Since I went a little nuts with online book buying this month, I decided to do a little show and tell of what I acquired. Many of you know the Book Depository ships for free, but did you know there is another online book shop that also has free shipping (even international, now)? And it's actually cheaper than the Book Depository?
Better World Books sells new and used books- at a decent price, and donates to bookish projects (libraries, literacy programs, what have you). I opted for used books due to the cheaper price tag, and began shopping in their bargain bin- noticing a lot of familiar faces were on sale (Robin Hobb books, Ilona Andrews' hard-to-find series, lots of popular titles). One thing I will note about the shopping experience is that you don't always get the price you think you will- there are limited quantities of books, and the price does get higher as other people buy them up. When adding 1 or 2 books to my cart, I had a notice that the title, at that price, was unavailable- but they had another edition of the book in better shape, for $0.50-$1.00 more if I wanted it. You'd think I'd be mad about the upcharge, but when it came down to it- I was paying less than a used bookstore price on lots of the titles- titles I doubt I would ever see at the thrift shop here or in Montana.
 |
| George is the official un-boxing inspector |
 |
| George doing the sniff-test |
The Edge Series Ilona Andrews
On the Edge (The Edge #1) by Ilona Andrews
Bayou Moon (The Edge #2) by Ilona Andrews
Fate's Edge (The Edge #3) by Ilona Andrews
Steel's Edge (The Edge #4) by Ilona Andrews
I bought all these because I am addicted to Ilona Andrews' books, and also because these usually cost $7.99 each for an ebook edition. Talk about overpriced! This series is also 'loosely connected with the Innkeeper Chronicles' according to Goodreads.
The Tawny Man Series by Robin Hobb
Fool's Errand (Tawny Man #1) by Robin Hobb
Golden Fool (Tawny Man #2) by Robin Hobb
Fool's Fate (Tawny Man #3) by Robin Hobb
Although this comes third chronologically in Robin Hobb's fantasy works/world, and many suggest you read Liveship Traders Series first, I really couldn't bring myself to get excited about that series. Since I know of this character from Assassin's Apprentice, I decided I'd skip to this series after the Farseer Trilogy.
 |
| Royal Assassin is from BWB, Assassin's Quest is from Amazon |
Assassin's Quest (Farseer Trilogy #3) by Robin Hobb (from Amazon/Motor City Books)
I greatly enjoyed Assassin's Apprentice, so I decided to get the rest of the trilogy. Better World Books didn't have the third book available, so I bought it off Amazon.
Cry Wolf (Alpha & Omega #1) by Patricia Briggs
True to my word, I decided to try another work by this author. I hope I will like this one better than Moon Called.
Saint Odd (Odd Thomas #7) by Dean Koontz
I'm so excited to be able to finish off this series! I hope this conclusion will be epic!
Here is a screenshot of my cart on the webpage:
 |
| Grand Total Amounts to $43.80 without discounts |
Here is what I actually paid- for 9 mass market paperbacks and one hardcover book:
 |
| Actual Total: $34.92, a savings of $8.88 |
It's true that some of you may not like the used books or library editions, but as for me, I'm rather happy with my purchase/hoarding.
It's a good thing I'm participating in the #ShelfLove challenge or I would be broke now, but this is still very tempting. I just have to keep reminding myself that the books on my wishlist will still be around when my book budget isn't made up entirely of gift cards.
ReplyDeleteYes, it is good you have that to hold you to your commitments and wait on tempting bookish buys. Once I see something really, really cheap, though, I'm a bit of a goner. I did, however, wait a year on buying Saint Odd, so I consider that a victory of sorts- I used to just buy the Odd series the very moment it came out in hardcover (which wasn't very thrifty of me). I read too many series to do that anymore!
DeleteThanks for stopping by and being tempted, Rachelle!
~Litha Nelle
I've never heard of Better World Books! I'm actually wondering how I've never heard of it because it seems like a totally awesome thing to do while shopping for books. I'm going to have to check out the site and see if they have any titles that interest me because I love helping the world while I spend money. :)
ReplyDeleteI can't recall who told me about it, but it was during my first year of blogging that someone mentioned it in a post. It took me a while to get acquainted with the idea, obviously, but I'm glad I ordered- it's a great program and a cheaper way to hoard books. ;)
DeleteThanks for stopping by and commenting, Erin!
~Litha Nelle
Wow you got some great deals. I've never heard of Better World Books, but will have to check it out. Thanks for mention it.
ReplyDeleteI love the pictures with your cat in them. So cute. Mine has to be involved in everything as well. Especially when something new is brought into the house,ha.
Hope you enjoy all your new books.
Yes, George has to be in every picture, especially when I'm unboxing things (cardboard is his favorite). I actually had my other critters around too, but they know not to come between me and my books. ;)
DeleteThanks for stopping by and commenting, Melissa!
~Litha Nelle
I use #BWB for all my online book ordering. As a school teacher, this site has proven to be one of the most cost-efficient places to buy books. Great selection of titles. Often, students will tell me they want a book and I will be able to find it at Betterworldbooks.com that same day.
ReplyDeleteBe sure to check every third Thursday for their flash sales. Ah...book sale. The two best words in the English language.
Glad you found their site and are sharing the good news!
It's always hard for me to trust that an online company is a-okay, which is part of the reason I waited about a year from ordering from BWB. Since now I know that they're legit (and the shipping is rather quick), I won't hesitate to order from them in the future. That's great that you can get cheap books for your students there!
DeleteThanks for stopping by and sharing, Christopher!
~Litha Nelle
I always check Better World Books before looking anywhere else. I have been able to completes many sets of books from the bargain bin alone! I've never been disappointed!
ReplyDeleteYeah, that's where I found many of the series I wanted (particularly of Robin Hobb's and Ilona Andrews'). Many other places charge too high of a price to go series-binge-buying.
DeleteThanks for stopping by and sharing your experience!
~Litha Nelle
Yay for Cry Wolf. There is a short story that goes before that book. I didn't know that when I read it and kept thinking I was missing something. You can get the idea though without reading the story first though.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you like that one- I'm a little worried, but even if I don't like it, it was pretty darn cheap. I heard about the prequel short story from someone else's review, but I'm going to skip it (like you did). They're currently asking $2.99 for that short story online. o_O
DeleteThanks for stopping by and commenting, Heather!
~Litha Nelle