During London’s third lockdown (with restrictions just beginning to ease recently), I read more than ever. Books provided solace and escape into other worlds. I took full advantage of library loans and collected e-books, keeping my eyes peeled for deals and new discoveries.

If you devour books more quickly than popcorn, or simply aspire to read more, here are some of the ways I’ve found new books to read this year that you can use too. I hope you enjoy discovering new authors and filling your shelves!

Libraries: Let’s start with the obvious place. Public libraries are full of wonderful free reading material, and in many cases, digital collections have expanded during the pandemic. The user-friendly Libby app will let you download ebooks and audiobooks on your phone, computer or ereader, and some libraries offer click and collect services for physical books even while closed.

Little free libraries: You may have one or more of these in your area. They’re tiny structures where people put a selection of books and neighbors can take or leave a book. They often look like cute little sheds or birdhouses. (Naomi Kritzker wrote a fun story on Tor.com about a little free library that connects to another world – I’ve yet to encounter one of those, though!) Similar places to find books are book exchanges (some buildings and workplaces have shelves of these) or free book bins (some bookstores have these where they leave old stock that hasn’t been sold for passers-by to discover).

Social media: Following authors, publishers and other book industry insiders on social media will keep you informed about upcoming releases you might enjoy, book sales, and giveaways. I’ve found Twitter to be especially informative, with authors sometimes posting links to free ebooks for a limited time, and lots of buzz about titles I’ve discovered and enjoyed. Author newsletters can also be interesting, with some of them giving access to free stories you can’t find elsewhere.   

Book festivals and events: With many of these now taking place online, people from all over the world have access to a wide range of book events (and if you can’t make it due to time zone differences, the event might be posted on YouTube for you to listen on your own time). You can hear authors talk about their books, learn what’s going on in the industry, and discover new reads. Sometimes there are sales or deals on offer as well. 

Book bundles: Places like Humble Bundle and StoryBundle offer pay-what-you-want packages of ebooks grouped by theme. You might find cookbooks one month and mysteries another. Humble Bundle also offers bundles of games, software, and other digital content, and you can allocate some of your payment to charity; StoryBundle’s content is completely DRM-free. If there’s a themed bundle that appeals to you, it’s a wonderful way to find new books and authors that have been vetted for quality.

Giveaways: Above, I mentioned that there are sometimes giveaways on social media (“retweet this giveaway and I’ll pick one person to win these books”). A lot of indie authors also have series first books available as giveaways. You can also check sites like BookBub or Freebooksy for daily deals.  

Note that I haven’t mentioned bookstores, including used book stores, as they’ve been closed here, but they’re good places to find new books as well, often have sales, and many booksellers give wonderful recommendations. I also haven’t mentioned websites that post “books” online for free, as many of them are involved in piracy and undermine authors’ ability to make a living off their work (whereas libraries, for instance, pay authors when their books are borrowed). A lovely exception is Project Gutenberg, which offers classics in the public domain for free download online and also has a self-publishing press. 

Where do you like to find new books and deals on books?