The Lace Reader

A new edition of the bestselling The Lace Reader ($4.99), by Brunonia Barry, has been released, with an excerpt added from her new novel, The Map of True Places ($12.99).

Book Description
In the tradition of The Thirteenth Tale, Brunonia Barry's bewitching gothic novel, The Lace Reader, is a phenomenon. Called "[a] richly imagined saga of passion, suspense, and magic" by Time Magazine, it is a haunting and remarkable tale told by an unforgettable, if strangely unreliable narrator - a woman from an enigmatic Salem family who can foretell the future in patterns of lace. The Lace Reader was a runaway New York Times bestseller - hitting the top lists in major cities across the country, from Boston to Chicago to Los Angeles - and has immediately established debut author Brunonia Barry as a major force in contemporary American fiction.

This one is also available at the same price at Barnes and Noble and Kobo, while it's $5.24 at Sony.

Free Game - Cake Mania

The free game this week at Sandlot Games is Cake Mania ($6.95 Amazon Game Downloads). If you missed picking this one up when Amazon had it free last November, now is your chance.

Game Description

• 48 Levels Of Baking Fun.
• Customize And Upgrade Your Kitchen
• 4 Unique Bakeries To Run
• Hilarious Seasonal Characters

Help a young baker show big bad business who's boss in this fast-paced treat! When the retail behemoth "Mega-Mart" moves in, Jill's beloved family bakery is forced to close. But she's determined to get the business back on its feet with delicious sweets. Help Jill open her own bakery, bring in customers, and earn enough money to re-open her grandparents' bakery! With 48 levels and four different bakeries, Cake Mania is full of mouth-watering fun. Let's get cookin'!

Click HERE to sign up for the free download. For step by step purchase and installation instructions, see this post.

Indie Book Roundup Continued

Deed To Death, by D. B. Henson, is currently 99 cents in the Kindle store, but I know the author has put in a request to raise the price (as have many indie authors, as Amazon's new payment schedule will kick in at the end of the month - those charging 2.99 to 9.99 will get 70% of the net sales price, while others get 35%). I just finished this fast-paced thriller (a review copy was provided by the author) and there were twists and turns that I definitely didn't see coming. It's well written and I'm looking forward to her next novel (already in the works). Definitely recommended!

Book Description
Real estate agent Toni Matthew's problems begin when her fiancé, Scott, is murdered. Having to bury the man she loves on the very day they planned to be married is almost more than Toni can take. Dealing with her loss becomes even harder when Scott's estranged brother, Brian, contests the will, threatening to take away her home.

After learning Brian is in deep financial trouble, Toni suspects he may be the one who killed Scott. Determined to find the truth and frustrated with the police, she begins her own investigation. Toni soon realizes she didn't know her fiancé quite as well as she had thought. Scott had been keeping secrets. Secrets that make Toni the killer's next target.

Resurrection ($2.99), by Gabriel May, is free to download at Smashwords, using coupon code LP88X (today only).

Book Description
On the eve of a new Millennium, Jon York expected midnight to come and go without incident. Instead, a brutal home invasion left Jon in a coma, his wife dead, and his daughter beaten and raped. Eight years later Jon awakens from the coma with no recollection of the attack. Fueled by rage, he will stop at nothing to avenge what has been done to his family.

Cries in the Dark ($0.99), by P.A. Woodburn, is free on Smashwords today (no coupon code, but you can't add it to your library, either).

Book Description
When Alex has an accident she discovers that she can telepathically communicate with animals. Losing her summer job in a heart transplant lab she lands a job in a chimpanzee lab instead. Raised by her research scientist stepfather to appreciate the necessity of animal research for curing diseases, Alex discovers that her two closest friends are animal activists. All she desires is to be a regular family doctor. She tries to deal with these challenges to her core beliefs. Then she finds that a brilliant serial killer is stalking her. This vile criminal is so slick that the police claim all of his murders are accidents.

Will Alex survive long enough to sort all of this out or will she become the next victim?

My Blood Approves ($0.99), by Amanda Hocking, has a number of good reviews (avg 4.5 stars) and is aimed at the young adult age group.

Book Description
Seventeen-year-old Alice Bonham's life feels out of control after she meets Jack. With his fondness for pink Chuck Taylors and New Wave hits aside, Jack's unlike anyone she's ever met.

Then she meets his brother, Peter. His eyes pierce through her, and she can barely breathe when he's around. Even though he can't stand the sight of her, she's drawn to him.

But falling for two very different guys isn't even the worst of her problems. Jack and Peter are vampires, and Alice finds herself caught between love and her own blood...

My King The President ($1.00), by Tom Lewis

Book Description
Investigative journalist, Jeb Willard, learns that his old college friend, a Secret Service agent, fatally shot the controversial President of the United States and then killed himself. Devastated, Jeb attends his friend's funeral where he is approached by a priest who gives Jeb a note from his Secret Service agent friend hinting of treason within the highest levels of the government. Uncertain what he should do, Jeb returns home to North Carolina to consult with Cal, his father and witty small town newspaper owner/editor. Cal advises Jeb to not get involved, at least not until more information is learned by the FBI and government investigators. Jeb follows his father's advice, but is eventually forced into action as the new President, Helene Fordham, calls him to Washington for a personal meeting. Jeb cannot refuse the persuasive first female President or her close friend, his former editor, and reluctantly agrees to begin his own investigation. It isn't long before Jeb, Cal, and Liz McCarty, the beautiful sister of the murderer, are running from the chief suspect, former Chief Justice Ezekial Koonce, as well as the FBI, police, a professional hit man, the Mafia, and even the U.S. Army! Stubbornly digging out facts of the conspiracy while barely keeping himself and his friends alive, Jeb manages to stay half a step ahead of all those in pursuit. With Cal's assistance, Jeb peels off layer after layer of the astonishing plot, which races through exciting and surprising turns of events, culminating in an amazing, highly explosive climax you won't believe!

Bourbon Street ($1.99), by Leonce Gaiter

Book Description
It's Mardi Gras in 1958 New Orleans, and Alex Moreau wants revenge. He doesn't want it. He needs it. He needs it for the death of his mother at his gangster father's hands. He needs it for the half-imprisoned life to which his father's condemned him. He needs it... because that's who he is.

So Alex invites Texas gambler Deke Watley to a high stakes Mardi Gras poker game. Deke thinks he's hit the jackpot when his chance to win big collides with a woman he once knew—a woman he wronged—a wrong he's regretted ever since.

But it's Alex's game, and he weaves the worst of his troubled past to create an orgy of vengeance, only to find that the other players have scores to settle, too. Amid the noise and the frenzy of the drunken crowds, streamers flying like electric currents, bejeweled costumes glittering, Deke stumbles through this foreign, lurid town, seeking a return to the innocence he turned his back on long ago. However, the time is running out and old debts must be paid before Alex lets Deke—or any other hustler—leave Bourbon Street alive.

Dreamshade ($0.99), by A. J. Lath, is free at Smashwords using coupon code BS86Q.

Book Description
Benjamin Crosskeys always thought he was ordinary. But when he meets Lilac Zhenrei, a magical adventuress from a land of living dreams, he soon discovers he has reason to believe otherwise. For Benjamin has a rare and wonderful ability. And in an epic adventure, he will discover the price that comes with this gift, as he strives to save his family from a monster born of nightmares...

I bought Deadly Gamble ($0.99), by Connie Shelton, last November and realized that I hadn't read I saw it mentioned on an Amazon forum this week. This is the first in her Charlie Parker Mystery series and I believe I have the first three sitting in my TBR list.

Book Description
In this debut mystery series novel, Charlie Parker, accountant and partner in an Albuquerque private investigation firm, is visited by her old school friend, Stacy North. Stacy's Rolex watch is missing and she begs Charlie to help locate it before her husband finds out. Things are complicated by the fact that Stacy had been seeing another man, Gary Detweiller, and he's the one she suspects of having stolen the watch. With a little detective work, Charlie retrieves the missing watch and all should be well. But three days later, Detweiller is murdered. All eyes turn to Stacy as the prime suspect.

Once again, Stacy begs Charlie's help in proving her innocence. As she begins to ask questions, Charlie learns that Detweiller's life was not as simple as first perceived and that any number of people had grievances against him. And before she can pinpoint the killer, her own life is in danger as well.

Kindle for Android Arrives - Download it Now!

Speculation around the internet was that Amazon would release Kindle for Android around July 21 (when the Samsung Vibrant will hit the market, as it will have Kindle for Android pre-installed). Today, though, seems to be the day for announcements at Amazon and Kindle for Android is now available to download.

Read Kindle books on your Android phone

• Get the best reading experience available on your Android phone. No Kindle required
• Access your Kindle books even if you don't have your Kindle with you
• Automatically synchronizes your last page read and annotations between devices with Whispersync
• Adjust the text size, add bookmarks, and view the annotations you created on your Kindle, computer, or other Kindle-compatible device
• Read in portrait or landscape mode
• Tap on either side of the screen or flick to turn pages

View larger image

Shop for books in the Kindle Store optimized for your Android phone Buy a book from the Kindle Store optimized for your Android phone and get it auto-delivered wirelessly Search and browse more than 600,000 books, including 109 of 110 New York Times bestsellers. If you are a non-U.S. customer, book availability may vary Find New York Times® Best Sellers and new releases from $9.99 Get free book samples. Read the beginning of books for free before you decide to buy Books you purchase can also be read on a Kindle, computer, or other Kindle-compatible mobile devices Kindle newspapers, magazines and blogs are currently not available on Kindle for Android Kindle for Android is currently available for customers in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom, United States View larger image Technical Details Requires Android OS 1.6 or greater

Kindle Books Add Audio/Video

Amazon has just announced support for embedded audio clips and video in their books. So far, this is limited to books downloaded to your iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, excluding those on the Kindle hardware and (inexplicably) those using a PC or Mac to read books. The app was updated a few days ago, but it looks like they held off on announcing the new feature until they had a few books available. The Audio/Video enabled versions of books are quite large - one reason they are only on the Apple platform (so far) is that they only will load via WiFi, rather than being sent via the cellular network. That shouldn't be an issue on Kindle for PC or Mac (or for Android, once it releases), but no word yet on whether these apps will be updated to add this capability.

Downloading Kindle Editions with Audio/Video Due to large file size, Kindle for iPad/iPhone/iPod touch requires WiFi to download this title. You will see your purchase on your home screen, but the download will not begin on these devices until they are connected to WiFi.

Kindle Edition with Audio/Video Incorporates video and audio for a rich reading experience. Only available on Kindle for iPad/iPhone/iPod touch.

There are not a lot of titles available yet (in fact, there are only 13 so far, on the Kindle Editions with Audio/Video page). You'll want to keep an eye out for the text (Kindle Edition with Audio/Video) in the title or the graphic shown on the left, as that will indicate that it is only compatible with the new app. For some books, such as Rick Steves': Florence & Tuscany 2010, you will see two versions - one with (Kindle Edition with Audio/Video) in the title and one without. If you want the book on your Kindle and your iPad, you'll have to either choose the non-enhanced, text & images only edition or purchase both versions.

Here are a few of the more interesting looking titles that are now available. I'm still waiting for my samples to load (so, unless you are on a very high speed network, you might not want to follow my example and grab several samples at once).

Bird Songs: 250 North American Birds in Song ($9.99), by Les Beletsky

Book Description
Drawing from the collection of the world-renowned Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Bird Songs presents the most notable North American birds, including the rediscovered Ivory-billed Woodpecker, with lavish full-color illustrations and accompanied by their corresponding songs and calls. Renowned bird biologist Les Beletsky provides a succinct description of each of the 250 birds profiled, with an emphasis on their distinctive songs.

In his foreword, North American bird expert and distinguished natural historian Jon L. Dunn shares insights gained from a lifetime of passionate study. Complete with the most up-to-date and scientifically accurate information, Bird Songs is the first book to capture the enchantment of these beautiful birds in words, pictures, and song.

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, located in Ithaca, New York, is a nonprofit institution focused on birds and whose mission is to interpret and conserve the earth's biological diversity through research. The Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab is the major source of sound recordings of birds for research, education, conservation, the media, and commercial products.

Rose's Heavenly Cakes ($9.99), by Rose Levy Beranbaum

Book Description
At last an all-new, full-color cake lover's companion from Rose Levy Beranbaum, The Diva of Desserts! Rose Levy Beranbaum is a much beloved and widely respected baking legend, "a worshipped woman ... revered by serious cooks and part-timers alike", in the words of USA Today. Eagerly-awaited by her legions of devoted fans, Rose's Heavenly Cakes is a must-have guide to perfect cake-baking from this award-winning master baker and author of The Cake Bible, one of the bestselling cookbooks of all time.

This comprehensive guide will help home bakers to create delicious, decadent, and spectacularly beautiful cakes of all kinds with confidence and ease. With her precise, foolproof recipes, Rose shows you how to create everything from Heavenly Coconut Seduction Cake, Golden Lemon Almond Cake, and Devil's Food Cake with Midnight Ganache to Orange-Glow Chiffon Layer Cake, Mud Turtle Cupcakes, and Deep Chocolate Passion Wedding Cake. Everything you need to create heavenly cakes-every time-can be found in this new collection of tried-and true recipes by one of the most celebrated bakers of our time.
Offers over 100 simply wonderful recipes for cakes for every occasion, from exceptionally delicious butter and oil cakes, sponge cakes, and mostly flourless cakes and cheesecakes, to charming baby cakes and elegant wedding cakes.

• Features Rose's trademark easy-to-follow, expertly tested (and retested) recipes for perfectly delicious results every time.
• Features special tips and tricks from a beloved baking expert for creating amazing special effects and beautiful cake decor .
• Contains 100 tempting full-color photos.
• Contains video clips of baking tips featuring Rose

Together We Cannot Fail ($9.99), by Terry Golway

Book Description
An uncommon portrait of Roosevelt's presidency, in words, photographs, and his own voice

This vivid portrait shows a nation at its best and at its worst, through the lens of a president's words during the first presidency truly impacted by the media age. An FDR biography unlike any other, Together We Cannot Fail offers a new view of Roosevelt's transformation of an insular America into the world's most revered and feared superpower. An exclusive accompanying audio integrates with the biography to reveal in his own words how he led the nation through the Great Depression and World War II to its "rendezvous with destiny."

Historian Terry Golway brings alive how Roosevelt saved America from its worst fears and led the nation to victory in a cataclysmic world war and by doing so forever changed how Americans live and view themselves. Crafted from Roosevelt's own stirring words, this unique biography shows how he invented and established the practice of the media presidency with his famous fireside chats, the first presidential speeches broadcast nationally from the White House.

For twelve tumultuous presidential years, Roosevelt regularly spoke to the American people, this man of wealth and privilege giving voice to the downtrodden's American Dream. The first in a long line of media presidencies, Roosevelt's innate ability to connect with the people remains the standard by which even the best of them-Kennedy, Reagan, and Obama alike-are judged. Roosevelt's words would define a remarkable presidency that faced and overcame the country's worst economic crisis and a war to end all wars.

Together We Cannot Fail brings the president and his era to life like no other biography, combining the insight of noted historian Terry Golway with Roosevelt's own voice in audio excerpts from his most memorable speeches and chats.

Kindle Edition with Audio/Video includes audio for 30 famous speeches.

Best of the Beatles for Acoustic Guitar ($9.99), by Wolf Marshall

Book Description
Learn the trademark acoustic guitar elements of rock's most influential band. This audio/ebook by guitar dean, Wolf Marshall, provides in-depth analysis of 21 songs including: Across the Universe, And I Love Her, Blackbird Girl, Here Comes the Sun, Hey Jude, I Will, I've Just Seen a Face, Julia, Norwegian Wood, Rocky Raccoon, Till There Was You, Yesterday, You've Got to Hide Your Love Away, and more.

Kindle Edition with Audio/Video includes:

• 21 favorite songs
• Audio included for each song
• Accompanying musical notes and lyrics

Lullaby Baby ($9.99), by Audrey Ficociello

Book Description
Every new parent, whether musical or not, needs a good repertoire of lullabies. Filled with 50 classic songs, this beautiful, lavishly illustrated songbook lets parents learn each song as they sing along with the melody. The unique sound component makes for a unique package, perfect for sitting by the crib, and also works wonderfully on the road, putting little ones to rest anywhere, anytime. A timeless gift, Lullaby Baby celebrates the joy of sharing music with children.

Kindle Edition with Audio/Video includes:

• 50 well known lullabies
• Written lyrics and audio track
• Full color illustrations

Here's the complete press release from Amazon:

Amazon Announces New Functionality for Kindle Apps for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch

Readers can now enjoy embedded video and audio clips in Kindle books on their iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch

SEATTLE, Jun 27, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) today announced a new update to Kindle for iPad and Kindle for iPhone and iPod touch, which allows readers to enjoy the benefits of embedded video and audio clips in Kindle books. The first books to take advantage of this new technology, including Rick Steves' London by Rick Steves and Together We Cannot Fail by Terry Golway, are available in the Kindle Store at http://www.amazon.com/kindleaudiovideo.

"We are excited to add this functionality to Kindle for iPad and Kindle for iPhone and iPod touch," said Dorothy Nicholls, director, Amazon Kindle. "Readers will already find some Kindle Editions with audio/video clips in the Kindle Store today--from Rose's Heavenly Cakes with video tips on preparing the perfect cake to Bird Songs with audio clips that relate the songs and calls to the birds' appearances. This is just the beginning--we look forward to seeing what authors and publishers create for Kindle customers using the new functionality of the Kindle apps."

"We are truly excited to have collaborated with Amazon to launch Kindle Editions with audio/video," said Peter Balis, Director, Digital Content Sales, Wiley. "Innovations like these represent the advantages that digital can offer. Advancing our content in this manner is important for our authors and our readers and it will raise the bar on what digital reading can offer for years to come."

"In the new Kindle Edition with audio/video of Rick Steves' London, the embedded walking tours allow customers to listen to Rick as they explore the sites of London," said Bill Newlin, publisher, Avalon Travel. "Rick's narration adds depth to the reader's experience, while listeners can follow the routes more easily with the text."

Kindle Editions with audio/video are available now with the latest Kindle App on iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. Kindle for iPhone is now optimized for iPhone 4's retina display. For more information, go to http://www.amazon.com/kindleapps.

Handel for $1.99

In another great deal for those who load classical music onto their Kindle for listening while reading, Amazon has the MP3 download version of The 99 Most Essential Handel Masterpieces currently marked at $1.99. I'm not going to list the cuts included, as there are (obviously) 99 of them, totaling just under 5 hours of music. The orchestras appear to be heavily eastern European, mostly from the area from Munich to Russia, with a few Japanese cuts (and what appears to be a few from an Italian orchestra).

Indie Book Roundup

A few sale and free reads this morning, all from indie authors.

The Last Angel ($0.99), by Steven Savile

Book Description
Gabriel Rush takes a photograph of a beautiful sad-faced hooker in a down town bar and is stunned by what he sees when the picture is developed. At first he thinks it is a flaw in the photograph, but then he recognizes it for what it is, the mark of the Trinity Killer. It is the same mark that scars the faces of mutilated corpses that are turning up all over New York City.

Racing to warn the woman, Gabriel instead finds himself haunted by visions and fighting against time to save his future, the woman he loves, his friends, and - when the killer's identity is finally revealed - his own sanity.

Milrose Munce and the Den of Professional Help (Extended Edition) ($1.99), by Douglas Anthony Cooper. Milrose has returned to the Kindle store, this time in an extended and rewritten edition aimed at a more adult audience (but still suitable for children). I expect the price to go back up around the end of the month (it started at $4.99, before the sale price hit).

Book Description
Milrose Munce is still alive. Which is more than you can say for most of his friends. No, his friends died, some time ago, mostly in gruesome accidents in the school science lab. Bored Beulah, for instance, fell asleep into a vat of hydrochloric acid. Toasted Theresa caught fire - and roasted for some hours - in the chemical store room. Neither of these girls is very pleasant to look at, but Milrose is extremely fond of them. His mentor is Deeply Damaged Dave, who was carrying a vial of something combustible in his pocket, which - sad to say - combusted. Dave is a master of all things dangerous, and specializes in Milrose's favorite activity: the staging of unwise and magnificent explosions.

Milrose is the only one, as far as he knows, who can see these ghosts. This causes some trouble: the teachers witness him talking to the empty air in front of him, and laughing at jokes that nobody else can hear, and slapping non-existent friends on the back. For this Milrose is sentence to receive Professional Help, a nasty business administered by the unhinged Massimo Natica in a hidden room in the school: the loathsome, perilous Den. He and his fellow captive, Arabella, soon discover that they have in fact been caught up in a vast and unspeakably evil plot, which threatens the lives and deaths of everyone they know. Luckily, they have an army of ghosts at their disposal.

Critics in the UK and Canada have compared Milrose Munce and the Den of Professional Help to the twisted masterpieces of Lemony Snicket and Roald Dahl. While readers as young as eight have loved the book, this dark comedy has an equally large following among adults, and has been the #1 bestseller on the Kindle store in both Children's and Adult books.

Life...With No Breaks ($0.99 Kindle), by Nick Spalding, is free to download today at Smashwords, using coupon code VX29W.

Book Description
"I'm Nick Spalding and I had an idea. What if I tried to write a book about life...with no breaks? An entire book, in one go. Could I do it? And how would it turn out?"

Join author Nick Spalding as he wends his merry way through an odyssey of non-stop writing, covering a variety of subjects in a selection of riotous anecdotes, comedy asides and humorous stories...dredged up from a brain functioning on caffeine, nicotine and the occasional chocolate biscuit.

The book is written as a conversation with YOU, the reader...and with Nick you'll venture into the thorny topics of love, life, death, sex, money, horribly timed bowel movements and a deathly fear of sponges (amongst other things).

After you've read 'Life...With No Breaks', there's a very good chance you may never look at the world again the same way!

The Risen Short Stories, by Jan Strnad, are free at Smashwords. These are companion stories to the novel The Risen ($4.95).

Book Description
One autumn week in the small Midwestern town of Anderson, the dead began to rise. They appeared, not as shambling corpses, but in a state of perfect resurrection. Were the Risen the work of God or the Devil? Opinion divided sharply. Many stories emerged during this singular week. Here are five of them.

Dust, a short story by Robert Williams, is free at Smashwords.

Book Description
Billionaire adventurer Stan Owens has everything, success, fame, all the luxury money can buy... until a plane crash leaves him stranded in the desert. Alone in a hostile environment, he makes a horrifying discovery in the desert wastes. This is a frightening new short story by Robert Williams, the acclaimed author of "Peculiar, MO." ($1.09 Kindle, $1.29 Smashwords)

We Don’t Plummet Out of the Sky Anymore, by M. David Blake, is free at Smashwords.

Book Description
Stan wanted a flying car. No, that wasn't quite accurate... Stan wanted a nice flying car, and the quantities of bliss that purchase would bring. Stan desired bliss. Fortunately, Bliss also desired Stan.

The American Vegetarian Cookbook

The American Vegetarian Cookbook from the Fit for Life Kitchen, by Marilyn Diamond, is currently marked down to $1.99 in the Kindle and other ebookstores. Originally published twenty years ago, some of the early information is a bit dated (and the sample never gets past the intro info) and the product description at Amazon leaves a bit to be desired. The customer reviews, on the other hand, are positively glowing and you can use the search inside on the (now out of print) hardcover edition to check out the recipes. As it turns out, my mom has a signed copy, so I'm heading over to skim thru it before grabbing my copy.

Book Description
Over 500 mouth watering recipes designed to keep you and your family satisfied and enthusiastic.

Click HERE to get the book from Kobo.

Click HERE to get the book from Sony.

So far, this one isn't available from B&N.

Free Audiobook - The Sacrifice

The Sacrifice (out of print), by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, the first book in her The Fey series, is free at Audible.com for this week only. This is a 26 hour, unabridged edition, narrated by David DeSantos.

Book Description
Legendary for their bloodlust, sorcery, and fierce, dark beauty, the Fey have swept across three continents and never face defeat. But now, in defiance of their Black King, the warrior-prince Rugar and his fearless daughter, Jewel, have marshaled an invasion farce to meet its ultimate challenge: Blue Isle, glistening beyond impregnable rocks and raging waters.

A people of simplicity and faith, untainted by intrigue, enchantment, or war, the Blue Islanders have never before been invaded. But their young prince, Nicholas, dreams of battle and will rally his countrymen against the onslaught of the Fey, even as the Islanders discover a deadly, undreamed-of power of their own. So begins a conflict that must ultimately destroy one race or the other - or both.

Get the free download at Audible HERE.

Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream

The audiobook version of Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream by David Platt ($9.89 Kindle) is $2.49 at ChristianAudio, until 10 AM PDT, June 24.

WHAT IS JESUS WORTH TO YOU?

It's easy for American Christians to forget how Jesus said his followers would actually live, what their new lifestyle would actually look like. They would, he said, leave behind security, money, convenience, even family for him. They would abandon everything for the gospel. They would take up their crosses daily...

BUT WHO DO YOU KNOW WHO LIVES LIKE THAT? DO YOU?

In Radical, David Platt challenges you to consider with an open heart how we have manipulated the gospel to fit our cultural preferences. He shows what Jesus actually said about being his disciple--then invites you to believe and obey what you have heard. And he tells the dramatic story of what is happening as a "successful" suburban church decides to get serious about the gospel according to Jesus.

Finally, he urges you to join in The Radical Experiment --a one-year journey in authentic discipleship that will transform how you live in a world that desperately needs the Good News Jesus came to bring.


Get your $2.49 audio download HERE; enter the coupon code RADICAL610 during checkout. After you finishing your order, you will be asked which format you prefer to download - select MP3 if you want to be able to play the book on your Kindle.

Update on Refurbished Kindles - $139 Once More

This morning, the price of the refurbished Kindles had risen, with a refurbished U.S. Kindle going for the same $189 price as a brand new global Kindle and the refurbished global Kindle was only $9 less. I was kicking myself for not buying one, as was at least one reader. This afternoon, the low prices have returned and the price of the refurbished global Kindle DX has dropped an additional $30.

Here is a current list of all the refurbished prices, which appears to subject to change at any moment. First, the US versions with Sprint wireless coverage:

• Kindle (6" Display, U.S. Wireless) ($139.99)
• Kindle DX (9.7" Display, U.S. Wireless) ($349.99)

These are the latest generation, global versions and have AT&T wireless coverage:

• Kindle (6" Display, Global Wireless) ($169.99)
• Kindle DX (9.7" Display, Global Wireless) ($369.99)

Free Game Download - Tradewinds Legends

This week's free game at Sandlot Games is a repeat from January: Tradewinds Legends ($6.95 Amazon Game Downloads). It's also one that I sat down and played all the way thru (it helped that it was bad weather all weekend, but there were plenty of books I could have been reading). That still leaves variations that can be played thru as other characters and I unlocked a new one by completing it the first time.

Game Description

• Trade And Battle With Legendary Heroes.
• Choose A Character Or Create Your Own
• Hundreds Of Special Items
• 10 Amazing Ports To Visit

Get carried away in this latest installment in the acclaimed Tradewinds Series. Sail, trade and battle with legendary heroes such as Sinbad in the mythical Far East. Enter a world of danger and intrigue as you complete over 100 unique tasks. Build a flotilla of ships armed with weaponry, both man-made and magic. Sail into the sky to discover new ports and engage in aerial combat with other magical sky ships. Encounter a world of legend, play Tradewinds Legends today!

Click HERE to sign up for the free download. For step by step purchase and installation instructions, see this post, which is the original one for this game.

Price War Continues - Kobo Effectively $129!

According to this press release, Borders has lowered the effective price of it's Kobo eReader to $129.00.You still pay $149 (plus sales tax, in most cases), but you'll receive a $20 gift card for use in the store and double rewards points (which is worth a bit more, in-store, as well). The Kobo is still on back order and has a new release date of July 2, according to their not-quite-ready ebookstore (although I did receive mine, on time, and the order page still shows a June 17 release date for the pre-order).

In the meantime, if you get the Borders App for your iPhone or iPad (and presumably the iPod Touch), you can show it in the cafe and get a free coffee. Presumably you could do the same with a notebook PC and the app, but that isn't in the release. The Borders web site, in fact, has nothing of any of these offers in site, unlike Amazon (who splashed it on their front page from the effective time of their price change), so you may want to print out that press release to take to the local store.

Refurbished Kindle for $139.99!

Yesterday, after the price drop on the 6" Kindle to $189.00, the refurbished units were selling for more than the new ones. Today, Amazon has dropped the price on all the refurbished Kindles, including the Kindle DX (still $489.00 new), undercutting the prices of Barnes & Noble's least expensive model, the nook Wi-Fi ($149) and Border's   You can now pick up a like-new (and fully warrantied) Kindle (6" Display, U.S. Wireless) for $139.99. I may have to return my Kobo eReader and get one of these as my backup reader, instead (especially since it is looking like Sprint has fixed my cellular connection problems, here at home).

Here is an updated list of all the refurbished prices. First, the US versions with Sprint wireless coverage:

• Kindle (6" Display, U.S. Wireless) ($139.99)
• Kindle DX (9.7" Display, U.S. Wireless) ($349.99)

These are the latest generation, global versions and have AT&T wireless coverage:

• Kindle (6" Display, Global Wireless) ($169.99)
• Kindle DX (9.7" Display, Global Wireless) ($399.99)

Kindle now $189!

Barnes and Noble started a price war this morning, when they dropped the price of the nook 3G + Wi-Fi to $199 and announced a new, wireless only (no 3G cellular), nook Wi-Fi to be priced at $149. The response was swift, as Amazon has just announced a new $189.00 price on the Kindle with global wireless. Currently in stock (and now cheaper than a refurbished unit), I'd expect a lot of orders on them at this price.

If you recently purchased (within the last 30 days), I'd contact Kindle Customer Service to see if you can get a credit on your account, as they have done this in the past after price drops on the Kindle. That avoids having to deal with the hassle of a return and re-order.

$2.00 Coupon Plus Sale Prices at Kobo

For those with multiple ereaders or who read on their PC (but not compatible with Kindles), Kobo has some very good prices on ebooks for Father's Day. Each of the books on their list can be had for an additional two dollars off using coupon code books4dad or 2fordad during checkout; offer valid thru June 27th.

Be sure you enter the promo code, click on Apply and SEE the change in total price before clicking the final purchase button or you won't get the discount. Some have reported getting the coupon to even work with non-Agency books that are not on the list; your mileage may vary. Below are a few highlights from the list.

Blockade Billy ($2.99 with coupon; $4.99 Kindle), a novella by Stephen King.

Book Description
Even the most diehard baseball fans don't know the true story of William "Blockade Billy" Blakely.

He may have been the greatest player the game has ever seen, but today no one remembers his name. He was the first -- and only -- player to have his existence completely removed from the record books. Even his team is long forgotten, barely a footnote in the game's history.

Every effort was made to erase any evidence that William Blakely played professional baseball, and with good reason. Blockade Billy had a secret darker than any pill or injection that might cause a scandal in sports today. His secret was much, much worse...and only Stephen King, the most gifted storyteller of our age, can reveal the truth to the world, once and for all.

This eBook edition features both the cover illustration by Glen Orbik and the interior artwork of Alex McVey from the limited hardcover edition published by Cemetery Dance Publications.

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest ($7.99 with coupon; $9.99 Kindle), by Stieg Larsson

Book Description
The stunning third and final novel in Stieg Larsson’s internationally best-selling trilogy.

Lisbeth Salander—the heart of Larsson’s two previous novels—lies in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She’s fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she’ll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of her friend, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot revenge—against the man who tried to kill her, and the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.

Once upon a time, she was a victim. Now Salander is fighting back.

Tinkers ($3.99 with coupon; $5.99 Kindle), by Paul Harding.

Book Description
An old man lies dying. Confined to bed in his living room, he sees the walls around him begin to collapse, the windows come loose from their sashes, and the ceiling plaster fall off in great chunks, showering him with a lifetime of debris: newspaper clippings, old photographs, wool jackets, rusty tools, and the mangled brass works of antique clocks. Soon, the clouds from the sky above plummet down on top of him, followed by the stars, till the black night covers him like a shroud. He is hallucinating, in death throes from cancer and kidney failure.

A methodical repairer of clocks, he is now finally released from the usual constraints of time and memory to rejoin his father, an epileptic, itinerant peddler, whom he had lost seven decades before. In his return to the wonder and pain of his impoverished childhood in the backwoods of Maine, he recovers a natural world that is at once indifferent to man and inseparable from him, menacing and awe inspiring.

Tinkers is about the legacy of consciousness and the porousness of identity from one generation to the next. At once heartbreaking and life affirming, it is an elegiac meditation on love, loss, and the fierce beauty of nature.

Let the Great World Spin ($4.75 with coupon; $6.75 Kindle), by Colum McCann

Book Description
In the dawning light of a late-summer morning, the people of lower Manhattan stand hushed, staring up in disbelief at the Twin Towers. It is August 1974, and a mysterious tightrope walker is running, dancing, leaping between the towers, suspended a quarter mile above the ground. In the streets below, a slew of ordinary lives become extraordinary in bestselling novelist Colum McCann's stunningly intricate portrait of a city and its people.

Corrigan, a radical young Irish monk, struggles with his own demons as he lives among the prostitutes in the middle of the burning Bronx. A group of mothers gather in a Park Avenue apartment to mourn their sons who died in Vietnam, only to discover just how much divides them even in grief. A young artist finds herself at the scene of a hit-and-run that sends her own life careening sideways. Tillie, a thirty-eight-year-old grandmother, turns tricks alongside her teenage daughter, determined not only to take care of her family but to prove her own worth.

You can see the complete list of Father's Day titles, HERE. You can also get a dollar off any Harlequin books at Kobo by entering the code 1harlequin during checking, valid thru the end of July.

Game of the Day - Alpha Prime

Amazon's Game Download of the Day is a $4.99 download of Alpha Prime (regularly $9.99), currently the #1 game download in the Action Shooter category. Reviews are running to 4.5 stars and one reviewer said they would have paid $50 for it (and liked it better than COD4).

Game Description

• 10 Levels Of Fast-paced, Unrelenting Action.
• 8 Futuristic Weapons.
• Bullet Time Allows Players To Temporarily Slow Down The Action.
• Vehicles Can Be Used To Move To Different Locations Quickly.

Somewhere deep in space, on the lifeless asteroid Alpha Prime, something has gone terribly wrong... The miners were warned that the hubbardium they were mining was too dangerous, but the lure of unimaginable wealth was too strong. Now, something has happened to them and it's up to you to save them and face an unknown threat. Armed with an assortment of hi-tech weapons and the ability to hack into the station's own automated defenses, your mission is simple: Get in, Get 'em and Get out!

Free Game - Super Slyder

The free game this week at Sandlot Games is Super Slyder ($6.99 Amazon Game Downloads), a "topsy-turvy" puzzle adventure game, a follow-up to the Slyder Adventures ($6.99) game that was offered free this past March.

Game Description

• The Loveable Blue Hero Is Back.
• 9 Uniquely Hilarious Characters.
• More than 280 Mind-Bending Puzzles.
• Easy To Use Level Editor.

Welcome to Super Slyder! Our lovable, blue, spherical hero is back with an all-new addictive adventure containing level-altering new items, 9 unique characters with hilarious animations, more than 280 challenging levels and an easy to use level editor! Play the levels at your own pace, with level-skipping ability or try constantly updated user created content. The choice is yours and Slyder is waiting!

Click HERE to sign up for the free download. For step by step purchase and installation instructions, see this post.

Free Book (nook) - The Long Tail

This is the last week of the free in-store books at Barnes and Noble. They've concluded the series with The Long Tail, Revised and Updated Edition: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More ($9.56), by Chris Anderson, which I originally got as a free bonus book from Amazon during their B1G1F sale on FREE: The Future of a Radical Price ($9.99).

Book Description
The New York Times bestseller that introduced the business world to a future that-s already here-now in a new edition with a new chapter about Long Tail Marketing and a new epilogue.

Winner of the Gerald Loeb Award for Best Business Book of the Year

In the most important business book since The Tipping Point, Chris Anderson shows how the future of commerce and culture isn-t in hits, the high-volume head of a traditional demand curve, but in what used to be regarded as misses-the endlessly long tail of that same curve.

Once you have your coupon, log into your account at bn.com (do this first, or you'll have to enter the code twice, at least on an iphone using the Safari browser), then to bn.com/redeem and enter the coupon code to add the book to your account.

11 James Bond Movies on Blu-Ray for $99.99

Just saw this deal on the James Bond (11-Movie Collection) [Blu-ray], which regularly sells for $269.99. If you enter the code AMZNBOND during checkout, you get the collection for $99.99, which is $200 off list. To get the deal, you can't use the 1-Click feature. Instead, add the item to your cart, then click on Proceed to Checkout. Look for the box underneath the text Have any gift cards, gift certificates or promotional claim codes and click on Apply. Check the that the Order Total is $99.99 before clicking on Place Your Order.

This deal is only valid today, but that gives you until 3:00 AM EST (or midnight in Amazonland) to take advantage of it.

Description
This ultimate collection includes: Die Another Day, Dr. No, For Your Eyes Only, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, License to Kill, Live and Let Die, The Man with the Golden Gun, Moonraker, The World Is Not Enough, and Thunderball.

As an added bonus, Amazon will also give you a $4 credit for Amazon Video On Demand after you order your item. Limited to one promotional credit per customer; valid for "eligible" movies and TV shows.

Rules of Deception for a Buck

Rules of Deception ($0.99 Kindle, B&N, Fictionwise, Kobo and Sony), by Christopher Reich, is on sale in all the major ebookstores, with the lowest price at Fictionwise (use coupon code Summer2010). As announced in Amazon's Kindle blog (before they had actually lowered the price), this is in anticipation of the release of his newest title, Rules of Betrayal ($14.01 pre-order). Rules of Vengeance ($5.19) is also currently being discounted.

Book Description
Dr. Jonathan Ransom, world-class mountaineer and surgeon for Doctors Without Borders, is climbing in the Swiss Alps with his beautiful wife, Emma, when a blizzard sets in. In their bid to escape the storm, Emma is killed when she falls into a hidden crevasse.

Twenty-four hours later, Jonathan receives an envelope addressed to his wife containing two baggage-claim tickets. Puzzled, he journeys to a remote railway station only to find himself in a life-and-death struggle for his wife’s possessions. In the aftermath of the assault, he discovers that his attackers—one dead, the other mortally wounded—were, in fact, Swiss police officers. More frightening still is evidence of an extraordinary act of betrayal that leaves Jonathan stunned.

Suddenly the subject of an international manhunt and the target of a master assassin, Jonathan is forced on the run. His only chance at survival lies in uncovering the devastating truth behind the secret his wife kept from him and in stopping the terrifying conspiracy that threatens to bring the world to the brink of annihilation. Step by step, he is drawn deeper into a world of spies, high-tech weaponry, and global terrorism—a world where no one is whom they appear to be and where the end always justifies the means.

Rules of Deception is a brilliantly conceived, twisting tale of intrigue and deceit written by the master of the espionage thriller for the twenty-first century.

Free Shipping or Refurbs from $190 for Father's Day

As has become something of a tradition with Amazon, they are offering free two-day shipping on the Kindle ($259.00) and the Kindle DX ($489.00), which means you can order today and have it by Friday at no extra charge. In addition, as happened last Christmas, they also have refurbished Kindles in stock, which means you can now get a like-new Kindle for under $190 and the DX for under $370. For the first time that I've seen, in fact, you can get refurbished units of both the US Kindle and Kindle DX and the latest generation global/international Kindle and Kindle DX, so you can choose based on both price and wireless reception in your area: Sprint is often better in many areas, but in some places AT&T wins out. Until recently, Sprint was the best choice here, but our phones and Kindles seem to be having problems getting a connection lately (so, if wireless is on, they discharge in a day here, but not in areas where the phones show steady Sprint tower connections). If I was ordering today, I might consider one of the global wireless versions, just to see how AT&T fares here (who knows, I might be able to get decent iPhone reception here now, although I know it would be much more limited than Sprint or Verizon when traveling).

I purchased one of the refurbished original Kindles and received a refurbished replacement for my DX (I had problems with the charging connection after several months), and could not tell any difference in the units or the packaging. They appear to be the same as brand new Kindles and have worked flawlessly since I received them. The refurbished units have the same warranty as the new and are eligible for Amazon's Prime shipping (but not the free 2-day shipping for non-Prime customers, that Amazon is offering for the new units, mentioned above).

These are the US versions and have Sprint wireless coverage:

• Kindle (6" Display, U.S. Wireless) ($189.99)
• Kindle DX (9.7" Display, U.S. Wireless) ($369.99)

These are the latest generation, global versions and have AT&T wireless coverage:

• Kindle (6" Display, Global Wireless) ($219.99)
• Kindle DX (9.7" Display, Global Wireless) ($415.99)

There are a few other bargains that Amazon has in their Kindle Warehouse Deals, which change quite frequently. I've seen the Mighty Bright XtraFlex2 Clip-On Light for $12.99 and a number of Kindle covers there at similar discounts.