Fantasy and romance fans will want to bookmark audio and ebook app Galatea. Making itself known as the name in shifter and paranormal romance novels, it serves empowering and diverse stories of love and desire.

What we love: Getting extra immersed in a story thanks to the audio featured in some of Galatea’s titles. Hear a pounding heart beat during a tense moment, or the snarls of a werewolf while the main character tries to escape. There’s music – and occasionally visual effects and vibration – to indicate environment, setting and mood shifts, and it really makes the story come alive.

Quick tip: Access Galatea’s entire catalogue through a yearly subscription, or unlock chapters of your favourite books through points packages. If you tap on the gift icon on the main screen, you have a few options to gain free reward points to invest in a new book or chapter.

Meet the creator: Inkitt, the publisher behind Galatea, is based in Berlin, Germany, and they’re always on the lookout for the next popular writers. Their app became popular with the release of the erotic werewolf fantasy series The Millennium Wolves by Sapir E. Englard.

You must be at least 17 years old to download this app. Apps in this category may contain sexual content, mature themes or alcohol, tobacco or drug use references.