A Review of the Website Fictionwise

Lately I found a way to keep up with my reading goals without using a drop of gas in my car. Sometimes I just can't make it to the library or I just want some quick reading on a weekend. An online web site named Fictionwise has created a way to resolve both problems. This site has a massive selection of eBooks (electronic books) I can download in a variety of formats.

Selection:

The site contains books in a host of categories both Fiction and Nonfiction. Are you in the mood for romance? Fictionwise has it. What about Mystery, Fantasy, Erotica, Science Fiction, Young Adult, Humor, Classic Literature, Horror, Children, Health? Fictionwise carries them all and many more.

There are two types of formats available: the non encrypted multi-format, which provides reading for the widest range of viewers and the encrypted formats, which are specific to the reader. The majority of titles will be found in the more flexible multiformat.

Currently I'm reading the dark fantasy series, "Myth to Life: The Rise of Riley McCabe" by P.A. Matthews. As of this writing, she has three titles up for sale in this series, "At Death's Door", "Hunted" and "Between Myth & Blood". So far, I'm very pleased with my purchase at $2.49/each

Under the Classic Literature category, you'll find the old favorites. There's "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen, available in multi-format for 1.99. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll and Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse are also there and they list for .99/each.

They even have a selection of free books, like "Ghost Rider: Stories by Jonathan Lowe", you can download for no charge at all.

Ease of Use:

There are four main sections to become familiar with at this site: Registration, your bookshelf, the various categories and your shopping cart.

To register, you will need to click the arrow icon on the top left of the page. You'll need to chose a login name, a password and provide Fictionwise with your first name, last name and email address. They guarantee your privacy and you can also select to receive their newsletters or forego them.

All the categories are located on the left side of the screen. You can simply browse the available titles by category or use the search feature to search for a specific book.

Your cart (the little shopping cart icon also on the top right) is where you pay for any books you have decided to purchase. Fictionwise accepts payments via Paypal or, you have the option of putting money into your Micropay account via a check or credit card. This is like a bank account that you can use at a later date to make a purchase and also avoids a 50 cent charge for purchases under 5 dollars.

Your bookshelf (top right of screen) is where you will find any books you have decided to purchase. It will give you the general description, the author, the available format and a link to the book. It is also here you will download any books you have purchased.

There are other areas on Fictionwise but these four will allow you to purchase and download any books you wish to read. There is also a search feature which you can set to email you additional copies for an author or new eBooks for a particular category.

Final Review:

I've been pleased with this site. The books are easy to find, easy to download and very reasonably priced. The reader does need to know which reader they have because downloading in a format they don't have will not work. I have Adobe so the only format I've used is Adobe PDF.

I also like the ability to both rate and recommend a book. Once you download and read the book, it allows you to contribute by rating the book and you can also help promote an author by recommending the book to a friend. I also like the feature that allows the site to email me when an author I like has a new book on Fictionwise or new books come out for a particular category I enjoy.

So far, I've been very pleased with my use of Fictionwise.