Best Buy has landed an exclusive deal to carry Barnes & Noble’s eReader, the Nook, beginning April 18. Best Buy will be the first retailer to carry the device outside of Barnes & Noble.

The Nook will add to Best Buy’s growing eReader lineup, which already includes several Sony eReaders. It will also face in-store competition from Apple’s iPad, which some have touted as a possible competitor in the eReader market.

Barnes & Noble says it will add an eReader app for the iPad “soon.” Amazon’s Kindle app is already available for the device, as is Apple’s iBooks.

“To date, we’ve limited Nook distribution to Barnes & Noble retail and online stores and the customer response to our eBook Reader has exceeded our expectations,” Kevin Frain, executive vice president of e-commerce at Barnes & Noble.com, said in a statement. “Through this partnership, Best Buy customers will now have new and easy ways to access our expansive digital library on a variety of computing and mobile devices through BN eReader software and the Barnes & Noble eBookstore.”

The Nook will be available at Best Buy’s 1,070 nationwide retail stores and at its Web site.