Since getting Kindle Unlimited in October 2020, I've been a huge fan. I talk about it so much and read mainly from books available on KU (since it's easier to recommend them for followers who don't want to purchase additional books outside their monthly membership), so sometimes I forget not everyone knows what Kindle Unlimited actually is or what it entails. 

I just got the below question on TikTok this past week, so lets deep dive into everything KU-related.

Looking into KU. DO you think it's worth it? And do you get to keep the books/purchase the ones you like at a discounted price??

all of these books are on kindle unlimited! 

What is KU?

Kindle Unlimited is an Amazon service to allow you to read whatever ebooks/efiles are in their library. It's a monthly subscription cost that allows you to read an unlimited amount from their library (check out details on price below!).

It's important to note:

• Not every ebook available on Amazon is going to be included in Kindle Unlimited. You can check on Amazon if a book is available by going to the page and checking if it has the "read now on Kindle Unlimited" icon (see below)
• You don't get an unlimited number of check outs. The number of check outs allowed at one time used to be 10, but they've bumped it up to 20
• You don't "own" the books. You can keep an item checked out indefinitely (as long as you have an active KU subscription), but it will take up 1 of you 20 spots for book rentals. And once you return it, it isn't still available in your library. Think of it like the movies you stream on Netflix, the music you listen to on Spotify, or books checked out from the library. You would need to buy an ebook version to own it, and there isn't a discount if you purchase something you first read on KU

Lets talk $$$

The regular cost of a subscription is $9.99/month, but you can do a free 30-day trial or $0.99 for 3 months. During sales on Prime Day you can purchase a 2-year subscription at $4.99/month, which is what I currently have. (You can "upgrade" to a lower cost subscription or "gift" yourself a subscription at a lower cost when the price is on sale.)

Lets break down the cost to see if it's worth it based on how much you read... 

• If you read 1 ebook a month (around $4.99), a full price subscription at $9.99 probably isn't worth it. But scoring a $4.99/month rate would be, and would allow you to casually read multiple books at one without committing to multiple ebooks at full price
• If you read 2+ ebooks a month, I'm going to say it's worth it because anything 2+ will even out the cost of the subscription even at the full $9.99/month

What is actually available on KU?

Kindle Unlimited has over 2 million titles, made up of ebooks, comics, magazine, audiobooks, and more. But a lot of these titles are indie or self-published, so the traditionally published books you want to read may not be on there. (FYI: "traditionally published books" mean any book published by one of the big five publishers or their many imprints. If you're a romance reader this includes Avon, Berkley, Grand Central Publishing, and Harlequin.)

I can really only speak to what's available for romance, since that's the genre I read. But there is an endless amount of romance novels on KU. While the discover feature on the Kindle apps sucks, I turn to fellow book readers for KU recs and share my own (almost) every week on TikTok. 

The romance genre is booming, because passionate fans become passionate writers. Give me the most niche trope or topic for a book and I'll bet there's a book for it. And once you have a trope you love, you have an endless list to try. Take single parent:

An amazing single mom contemporary I always recommend is Hero by Lauren Rowe.
A single mom with an older heroine? The Takeover by TL Swan.
How about if you want a single dad and widow with a young daughter? Make Me Yours by Melanie Harlow.
How about if you want a single dad with 3 young girls? Irresistible by Melanie Harlow.
How about single dad and his teenage son? All Rhodes Lead Here by Mariana Zapata.
How about guy who becomes guardian to a teenager - oh and it's paranormal? Fierce Obsession by Suzanne Wright. 
How about three guys who become guardians to a baby? Nanny for the Neighbors by Lily Gold.
Okay but what about a woman who becomes guardian to a pre-teen - but back to contemporary? Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score.
Single dad but also an alien? Steph's Outcast by Ruby Dixon.
Single dad and single mom and he's a former assassin?? Gifts by Brynne Asher.

The list goes on. 

If you are a romance reader I can almost guarantee you will find books to read on Kindle Unlimited. And if you're having trouble, just email (virgoreadersteph@gmail.com) or DM me on Instagram (@virgoreader)! Indie romance is probably 90+% of what I read and I don't see that changing.

Back when I was debating trying Kindle Unlimited I came across this article from MakeUseOf titled "5 Reasons Why a Kindle Unlimited Subscription Isn't Worth It". I didn't know what an indie or self-published book was so it made me nervous. I assumed self-published books were awkwardly written and poorly edited, like the worst kinds of fanfiction I used to read as a teen. I mean, quotes like this aren't promising...

While there's nothing inherently wrong with self-published books, and success stories like Twilight and The Martian show there are some great books to be found, the lack of any books from popular authors is a problem. Most people don't have the time or the interest to dig through the heap to try and find the next The Martian. You probably want to know that the books you're reading are well-written, properly edited, and entertaining.

However what I can say after having KU for a year and a half, reading over 500+ titles on KU, and reading more indie/self-pub books off KU is that being self-published is not a bad thing. There are a ton of self-published authors with a following as large and rabid as they are for traditionally published authors - more so in many ways because romance readers read so much and feel close to these authors. There are many indie authors who are millionaires, and many others with Facebook groups for their fans with tens of thousands of members. Check out success stories like Lucy Score, Kennedy Ryan, Sophie Lark - even Meghan Quinn, who I have a complicated reading relationship with... 

This article from Shondaland on indie romance books paints a better, more accurate picture of the genre. 

To say that independent romance is a beast in romance publishing is a well-known understatement. Indie romance has actually changed the business across the board, setting trends in craft and marketing strategies. But perhaps most importantly, indie romance has reshaped the narrative of what kinds of stories readers really want.
Take, for example, popular book vlogger, Mina Thomas.
“When I read Something Like Love by Christina C. Jones in 2017, I cried over my first ever experience reading about a bisexual Black woman like me,” says popular book vlogger, Mina Thomas of MinaReads. “Indie romances often provide me with representation that is often slow to show up on the traditionally published market.”

“I’m not waiting for someone to give me a six-figure deal. I make my own deals,” says USA Today best selling author, Kennedy Ryan, adding that she’s also discriminating about relinquishing her intellectual property. “Some of my closest friends, they’re indie author millionaires, and it’s not by chance. It’s not because they’re putting out crappy stuff. We are writing great stories, making sure they’re well edited, making sure the branding is excellent, [and] investing in marketing. The terrain is constantly shifting under our feet, and I think that’s one advantage we have over traditional publishing, the malleability and understanding how the market is constantly changing, and being able to quickly adapt and be nimble in how we reach readers.”

Earnings aside, the most prevalent myth floating around about indie authors might be that they are unsigned because they aren’t “good enough” to land a traditional publishing deal. And as with any marketplace without gatekeepers, there is shoddy work populating the indie romance landscape. But the idea that writers self-publish as a last resort or because they can’t get picked up by a publishing house is simply out-of-touch, particularly when many indies are actually hybrid authors — maintaining traditional publishing deals, which help them reach broader audiences, while also putting out books independently, often at a faster pace.

Do you need a Kindle to read KU?

Nope! If you have a smartphone or tablet you can download the Kindle app and read on there. Personally, I prefer doing this. I have a Kindle app on my laptop, iPhone, and iPad and I reach for them much more often than I reach for my Kindle - both for ease of use and I prefer the user experience. 

So really...

I'd suggest doing a free trial (or the $0.99 for 3 months) if you think KU might work for you! If you're not sure where to start you can check my Goodreads - I have a whole shelf of books available on Kindle Unlimited and I write a review for everything on there. 

Or, check out my listicle tag on here! I'll be doing plenty more lists of KU recs based on trope.