Release Notes

What's new in BookShelves — latest updates, features, and bug fixes for the macOS and iOS ebook reader.

Version 1.0.18

  • Reader — Smoother text flow across page breaks. Long paragraphs now wrap naturally where they meet the bottom of a page instead of being pre-split, matching how the rest of the book is laid out.
  • Reader — Crisper chapter titles. Fixed a subtle alignment shift between the title's foreground and faded background layers so titles render pixel-perfect across themes.
  • PDF — Fixed a rare crash when opening PDFs while Apple Intelligence is active. PDFs now load through a path that's compatible with on-device intelligence features.
  • Email to E-Reader — More reliable when sending books that live in iCloud. The app now waits for the book file to fully download from iCloud before composing the email, so sends no longer fail silently when a book is offloaded.
  • Import — Clearer error messages when a file can't be opened. You'll now see the actual reason — wrong format, truncated download, or unsupported — instead of a generic "conversion failed."
  • OPDS — Friendlier guidance when adding HTTP-only catalogs. App Transport Security blocks plain HTTP for most servers; the app now explains this up front and links to a new support article. Local-network and link-local addresses are still allowed.

Version 1.0.17

  • Reader — Cleaner tables in plain EPUBs with bordered cells, bold centered headers, and captions. Publisher styles take precedence when a book ships its own table formatting.
  • Reader — Horizontal rules no longer override decorative publisher dividers like fleurons. Default rule is a muted line that tints to match your theme.
  • Reader — Theme-aware borders across tables, blockquotes, and dividers for Light, Sepia, Dark, Vintage Paper, Night Sky, Forest, Ocean Mist, Midnight, and Dark Academia.
  • OPDS — Friendlier error messages when a catalog can't be reached.
  • Library — Fixed an issue where a small number of accounts could be left pinned to iCloud storage after a past migration. Recovery now checks iCloud availability first so books already on iCloud stay reachable.

Version 1.0.16

  • Library — Fixed an issue where imported books could appear as "Book Not Available" after restarting the app.
  • Sync — Improved sync reliability for reader preferences (font, view mode, e-reader email) across devices.
  • OPDS — Helpful hint when a server URL contains a common typo like /odps or /opsd.

Version 1.0.15

  • MOBI — Added support for HuffCDIC-compressed MOBI files. Books that previously failed to open now load correctly.
  • Calibre — Reading progress now syncs both ways with KOReader. Your local reading position is pushed to the device during sync, and book matching uses unique identifiers instead of titles for more reliable pairing.
  • Reader — Search results across chapters now highlight reliably. Fixed an issue where navigating to a result in a different chapter could miss the highlight.
  • OPDS Server — Fixed high CPU usage when OPDS clients fetched multiple resources at once. Added pagination to the books API.
  • Library — Importing large collections no longer causes the library to freeze.
  • Stability — Faster and more reliable Pro status detection across devices. Improved app responsiveness on launch. General performance and reliability improvements.

Version 1.0.14

  • Discover — Browse 1,200+ Spanish public domain books from the Biblioteca Nacional de España. Sort by title or author across all sources.
  • Reader — Bundled STIX Two Math font for proper MathML rendering on iOS. Cleaned up font stacks across all languages for sharper text on Apple devices. CJK languages now use serif fonts for a more natural book reading experience.
  • Calibre — Improved connection security: device operations now require completed authentication. Fixed potential issues with file size handling, network connection cleanup, and password saving in settings.

Version 1.0.13

  • Discover — Search now works for Standard Ebooks. Dismiss button added to the book detail sheet on both macOS and iOS.
  • iOS — Fixed a crash caused by Apple Intelligence indexing PDF reader content on iOS 26.3+.
  • Comics — Added a size guard on ComicInfo.xml to prevent issues with malformed archives. Fixed timezone handling for publication dates.
  • Security — Stricter validation for ZIP and EPUB archives: bounds checks on central directory entries prevent reading past the buffer with crafted files.

Version 1.0.12

  • Reader Fonts — Choose from 8 bundled reading fonts: Literata, Lora, Merriweather, Noto Serif, Noto Sans, Atkinson Hyperlegible, Lexend, and OpenDyslexic. Font names are shown in their own typeface so you can preview before selecting. Use Publisher Font mode to preserve the book's original typography.
  • Reader Controls — New controls for line spacing, horizontal margins, text justification, and bold text. All settings are available from the appearance panel on both macOS and iOS.
  • Comics — Right-to-left reading mode for manga and other RTL comics. Reverses tap zones, arrow keys, swipe direction, page slider, and two-page spread layout. Automatically detected from the book's metadata, or toggle it manually from the layout menu.
  • Mac — Faded title overlay appears when the toolbar is hidden, so you always know which book you're reading.
  • iPad — The appearance panel now uses a sheet instead of a popover, giving you more room to browse fonts and adjust settings. Font size controls moved to the toolbar for quicker access.
  • Import — Calibre libraries with multiple formats per book now import only the best format instead of creating duplicates. Exploded EPUB folders from Apple Books are automatically repackaged on import. CBZ and CBR files can be opened directly from the Files app.

Version 1.0.11

  • Import — Importing large collections is significantly faster. Duplicate books are detected more efficiently, and imports now save your progress as they go — if something interrupts a big import, you keep the books that already finished. MOBI files with unusual metadata are handled gracefully instead of stopping the import.
  • Export — Export your highlights and notes as Markdown, JSON, or CSV directly from the right-click menu on any book. Great for study notes or sharing favorite passages.
  • Reader — Fixed an issue where highlighting text could cause the page to jump to a different position. Highlights now sync immediately across pages as you navigate. Reading progress bar shows correctly from the first page.
  • OPDS — When connecting to a server that requires a login, you now see helpful instructions instead of a confusing error message.
  • iOS — PDFs use less memory, which prevents crashes when reading large documents on older devices. PDF search is now case-insensitive and shows better context for results. The file picker is more reliable when importing from iCloud Drive and other locations. Sheets and overlays no longer dismiss unexpectedly during use. Added a close button to full-screen sheets for easier navigation.
  • iPad — Fixed PDF search on iPad. Improved stability when using the app in single-window mode.
  • iCloud — Saving books to iCloud is more reliable. Temporary network hiccups are retried automatically instead of showing an error. Fixed an issue where book availability could show incorrectly while iCloud was syncing.
  • Stability — Fixed a reading session tracking issue that could cause brief freezes. More reliable Calibre sync. General performance and reliability improvements.

Version 1.0.10

  • Reader — Optional reading progress bar shows how far you are in the current chapter. Two new themes: Midnight (pure black for OLED displays) and Quiet (neutral gray). Each theme now uses its own accent color throughout the reader UI. Toolbar no longer appears when swiping between pages.
  • iOS — Pull-to-refresh in the library triggers iCloud sync. New sync status and import progress indicators on iPhone.
  • Library — "Open New Books At" setting lets you choose whether to start at the cover or the first chapter.
  • Accessibility — Added missing labels to icon-only buttons and controls. Improved Sepia theme contrast ratio.
  • Stability — Faster shelf loading for large libraries. Fixed PDF two-page spread animations on iOS. Performance and reliability improvements.

Version 1.0.9

  • iPad — Redesigned sidebar with collapsible sections, book counts, and drag-and-drop for organizing books into shelves. Keyboard shortcuts for import and book info.
  • OPDS Sync — OPDS server configurations now sync across your devices via iCloud.
  • Reader — Better respect for publisher formatting. Fixed PDF theme backgrounds not updating on iOS.
  • Stability — Performance and reliability improvements.

Version 1.0.8

  • iCloud — Cover images now load instantly on launch. Previously, book covers could appear blank while waiting for iCloud to connect.
  • Stability — Improved reliability when opening the app on iPad.

Version 1.0.7

  • Comic Books — Read CBZ, CBR, and CB7 comics. Two-page spreads, smooth page turns, bookmarks, and dark chrome that keeps the focus on the art.
  • PDF Reader — Two-page spreads on iOS. Page slider for jumping through long documents. Theme switching and search on both platforms.
  • Calibre Wireless Sync — Built-in Calibre-compatible sync server. Send books to KOReader on your e-ink reader over Wi-Fi — no cables. Reading progress syncs back.
  • Look Up — Tap a word to look it up in the dictionary while reading. Uses the book's language for translation.
  • iPad — Turn pages with arrow keys. Trackpad and mouse work like you'd expect.
  • EPUB Reader — Slide animations between chapters on iOS. New page slider you can show or hide.
  • Import — Double-click an ebook in Finder or share it from Files on iOS — it opens directly in BookShelves.
  • Performance — Faster library scrolling and lower memory usage for large collections.
  • Stability — Reliability and security improvements.

Version 1.0.6

  • OPDS Client — Browse and download books from OPDS catalogs. Connect to any OPDS-compatible server or library, browse by category, search, and download books directly into your library.
  • OPDS Server — Now supports OPDS 2.0 in addition to OPDS 1.2, for broader compatibility with reading apps and devices on your local network.
  • EPUB Repair — Books with formatting issues are automatically repaired during import. Fixes common problems like broken navigation, missing metadata, and malformed content so books just work.
  • Import — Streamlined file import with smarter library detection. PRC files can now be opened from the file picker. Author metadata shown earlier during import.
  • Security — Hardened networking, the built-in web server, and file parsers against malicious input. Improved credential handling.
  • Stability — Improved iCloud sync reliability.

Version 1.0.5

  • Shelf Drag & Drop — Rebuilt using native AppKit rendering for reliable highlight feedback. Creating new shelves or assigning books no longer breaks the drag highlight.
  • Parser Safety — Fixed crashes in MOBI files with zero-offset anchors, PDFs with zero-dimension crop boxes, and ZIPs with invalid ZIP64 sentinels. Added file size limits, decompression bomb protection, and XML external entity (XXE) prevention.
  • Reader — Fixed text alignment so publisher centering is preserved. Fixed heading styles leaking from body justify rules. Fixed nested list rendering. Improved MOBI/KF8 metadata and OPF parsing.
  • Performance — Moved storage stats off the main thread. Reduced memory usage in parsing. Fixed a cover image infinite layout loop.
  • Stability — Improved thread safety and stability.

Version 1.0.4

  • Reader — Interactive swipe-to-turn pages on iOS. Redesigned iOS reader controls following Apple design guidelines. Eight reader themes — Light, Dark, Sepia, Vintage Paper, Night Sky, Forest, Ocean Mist, and Dark Academia — with in-reader theme picker. Adjustable font size. Fixed a crash when searching in certain PDF documents.
  • iOS — PDF reader toolbar redesigned to match EPUB reader. Floating highlight bars for PDF annotations. File picker opens directly from the + button. Improved page turn animations.
  • Library — "Want to Read" reading status for tracking your to-read list. Multi-select drag now shows a book count preview. Improved drag-and-drop reliability when assigning books to shelves. "Find Online" search when adding books.
  • Discover — iOS now defaults to Standard Ebooks for curated public domain classics.
  • Feedback — "Report an Issue" and "Report Rendering Issue" in the Help menu for quick bug reports.
  • Stability — Faster import of large files with reduced memory usage. Improved MOBI and KF8 format parsing. Better PDF cover extraction for books with spread pages. Improved iCloud sync reliability. Security hardening for ebook file parsers.

Version 1.0.3

  • Shelves — New "Unshelved" smart shelf shows books not assigned to any shelf. Drag and drop multiple books to shelves at once. "Remove from Shelf" context menu. Item count shown on all shelves.
  • Reader — Fixed visible reflow during window resize. Improved chapter tracking with a TOC-based model that handles single-file EPUBs. In-book link navigation now scrolls to the correct position. Respects publisher heading and table styles instead of overriding them.
  • Discover — Language badges on book cards. Deep links navigate to Discover when a book isn't in your library.
  • OPDS Server — Search support for KOReader and other OPDS clients. Bonjour auto-discovery on your local network.
  • Library — Language column in list view. Fixed sidebar duplicate rows from iCloud sync. Orphaned authors and tags cleaned up when deleting books.
  • Stability — Fixed CloudKit sync flooding that could cause CPU spikes. Improved error reporting. Permission-restricted PDFs can now be imported.

Version 1.0.2

  • Highlights & Notes — Add, edit, and delete notes on highlights. PDF highlights now match EPUB with purple underlines and consistent context menus. Duplicates across synced devices are automatically cleaned up.
  • Reader — Fixed blank pages when resizing the window. Improved search with Cancel button and theme-aware colors.
  • Library & Sync — Faster iCloud sync. Remote changes debounced to prevent CPU spikes. Fixed search on large libraries.
  • Security — Hardened the built-in web server.
  • Internet Archive — Improved Discover search with rebuilt full-text index. Fixed phantom download options.
  • iOS — Text selection and highlight editing with floating bars. Redesigned library list view.
  • General — Feedback and support links in Help menu and Settings. Better error reporting. Stability improvements.

Version 1.0.1

  • iCloud Sync — Real-time status indicator and manual sync trigger in Settings. Automatic recovery from temporary sync failures.
  • Downloads — Cancel button during book downloads. Timeout protection prevents hangs on corrupted files.
  • File Import — Fixed import from iCloud Drive and external locations.
  • Stability — Resolved a startup freeze. Fixed thread safety issues with the built-in web server. Improved error handling on launch.

Version 1.0.0

Initial release of BookShelves for macOS.

  • Read EPUB and PDF files with a paginated, distraction-free reader
  • Three reading themes: Light, Dark, and Sepia
  • Organize your library with tags, favorites, and full-text search
  • iCloud sync across devices with CloudKit
  • Text-to-Speech with adjustable rate, pitch, and voice selection
  • Highlights and bookmarks with color choices
  • Discover free books from Standard Ebooks and Internet Archive
  • Built-in OPDS server to share your library on your local network