ARCs

I have been reading posts on various book blogs lately where people are discussing ARCs and how to obtain them so I thought I'd share a little bit about where I get the ARCs I review on my blog.

First of all, most of the books I read and review are from the library. I often put myself on waiting lists and obtain books through interlibrary loan. I have been waiting for a month now to read The Dead Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan and I know that eventually it will be my turn to read it. I think it is neat to be able to read books in advance sometimes and to be able to spread the word about upcoming releases but I do not mind waiting until the book is published and I can hold a finished copy in my hands-plus I like supporting my library.

So how do I get the ARCs I do read?

I get ARCs from a couple of different places. One of the libraries I go to makes the ARCs available for review purposes (they get the ARCs from the book distributor and then put them out for people to take and pass on to others-you can't make ARCs part of the library collection). I occasionally get some great ARCs this way. I also belong to the Book Blogs ning and there are groups that you can join where the publisher makes ARCs available for blog tours. I also request ARCs sometimes from FSB Media.

For those wondering how on earth I was able to get an ARC of The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa, I am a member of NetGalley which makes ARCs available through e-book form. You only have a limited amount of time to read the e-book before it expires and you can choose whether or not you wish to review the book. I have been able to review some pretty nice books like Rachel Vincent's My Soul to Keep courtesy of the publishers and NetGalley. If you don't mind reading e-books on your computer or Kindle, check out NetGalley.

If you are not already a member of the Book Blogs ning, I encourage you to join. It is a great way to network with other book bloggers and promote your blog especially if you are starting out. They also have fun groups you can join based on your reading interests, etc. I hope that this information is helpful to you!