What is Illuminory?
An audiobook shop and a free player, without the catch. You buy a book once, it is yours, and nothing in the app is trying to sell you anything.
How it works
- Buy here, in your own currency. One price per book, no subscription.
- Listen in the free Illuminory app for iPhone and Android. Sign in with the email you bought with and your book is waiting.
- Keep it. Download it and it plays with no signal: in the car, on the plane, anywhere. It never expires.
Why Illuminory?
A note from the founder
I'm an independent author. The existing platforms disappointed me: the limits they put on authors, and the rates, with the platform taking the bulk of every sale. That isn't fair to listeners, to authors or to narrators.
So Illuminory aims to be a fair marketplace for all three. Simple terms, no contracts, no subscriptions. And as a listener you know that a fair share of what you pay goes to the person who wrote the book, instead of vanishing into big business.
Write books yourself? Illuminory for authors
The Illuminory Author Podcast
Authors talking about their books: how they came to be, how they were made, and a taste of the story. Free, wherever you listen to podcasts.
Or follow the feed in any podcast app: illuminory.com/podcast.xml
Questions
Is it a subscription?
No. Each book has its own price, paid once. No credits, no monthly fee, nothing to cancel.
Do I need an account?
Your email address is your account. There is no password: when you sign in we email you a six-digit code, and the app stays signed in for about a year at a time.
Where do I listen?
In the free Illuminory app for iPhone and Android. This website is the shop; it has no player. In the app, download a book and it plays with no signal.
Can I listen on more than one device?
Yes. Sign in on each with the same email. The app remembers where you stopped, and every device picks up from there.
Will it remember my place?
Yes. That is the whole point. Close the app, reinstall it, change phone: the book opens on the sentence you left.
Does it work in the car?
Over Bluetooth, yes: the chapter on the car's screen, the skip buttons doing what they say, and nothing starting by itself when you get in.
What do the marks on a cover mean?
HUMAN NARRATED is read by a person. DIGITALLY NARRATED is read by a digital voice from the author's text, and says so. FULL CAST PRODUCTION means more than one voice: each character played by a different narrator.
Who sells these books?
Illuminory is an independent publisher's own shop. The authors here sell direct, so the price stays sensible and the book stays yours.
What does a book cost?
Each book has its own price, shown in your currency with your country's tax included where it applies. The checkout shows the exact amount before you pay. A bundle costs less than the books in it.
How do refunds work?
Changed your mind within 14 days and not started the book? Sign in on your account page and press Request refund at the bottom: you pick the book, say why, and we refund in full. Something wrong with the audio? The same form, whenever you find it. A refund takes the book out of your library.
Do you track me?
No. No ad pixels, no analytics scripts, no cookies except the one that keeps you signed in. We count page views and clicks in bulk, never who made them. The privacy page says exactly what we store.
I bought a book and cannot see it.
Sign in with the email you used when you bought it. If it is still missing, write to help@illuminory.com and a person will reply.
Can I listen on my computer?
Not yet. The app is for iPhone and Android, and the website has no player.
