Why You Should…or Shouldn’t…Get Kindle Unlimited

[image error]First and foremost, let me begin by saying that I am 100% in support of public libraries.  Books should always be freely available to the public, and there is nothing more wonderful than stepping into the local library and browsing the bookshelves.

However…

Sometimes you can’t always find everything you want.  Yes, I know that’s a sacrilegious statement, but it’s also true.  Let’s face it.  More and more authors are turning away from traditional publishing in order to pursue self-publication.  Whether that’s a good trend or not remains to be seen.  But it is a trend.

Take my own books, for example.  Even though the Straight to Hell series is published by Harper Collins as an e-book, it is not available on Overdrive or Libby (the apps I use to download library books onto my Kindle.)  My other books, such as the recent paranormal series Restless Spirits , is self-published and also not available on these apps.

I’m not alone in this.  Many of my favorite authors are also self-published.  Most of their titles are on Amazon only and not available in the library.  This means that if I want to read one of their books, I can either buy it outright, or use Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited to rent it.

But is Kindle Unlimited really worth it?

After being an unlimited member for the past four months, this is my $.02:

KU costs $10.00 a month.  Most of the books I’ve been reading from it are priced anywhere from $.99 – $4.99.  I figure if I’m reading three books a month, I’m probably getting my money’s worth.  (Providing they’re not all $.99 books.)
KU doesn’t have many big-name authors such as Stephen King.  If you are looking only for these kinds of books, KU probably isn’t for you.
Other than the above mentioned big-name authors, KU does have a very good selection of novels.  I enjoy romances, urban fantasy, and thrillers, and can find a lot of titles that interest me.
KU offers magazines as well.  I can borrow magazines such as Oprah’s magazine and Real Simple.  They also offer a few comic books.

Basically, whether or not KU is worth it depends on the kind and number of books you read.  I started my membership because they were offering a special of three months for $9.99, and I’ve kept it going since I found it worthwhile.   I’m not sure if I’ll continue with it over the summer (nice weather can keep me from reading!), but I’ll be sure to come back to it again.