The Book Depository (dot com)

EReaders are growing in popularity around the world. The big question might be, is this because people prefer to read on them, or because they live out of Amazon.com's delivery area? I'm sure the answer is: some of both.

If you live outside of the USA and prefer to read paper books in the English language, I'd like to introduce you to The Book Depository, a company in the United Kingdom with over 8,000,000 titles available. The best part? Even one book qualifies for free shipping to over 100 countries.

How does The Book Depository work?

1. They deal in physical books only, leaving ebooks to other retailers.

2. Founded in 2004, their motto is to make "All Books available to All."

3. They are Europe's fastest growing bookseller with over 1,000,000 customers and an impeccable reputation.

4. They provide an affiliate program.

I emailed Andy at TBD and asked him how big their warehouse is!

Andy: We don’t physically hold that many books but we have a fantastic supplier network with fast delivery times from them to our warehouse, so we can get books from many different suppliers into our warehouse and then out to the customer very quickly.

I also asked him if they carried selfpublished books.

Andy: We work via distributors and wholesalers so provided the book is held in stock by one of our existing supply partners then we can list and sell those books on our website. We do list POD titles produced by Ingram POD and Lightning Source International.

That clarified a couple of points!

A fellow ICFW member, Grace Bridges, who hails from New Zealand, first told me of this site. I began to use it when Rainbow's End released in May, 2012. Many bloggers and reviewers have come to expect book giveaways, and I know I enjoy them, too. But living in Canada, I don't have access to the same cheap media rates experienced by authors in the USA, mailing books to American addresses.

I have two choices. I can take a book from my stash (one I've paid for, albeit at a discount, or from the limited number provided by my publisher) and pay the postage, or I can buy a book at retail from TBD and NOT pay postage. (Bonus? When Rainbow's End released, TBD had it listed for $6.39 CDN instead of the $8.39 on amazon.ca!)The cost to me, then, is roughly the same, except that going through TBD means I still have that book copy in my stash, available for someone local where postage isn't necessary at all. No longer do I need to limit giveaways to the USA and/or Canada. The cost is the same no matter where.

Win/win? I say "yes!"

Just for fun, let's give it a test drive. If you live in any one of the 100 countries TBD ships to free of charge, comment for a chance to win a copy of Rainbow's End. Share a frustration or story about book shipment, or just toss your email address in the hat before Tuesday, February 12, replacing @ with (at) and .com with (dot) com.

"Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws."

About Rainbow's End: Join a geocaching adventure in the spectacular Lake of the Ozarks wilderness, with Lyssa, the reluctant volunteer whose former nemesis is now her chief sponsor; Madison, a city girl paired with an outdoorsy guy who gets on her very last nerve; Hadley, who doesn’t know enough about guys to realize she’s met a womanizer; and cautious Reagan, who meets an equally cautious guy. Will they find the treasure they’re looking for … or something else entirely?

Valerie Comer's life on a small farm in western Canada provides the seed for stories of contemporary inspirational romance. Like many of her characters, Valerie and her family grow much of their own food and are active in the local food movement as well as their creation-care-centric church. She only hopes her creations enjoy their happily ever afters as much as she does hers, shared with her husband, adult kids, and adorable granddaughters.

Her first published work, a novella, was released in the collection Rainbow's End from Barbour Books in May 2012. Visit her website and blog to glimpse inside her world.