So, in my review policy I have stated that I don't accept eBooks for review, and this largely remains the case. I don't have an eReader of any sort - honestly, I dont' even know much about them, nor do I have any intention of getting one. They don't really appeal to me. Haven't you guys noticed that I'm kind of obsessed with cover art and having lots of pretty books on my shelves!
However, in the past few days, I've actually downloaded not one, not two, but three eBooks. Will I actually be able to sit at my computer and read them all the way through? I do not know. I don't have a laptop, and sitting at my PC for hours to read a book on screen...I'm still not sure if it appeals to me. But, and there is a but, there are so many good eBooks out there for free right now, that I have been very tempted by them, and I'm willing to give this a shot. And perhaps change my review policy in the process.
The first eBook I downloaded came courtesy of a post on my friend Simay's blog Zimlicious. We bonded over a mutual love (total obsession in her case!) of Edward Cullen a few years back, and also share a love of vampire fiction. She did a post on Marta Acosta's The Shadow Girl of Birch Grove which has been described as 'a modern day gothic treat for vampire fans' by LoveVampires.com, and which is available here as a free download on Scribd. I liked the description of the book, and the cover art, and I reckon that if I'd seen this on Amazon, I would have ordered it, so I went ahead and downloaded it. 
Then I received an email from author Kersten Hamilton who was doing a little research on NetGalley.com and was emailing bloggers to gather some opinions. She also mentioned her new book Tyger, Tyger which is available as a free download on the site. Well, I thought this one sounded interesting too, and there's an Irish interest here, so I went ahead and downloaded it. While I was on NetGalley, I discovered that The Bad Queen: Rules and Instructions for Marie-Antoinette by Carolyn Meyer is also available as a download, so I signed up for that one too. I have always been really interested in Marie-Antoinette and I really want to read this one. I'm sure there are many great books on there available for download, but I thought that two was enough for me right now, so I stepped away from NetGalley. It's a great service, especially for us new book bloggers who are starting out and find it difficult to come by ARC's or pre-release books for review. Also, this is open internationally, which is great. Sometimes our resources, as book bloggers, are very limited in comparision to our American friends.
Do you use NetGalley or any other site that offers free eBooks for review? How do you feel about reading eBooks? There are a lot of great resources out there now as far as eBooks go, and I'm just hoping that I can sit at my computer and read a whole book on screen. I haven't actually tried it before! Wish me luck!
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