Checked 2026-11-03
Desk review. Not timed on our bench yet.
Featured
What is Magic Bookmark, and how does it help ADHD readers?
Magic Bookmark is an iPhone app from Yomu Inc. that gives you a recap of a book up to your exact page, a cast list of only the characters you have met, spoiler-free answers to questions about the story so far, and chats with characters who only know the story up to your page. You tell it where you are by photographing the page, typing the page number, or for audiobooks typing the last phrase you heard. It works with print, ebooks and audiobooks for supported titles. The first book is free; after that one credit covers one book, from $1.40 to $4.99.
A reading companion for the moment most ADHD readers lose a book: coming back after a gap. It works alongside the copy you already have and stops every answer at the page you are on.
Specimen data
- Developer
- Yomu Inc.
- What it does
- Recap, cast list, spoiler-free Q&A and character chat, all stopped at your page
- Formats
- Print, ebook, audiobook (audiobooks since version 1.1.1, 27 Oct 2026)
- How it finds your place
- Photo of the page, page number, or the last phrase you heard
- Catalog
- Supported titles: romance, fantasy, romantasy, YA, sci-fi, historical fiction and more; request titles in the app
- Price
- First book free; then $4.99 per book, or $4.00, $3.50, $1.40 a book in packs of 5, 10, 50; no subscription
- Platforms
- iPhone, iOS 16.4 or later; Android on the roadmap
- Language
- English
- App Store rating
- 4.8 out of 5 from 25 ratings (US, 2026-11-03), a small number of ratings
- Our status
- Desk review, partial score, TRIAL FIRST
How does a page-locked recap work, step by step?
- Step 1: Pick the book in the app. It has to be one of the supported titles; you can request others.
- Step 2: Tell it where you are: photograph the page you are on, type the page number, or for an audiobook type the last phrase you heard. It syncs to that exact point, not just the chapter.
- Step 3: Read the recap. It covers the story up to your page and stops there: in the app's words, nothing past your bookmark.
- Step 4: Open the cast list. It shows who is who and how they are connected, built only from what you have read; characters appear once you have met them.
- Step 5: Ask a question about the story so far, such as whether two characters have met yet. Answers stay within what you have read.
- Step 6: Optional: type @ and a character's name to chat with them. They answer in character and only know the story up to your page.
One credit covers the whole book. When you come back after another gap, you sync your new page and get a new recap at no extra cost.
Why does that matter for ADHD readers?
Many ADHD readers do not abandon books because they dislike them. They pause, the pause gets longer, and the first page back is full of names they cannot place. Rebuilding the story in your head is a working-memory job, and it is exactly the job that makes a paused book stay paused.
A recap that stops at your page moves that job out of your head without the risk that sends many readers away from fan wikis and chatbots: spoilers. The cast list does the same for big ensembles and for audiobooks, where you cannot flip back to check a name.
It is not a treatment and does not claim to be. It is a reading aid for one specific failure point. Our reading guide shows where it fits next to timers, audiobooks and trackers.
Which formats and books does it work with?
Any format you own or borrow: hardcover, paperback, ebook, library loan or audiobook. The developer's website calls this BYOB: bring, buy or borrow your own book. The app does not contain the book; it works alongside your copy, any edition.
The catalog is the limit. Magic Bookmark launched with the romance, fantasy, romantasy, YA, sci-fi and historical fiction titles popular on BookTok and Bookstagram and adds titles over time. Titles shown on its website include Fourth Wing, Iron Flame, Onyx Storm, A Court of Thorns and Roses, Throne of Glass, House of Earth and Blood, The Cruel Prince, The Hunger Games, Red Queen, Mistborn, Dune, Foundation, The Hobbit, The Housemaid, The Silent Patient, Circe, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, Little Women, Babel, Leviathan Wakes, Dungeon Crawler Carl and The Book Thief. Check the app for your exact title before you spend a credit.
What does it cost, book by book?
Bookmark Credit prices on the US App Store, checked 2026-11-03
| Pack | Price | Per book |
|---|---|---|
| First credit | Free | $0 |
| 1 credit | $4.99 | $4.99 |
| 5 credits | $19.99 | $4.00 |
| 10 credits | $34.99 | $3.50 |
| 50 credits | $69.99 | $1.40 |
One credit equals one book: the bookmark moves with you through that book, so you do not pay per session. Credits never expire and there is no subscription. For a worked yearly cost by number of books, see the book recap cost calculator.
Who is it for, and who should skip it?
Fit check (desk assessment, checked 2026-11-03)
| Good fit | Poor fit |
|---|---|
| You pause books for days or weeks and lose the thread | You finish books in one go |
| You read print or library audiobooks, where Kindle tools do not reach | You read only Kindle ebooks in the US; Story So Far is free there |
| You read big-cast fantasy, romantasy or sci-fi series | Your books are not in its catalog |
| You want to avoid spoilers from wikis and chatbots | You need it on Android, the web or in a language other than English |
| You are happy to pay per book for the books you pause | You want one subscription for everything |
How does it compare with the alternatives?
Ways to get back into a book (desk assessment; not hands-on tests)
| Option | Formats | Stops at your page | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Magic Bookmark | Print, ebook, audiobook | Yes | First book free, then per book |
| Kindle Story So Far | Kindle ebooks (US) | Yes, in the Kindle book | Free with the Kindle book |
| Kindle Ask this Book | Kindle ebooks, iOS app (US) | Answers without spoilers | Free with the Kindle book |
| General chatbots | Any | Only if you tell it your page and it does not slip | Free tiers exist |
| Fan wikis | Any | No | Free |
| A two-line bookmark note | Any | Yes, if you wrote it | Free |
General chatbots do not know which page you are on and can mix in later events or invent details; that is how they are built, not a test we ran. Our Magic Bookmark vs Speechify page compares it with a text-to-speech tool for a different reading problem.
What should you know about privacy?
The App Store privacy label, checked 2026-11-03, lists identifiers under Data Used to Track You, and purchases, contact info, user content (photos), search history, identifiers, usage data and diagnostics under Data Linked to You. The photos are the page images you take to sync your place. If you limit tracking on your iPhone, the system setting applies to this app too. See our ADHD app privacy checklist.
Who makes it, and is there a family app?
Magic Bookmark is made by Yomu Inc., which also publishes YOMU - Family Reading Habits, an app for building reading habits at home. If you are setting up reading routines for children as well as yourself, that is the Yomu app to look at; Magic Bookmark itself is rated 13+.
How do we score it?
Magic Bookmark is a provisional desk review on our published rubric: we scored the criteria its listing and website let us assess (55 of 70 assessable points) and show no total out of 100 until we time it on our bench. Its verdict is TRIAL FIRST: use the free first book before buying credits. The full breakdown is on the desk review.
Questions people actually ask
Is Magic Bookmark free?
The download and your first book are free. After that you buy Bookmark Credits: one credit covers one book, from $4.99 single down to $1.40 a book in the 50 pack. Credits never expire.
Does Magic Bookmark work with physical books?
Yes. It works alongside your own print copy: photograph the page you are on or type the page number. It also works with ebooks and, since October 2026, audiobooks.
Is Magic Bookmark on Android?
Not yet. It runs on iPhone with iOS 16.4 or later; the developer says Android is on the roadmap.
Will Magic Bookmark spoil the book?
It is designed not to: the recap, cast list and answers stop at the page you give it, and characters only appear once you have met them.
Which books does it support?
A growing catalog led by popular romance, fantasy, romantasy, YA, sci-fi and historical fiction, plus some classics. You can request missing titles in the app.
Is Magic Bookmark good for ADHD?
It helps with one ADHD reading problem: getting back into a book after a gap without spoilers. It does not help you start a session or treat ADHD; pair it with a timer or audiobook if those are your stalls.
Sources
Related
We may earn a commission when you buy through links here. Commissions never change a score or a verdict. How we make money →