The digitalization of literature has fundamentally changed public libraries' working conditions. This study looks at how Swedish public librarians experience working with e-books, focusing on how economic models, technical systems, and commercial dependencies affect their ability to fulfill the library's democratic mission. Through semi-structured interviews with five public librarians and analysis using Michael Buckland's theory of library collections' four roles, the study identifies five central findings. First, pay-per-loan economic models create a paradox: increased user demand leads to reduced access as libraries implement loan restrictions to control costs. Second, in systems with automatic title inclusion, control over collection content has shifted from librarians to publishers, limiting libraries' ability to build collections reflecting local needs. Third, librarians' professional role has changed from literature mediators to technical support, as much work involves teaching users to navigate apps and systems. Fourth, the digital offering is skewed toward commercial genres such as crime and feel-good fiction, while niche literature and nonfiction remain underrepresented. Fifth, libraries that actively choose systems with manual title selection retain considerably more control over their digital collection than those relying on automatic inclusion. While e-books offer advantages such as 24/7 accessibility and simultaneous borrowing, the study shows that current licensing models and technical platforms conflict with libraries' mission to provide free and equal access to literature for all. The study concludes that sustainable solutions require national coordination, stronger library-publisher dialogue, and systems giving libraries greater control over their digital collections.