The Palace Project

• Free

Last verified 31 Jul 2026

4.6 4721 ratings · App Store

1. 4/5Tough to use

   I like the way this app looks, and it is simple to navigate, however, I’ve had some dealbreaker issues with it, specifically with audiobooks. I’ve seen at least one other review that had things I experienced, including overheating phone, and fast battery drainage (which are probably related to each other). i’ve also experienced it starting a chapter and then 30 to 40 seconds in it’ll skip back to the beginning. Another issue that has been very frustrating, and to me the biggest dealbreaker, is that it downloaded an audiobook and broke it into an insane amount of chapters. It was the third Game of Thrones book, which is a nearly 50 hour audiobook, and it broke it into 844 small sections which were titled chapters. It makes it very time-consuming and frustrating to find a spot if you lose your place. Also, it caused the downloading of it to take a long time, I don’t have the technical knowledge as to why, but took like an hour. It also froze while downloading and I deleted and re-installed the app and still had the same issue with download time. I hope they can fix this stuff, but I saw that somebody else had a battery drainage problem from like a year before this, so not sure how common it is.

   adillon1984 · 31 Jul 2026

2. 1/5Could be good…

   This all has a lot of potential but it has too many issues to warrant a good rating as of now. The interface is clunky and does not allow for an easy browsing experience. It has issues syncing with my libraries and constantly can’t load the library catalog. And perhaps the biggest flaw is not allowing audiobook playback when using other functions of the app. If I’m listening to something and want to browse for other things, search for something, etc, playback stops as soon as you navigate off the playback page. With some refinements and a better interface this app can improve greatly. Edit: Unfortunately I had to downgrade to a 1 star rating. In addition to issues I already have, the app drains battery extremely fast and also brings my phone to very high temperatures. Also I have begun having issues with playback as the audio stops completely, randomly restarts a chapter, and loses it place altogether. This app needs a lot of work.

   Zeeiioo · 31 Jul 2026

3. 1/5Barely acceptable

   1. Bookmarks are broken: within any one book, every bookmark shows the same timestamp. I try to delete the bookmark, the same one reappears at the bottom of the list. Endlessly. Can’t delete. Can’t set a new one. 2. Chapter list: so nice that there is a list of chapters. Too bad clicking on any one of them does absolutely nothing. Does not advance to that chapter. Does not return to that chapter. Does actually ——-nothing. 3. I love my library. The building down the street. Too bad they got screwed when somebody convinced them to sign up for this app. Finally, doesn’t even play what is shown on the screen. I’m somewhere somewhere in the middle of the book: chapter 11, minutes:seconds, etc. showed on the screen. However, suddenly I’m listening to the introduction again. Fast-forward, rewind, doesn’t matter what I try to do, I’m stuck with the introduction again. I’m literally stuck rewound to the beginning of the book and cannot skip ahead to where I left off. Libby is good Hoopla is acceptable. Palace is nonfunctional

   leadtoil · 31 Jul 2026

4. 1/5Needs major updates

   Quite possibly one of the worst reading apps I’ve ever used. Only had it on my phone for a few days but in the short time I used it I found so many issues. The biggest problem I saw is when I tried borrowing an audiobook. I waited maybe five minutes for it to download and afterwards when I tried to open it the screen would go black and the app would crash. I tired to open it again and the same thing kept happening. I couldn’t even listen to the book I borrowed. On top of that the app takes up so much storage on my phone. Even after browsing and borrowing one book the “documents and data” it took up was around 2 gb! I also thought the search engine is awful, the first results you see are never related to whatever you entered into the search bar. When you tap on a book to see more details like a plot summary there’s nothing, just a black square. I also wished there was some functionality where you could save titles to a list, like the tagging system in the libby app. Overall I wanted to like this because the catalog was fairly extensive but the app is practically unusable for me. Please please update it.

   rosydruidess · 31 Jul 2026

5. 2/5This app is worse than the Boundless app was. It clearly has BUGS.

   This app has bugs that apparently seem to not be important enough to fix. Especially the one where it starts over to chapter one when you get out, or it buffers and stops, back to chapter one. Very, very annoying. I look for my book on any other app first to not have to endure the bugs and lack of functions on this app. Add a wishlist/to read button!I see a book I’d like to read but no way to save it. Instead I go to a different app and see if I can find it there to add to my list. Add an actual download button. I think it’s downloaded, but it’s not. Then the buffering and losing your place, going back to chapter one. Add some settings. Maybe to save the speed you like to listen at. And the audiobook counter does not stay true to how much time is left in the book. It will say I still have hours left when I’m finished. Maybe, it’s a glitch because I listen on 2x speed? But, still very annoying when I am checking to see how much longer I have in the book and really have no idea because I can’t rely on what it shows. I thought at first this app was just thrown together to take over from the Boundless app. But, there are reviews from two years ago, with the same complaints. People, fix your app or start over and roll out a better more reliable one. Just browsing for books this app starts glitching and I have to close it and reopen it to get it to stop. I shouldn’t be stressed out looking for a book. And then trying to find another way to listen to it, so I don’t have to listen to it on this app!

   Mrs.MFB · 31 Jul 2026

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