Question :
I want to purchase an eBook that is not available in Apple Books. I have found it is available on the website of a bookstore in EPUB (with digital watermark) version. It seems like I should be able to download it after purchase and then read it in Books.app on my iPad or iPhone, but is it also possible to read it in the Books.app on my Mac ?

How do I do that ?


Answer :

Yes, you can buy an EPUB (with digital watermark) [ a.k.a. EPUB with social DRM ] and then read it on Apple’s Books.app on either iPhone, iPad or Mac. To do that, do this :

NOTE : if you buy an eBook on Amazon, it will only be available in the Kindle.app (that will automatically sync across your devices also), but getting a Kindle eBook into Apple’s Books.app is problematic… so if you prefer to read all your eBooks in Books.app, avoid buying eBooks on Amazon.

• first, make sure that you are logged into your iCloud account on your iPhone, your iPad and your Mac (with the same iCloud account)
• on your iPhone (or iPad) go to the online bookstore that sells the eBook in EPUB (with or without personal watermark or Social DRM)
• purchase the eBook
• when the download link appear, click on it
• now the eBook will be downloaded to the Files.app on your iPhone (or iPad), which means it will be visible on the Desktop of your Mac also (which is automatically synced in iCloud)
• now, on your iPhone (or iPad), click on the eBook in the Files.app and choose “open in Books”
• now, the eBook will open in Books.app and is ready for reading
• it will stay in the Library of your Books.app
• if you have iCloud syncing switched on (most of us have) the eBook will now be available for reading in Books.app on your iPhone, your iPad and your Mac
• if the eBook is not showing up on all devices, recheck in Settings.app if iCloud-syncing is switched on for Books.app
• if you want to manually add the eBook to your iPhone or iPad, do this :
  • – open the Files.app and find the eBook
  • – click on the eBook and choose “Open in Books”
  • – then wait for the eBook to open in Books.app
  • if you want to manually add the eBook to your Mac, do this :
  • – on your Mac, find the eBook on your Desktop (or in the Desktop folder)
  • – Option-click (right-click) on the eBook icon
  • – from the pulldown menu that appears, choose Open With > Books
  • – now wait for the eBook to open in Books.app

That’s it !

enjoy 😉