If you have a library card then you’ll know the joys of popping down to your local library and checking out the latest bestsellers, classics and all sorts of books for free. But sometimes the book you want isn’t there, or it simply isn’t convenient or easy for you to leave the house to get to the library that day.

There’s also the matter of being around to return your books before you get a pesky fine.

But if you have a smartphone or tablet then there’s a free app you can use to read electronic versions of books held by your library known as eBooks.

eBooks are normally associated with eReaders, devices such as the Amazon Kindle that you can read on. These of course require you to pay for eBooks like you might at a brick and mortar bookshop, and though eBooks often cost less than their paper counterparts, you still have to fork out for the Kindle in the first place.

That’s why I’ve been taking advantage of a little-known app called Libby, a wonderful free app that links to your library card and lets you check out eBooks for free on your smartphone or tablet.

I have Libby installed on my iPhone. When you download it, it guides you through a setup process to link to your library card. All I needed was my physical library card to see its unique number on the back. For my London-based library, I also needed to know my four digit PIN number that I chose when I got my card. The app might ask you this in order to verify your login, but the method of login could vary if you are part of a different library network.

Once logged in, you can then search for books, audiobooks and magazine on the virtual library shelves. Libraries don’t have unlimited access to all books – rather, like physical volumes, they pay to hold certain copies of certain titles, and you can check them out like you would a physical book. If a book is not available, you can place a hold like you would reserve a book traditionally. The app lets you know when it’s ready to read, and loans last for 21 days.

You’ll also never get a fine, because Libby will automatically return your items after that time, unless you’ve been able to renew them.

You can read books you’ve checked out on your phone or tablet – whichever device you decide to download Libby onto. It displays much like you would expect and looks just like a Kindle or text reading app. You can change the text size, colours and font.

I’ve used Libby extensively to get hold of books when I’ve been on holiday, as Libby works anywhere in the world. I have also lived abroad and used different library cards with it – you can connect several to your Libby app at once if you have more than one and borrow simultaneously from them.

Though I’ve found my library doesn’t have every book I want and sometimes I need to place holds that last for several weeks before I can get my hands on the newest pageturners, Libby is excellent. It lets me read books for free and save money, especially when the price of a paperback novel is at least £9.99 these days.

I also use a Kobo eReader instead of a Kindle, partly because you can sign in to your Libby account on a Kobo and access your library eBooks on the E Ink device instead of a phone screen. This is not possible on a Kindle in the UK, it only works on Amazon’s devices in the US. I reviewed the excellent Kobo Libra Colour recently and thoroughly recommend it.