Free Kindle Books. Oh how I love.

I'm totally, undeniable, (mostly) unabashedly addicted to free eBooks. I can't remember the last time I bought a book or the last time I brought home a hard copy paperback (and hardbacks...what is that even about?), even a cheapsy, thrifty used one. I have a box (okay a tub) full of books (okay! tubS plural) I've read that take up so much space, and I have no idea what to do with them. And um, with my Kindle Fire, I can fit that many and more (more!) in my purse.

If you are still reading hard copies, what on earth are you thinking? (Okay, just alienated 3/4 of my readers...) I am sorry, but hard copies of books are going away. They just are. Accept it. I'm not going to get into it about brick and mortar stores vs the big, bad online retailers. It's not a fight worth fighting. But you don't hear anyone whining about movie rental stores going out of business, do you? Just sayin'. You know why? It's because nobody wants to drag their pajama-clad butt down to town to stand around with a bunch of strangers picking out a movie that doesn't suck. And guess what. Nobody wants to do that with books either. I hate bookstores. They're snobbish. And I hate libraries. They're creepy and snobbish. Some people say, "Well, I just like the feel of a book." Well, you know what? I like the feel of my Kindle. I want to snuggle it and kiss it and tie bows in its hair.

It's maybe a weird opinion for an author, but I have to tell you I sell way more eBook copies of my book than hard copies. And do you know why? Because I'm not the only one who gets the heebie jeebies inside bookstores. And I, like many others, spend approximately 75,690% more time online than at the bookstore.

Free eBooks got a bad reputation at first. "What! You can't even give them away?" But they have become a great marketing and promotional tool for authors. A sample of the goods, you might say, offered for a limited time. Not all free books are less than stellar, and a quick glance at the reviews will tell you which ones are. Yes, there are crappy writers that do a quick epublish of their crappy crap, but consumers can sniff them out pretty quick, and people are great, aren't they? To point the finger and scream "Crap!" (Whoa! Getting snarky there, Misty. Toning it down now).

A lot of people ask me where I get free kindle books. I guess by now everyone has figured out how to type "free kindle books" into the Google (it's funnier to call it the Google, isn't it?) But in case you don't want to do that, I thought I would list a few of my favorite places that hunt for the good ones for you. Oh, how lazy (and cheap) can we be!

Bargain eBook Hunter on Facebook
It's a new world out there. Let Bargain eBook Hunter be your guide.

And it's true. The face of traditional publishing is changing so quickly, nobody can keep up, least of all traditional publishers and authors. It's an Indie and an eBook scene now!

The thing I like about Bargain eBook Hunter is that they list 2-3 free eBook packs each day and also do featured books. They list 10-15 books a day and there is usually one that I want. They also list a bargain pack of books that are either on sale or are just a good deal.

Kindleboards on Facebook

Kindleboards also does a list of books, but they list both free and bargain books together, so you have to be a little careful if you don't want to OneClick your bank account into a black hole. They do a variety of offerings and show pics of the books on facebook, and judge me if you want, but I still judge books by their covers.

Free Booksy on Facebook
Books are better when they're free.

I like FreeBooksy more than the others, but I don't know why (could it be the name?). FreeBooksy does several one-book features throughout the day, and even if I don't want the book, I always find it interesting. As with the others, something I neglected to mention because it seemed like overkill, you can sign up for emails about free books to your inbox. Nice.

Inspired Reads on Facebook
Christian Kindle books on a budget.

I really like Inspired Reads because I know the books will be Christian, and not all (though some) are holy rollers. I look at Inspired Reads every day (I get their email) and I usually get one of their books. They always list the offerings from Bethany House (which I love), but it's nice that I don't have to visit both sites.

Book Bub
Get free and bargain bestsellers for your eReader!

Book Bub will send you out an email, based on your selected genre preferences, with 3-4 free and bargain books a day. The thing I like about Book Bub is it's totally customizable to your preferred genre(s).

Free eBooks and Tips on Facebook

In addition to free eBooks, this site also posts the Amazon free app of the day and special deals.

Or you can just search Amazon yourself.

These are only a few of the sites that are out there, but I can't follow any more of them because I'm already inundated with books I will probably never get around to reading. But I might, and I think that's the important part in all of this.