Where to rent books online in Malaysia?

You know, life is full of choices. If it's not A, then it's B. If it's not blue, then it's red. If you're not gonna buy, then rent. Haha.

Oh yes, if you ran out of books to read (how could you anyway???) and you don't want to spend money to buy new novels, you can opt to rent books. Best of all, you can start renting books online. That way, you can choose which books you want to read from the comfort of your comfy couch/chair/sofa and your trusty computer.

OK. So far I've found three sites which offer online book rentals in Malaysia.

1. Reader's Shack

It claims to be Malaysia's first online book rental website. But yeah, they've been around for many years, even before I started blogging in 2006. I even opened an account with them in 2005 but never rented any books. I only bought a book from them two years after that. Anyway, they have romance titles, thrillers, mysteries, self-helps and other non-fiction books. You can even earn money by offering to rent out your books through their Netsellers programme.

2. Q'reazant

This is a recent discovery, as recent as 15 minutes ago. It's a neat blog with clear instructions all laid out for visitors. They have a variety of reading materials ranging from biographies, college textbooks, comics, young adult novels to magazines. And wow, they even rent out DVDs, VCDs and music CDs. Incredible!

3. Book Lover's Rental Shoppe

I found this website like 10 minutes ago. :) Lots of classic titles. It also offers chick lit, romance, teen, mystery and thriller, horror, politics and social economy and religious books.

***ETA: Oct 6, 2013

4. MyBookRental

Thanks to Pauline Jee for e-mailing me about her book rental online store which established just this year. Renting books is done online and they offer a wide range of books such as fiction, non-fiction, young adult fiction, graphic novels and children's books. Free shipping is available for a rental price of RM20 and above.

So there you go. Four online choices for you to pick if you want to try renting books. Do let me know if you know anymore of such book renting services. Enjoy!

Free e-book: Four Corners of the Sky

Get a free e-book of The Four Corners of the Sky by Michael Malone on the web (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple, Sony, Kobo or
Books-A-Million) for this weekend only.

Book summary:

In small towns between the North Carolina Piedmont and the coast the best scenery is often in the sky. On flat sweeps of red clay and scrub pine the days move monotonously, safely, but above, in the blink of an eye, dangerous clouds can boil out of all four corners of the sky...The flat slow land starts to shiver and anything can happen.

In such a storm, on Annie Peregrine's seventh birthday, her father gave her the airplane and minutes later drove out of her life. Thus begins an enchanting novel that bursts with energy from the first pages, and sweeps you off on a journey of unforgettable characters, hilarious encounters, and haunting secrets.

The Four Corners of the Sky is master storyteller Michael Malone's novel of love, secrets, and the mysterious bonds of families. Malone brings characters to life as only he can, exploring the questions that defy easy answers: Is love a choice or a calling? Why do the ties of family bind so tightly? And is forgiveness a gift to others...or a gift we give ourselves?

10% off books at The Book Depository

You can enjoy a 10% discount off 'EVERYTHING' at online bookstore, The Book Depository until May 31.

There are some terms and conditions involved, so just read them before you buy. An example of the terms is 'The discount code can only be used once per transaction', so it's the usual ones.

The code to use before checkout is 'May11'.

They offer free delivery worldwide so grab this opportunity to use the discount if you were planning to do some book shopping! :)

Book Review: Mr Darcy's Diary by Amanda Grange

I finished reading somebody else's diary two days ago. Well don't get too excited, it's only the diary of Mr Darcy, the dream guy from Jane Austen's novel, Pride and Prejudice. Haha!

I recently found out that Mr Darcy's Diary was published in 2007. Wow, I didn't know about it till Jane Austen's birthday last year when this book was available free for download on Amazon.

Anyway, reading the book was enjoyable. It was engaging, interesting and I literally couldn't put it down. It's one of those books that I really couldn't wait to continue reading.

Why, you ask? Okay, it's partly because I was curious about what Mr Darcy thought about almost everything - Elizabeth, her family, Bingley, Caroline (some shocking ones here!) and everything else.

You may check out my review of this book on my other blog. :)

I was supposed to read Dead Girls Don't Write Letters before this but made a detour with Mr Darcy's Diary. I think my next book is The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. But I also read Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick until page 50 when I was in the bookstore the other day. So it's gonna be either one of these books.

I have a Borders Rewards Card!

Borders has its own Rewards Card! Here's how it can benefit you if you sign up to be a Rewards member at a fee of RM20.

Enjoy 10% discounts when you buy:

1. Borders full-priced books

2. Basheer full-priced books

3. KL Commercial full-priced books

4. Unipress full-priced books

5. Starbucks F&B at selected outlets

6. Metrojaya products (on normal priced Metrojaya Fashion private labels when you spend RM100 and above in a single receipt at any Metrojaya departmental store)

Get 5% discounts when you buy:

1. Magazines

2. Hallmark greeting cards

3. Campap stationery products

There are other benefits too but the discounts should be the most enticing. Well, the 10% discount is not as attractive if compared to Popular bookshop's 20% discount on books for members but it's a good start for those who love Borders like I do. :)

I was at Borders Queensbay Mall last week and I couldn't help noticing the signs promoting the Rewards Card. How could I not ask about it, right?

So, when you sign up, you get a normal-sized card along with two sidecards with holes on the top left corner. You can hook the sidecards to keychains and stuff. But I don't really see the need of it if I already carry the big card in my wallet where I keep my money which I will use to buy books and whatnot. 

All the cards have barcodes though. The cashier will scan it and credit points for you. I will need to find out how to keep track of my points and how to use them.

Ah, I'm not promoting for Borders but I just think that the discounts are better than none at all. :)

Don't miss these free e-books!

First, I'd like to wish Happy Chinese New Year to those who are celebrating it. Gong Xi Fa Cai! :)

Also, you get to download these e-books for FREE today and tomorrow (Sunday):

1. Lydia Bennet’s Story by Jane Odiwe
2. Love at First Flight by Marie Force
3. The Greatest Knight by Elizabeth Chadwick
4. Dreaming Anastasia by Joy Preble

For more information, visit Sourcebooks' eBook deals page. Or if you have a Kindle, just search for Kindle Editions of the above titles on Amazon.com.

I was so excited to see Dreaming Anastasia among the titles! It was one of those books that I really wanted but didn't want to spend money buying it yet. And whadaya know, I got it for free today. Ah, definitely a good day. :)