few months. These fill in for the books I really want to read that aren't available through the library. Once I get a backlog of books, I cancel or put the membership on hold. I've used the Kindle unlimited trials as they've been offered to me, at least 3 times so far, I've discovered a couple of absolutely delightful authors this way, but I haven't found enough audiobooks to justify keeping the subscription going. There'also the Prime lending library, I think it's a subset of Kindle Unlimited. Those are enough to keep my ears busy. ��

12-01-2018, 02:18 PM	#5
John F Grand Sorcerer Posts: 7,156 Karma: 63764653 Join Date: Feb 2009 Device: Kobo Glo HD	Lparsons21, did you look at Prime Reading?

12-01-2018, 02:20 PM	#6
John F Grand Sorcerer Posts: 7,156 Karma: 63764653 Join Date: Feb 2009 Device: Kobo Glo HD	I do pay for library cards to 2 libraries: Brooklyn and FLP. They, along with my local library, provide all the reading I want.

12-01-2018, 03:54 PM	#8
Apache Readaholic Posts: 5,132 Karma: 89858112 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: South Georgia Device: Surface Pro 6 / Galaxy Tab A 8"	Scroll down to Everything Audiobook and there are two sub forums. https://www.mobileread.com/forums/fo...play.php?f=265 Apache

12-03-2018, 08:29 AM	#10
drjenkins Addict Posts: 250 Karma: 1702156 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Kindle Voyage	In addition to Overdrive my local library system also has an extensive selection of books on CD. Don't overlook the availability of physical media.

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